I'm a Guy and I Love 'Sex and the City.' All Of It
Pop-Ed: I'm not trying to be ironic. I'm not trying to be proud. I'm not even trying to score points with the ladies. And I'm certainly not apologizing. I'm just saying I'm a (straight) man, I've seen and enjoyed all of 'Sex and the City,' dug the movie
and I'm psyched for the sequel. And I feel like I'm the only one.
I sometimes wish I could write off the fashiony, gossipy adventures of Carrie, Samantha, Miranda and Charlotte as a guilty pleasure, but in truth I spend more time shrugging my shoulders, misunderstanding why guys avoid the show the way they avoid buying tampons or watching 'The Bachelorette.'
Read about my love affair with 'Sex' after the jump.
When the complete DVD set turned up on my then-girlfriend's doorstep in all its pink, velvet glory, I'd never seen an episode. I grumbled and tried to make jokes at the show's expense -- this was being forced to watch 'Moulin Rouge' all over again -- and, like that fabulous musical that charmed me when I least expected it, 'Sex and the City' surprised the hell outta me. It was like finding my sister's Cosmopolitan (the magazine, not the Carrie-and-co-endorsed cocktail), making sure no one was looking and pawing through pages from the minds of women, for women. It was like that, only much more entertaining, less obsessed with 75 boilerplate bedroom tips and with nudity galore. I laughed a lot, became invested in the characters and just really enjoyed the show.
The glitzy New Yorkiness of it all, watching in small-town Maine and dreaming of moving to the city, was intensely alluring. Since living and writing in New York, I've seen firsthand that Carrie's columnist-in-a-huge-apartment-buying-thousands-of-shoes lifestyle is fantasy BS (and that cabs
do go to Brooklyn, Miranda, and real-life people commute from that supposed nether-realm each and every day), but I
just don't care. Carrie and her ilk are well-written characters who, when you move past the headlines and the misconceptions, can span more demographics than reason would suggest.
This isn't to say I couldn't see the show's flaws, and the same went for the 2008 movie. There was plenty not to like -- after six seasons of Carrie and Big's will-they-won't-they, I just wanted to see them
together, not fighting and being depressed -- but, just like I approach my Stephen King fanaticism (which is way out of hand), I treat the movie and the series like a relationship: Recognize the major imperfections, ignore the small ones and try to love it as a whole. I thought the movie rocked a fairly unblazed trail in taking a TV serial and continuing its thread on the silver screen. When it came to critics' opinions -- particularly as time has passed these two years -- and even regular old friends, I felt more and more like a loner in my unrepentant fandom of the flick.
Now the sequel. Again, I'm excited. When I saw the first trailer with my gal, I nudged her and said we'd need to go, even if it was under the guise of
her wanting to see it. I gasped -- a
little, just a little, guys! -- when I saw Aidan pop up. I sunk into the familiar viewing groove when I heard Carrie's narration over the shimmery shots of Manhattan. Hell, I'm excited to see Liza Minnelli's
take on Beyonce's 'Single Ladies.'
I'll be there on opening weekend, sticking out like a sore thumb and not caring, but still wondering ... where are the others like me?
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My best guy friend is straight and he loves SatC.
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If you are a guy and you watch the show for reasons other than nudity, then I am sorry to tell you, but you are gay. You may not admit it, you may not be aware of it. It may be something that resides deep down in you and you haven't yet touched on it, but it is there.
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i find that people who are more concerned about other people's sexuality have deep questions about their own....
Marc L: you are an idiot.
Mark L is 100% correct; sorry.
And how exactly would you know this?
You're not alone. I too enjoyed the series, the movie, and am looking forward to the sequel. I actually put my gf on to the series because she hadn't seen it before we got together.
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you need spellcheck. should have said " I'm a gay..."
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The toughest part of being a guy that likes sex and the city is telling your parents you're gay.
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I bet show tunes are high on your list also !
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You are not alone. My husband, as well as a couple of my ex-boyfriends LOVED Sex and the City. I never understood why men liking anything to do with women made them gay. Isn't that a stupid contradiction. Shouldn't straight men LIKE shows about WOMEN. Now, if you were addicted to Queer As Folk, I might have my suspicions.
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naybe why they are EX-BOYFRIENDS are becuase the leaned a little more to the other chromosome than YOURS
Ya straight but curious.....
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QUEER! Straight men can't relate to 100 outfit changes and gratuitious jewerly and hat clips in SEX IN THE CITY movies.
"Let Ride a Camel in Chanel"...not gonna happen for Joe Average.
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Who says they have to relate? I'm a woman and I don't relate to that crap, but I still loved the series.
If you like Sex and the City, you are a guy, and you watch it for other reasons than the nudity, then you are indeed gay. There's nothing wrong with that though, that's just the way it is; accept it and move on.
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shoot if you want nudity watch a porn. There really isn't that much nudity.
Sorry, but not even (straight) girls are excited for that sequel.
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That's the vibe I've been getting, Lindsey. I know a lot of guys AND girls, straight and gay, who either didn't like the first movie or simply aren't excited about the second one at all.
Turn in your man-card. You're out of the club!
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