It's an unwritten rule in the Sex and the City universe that a brunch isn't a brunch unless it's a four-top. With the gaping Samantha void still open, Carrie, Charlotte, and Miranda have tried out Stanford and Anthony... and now Seema got invited to brunch on And Just Like That. It's a nice consolation as Seema is the de facto Samantha stand-in, but I can't help but think about how Samantha would have responded to her absence being described as a gaping void.

Time has passed in And Just Like That, and Carrie's realtor has moved beyond being Carrie's fun-time friend during the immediate months after Big's death to bonafide pal getting invited to brunch (or pre-dinner drinks... it was pretty dark in that restaurant and nary a French fry was eaten). As this is Sarita Choudhury's only appearance in the episode, she's not a quintessential part of the gang yet. But she does seem to get Miranda's approval, who snickers Seema's retort to her, "Well, when Oprah mandates a mandates, what are you gonna do?" ("Date a man," Seema replies) and looks pretty impressed that Seema already signed up Carrie on some dating sites. And I'm with Miranda because the original SATC women desperately need Seema's energy to zhuzh up their hangs.

Before Willie Garson's death, Stanford seemed poised to become the fourth friend. Not a fill-in for Samantha, like Seema (though I mostly love her) has been relegated to, but just the Stanny SATC viewers have known and loved for years finally getting his time in the brunch sun. But if Carrie, Charlotte, and Miranda can't stand each other enough anymore to hang for 75–90 uninterrupted minutes straight while sipping on cocktails (non-alcoholic for Miranda) and noshing, then sure, bring Seema in to be the life of the party. Plus, any excuse to give Choudhury more screentime is fine by me. So it's a well-earned brunch invite we can all raise our cosmos to cheers to.

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