And Just Like That Season 2 Episode 4 Recap: Sorry But You'll Never Look at Mayo the Same Way Again

And if you thought Miranda's return to NYC meant a Che break, think again!

Is And Just Like That getting better or are we as viewers acclimatizing to its badness? Maybe there’s nowhere to go but up since the season opened with luke-warm strap-on humor and Che’s L.A. joke about Ubering betwixt bed and toilet.

Many devoted viewers like myself have been wondering how this show descended to its current station. So many talented actors, writers, etc. work on it that it has to be executives meddling and giving notes. I’ve decided to blame David Zaslav, CEO of Max parent company Warner Bros. Discovery. Zaslav has been credited with killing the HBO part of HBO Max. And this week, it was revealed that one of his flacks called GQ to complain about freelance writer Jason Bailey’s piece declaring him “the most hated man in Hollywood” — which so many journalists and people in general do every day! — resulting in the magazine softening the piece before pulling it entirely. (You can read the original here anyway.) Variety reported that GQ Editor-in-Chief Will Welch, one of two staff who received the complaint, is also a producer on a Warner Bros. movie based on a 2018 GQ story (which was published under the previous editor-in-chief Jim Nelson, whose writers have been singing his praises this week). It’s been an embarrassing situation for a magazine that no one would pay any mind to otherwise, and if Zaslav can stink that place up that badly, it stands to reason that he can certainly do the same to And Just Like That.

The fourth episode is really about sex, which felt campy and funny after two episodes that revolved around the women stalking secondhand sites for a dress and a purse. Charlotte and LTW’s kids go off to sleep-away camp, leaving them to enjoy their utterly un-enjoyable husbands. Carrie and the gals get back to brunching with Anthony filling Samantha’s seat. Bitsy, the pink-clad widow who seemed oddly human in episode three, unfortunately proves to be more regrettable as a person than her accessories. Miranda begins and aborts a threesome. And Seema, once more, has absolutely nothing to do — which is, incredibly, somehow more than Nya had to do.

Here’s your character-by-character recap.

Carrie

The forced smiles of women who just want something from each other.

This episode forces Carrie to navigate the modern publishing landscape, which is full of flakes, desperation, and traps — but also undying hope. The commentary here was tremendously on-point, and it was refreshing to see a character who could somehow regularly splurge on Manolos in her thirties as a freelance newspaper columnist reckon with the true nature of the industry.

Carrie is at breakfast with her podcast friend Jackie, dressed confusingly in hot pink with flamenco sleeves, when she bumps into her old Vogue editor, Enid. She explains she avoided Carrie at first because she didn’t send a card after Big died #awkward. She tells Carrie she’s had her own death: “After 34 years at Vogue and then six years before that at Mademoiselle, Condé Nast gave me the golden parachute.” Losing your husband equals me losing my overpaid job is, like placating an entertainment executive at the cost of institutional credibility, such a Condé Nast attitude. Apparently she’s gone on to launch a popular newsletter called Ask Enid, which Enid says is “rivaling Goop.” Ha ha and all, but isn’t the point of the golden parachute that you… don’t have to launch a newsletter? I love what I do but if I had fuck you money from Condé Nast…

Then Carrie says, actually I’m not sure if you got my email but I had asked you about blurbing my book, it’s too late for that but maybe you could mention it in Ask Enid. Enid says if she does that she’ll have to mention everyone’s book (well, no) and Carrie says, does everyone have a book? And Enid is like, well I don’t mostly to avoid embarrassing interactions like this. In a few lines of dialogue, the writers manage to capture the flakiness of publishing people, the desperation of (even established!) authors, and the newsletter economy that will either save or ruin us all. Well played.

Enid reveals she’s starting a magazine for older women called Vivant (“that’s French for alive”) that she wants to get Carrie involved with, and which is “focused on women our age.” Carrie takes immediate offense to this remark and insists Seema take a break from her busy schedule of getting in and out of her brown car to meet her at a cafe to talk about it. Carrie wears a white bedsheet and a confusing triangular hat that looks cowboy-ish but also like something Paula Deen would use as a centerpiece. Seema tells her to treat getting Enid to promote her book like any business negotiation, and say that she will write for the magazine only if Enid will plug her book.

This is particularly nice with the yellow shoes.

After a jizz gabfest with the sisterhood and Solo cup cocktails at Che’s new apartment, Carrie goes to Enid’s party, where she encounters Bitsy and Gloria Steinem. Carrie wears a watercolor-print dress that looks perfectly nice but is this the dress of the same woman who wore the flamenco sleeves to breakfast with her former podcast partner? I don’t know, but I do know Gloria Steinem showing up randomly at a former high-powered magazine editor’s party is, well, accurate.

Carrie’s version of #goals.

Bitsy reveals to Carrie that she gave the old guy who’s been texting her, Marlon, her number, and that he’s good in bed. While Steinem addresses the ladies, Bitsy sends Carrie Marlon’s dick pic — the absolute iStockphoto of dick pics — because, feminist icon speaking or not, this is all bullshit anyway, isn’t it? Enid ends up revealing to Carrie that she doesn’t actually want her to write a column, she wants her to invest $100,000 in her magazine. Surely has the funds now that Big has kicked it. Carrie gets a photo of herself, Enid, and Steinem, and Enid reviews it before Carrie does anything with it only to discover the iStock dick, which is apparently her “boyfriend’s pecker.” Then, in a truly perplexing act, Carrie seems to agree to give her the $100,000. Why does a magazine cost hundreds of thousands if not millions of dollars to start in 2023? If these olds can send dick pics and approve social media portraiture, surely they can read things online. Also, if Carrie has all this money, why would she spend it on this woman’s magazine instead of, say, buying her way onto the bestseller list? Or keeping her own podcast vivant?

Seema

If you didn’t know the plot, you’d assume Seema was telling her to call the Real Deal to take away the hat.

Seema looked fantastic in the beige jumpsuit with the capital F-shaped ear piece. The writers need to give her a problem of her own that doesn’t have to do with her hair or handbags so that her entire existence doesn’t revolve around Carrie’s. Her achievements this episode include: telling Carrie that they’re not seniors like Enid, they’re sophomores; telling Carrie that when she’s at that party, she can’t be photographed with a walker because “it’ll kill your brand” (progressive!); and reminding us that she’s so devoted to selling real estate that she will be “pushing penthouses from the grave.” Was there a reason the writers didn’t send her to the jizz brunch? Maybe that would kill her brand.

Charlotte (and Harry)

Charlotte is all of us every time Harry opens his mouths.

Charlotte opens the episode in a pleated red Brandon Maxwell shirt dress that I guess, lacking a pouf sleeve, she’s decided isn’t saccharine enough, so she attaches a strawberry brooch at her bellybutton. As soon as Charlotte’s kids go to sleep-away camp, she and Harry run home to do it. She tells Harry to ejaculate on her chest, but nothing comes out, leading us to the Great Jizz Brunch of 2023. Carrie calls it “Casper the friendly come.” Miranda declares she never liked jizz anyway. Anthony orders mayo. Charlotte says she’s always been a fan of mayo. As much as no one wants to think about Harry’s ejaculate, this ridiculous scene was exactly what this show has been missing.

Then Charlotte rushes Harry to the doctor, who eats a protein bar while telling them that Harry’s semen went into his bladder and he needs to strengthen his pelvic floor. There is a terrible joke involving Harry confusing kugel, the noodle pudding commonly served during Jewish holidays, with kegel exercises. This leads to one of this show’s rare scenes involving workout clothes. Charlotte, treating this like a Barry’s Bootcamp class, lies Harry on a yoga mat and tries to teach him how to take control of his pelvic floor.

Later, at LTW’s anniversary party, Charlotte sits next to a gallery owner who invites her to work for him. She says no and he invites her to call him if she changes her mind. Maybe Seema will start hanging out with her if she has something to talk about other than her kids’ Chanel dress and Harry’s orgasms.

LTW and Herbert

I made this for a closer look at the LV, but it also gives you a proper sense of Herbert’s acting range.

LTW sends her kids off to camp wearing a $3,700 green LV-monogrammed jacket and $1,000 wide-legged Rosie Assouline printed pants you can buy on sale for $300. LTW has some nice style moments, but I realized looking at these pants, is also kind of a walking sale rack.

LTW’s husband Herbert may very well be the blandest, most useless character on this show. So it made a disturbing amount of sense when he revealed he was seriously considering running for city comptroller. As if to show that this is precisely the sort of individual who would run for elected office, he turns out to have ruined their anniversary party by not clicking send on the email invitation. Truly this was a shame because more guests deserved to behold LTW in her extravagant caped floral evening wear from Rianna + Nina’s resort collection. If you’re a hot mom looking to do loud luxury, this is a tip-top choice. The dress itself retailed for $11,270, so with the cape, which I’m not finding online, it’s probably closer to $20,000? Still one-fifth the amount Carrie spent to help launch a shitty magazine!

She looks like a sparkly coral reef and I enjoy it.

Anyway, in order to prove to her dad, who is adorably proud of her filmmaking career, that Herbert cares about something other than making the money required to waste all that shellfish and buy his wife’s capes, LTW announces that Herbert is indeed running for city comptroller. Maybe he’ll forget to press send on his candidate registration and fictional NYC will be spared.

Miranda

Family therapy for the kid’s breakup. OK then!

If you thought Miranda going back to NYC to be with Brady meant that we were going to get a Che-free episode, think again! For some reason, Che’s defunct husband Lyle drives them to New York from L.A. where they move into a new apartment with an elevator and everything. After going to therapy with Brady and Steve — who has installed a punching bag in his bedroom doorframe and has abs as hard as a tree trunk — Miranda goes with Carrie to visit Che in their new place. Lyle is padding about with solo cups and liquor and reveals to Carrie that he used to be a Beverly Hills hairdresser and he and Che got together after he cut their hair. Everyone makes sure to call Lyle a “mixologist” specifically as though they fear it would be offensive to use any other term. In keeping with the theme of the men on this show having less personality than Excel TikTok influencers, it’s hard to imagine that Lyle would be offended if they slipped and called him a “bartender.”

The conversation turns to strap-ons. Miranda mentions her strap-on flirtation, and Lyle says someone named Janey was his first pegging, leading Che to explain they were “poly pioneers.” Lyle falls asleep in Che’s bed and rather than make him move, Che makes Miranda share the bed with the two of them, which is so college in the worst way. Che feels Miranda up, which leads to Lyle rolling over and trying to initiate a threesome. Che asks Miranda if it’s OK, and she says sure, then quickly experiences physical discomfort, and aborts mission(ary) (that is a very AJLT joke; unlike Steve’s abs, this show is rotting my brain).

Miranda moves to the broken couch outside and tells Che to continue if they want to. A friend and Back Row reader pointed out that this was a realistic reaction from Miranda, who has blown up her entire life and constantly twists herself into a pretzel to fit into the World of Che and appeal to them. If you thought you were finally done with Che at that point, too bad, because Che comes out to sleep on the sloping broken couch with Miranda and they grunt and giggle each time it rocks with their movements.

You know you can’t wait for Che’s moving-themed standup in the next episode, sure to include this groaner I found on a list of Ikea jokes on ScaryMommy.com: “Ikea won’t stop calling me. All I wanted was one nightstand.”