NOTE: This story contains spoilers for “And Like That,” Season 3, Episode 7.
Patti LuPone made her “and just like that” debut on Thursday’s new episode, and she’s already vying for one of “Sex and the City” fan-favorite characters.
Episode 7, titled “They Want to Have Fun,” introduced LuPone as Gia, the strong-willed mother of Giuseppe (Sebastiano Pigazzi). She started out great with Carrie (Sarah Jessica Parker) and the rest of the women, but a bad first impression put her at odds with her son’s boyfriend Anthony (Mario Cantone) from the start.
We also got a glimpse into her interesting backstory, as well as a promise (or threat) that she’ll be a thorn in Anthony’s side for longer than expected.
Gia’s past
Viewers first meet her when she arrives at Anthony’s bread shop to a warm welcome from Giuseppe and the women. She quickly befriends Carrie and the gang after they profess their shared love for the poet, whom Gia calls a masterpiece.
When Charlotte (Kristin Davis) compliments her English, Gia reveals that she was born in Buffalo, NY, and moved to Italy to pursue her passion for painting at age 19.
“I was going to be the next Botticelli,” she tells the gang, before admitting that those dreams took a backseat after she met the love of her life and then focused her time on her son and her work as a psychologist.
Later in the episode, Gia and Carrie have lunch together, and Gia shares more about her love story. She was 20 when she met Gio’s father, who was 50, noting that the age difference is considered more scandalous in America than in Europe. But her stepchildren hated them so much that she abandoned art to study psychology in an effort to understand them better, which launched her current career.
This animosity toward her stepchildren helps Carrie bond, given her current situation with Aidan and his children. Gia tells her that the key is to remain true to herself in her interactions with them, because “inauthentic beings never win.”
Fighting with Anthony
While she gets along well with women, Gia is quick to make eyes at Giuseppe’s boyfriend, Anthony, from the moment they meet. So much so that, when she tells everyone to call her Gia, she tells Anthony to keep his full name.
After mistaking one of the other hot men at the bagel shop, Gia isn’t thrilled when introduced to Anthony with a sarcastic and explicit comment. At lunch with Carrie, she tries to appeal to Gia by telling her that Anthony is one of the sweetest people she’s ever met. But she’s not convinced, given his advanced age and prickly personality.
Later, at Charlotte’s birthday party at Carrie’s house, Anthony arrives with Giuseppe announcing that he had been forced to bring “Maleficent” with him, referring to Gia.
After Bitsy von Sutfling (Julie Halston) invites Giuseppe to a karaoke rendition of “rasa,” Gia even hints at her displeasure with the romantic match to Anthony, noting how sad it seems that an older individual would strive after someone like their son.
Stay around
Episode 7 did little to suggest a resolution to Gia and Anthony’s feud, and even hinted at more to come. Near the end of the party, Giuseppe and his mother have a heart-to-heart, and she breaks the news that she’s decided to extend her trip to help him with some things.
Could a plan to sabotage the relationship be underway?
Theater Easter Egg
No one loves party karaoke more than LTW’s son, who sings “I Dreamed a Dream” from “Les Misérables,” “I Dreamed a Dream,” which Patti sang as part of the cast of a West End production. He also sings “Hopelessly Dedicated” and “Copa Cabana.”
Near the end of the episode, as Giuseppe and Gia talk, he asks her if she enjoyed the party. She references Lupone’s Broadway roots when she dismisses the event as “too much singing for me.”
Will Gia be able to break Anthony and Giuseppe, or will he be won over before he returns to Italy?
“And just like that,” new episodes premiere Thursdays on HBO Max.
