Eight episodes into And Just Like That with two more to go, Che Diaz is not getting any more likeable. At least, according to the majority of viewers. Every Thursday sees the same wave of tweets picking apart their character, memes trolling their personality and one recent headline from The Daily Beast even read ‘Che Diaz Is the Worst Character on TV’.
It should come as no surprise then that a backlash to that narrative is emerging: The Che Diaz defence has begun. In an opinion piece for Rolling Stone, EJ Dickson writes a dissertation-length essay exploring why people despise Che (who is played by Sara Ramirez) so much and crucially, why they shouldn’t.
‘In critiques of the character, the one word that pops up over and over is that Che is “cringe”…Fallon [a Daily Beast writer] faults Che for being not just annoying but a flattened caricature of a queer person of colour, inserted by the writers into the reboot to deflect from longstanding critiques of the franchise as white and heteronormative,’ Dickson explains.
‘But that characterization inherently dismisses the significance of a mainstream, hugely popular TV franchise depicting a nonbinary character in the first place. It also does no justice to the performance of Ramirez themselves, an explosively talented Broadway and TV actor who infuses the role with swagger and cocksure energy. And it completely rejects the idea that queer and gender-nonconforming people can, in fact, also be cringe.’
It's one of many points Dickson makes in defending Che, and you know what? I agree. I’ve been reluctant to say it as the Che slander raged on, but I have to admit: I like Che. There, now you know.
I see why people don’t. When Che was first introduced to us, the writing felt clunky. From the moment Che uttered the words ‘I’m a queer nonbinary Mexican-Irish diva’ in a context that felt entirely unnecessary (on their own long-running podcast that they are apparently famous for), it felt glaringly obvious that, as Fallon describes, Che seemed to represent everything the Sex and The City writers wanted to make up for after decades of critiques about how problematic the original show was.
For queer and non-queer viewers alike, it was ‘cringe’ because it felt Iike an inauthentic and try-hard attempt at repairing old wounds. As if dropping a character into the show that represented every queer cliché would fix the fact that the three main characters are still white, heterosexual women with weirdly ignorant understandings of the diverse nature of the world for New Yorker’s.
But that was the entire first episode, and since then, the writing appears to have settled. Miranda is also queer now, yay. Of course, there have still been moments of hilariously cringe writing. When Che said they ‘do a lot of weed’, for example. Their comedy set also didn’t go down well with fans, although I have to admit, I thought it was good! At least, it served its purpose of better understanding Che as a character and the allure they hold for Miranda – who, at that point, seemed to need a force like Che screaming ‘CHANGE YOUR LIFE’ in order to make the necessary jump to try and follow a more fulfilling path.
But that’s where I think most people’s discontent with Che lies - their role in pulling Miranda away from Steve. (WARNING: SPOILERS AHEAD).
Undoubtedly, Che is the reason Miranda has left Steve and ultimately, allowed her to explore the most authentic version of herself.
Now, don’t get me wrong – I agree Steve has been done DIRTY by the writers. His sudden old-fogey ailments and lack of charisma feels worlds away from the Steve that once only appealed to Miranda because of his sexual prowess. That being said, I love the fact that Miranda is leaving Steve.
I say that not because I don’t love Miranda and Steve together, but because their love story feels like a tragedy now. How can one possibly root for Miranda and Steve knowing it would mean Miranda is suppressing her truest desires? Desires that she likely has already been ignoring her entire adult life? Miranda and Steve both deserve better, and to be honest, Miranda being queer makes so much more sense to me than her ever being with Steve in the first place.
There’s a power to this storyline - that is Miranda realizing she’s queer in her 50s – that overtakes any love I have for her and Steve. Che being instrumental in that, then only makes them more lovable.
Of course, there’s validity in questioning the use of Che as a tool for Miranda to realise her sexuality. It’s a trope often overused in Hollywood, the queer character being merely the purpose of awakening for a formerly straight main character. Perhaps I’m just an optimist, but with the glimpses that we’ve seen into Che’s background, I hope that Che’s life is explored more in depth in coming episodes –perhaps in a second season?
So rarely do we get to see queer and nonbinary characters at their greatest point of peace.
But even so, Dickson’s point remains even having Che represented on this show can do incredible good for the development of queer and nonbinary characters in Hollywood in future. As we, the viewers, criticize the stereotypes or cliches of Che, writers will hopefully learn to create a wider range of characters that more authentically speak to different people across the community.
And more than that, we know that Sara Ramirez had a strong hand in creating the character of Che. We know that Miranda’s currently storyline echoes actress Cynthia Nixon’s own life in parts, with her having left her 15-year-marriage to a man for a woman in 2004. Both Ramirez and Nixon have both clearly developed characters and storylines they like, so who are we to say it’s not authentic to who they are or who they want to represent?
Ultimately, I like Che as a character because they feel like the bold, forceful love Miranda never had. Their confidence matches Miranda, their dominance excites her and their freedom and spontaneity clearly makes her feel like she can be her true self. That’s all I could want for Miranda, and more than that, that’s all I could want for a nonbinary, queer character. Che is secure and happy in who they are, so rarely do we get to see queer and nonbinary characters at their greatest point of peace – celebrated and loved by everyone around them.
I can admit parts of Che’s character still feel cringe to watch, but ultimately: I’m here for the defense of Che brigade.
Click through for all of the scenes we desperately needed Samantha Jones in And Just Like That...
And Just Like That Scenes We Needed Samantha - Grazia
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1 of 5The finger confessional
Most recently, Miranda confessing about that slip (of the finger) with Che at Carrie's apartment. As Charlotte reacted with her classic judgement and awe, Carrie sat passively scolding her friends momentary affair. 'I can feel judgement emanating from your pores!' Miranda said. It was a heated moment that resulted in a heart-warming resolution when Carrie's grief brought the group back together. But frankly, if Samantha were there, we could've taken a much funnier path to said resolution. As Miranda rushed to explain herself to her holier than thou friends, we could practically hear Samantha's carefree interjections of 'It's just a finger, it could've been a whole fist you know!'… 'I had sex in Carrie's kitchen once, there's something so erotic about crockery'… 'Charlotte, honey, if you're eyebrows raise any further you're going to need a facelift yourself.'
2 of 5Big’s funeral
Remember immediately after Big's death when Carrie got lost in the stress of planning his funeral? That may've been the first time we screamed at our televisions 'SHE NEEDS SAMANTHA!'. Rifling through papers confused at what to do next, accompanying a guilt-ridden Charlotte to pick out coffins, all Carrie needed in that moment was her emotion-free, efficient friend Samantha to swoop in and take care of everything. She would've had it handled in less than a day, the same way she cleaned up Carrie's life after Big left her at the altar. And you know what? Maybe then it would make more sense how quickly the narrative around Big's death has moved on.
3 of 5The first dinner
That first lunch back was an eery moment for Sex and The City fans. Samantha's absence had been addressed, but it was clear how much the group was missing her when Charlotte began rambling about the woes of being a Park Avenue princess turned mother of two tweens. As she talks through the dynamics of her life competing with other mums on the schoolboard, one could only wish Samantha was there with a witty remark about kids not needing anything but a colouring book. While Carrie continues to represent those of us that chose not to have children, she's never as loud about loving her childfree life as Samantha was. There is a void to be filled for the woman over 50 that never married, living her best life regardless – and we miss that.
4 of 5The comedy show afterparty
So far, And Just Like That is doing a stellar job of showcasing that life doesn't have to slow down with age. But one thing we're missing? The party days. When Miranda wanted to stay for the after party of Che's comedy gig, Carrie and Charlotte quickly scuttled off in a taxi as if nights out past 9pm are off the menu once you hit 50. Who did she need? Her always-up-for-it friend Samantha. She would've headed into that party, bought everyone champagne and cheered Miranda on as she shot-gunned a spliff from Che's mouth. Hell, we might've even got to explore Miranda's new feelings more in-depth had Samantha been there to listen without judgement.
5 of 5Stalking Natasha
You know who wouldn't have settled for Carrie being ghosted by Natasha? Samantha. She would've stormed into that office, used her name and demanded Carrie get a meeting to clear up the million-dollar mess Big created. She also would've come up with a funnier put down that 'She's wearing flats!', no offence Charlotte.