| Mr. Big. The name says
it all. From the moment he came onto the scene, he was
larger than life, dashingly handsome, and oh-so unattainable.
Like a gentleman, he helped Carrie pick up the spilled
contents of her purse when they collided, but he kept
no secrets about what was going on in his head when he
handed the condoms back to her. For four seasons now,
we've kept him in our sights and sighs. For years he has
been in and out of Carrie's life. But what does she really
know about Mr. Big? This man of mystery has tried to keep
us at arm's length, but we've managed to figure out a
few things.
Let's start with his undeniably positive traits. Big
is the quintessential New Yorker, the man about town.
He loves jazz music - it embodies the cool, suave attitude
that he exudes. His irresistible smile and teasing eyebrows
are appealing to be sure, but when he drives up on the
most disappointing of birthdays with chilled champagne
and a big bunch of balloons you can't help but fall
for him all over again. In fact, his unpredictable behavior
and passion constantly stirs the drama-seeking soul
of our Carrie.
And of his "other" traits, the ones that
make him harder to define? We know he's extremely successful
(witness the chauffeur Raoul, the exquisite apartment,
the Armani suits, and vintage Jag). What specifically
is his lucrative profession? Something in finance, we
presume. Moving on. He has an affinity for gorgeous
women, models and actresses alike. His ex-wife Natasha
the "stick figure with no soul," "Silent
Y", starlet Willow, the list goes on. Ironically,
it is meeting his first wife which gives us hope that
he will come out of the modelizer trance that he's under
and settle down with a real, flesh and blood woman.
We know he goes to church with his mother on Sundays
like a dutiful son. What girl wouldn't love that? Probably
a girl whom he refuses to introduce to his mother.
With Big, though, it's the traits that frustrate us
most that we are most drawn to. He does care, and he
does love. We even think that deep down, he knows that
Carrie is the one for him. At one point during their
affair, he tells Carrie he will end things with Natasha
so that they can be together, but Carrie knows it will
never be that simple.
There is an elusiveness to Big that most women have
encountered at some point in time. And just like the
real-life Mr. Bigs, he makes Carrie believe she is the
one who can get into his heart. She will be the one
to break through, and capture his affection for eternity.
But she never quite gets through. The potential for
commitment is enough to sustain her for a while, but
Carrie can only endure so much ambivalence and heartbreak.
Still, Carrie can't separate herself completely from
Big. Big becomes a special friend and in spite of (or
maybe because of) their complicated past, he manages
to ground her when she's feeling scared or alone. When
he tells Carrie he's moving to California, Carrie compares
his leaving NY to the Chrysler building leaving NY.
That's how big a part of Carrie's life Big has been.
Since leaving the City, Big and Carrie have continued
to talk on the phone, and have managed to cross paths
a couple of times. An angioplasty caused Big to momentarily
open his heart to Carrie, expressing his true feelings,
but Carrie had already learned that waiting for Big
to come around for good could be an impossible task.
- from HBO.com
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