What I don’t understand about And Just Like That…, the Sex and the City reboot, is that if you’re going to go for all the stereotypical laments about aging, why glaze over the most obvious one?Menopause has long been considered a taboo topic, and the way that it’s been handled in the series seems to confirm this. While hardly a sexy topic, hearing aids, gray hair, colonoscopies, and having a plastic surgery consult or hip replacement surgery aren’t, either.
It took until Episode 9 for the series to make any significant mention of this major event—and it was ultimately played for laughs. Charlotte brightly announces that she thinks she’s done. “I haven’t gotten my period in four months, so I think I’m finally in menopause!”
“Welcome to the club. Prepare to be sweaty,” says Miranda.
“Actually it’s funny,” Charlotte continues. “I haven’t gotten any hot flashes or breast tenderness or brain fog or any of those awful symptoms you guys had.”
The underlying message is that some lucky women get to escape the icky symptoms, and if you’re not one of the lucky ones, your experience is best left unmentioned. Then the scene ends.
The actual cessation of your periods is the least of it. Those “awful symptoms” can go on for years —both before the bleeding stops and after—and greatly affects a woman’s quality of life. Besides, there is the psychological aspect to contend with: Often, an unexpected sense of loss and anguish can surround the perceived end of femininity. But, wait—Charlotte’s not “done” quite yet. At the end of the episode, she gets a “flash period” all over her white jumpsuit, and that sight gag wraps up her brief flirtation with menopause. It looks like Steve isn’t the only one getting short-changed in AJLT.
As a 53-year-old woman who loved SATC, I was looking forward to catching up with the women. I was keen to see them shine some light on the harsh realities we’ve all been facing since we last met. How would our beloved characters handle changing physiques, sex and waning libido, mood swings, brain fog, hot flashes and the myriad ways menopause can force internal and external reckonings? There was a great opportunity to use a popular platform to alter the conversation around “The Change” (or critique the lack thereof)—but no.
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