That could explain why all pretense of originality disappeared this season, as a host of new shows grasped unapologetically at Sex's legacy. ABC's Big Shots gave us the love lives of four men who came off girlier than Carrie...wearing a feather boa...while shoe shopping. (Did poor Dylan McDermott really have to deliver ''Men — we're the new women'' as an actual line?) As for Cashmere Mafia and Lipstick Jungle, their marketing campaigns — full of skylines and plunging necklines — rely heavily on Sex's iconic imagery, though all involved swear there's no comparison. ''I don't think of this as the next Sex and the City,'' NBC co-chairman Ben Silverman says of Lipstick. ''We just want a female soap that delivers great young audiences.'' And Cashmere star Lucy Liu sees her show and Sex more as siblings than twins. ''The genre has been introduced, and there's a desire for it,'' she says. ''Therefore they're creating shows for it.'' But let's face it: If we decide to watch, it's because we're hoping for a little Sex. Instead we find a party where no one seems to be having much fun. Lucy Liu's magazine publisher Mia gets dumped by her insecure fiancé minutes after beating him out for a promotion. Lipstick's film exec Wendy (Brooke Shields) is fighting bad-mommy accusations in the tabs. Heck, even Lipstick's magazine editor Nico (Kim Raver) can't indulge in a roll in the hay with a hot younger man without getting slapped with harassment charges. We get it — it's hard to have it all. We're pretty sure we learned that from Baby Boom back in 1987.
So what would a true Sex and the City heir look like? ''[Sex] gave voice to a group of people — single women in their 30s,'' Bicks says. ''The question is, Who is the next group who hasn't had a voice yet? I don't think it's anyone sipping a cosmopolitan in a bar.'' Indeed, it's not about drinks, clothes, clubs, pithy puns, snappy slogans, or even — dare we say it? — sex. It's about the coolest, smartest women around, living out TV versions of our lives. Not too long ago, we watched 30 Rock's Liz Lemon (Tina Fey) drunk-dialing the co-op board that rejected her, and we found ourselves relating a little too much. Wouldn't it be nice if she had some great girlfriends to help her through it all? Maybe she could meet a slightly older, wiser Veronica Mars. Or a Mary Tyler Moore, her sweeter but still sassy spiritual sister. Or even an Elaine Benes, who was declaring men ''spongeworthy'' long before Samantha Jones coined her first sexual catchphrase.
Maybe we're onto something — or maybe we've just been watching too much classic TV during the strike. All we know is that until somebody gives Lemon's Ladies a full-season pickup, we — like all fans of Carrie and Co. — will be out on our own quest narrative, searching for the next Sex and the City. No cosmos or Manolos allowed.
You Might Also Like
- TV Review Cashmere Mafia | Henry Goldblatt
- Television News Stylish working women on TV | Tim Stack
- Spotlight Spotlight on Lucy Liu | Jennifer Armstrong
- Television News TV stars' double takes | Lindsay Soll
- Television News Lucy Liu in talks for ''Dirty Sexy Money''
