The second season of Sex and the City, an American television romanticcomedy-drama, aired in the United States on HBO from June 6 to October 3, 1999. Based on the eponymous book written by Candace Bushnell, the series was created by Darren Star and produced by Darren Star Productions, HBO Original Programming, and Warner Bros. Television. Star, Barry Josen and Michael Patrick King served as the series' executive producers. The show follows the relationships and sexual escapades of Carrie Bradshaw, a sex columnist for the fictional New York Star, and her friends Samantha Jones, Charlotte York and Miranda Hobbes.
Season two, comprising 18 episodes, aired on Sunday nights at 9:00 p.m. Eastern Time Zone. The season garnered a more positive reception from critics. The second season saw a rise in ratings from the previous season, averaging a total of nine million viewers. The show continued its award success in season two, garnering various major award nominations for the main cast and the series, including a Golden Globe Award win for Parker.
Carrie meets "the new Yankee", Joe, at a baseball game, all the while preparing for her first post-breakup encounter with Big. Miranda gets fed up with the girls always talking about men. Charlotte dates a guy named Paul Ericson who has a tendency to adjust his package a lot. Samantha gets frustrated with James's "deficiencies".
Carrie accidentally suggests that her friend Susan Sharon leave her domineering, violent husband. Miranda builds up the courage to talk dirty in bed. Charlotte tries to replace the perfect man with the perfect dog. Samantha gets dragged to couples therapy with James and tries to avoid talking about her real problem with their sex life.
Carrie turns freakish herself after dating a string of freaky guys and freaks out the very normal Ben when trying to discover his secret freakiness. Miranda dates "Manhattan Guy," a guy who hasn't left Manhattan in ten years. Charlotte dates the renowned "Mr. Pussy" and tries to make a real relationship out of it. Samantha decides to get plastic surgery and freaks out during the consult.
Single and fabulous Carrie gets a horrible photo taken for the cover story of New York Magazine: Single and Fabulous...?. Miranda fakes orgasms with her current boyfriend. Charlotte starts dating her handyman. Samantha dates a club owner, who calls them a "we" right away.
Carrie starts seeing Mr. Big again. Miranda buys her own apartment on the Upper West Side. Charlotte meets a recent widower at a cemetery. Samantha's actions with a married man gets her in trouble with the New York high-society "ladies who lunch" and only a Titanic star can help her out.
18
6
"The Cheating Curve"
John David Coles
Darren Star
July 11, 1999 (1999-07-11)
206
Carrie starts to "officially" date Mr. Big again. Miranda dates a guy who insists on watching porn while they have sex. Fed up with cheating men, Charlotte spends time with her new friends, the "Power Lesbians." Samantha starts dating her gym instructor who "brands" her with a lightning bolt.
Paintings from the opening art gallery scene are by New York Artist Sally Davies.
Carrie gets fed up with Big's inability to pay attention to her. Miranda inadvertently sets her interior designer up with a long-distance would-be boyfriend, and they marry after only four weeks. Charlotte has a "warp speed" relationship with a guy she meets at the wedding. Samantha is upset when she experiences "déjà-screw": sleeping with a guy she previously did fifteen years ago.
20
8
"The Man, The Myth, The Viagra"
Victoria Hochberg
Michael Patrick King
July 25, 1999 (1999-07-25)
208
A frustrated Carrie tries to get Big to make time to meet the girls. Miranda meets Steve Brady, a cute bartender who wants to be more than a one-night stand. Samantha dates an incredibly wealthy man in his seventies with a sumptuous lifestyle and a pocket full of Viagra.
In a fifth-season look back at the best of the first four seasons, the St. Paul Pioneer Press named this episode #5 on its list of 10 essential Sex and the City episodes, observing "If you're puzzled by the pull the often-slimy Mr. Big has over Carrie, this episode reveals his charm."[1]
Carrie tries to get Big to stop checking out other women when they're together. Miranda and Steve's opposite schedules become a problem. Charlotte is turned off when she dates a man who has not been circumcised and Samantha runs into an old hockey-player boyfriend who is now a blonde drag queen named Samantha.
Carrie gets fed up with high society while at an Upper East Side party with Big. Miranda and Steve have an argument over money and social status. Charlotte meets Wiley Ford, the movie star and joins his entourage. Samantha dates a wealthy real-estate developer with a Southeast Asian live-in servant who has her master wrapped around her little finger.
23
11
"Evolution"
Pam Thomas
Cindy Chupack
August 15, 1999 (1999-08-15)
211
Carrie tries to leave her mark at Big's place by leaving some personal items behind. Miranda finds out that one of her ovaries has stopped producing eggs. Charlotte dates Stefan, a pastry chef who she mistakenly thought was gay but is, in his own words, a "gay straight man". Samantha tries to get revenge on Dominic, her ex who broke her heart.
Carrie is horrified when Big casually tells her he's moving to Paris for seven months. Miranda dates a man who only wants to have sex in places where they might get caught. Charlotte meets Buster, a high-end shoe salesman with a serious foot fetish. Samantha introduces the girls to a hot new S&M restaurant.
Carrie starts going to therapy after obsessing about Big for too long. Offended by the diagnosis of dating men who are wrong for her, she dates cute fellow-patient Seth (Jon Bon Jovi), a guy who loses interest in women after sleeping with them. Miranda plays "peek-a-boo" with her cute across-the-airshaft neighbor. Samantha dates a sports fanatic whose mood depends on who won the game that night.
26
14
"The Fuck Buddy" "The Sex Buddy"
Alan Taylor
Darren Star
September 5, 1999 (1999-09-05)
214
Carrie tries to make a relationship with her "fuck buddy." Miranda dates a condescending lawyer. Charlotte becomes a free-wheeling dater and double-books dates with two guys on the same night. Samantha overhears the couple moaning next door, and decides to outdo them.
Carrie dates an author who has a premature ejaculation problem and finds that she regrets having to break up with his perfect family. Miranda dates a divorced father who has a young son. Charlotte's brother Wesley stays with her after his wife leaves him. Samantha gives Wesley what he really needs: sex.
Notes: Second guest star appearance of Justin Theroux as a different character.
28
16
"Was It Good For You?"
Dan Algrant
Michael Patrick King
September 19, 1999 (1999-09-19)
216
Carrie dates a recovering alcoholic who becomes obsessed with her. Charlotte is determined to learn how to have good sex after her latest partner falls asleep on her, and drags the girls to a Tantric sex class. Samantha gets an offer to have a threesome with two curious gay friends.
In 2007, this episode was in the news for being part of research conducted by Ellie Parker and Adrian Furnham of the Department of Psychology at University College London. In a study[2] released online in advance of its publication in Applied Cognitive Psychology, Parker and Furnham investigated an audience's ability to recall advertisements under varying circumstances. In comparing advertisements placed in "Was It Good For You?"[3] vs. those placed in an episode of Malcolm in the Middle, the researchers discovered that "programs heavy on sexual content actually lead to less recall of ads that appear in commercial breaks"[4] and that sex was only an effective tool for selling to men.
29
17
"Twenty-Something Girls vs. Thirty-Something Women"
Darren Star
Darren Star
September 26, 1999 (1999-09-26)
217
Carrie unexpectedly runs into Mr. Big—and his new 20-something girlfriend, Natasha—at a Hamptons party. Miranda tries in vain to have some mature fun in the Hamptons. Charlotte pretends to be 27 so she can date a cute 26-year-old named Greg. Samantha's 25-year-old former assistant is hired to throw a big Hamptons party using her Rolodex for the guest list.
30
18
"Ex and the City"
Michael Patrick King
Michael Patrick King
October 3, 1999 (1999-10-03)
218
After learning of Big's engagement, a freaked-out Carrie tries to cope with the ramifications. Miranda sleeps with Steve for the first time after their breakup. Charlotte tries to overcome her fear of horseback riding. Samantha dates a guy who's "Mr. Too-Big", determined to overcome his over-endowment.
Season two featured four actors receiving star billing. Sarah Jessica Parker played the lead character Carrie Bradshaw, a writer of a sex column, "Sex and the City", for the fictional New York Star newspaper and the narrator of the series.[5]Kim Cattrall portrayed Samantha Jones, a sexually confident public relations agent who follows the same relationship rules that men do.[6]Kristin Davis played Charlotte York, an optimistic art museum curator who holds traditional views on relationships.[7]Cynthia Nixon portrayed Miranda Hobbes, an acerbic lawyer with a pessimistic outlook on relationship and a distrust of men.[8]
The season featured a number of recurring guest appearances. Chris Noth appeared as the slick, elusive business man and Carrie's love interest known as Mr. Big.[9]Willie Garson portrayed Carrie's gay best friend and talent manager Stanford Blatch.[10]David Eigenberg appears as bartender and Miranda's love interest Steve Brady.[11]Ben Weber played Skipper Johnson, Carrie's friend and Miranda's on-off friend with benefits.
Reception
Critical reception
The second season averaged a total viewership of 9 million viewers, up from last season's average of 6.9 million.[12]
Lloyd Paseman of Eugene Register-Guard gave the series a 4 star (out of 5) rating, praising the ensemble performance by the cast, the realistic nature of the characters and the writing.[13] Terry Kelleher of People Weekly wrote a positive review, stating that the series is funnier in season two due to Miranda's choice in men. Kelleher then deemed it "The Man Show's smarter flip side."[14]
^Hewitt, Chris (July 28, 2002). "Here are the 10 best ways to get caught up on 'Sex'". Pioneer Press, pg. E1.
^Parker, Ellie; Furnham, Adrian (2007). "Does sex sell? The effect of sexual programme content on the recall of sexual and non-sexual advertisements". Applied Cognitive Psychology. 21 (9): 1217–1228. doi:10.1002/acp.1325.
