Steve & Miranda Were Never A Good Couple

Spoilers ahead for And Just Like That Episode 8.

Since And Just Like That premiered in December, Sex and the City fans have been united in one cause – well, one cause other than their hatred for Che Diaz. That’s that Steve Brady deserves better. Many have criticized the show’s writers for transforming the character into a cranky old man, while others have said the reboot has ruined Steve (David Eigenberg) and Miranda (Cynthia Nixon) entirely. But I’m here to tell you that Steve and Miranda were never a good couple and we should have all seen their downfall coming.

From their very first meeting in Season 2, Miranda was dismissive of Steve. She looked down on him for being a mere bartender, made fun of him in front of her friends, and insisted he was not a serious romantic prospect. As they developed their relationship, she consistently put her work before him and got annoyed when he made a big deal out of things that meant something to him because they seemed unimportant to her, like meeting his mother or taking a relaxing honeymoon. She didn’t even come down to watch him practice his million dollar half-court shot when he asked her to!

Steve, of course, was not without his flaws. He was insecure about his financial standing in comparison to Miranda’s, which was admittedly toxic. He also famously cheated on Miranda in the first Sex and the City movie – something that, it’s worth mentioning, Miranda was heartbroken about at the time. But overall, Steve has been one of the few good love interests on a show filled with sh*tty men. He’s kind. Attentive. Incredible in bed. And it’s clear that he’s always loved Miranda for exactly who she is. He wasn’t scared away by her doubts and cynicism or her many neuroses, becoming the kind of calming and stabilizing boyfriend that most single women around the world are currently trying to manifest via TikTok. Above all, Steve believed in his and Miranda’s love through every breakup, quarrel, and big life transition. He was there for her as a partner, a friend, and eventually as a co-parent after she gave birth to their son Brady. But sometimes love is not enough to keep a marriage together – particularly if it’s one-sided.

When And Just Like That picks up, Miranda and Steve’s relationship has staled. They haven’t had sex in years, Miranda is drinking heavily, and she can barely converse with Steve, who has lost his hearing and for some reason now behaves like a senile old man (he is only 55!). Soon, Miranda develops a crush on Carrie’s (Sarah Jessica Parker) new boss Che (Sara Ramirez), and in a scene that none of us will ever be able to unsee, gets fingered by them in Carrie’s kitchen while Carrie quietly pees her bed. Afterward, Miranda finally admits she hates her life – and most of all, she hates her marriage.

By Episode 8, Che and Miranda have been having an affair for weeks. But when Che finds out Miranda is not in fact in an open marriage, as they assumed, they threaten to walk away. This gives Miranda the push she needs to ask Steve for a divorce. She tells him she’s unhappy in their marriage, that she wants more than their life together, and that she has been sleeping with someone else.

Miranda goes into this conversation sure that Steve will be on the same page as her. But it turns out that Steve is perfectly happy. He is content with their house in Brooklyn, their little dessert ritual, their family. As Steve points out, it’s exactly this that has always been at the core of their problems. He’s never been enough for her, and each time they’ve had this argument, he’s fought for them as a couple while Miranda waffled. Now, he is done fighting. “I'm too old to rally for us again,” Steve tells her. “I don't want to.”

It’s time for us, as a fandom, to stop fighting for them too.