Sanitized and the City

A few weeks ago they replaced my 11pm showing of Friends with Sex and the City. While I didn’t really watch Friends when it was new, it was just what I needed to unwind and numb my mind before drifting off peacefully to sleep on my fantastic memory foam pillow. (I’ve noticed that I like sitcoms a lot better in syndication. It must have something to do with the lack of pressure to be new and exciting.) Now my pillow is starting to age, and my sitcom has moved to 11:30 and sleep has not been so peaceful.

Here is how I frame the shows:

Friends:

A mixed group of 20-something friends (who started out younger than I am now, I should add) trying to find themselves—careers, love, other personal relationships. They’re young and in that transition period of their lives, so it’s ok that they’re not established. And there are various animals and nasal-y ex girlfriends to keep the mood light. And the show is a comedy, sometimes even bordering on farce.

Sex and the City:

A group of 30-something women who have very little in common, yet have a very strong bond—this is actually refreshing. These women are well established with fantastic careers and apartments, yet their love lives are disasters. As Miranda said in an episode last week (before she stormed off because she didn’t have a boyfriend), they’re bright and interesting, yet all they can talk about is men. It’s horribly depressing, the show is all about problems and unhappiness. I figured all my young person problems would magically disappear at age 30 or so, to be replaced by old person problems.

At the height of popularity, or maybe still, it was vogue for gals to compare themselves and their friends to the show’s characters. The KTLA commercials reinforce this. Everyone wanted to be Carrie. And I said from the beginning, being Carrie is exactly what I don’t want to be. (and I never found Sarah Jessica Parker to be that attractive)

Carrie is the most neutral, and the leader, and everyone thinks they want to be leader. But, she has the most money issues, least stable job, worst apartment, most trouble with men, and a retarded addiction to shoes that you can’t walk in. I haven’t seen the last season, but I’m sure the resolution with Big will be completely unsatisfying for me.

Once you get rid of all the nudity and swearing it turns out that this show is horribly depressing.

I used to like Sex and the City. But, I don’t think I should continue to watch it before bed, it’ll probably start giving me spinsterhood nightmares.

UPDATE: I did have a spinsterhood nightmare!