Sex and the Cityis a show that made the men sit back and let the women rule the screen. Following four friends in New York, the show detailed the trials and tribulations of being single and dating, while also portraying female friendship at its finest. Though some of its content is quite dated now, the show remains a classic. Carrie (Sarah Jessica Parker), Samantha (Kim Cattrall), Charlotte (Kristin Davis), and Miranda (Cynthia Nixon) are the ladies in charge, and we love to watch them do their thing, but we don’t always lovethemas people. Each character has their flaws, as does everyone, but when it comes to television characters, it can be harder to find the lovable parts about them.
Carrie Bradshaw kind of sucks, even though she’s the show’s leading lady and narrator. But she’s actually not the one we want to talk about. Instead, Miranda Hobbes is the hot topic of choice. Now it must be prefaced that the actress who plays Miranda is not in the hot seat: Cynthia Nixon is wonderful at her job, and the lovable pest of Miranda shines through because of her acting prowess. However, the show doesn’t do the character many favors and often writes her as a cynical know-it-all.
Miranda Is Not a Very Nice Person in ‘Sex and the City’
Miranda has been the target of much internet debate sinceAnd Just Like That…premiered, but while she certainly had her moments, she’s actuallya better character in the sequel series. In it, she’s a lot looser and more relaxed, whereas in the original series, she’s constantly wound tight and in turn has a sour attitude about everything and everyone. She was a great friend, we’ll give her that, but the rest of the time? Not so much.
Most of Miranda’s flawssimply come down to her attitude. While sarcasm is often a trait that works in TV characters, especially in sitcoms (we all love Chandler Bing, don’t we?) Miranda’s sarcastic remarks often lean more toward the serious and cruel side of things. Sometimes they come off as intended, but more often than not her words genuinely sting. Remember when Steve (David Eigenberg) met her friends for the first time and he was making jokes about bartenders being good at making and serving drinks. Rather than simply laughing with the rest of the group, Miranda snarkily replies by saying “And if you want a good fuck, you go home with one.” Yikes. It’s so rough not even Samantha laughs, and she’s always quick to mock men. In fact, Miranda’s entire treatment of Steve is a glaring reason for her being unlikable.
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Upon a recent rewatch, it’s clear just how terribly she treated Steve. Now granted, Steve was quite pushy in the beginning, so he’s not completely devoid of criticism, but he did genuinely care about Miranda, and the same can’t really be said for her. She often belittled Steve and treated him like dirt for literally no reason. It was like she refused to let herself be happy with him, or even open herself up to the possibility of being happy with him because she couldn’t get over the fact that he was a bartender. It became a sort of trend that she looked down on people who were less successful than her. It’s fine that she’s proud of her career and her success, but at the cost of being a decent person?
In Addition To Being Rude, Miranda Is Also a Bummer
Aside from being flat-out rude to pretty much everyone all the time,Miranda was also kind of a mood killer. She had a “my way or the highway” attitude that never lent well to the show’s vibe. If she didn’t like the conversation, or didn’t have something to contribute to it, she would make that obvious. If she didn’t agree with a choice one of her friends made she’d make it blatantly clear. She always saw the negative side of things and tried to drag everyone down with her. It’s honestly exhausting to watch her because it feels like she’s rarely happy. Part of this could be due to the fact that Miranda was always in weird situations, and then would react dramatically because it wasn’t something she wanted or liked. She was never one to be overly excited or rowdy, even on a night out with her friends. She is a more reserved character, but surely she could let loose every once in a while. Heck, Charlotte does, and she’s by far the most buttoned-up and proper of them all. We want to see Miranda have fun and be genuinely happy!
Personally, Miranda’s character inAnd Just Like That…preferable overSex and the City, but the criticism of her character in the sequel series is valid. The person who sums Miranda up the best is Steve. In the Episode 6 of Season 2, Miranda confronts Steve about his search for an apartment.She’s been exploring her sexuality with Che(Sara Ramirez), since her split with Steve, and wants him to move out. He tells her that he hasn’t even been looking for a place. Miranda throws it in his face that her name is on the mortgage for the house, but Steve is having none of it and finally unleashes all the hurt and anger Miranda has left him with. “I made it! This kitchen, I built it. It was a shithole before I did everything. I did everything here! This floor. The fireplace. The fucking bookshelf. All of it — it’s my house. You never wanted to come here to Brooklyn. You never wanted me. You never even wanted Brady (Niall Cunningham). So why don’t you find a new place and get the fuck out of our lives?”
As harsh as his words are, he’s not wrong, and it was about time someone finally got the guts to give her attitude right back to her. The comment about Brady was a bit unnecessary, but everything else? We can’t help but be onteam Steve, who has always deserved better. Miranda has consistently resided on a high horse, and no matter how hard we try, it is so hard to get past her unlikable qualities. We have to give credit where credit is due, but even that is hard to find at times. It’s time we just admit to ourselves that Miranda has kind of always sucked, and thatthis new era of her onAnd Just Like Thatis one hell of a step up from who she used to be.
