Image Source: HBO Max

Reviews of the first two episodes of Sex and the citythe next chapter, And just like that …, flock, with notes on the characters’ relationships, where they are and where they ended up, all relating to the original series. Fashion is getting criticism too – but that was before the episodes even came out, thanks to the internet, the paparazzi, and the age of Instagram sharing (and over-sharing). “Coming out of a trailer on that series, it was like the Roman Coliseum. You come out of a trailer, there was paparazzi, they were posted immediately, and you immediately gave your thumbs up, you live, or thumbs down, you die, and the tigers are set free, “costume designer Molly Rogers told me when we spoke on the phone about the reboot and the expectations of Sarah Jessica Parker, Cynthia Nixon and Kristin. Davis as they reprise their roles as Carrie, Miranda, and Charlotte, respectively.

Molly and codesigner Danny Santiago took the lead in the wardrobe for And just like that … (with Patricia Field already engaged in Emilie in Paris). But Molly is something of a Sex and the city full veteran; having worked with Field on the set of the original series and both films, his relationships with the characters and actors are steeped in history. “Honestly, believe me or not, there was no pressure because, like a lot of viewers, I grew up with the girls. I was in all of their fittings with Pat, and it was like a week at home. It was like a reunion. So we would be at a mall in Florida before we came to New York and we would be, ‘Oh my God, I can’t wait to show this to Sarah Jessica.’ It was so familiar, ”Molly explained when I asked about the pressure to style women for this sequel, when looks were almost as central to the story of SATC than their relationships. There were expectations, sure, but Molly and Danny weren’t in the way: “I wasn’t going to let external judgments ruin my dream job and the fun I was having and what we were trying to create afterwards. coming out of a pandemic, and we’re still not completely out of it. I was like, “I don’t have time for negativity, and I don’t want it to be around me. “”

It’s that positivity – a sort of perspective half-full of a martini glass – that seemed to be Molly’s guiding force since she joined the show: “When I got the call in March he was going. there to be a continuation of the show and there was going to be 10 episodes, I was so excited to come out of a global pandemic and this particular type of show, that I wanted it to be a party because that’s what how I felt. reuniting with the crew and the cast and meeting new people and new characters, and I was just excited and not concerned about the chunky shoes I was filling or the show’s legacy. I just tried it on. to realize that we were going to move the series into the future. ” That’s the big question many of us are asking: how do we move this iconic set of women into the future without disappointing the fans who knew and loved them in the specific context in which they were first conceived and presented. time ?

Image source: Getty / Gotham

Above: Sarah Jessica Parker on set, wearing the dress that has gone viral.

“My first reaction was, ‘Let’s see what the scripts are going to talk about, that will guide us.’ Because they’re in 2021, and the world has changed so much since we last saw them in the last movie. For Danny and I, moving girls to the future and their style meant introducing new designers, and you have a time so much longer reach, wider reach, global reach, than we did in the original series, that it was really about bringing new things for girls to see because the DNA style of their characters is so strong. Yeah, they’ve moved on because the world has, but Carrie’s still experimental, and Charlotte’s still a sophisticated romantic, and Miranda, OK, her hair color has changed, but we’ve all got it. done a million times. “

Part of that “evolution” – the novelty – was immediately sniffed out by fans, who saw iterations of female looks leaked on Instagram and cast their disapproval. One example – a bohemian maxi dress Carrie wears layered over a button with a Louis Vuitton bag in tow – has gone viral; that’s the one moment that maybe pissed off Molly a bit during the process: “The only thing that really pissed me off was the shameful style we got when people suspected that [Carrie] had been in a Forever 21 dress which was incorrect, that we couldn’t defend ourselves – or I didn’t want to because if you start defending yourself then you are going to answer for everything. I didn’t say a word. I knew it wasn’t. I knew she was bought six years ago at a thrift store, and didn’t have a label, and there’s a reason she wears this kind of dress. And I was really pissed off when we were crucified for it because that was the first thing that went viral, and. . . We are there, fighting for the fans, working and having fun. . . And they didn’t have the exact facts, so it created this little dot on the horizon of negativity, and we just pushed it forward. “

Undeterred by the reviews, Molly and Danny have found magic in their style, their storytelling. This sometimes meant linking the characters to archival material from the original series. This part makes the reboot undeniably special – maybe this is even one of the reasons why so many diehards SATC fans (and fashion fans in general) tune in to see what Carrie – or one of the women – might be wearing again. “I mean, what show can do that?” Molly marveled, “This is really amazing. ‘Oh, let’s go get the Roger belt and put it on a dress. AJLT.

Image Source: HBO Max

It’s the thing with the looks of this show that we lose if we judge them on a photo or an Instagram post, because they are not only pieces, not only Manolos. On screen – and on Carrie – they’re part of her story. These blue Manolos will always mean Something, and no fan will look at a pair of blue Hangisi pumps the same way. This way, we don’t just watch the show for the clothes; we look to see How? ‘Or’ What Carrie wears them – what she’s imagining and how she’s going to put it together, whether it’s a belt worn over her bare abs when shopping for a wedding dress or a tutu on the streets of Paris. That’s what Molly comes back to, recalling the original series and the effect it had on its viewers. “Do you think people can still take advantage of this? She asked me. “Or do you think the climate of the world is [different]; you will always watch And just like that … and saying to you, ‘I wouldn’t put this shoe on with that.’ I’m just wondering if people are able to escape. “That’s a good question, given some of the early flashbacks they faced before the episodes even aired. But I’m hopeful him. I said. Yet I couldn’t help but wonder if And just like that … can remove it.