And Just Like That … Aidan returns to sap the life out of Sex and the City

We only get about three seconds of Aidan in the new And Just Like That trailer, and it’s still three seconds too many.

In a classic case of saving the worst to last, they leave his return until the end, but everything before that looked quite fun.

Aidan wanted to settle down; Big wanted to go downtown.

This will be a season of change, a time to celebrate all that is new and exciting in the Sex and the City universe. We see Carrie having exit out-of-grief sex with that podcast producer guy, Che and Miranda taking important steps as a fresh couple, and Charlotte being upset she’s not on the MILF list at her child’s school. OK, that is pretty bang-on for Charlotte, but it’s a bonkers plot line, so it should stay.

But right as it seemed that season two of the series could finally break free of its legacy and look to the future, along comes Aidan “I make my own furniture” Shaw. And just like that…I couldn’t help but wonder what is the possible justification for bringing back the show’s largest handbrake?

This is not the first time I’ve had this argument, but it’s a hill I am prepared to revisit and subsequently die on; such is my anti-Aidan agenda. It appears that in this world, there are two types of people, those who love Aidan and those who love Big.

On the show, Carrie’s two great love interests represented more than just men in her life; they were different versions of a happily-ever-after.

Aidan was good, and Big was bad. Aidan was home-cooked meals and country music; Big was whisky for dinner and jazz for dessert. Aidan wanted to settle down; Big wanted to go downtown.

It was your classic chalk-and-cheese situation, and in the middle of all this was Carrie, who pinballed between the two guys for a few seasons. But no matter how hard they tried to thrust Aidan and his wholesome “Aww shucks” vibe upon us, it was clear that Big was The One.

Obviously, we all know how that worked out but between his character’s death by Peloton and the real-life accusations against Chris Noth, I don’t want to get bogged down in the Big Fat Drama of it all. But just because Big is gone doesn’t mean we should settle for slinking back to Aidan.

The problem with Aidan is that he was your classic BGNGD (Bad Guy Nice Guy Disguise).

Sarah Jessica Parker and John Corbett are seen on set of And Just Like That...Credit: Gotham/GC Images

He presented as the dream boat ready to sweep Carrie off her feet and whisk her away to his picturesque summer shack in Upstate New York. But much like his actual shack, it was all a facade. Looks great from the outside, but once you spend a weekend there, you realise it’s awful.

A brief history of Aidan’s problematic behaviour, if I may. From the get-go, he seemed to despise everything Carrie loved, specifically smoking, shoes and having fun. Now it’s fine if you and your partner have different interests; variety is the spice of life and all that, but belittling them because of it is not so fine.

And yet, that is how Aidan consistently chose to handle their differences.

Whether issuing Carrie an ultimatum to quit smoking (big red flag), judging her for having too many shoes (because he has probably been wearing the same pair of Redwings since he was born), or getting annoyed because she preferred not to spend Saturday night eating KFC on the couch, Aidan was passive-aggressive and pious, a terrible combination. He also used the word “pop tart” as a pet name which is more of an annoying aside but worth noting.

Good guy Aidan with his good guy baby.

Even his big grand gesture of buying Carrie’s apartment – as well as the adjacent unit – in season four (we get it, he’s The Guy Next Door) turned toxic when they broke up, and he gave her 30 days to vacate: bad luck, pop tart.

Carrie is far from perfect and often annoying, but at least she owns it - and the same with Big. They were flawed characters, but that was part of their charm, whereas Aidan is sold as The Total Package, the one that got away.

Despite all his holier-than-thou grandstanding, it’s also worth remembering that the last time we saw Aidan was in the second Sex and the City movie when he kissed Carrie - despite being married with kids. Like most fans of the series, I don’t consider these films part of SATC canon, but still, a bit rich from old mate Aidan.

Arguably the worst thing about Aidan is that he was just a bit boring to watch, which is a significant issue when the show is meant to be the purest form of escapism.

This brings us back to And Just Like That… and a set of characters who are in their 50s now. Considering Aidan acted like a 50-year-old when he was in his 30s, he’ll be about 70 in Sex and the City years. And Just Like That… I’m tuning out.

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