It’s weirdly polarizing. You either watch it through your fingers while cringing at Miranda’s latest life choices, or you’re unironically checking the brand of Carrie’s new handbag before the credits even roll. When you look at how And Just Like That rated across the major platforms, the numbers tell a story of a show that people love to hate, yet can’t seem to stop streaming. It’s a messy, loud, expensive evolution of Sex and the City that has forced its audience to grow up, whether they wanted to or not.
The data is all over the place. On Rotten Tomatoes, you’ll see a massive gulf between what the professional critics think and what the "regular" viewers are screaming about in the comments. Season one sat at a lukewarm 57% from critics, but the audience score plummeted much lower. By season two, things stabilized a bit, but the conversation stayed heated. Why? Because this isn't just a sitcom anymore. It's a cultural lightning rod for discussions about aging, "woke" culture, and how much a legacy brand can change before it loses its soul.
The Brutal Reality of the IMDb and Rotten Tomatoes Scores
If you just glance at the raw numbers, you’d think the show was a disaster. It isn’t. But the way And Just Like That rated on IMDb—hovering around a 5.7/10—suggests a deep-seated frustration from the hardcore fanbase.
Most of the negative reviews aren't actually about the cinematography or the acting. Sarah Jessica Parker, Cynthia Nixon, and Kristin Davis are doing the work. They’re professionals. The low ratings usually stem from a sense of betrayal. Fans who spent twenty years rewatching the original series on DVD felt a sharp sting when the revival killed off Mr. Big in the first episode and then proceeded to dismantle Miranda Hobbes’ entire personality.
Critics were a bit kinder, mostly because they recognized the ambition. Writing for The New York Times, James Poniewozik noted that the show was trying to do something difficult: acknowledging that time actually passes. It’s not 1998. The characters can't just talk about shoes and cosmopolitans while the world burns. But that shift in tone created a friction that many viewers found abrasive. They wanted comfort food; they got a lecture on gender identity and podcasting.
Why the Audience Score Doesn't Tell the Whole Story
Numbers are hollow without context. While the show's user ratings were tanking, the actual viewership numbers were skyrocketing. Max (formerly HBO Max) reported that the premiere was the most-watched series debut on the platform at the time.
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This is the "hate-watch" phenomenon. You might give a show one star on a review site while simultaneously clearing your schedule to watch the next episode the second it drops at midnight. We see this all the time with reboots. People feel a sense of ownership over Carrie Bradshaw. When she does something they don't like—like fumbling a conversation about technology or failing to call 911 immediately when Big collapsed—they punish the show in the ratings.
But Max cares about minutes watched. And by that metric, the show is a juggernaut. It’s why we’re getting a third season despite the internet's collective groan.
Comparing the Original Sex and the City to the Revival
The original show was a fantasy. It was a pre-9/11, pre-social media bubble where a newspaper columnist could afford a sprawling Upper East Side apartment and a closet full of Manolos. And Just Like That rated differently because it punctured that bubble.
- The Absence of Samantha Jones: Let’s be real. Kim Cattrall’s absence is the elephant in the room. Samantha provided the levity and the unapologetic edge that balanced Carrie’s neuroses. Without her, the show felt heavy. That heaviness reflected in the early reviews.
- Diversity and Inclusion: The original was "colorblind" in the worst way—it just didn't have many people of color. The revival overcompensated in season one, introducing Che Diaz, Seema Patel, Lisa Todd Wexley, and Dr. Nya Wallace all at once. It felt forced to some, leading to lower "authenticity" ratings from critics who felt the new characters were being used as props for the original trio's "growth."
- The Wealth Gap: In 2024 and beyond, watching incredibly wealthy people complain about their "struggles" hits differently than it did in the early 2000s. The show is now more about extreme wealth than it is about dating.
Honestly, the show is better when it leans into the absurdity of its own privilege. When Seema loses a Birkin or Carrie buys an entire house just because she’s sad, the show finds its footing. It’s the attempts at being "relatable" that usually fail.
The Che Diaz Factor
You can't talk about how the show was received without talking about Che Diaz. Sara Ramírez’s character became the most divisive figure in modern television history. Some viewers saw Che as a necessary disruption to the status quo. Others saw them as a walking caricature of every "cringe" trope imaginable.
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The subreddit for the show became a literal battlefield over this character. When And Just Like That rated poorly during the middle of the first season, a huge chunk of that was a direct reaction to the Miranda/Che storyline. It wasn't just that Miranda was leaving Steve; it was that she seemed to be losing her mind in the process. Fans don't like seeing their heroes act like teenagers when they’re in their mid-50s.
The Technical Side: Production Value vs. Scripting
Visually? The show is a ten. The fashion is still the fourth lead character. Costumers Molly Rogers and Danny Santiago had shoes to fill—literally, Patricia Field’s shoes—and they did it. Every frame of the show looks like a million bucks because it probably cost that much to light it.
However, the pacing is where the ratings took a hit. Episodes often feel bloated, stretching past the 40-minute mark without the tight, punchy joke structure of the original 30-minute HBO format. The transition from "half-hour comedy" to "prestige dramedy" was bumpy. It’s hard to be funny when you’re also trying to process grief, alcoholism, and the nuances of non-binary identity.
How to Navigate the Show Today
If you’re looking at the ratings and wondering if you should bother, here’s the truth: don't trust the 1-star reviews, and don't trust the 5-star reviews either. The truth is in the middle.
- Watch for the nostalgia, but lower your expectations. It’s not a time machine. It won't make you feel like you’re 22 again.
- Acknowledge the Season 2 pivot. The writers clearly listened to the feedback. Season two is significantly lighter, funnier, and feels more like the "old" show while keeping the new characters integrated.
- Pay attention to Seema. Sarita Choudhury is the breakout star. She brings the "Samantha energy" without trying to copy Kim Cattrall.
The way And Just Like That rated is ultimately a reflection of our own complicated relationship with the past. We want our favorite characters to stay exactly as they were, frozen in amber. But they didn't. They got older, they got richer, and they got weirder.
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Practical Insights for the Casual Viewer
If you’re diving in now, start with the understanding that the first season is a "grief" season. It's heavy. It’s awkward. It’s meant to be. If you can get through the cringey moments of the first few episodes, the show eventually finds a rhythm.
Stop checking the IMDb score after every episode. It’s being review-bombed by people who haven't even watched the show but are mad about "politics." Instead, look at the specific critiques regarding the writing. The show is at its best when it focuses on the friendship between the women. When it strays too far into separate B-plots for the new characters, it loses momentum.
To get the most out of it, treat it as a brand-new show that happens to have familiar faces. If you keep comparing it to a version of New York that no longer exists, you’re going to hate it. If you accept it as a messy look at life after fifty in a post-pandemic world, you might actually find yourself enjoying the ride.
Next Steps for Fans:
- Check out the official "And Just Like That... The Writers Room" podcast. It explains a lot of the controversial choices and might make you hate certain plot points a little less.
- Follow the costume designers on Instagram to see the details you missed on screen; the "Easter eggs" in the outfits are often better than the dialogue.
- Re-watch the "Sex and the City" finale before starting season two of the revival to see how the character arcs actually do (or don't) connect over the decades.