There's a reason Samantha Jones is still your favourite SATC character.

When it comes to iconic TV women, you don't get bigger or better than Samantha Jones on Sex and the City.

Kim Cattrall's Samantha has become more than a TV character: she's a legend, an icon, a religion. The sexually confident and adventurous PR whizz has been sorely missed on SATC's reboot And Just Like That, which instead focused on the updated lives of Carrie (Sarah Jessica Parker, Miranda (Cynthia Nixon), and Charlotte (Kristin Davis), as well as some of their new friends. 

Throughout the two seasons, fans have been complaining that the reboot is lacking a bit of sparkle, a bit of sass, a bit of Sam. 

The calls for Cattrall to return got so loud that the actor agreed to do a single scene for the finale episode of season two. The one condition? She would only do a phone call filmed separately from her co-stars, especially Parker, who she has famously feuded with since the original HBO series aired. 

There's one shot in the finale's teaser that's enough to send the SATC fandom into a tailspin. I actually can't breathe, I'm soo overstimulated. 

Image: Max. 

It's happening! It's time! She's back!

The hysteria over Kim doing just one measly scene amidst an entire 11-episode series made us wonder about the enduring appeal of her character, Samantha Jones.

This is a character who is still considered the favourite of the four women, despite Cattrall not portraying the role since the abysmal Sex and the City 2 movie is a 2010.

So why all the buzz for this beloved character? Let's discuss.   

Samantha is for the girls.

For a character sold as a boy-crazy maneater, Samantha proved to be a woman who, above all, supports other women. 

Samantha is for the girls.

She proved this by having Carrie's back constantly throughout SATC, even when Carrie didn't always deserve her unwavering support. Who can forget the moment when Carrie slut-shamed her friend, saying 'I would never do that' in response to Samantha giving a delivery man a spontaneous blowjob. 

But Samantha forgave and forgot, continuing to be Carrie's greatest cheerleader both professionally and as her friend. 

Samantha and Miranda's friendship is a dynamic I wish received more attention in the series. Samantha always supported Miranda, showing up to her mum's funeral and bursting into tears, along with baby-sitting for her when she became overwhelmed as a new mum. 

I like to think that these two characters would meet up secretly to moan about how self-involved Carrie was and how high-maintenance Charlotte was behaving.

Image: Warner Bros. 

Speaking of Charlotte, I don't think Samantha and Charlotte would ever be friends in the real world but watching Samantha continue to try to be in Charlotte's company makes her worthy of a gold medal. Samantha might not agree with how Charlotte's views sex and relationships, but she accepts her for who she is -- and she blindly supports her.

My favourite SATC moment is still Charlotte telling Sam that their college friend Laney stole her baby name, and without any further questions, Samantha simply replies "You bitch!" 

Let's compare this scene for a moment to the most recent episode of And Just Like That where Che degrades and dismisses their ex Miranda in a comedy set, and Carrie says and does nothing to defend her oldest friend. 

Carrie is a Bad Friend and there's countless examples. 

By contrast, Samantha is the kind of friend every woman needs. 

Carrie was never That Girl. Samantha would have swung and then made sure Che never booked another gig again…#AJLT #AndJustLikeThat https://t.co/IYuP2hfoEm

— RandomTVPolls (@RandomTVPollsJP) August 19, 2023

Samantha is the most quotable character.

This leads me to my next point: there is no character more quotable than Samantha. 

But does quotability equate to popularity? I'd say yes. There's a reason that Nick on New Girl or Paris on Gilmore Girls have lived on for years by being quoted online -- they're also the most popular among fans. 

Samantha is a walking, talking slogan-maker, from "I'm a try-sexual. I'll try anything once," to "I will wear whatever and blow whomever I want as long as I can breathe and kneel."

And any SATC fan worth their weight in cosmopolitans can quote the scene where Sam answers the phone to a man telling her "I told my wife about us," to which she replies "Who is this?"

Samantha was basically crafted for TikTok edits.

@scout_edit Samantha Jones ❤️‍🔥 #samanthajones #samanthajonesedit #sexandthecity #satc #сексвбольшомгороде #свбг #самантаджонс #fyp #on #fup ♬ оригинальный звук - Scout Edit

Samantha's legacy hasn't been tainted... yet. 

As much as I love Samantha, it must be stated that there's a good chance fans could have turned on her (me included) if she came back on And Just Like That. 

For instance, I'd argue that aside from Samantha, Miranda was a strong fan favourite leading up to AJLT. But since the spin-off started airing, fans have turned on the character completely. The criticism has mostly been focused on how Miranda has changed from being a self-assured, confident lawyer to a sexually confused and at times, inept middle-aged woman.

This criticism seems to ignore that people do change, especially in the lifespan of almost 20 years since the original series ended. And there's a good chance that Samantha would have changed, too.

Hopefully, Kim Cattrall's brief AJLT cameo won't do too much damage to her legacy.

Let's pray Samantha Jones will remain untouched, flawless, forever preserved in HBO history as the sex-positive hero every woman aspires to be. 

Feature image: HBO.