‘And Just Like That’ Ending Explained: Carrie Bradshaw’s Story Ends With a Literal Pile of S***

The final episode of And Just Like That… premiered on HBO MAX tonight and it’s probably destined to be one of the most-hated finales in television history. Instead of giving super romantic Carrie Bradshaw (Sarah Jessica Parker) a fitting happily ever after, And Just Like That... humiliates its heroine while also forcing fans to endure a literal pile of shit.

**Spoilers for And Just Like That… Season 3 Episode 12 “Party of One,” now streaming on HBO MAX**

And Just Like That… does not end with the return of Duncan Reeves (Jonathan Cake) or Aidan Shaw (John Corbett). Instead, the Sex and the City spin-off ends with Carrie Bradshaw alone in her big house, rewriting her novel’s epilogue to affirm that “The Woman” was “not alone, but on her own.” Carrie’s story ends with her single in the city.

Normally, this would be the kind of empowering message we could get behind. After all, there’s nothing wrong with being single. Carrie doesn’t necessarily need a man to reach her version of total self-actualization. However, it doesn’t feel like a cathartic ending for Carrie Bradshaw. Besides the fact that she did connect with a man this season who seemed like her perfect partner — Duncan Reeves — Carrie spends the entire And Just Like That… finale being humiliated about her single state. A restaurant sits her with a literal stuffed toy named “Tommy Tomato” so she doesn’t have to eat alone, while Charlotte (Kristin Davis) contrives to set Carrie up with her wealthy, but loser-y, boss, Mark Kasabian (Victor Garber).

So how exactly does the And Just Like That… Season 3 finale fail long-time Sex and the City fans? Why is there a toilet full of poop in the AJLT series finale? Is Carrie really happy in the final moments of And Just Like That…? Can this seriously be the end of Carrie Bradshaw’s story?

And Just Like That Ending Explained: Does Carrie End Up With Duncan Reeves? Or Totally Alone?

And Just Like That… ends with Carrie Bradshaw alone. Well, she would probably argue that she’s not “alone,” but “on her own,” but the truth is And Just Like That… does precious little to earn this distinction. Indeed, the whole theme of And Just Like That… Season 3 Episode 12 “Party of One” is Carrie grappling with how she is alone, but does not want to be!

And Just Like That… Season 3 Episode 12 opens with Carrie ducking into a cool, futuristic Asian restaurant. She’s baffled by the restaurant’s iPad menu and weirded out by the robot waiters zooming by. However, the real horror is when a manager puts a large stuffed toy in the booth opposite her. It’s Tommy Tomato. He’s there so Carrie doesn’t have to eat alone.

When Carrie meets up with the gals at a bridal fashion show — emphasis on a lavish runway full of wedding dresses — she naturally complains about Tommy Tomato. She’s also clearly still upset that her editor doesn’t want her fictional heroine to end up alone. Furthermore, Carrie admits to missing Duncan. She sort of just asserts that he made it clear he’s not coming back, but like, girl, you can go to him. You can call him, text him, email him.

Carrie might think she’s happily single, but her friends clearly pick up on the clues that she’s not. When she goes to Miranda’s (Cynthia Nixon) apartment for Thanksgiving, she’s surprised to find that Charlotte has invited Mark Kasabian. Making the situation all the more awkward? Charlotte has bailed on Miranda’s Thanksgiving, as have all the other characters. Heck, even Miranda leaves to be with her girlfriend Joy (Dolly Wells). So, Carrie is stuck at the apartment with a flirty Mark, a stressed out Brady (Niall Cunningham), Brady’s baby mama Mia (Ella Stiller), and Mia’s two obnoxious friends. When Carrie confronts Charlotte over the phone, her happily married friend admits to setting them up. You know, because Carrie has literally spent the entire episode worried about being alone.

Now, because And Just Like That… hates its Gen X characters, one of Mia’s friends is named Epcot and they have to poop a lot. (They blame the cheese plate, or something.) At the end of the night, Carrie can tell that Mark is summoning the courage to ask to take her home and she worries she has to because of the horrors they’ve both endured. Mark is in the bathroom, flushes the toilet, and all of Epcot’s turds fill the bowl. So And Just Like That…‘s final episode features a literal pile of shit, folks.

Carrie eventually goes home, alone. She briefly considers taking off her heels, as she was wont to do for Duncan’s sake. However, she keeps her shoes on. She goes to the karaoke machine Miranda bafflingly brought over weeks ago and picks a soulful song of bittersweet triumph. Then she edits her epilogue, deleting all mention of the handsome British widower, and writing that the Woman was not alone, but on her own. She then struts through her big apartment while the show cuts to all of her happily coupled friends.

Personally, I hate it. Carrie doesn’t seem to love being single; she seems to just begrudgingly accept it. If she defiantly laughed off Tommy Tomato or pointed out how great she has it being alone, I could accept this sort of ending. However, the Carrie Bradshaw I’ve known since 1998 is defined by her desire to connect romantically with a partner. That has not changed.

And Just Like That… fumbled its ending.