As HBO pulls the plug on its top-rated sitcom, women across the country will be glued to their couches at precisely 9 p.m. on Sunday to watch its final episode.

Despised by some and idolized by many, Sex and the City is a show about four women’s failures and triumphs in the rat race commonly known as “the dating game.”

The show is a guilty pleasure for yours truly, but I am constantly compelled to ask questions of what the show says about women in society.

The nature of the program implies that heterosexual women always need a member of the opposite gender to call their own, even if he’s only there for one night. While that can be fun for some females, it’s not true for women in general.

In fact, it would seem that most smart women would rather be single than with a womanizer or a man who is completely inadequate.

When the series began in 1998, the four main characters were determined to “have sex like a man.” Six years later, those same four women are happily settled in relationships.

The main character, Carrie Bradshaw (Sarah Jessica Parker), will actually have her choice of two men — or even choose to remain solo – when the show ends this week.

If the ultimate conclusion of the series demonstrates that these women’s happiness lies in the hands of the man they’re with, then it was a waste of my time to have watched the show whenever I could for the last few years.

Sadly, that’s what it seems to boil down to after all.

It would be ignorant not to admit that there are millions of women around the world who want to settle down with their significant other and have children, but many of us don’t go searching high and low for our “Mr. Right.”

One of the main criticisms that often surfaces about Sex is that the show’s characters seem desperate and needy.

Even the highly sexual and strong-willed Samantha Jones (Kim Cattrall) becomes a victim of her own emotions several times, contradicting everything her character stands for.

In the midst of all the misleading representations of women in society, there is a lot to be learned from these fictional characters, as well.

The most encouraging aspect of the show is the positive light in which it portrays women’s friendships.

Although not all females are rail-thin Jimmy Choo worshippers, many can relate to the characters on Sex and the City because we know we would be lost without our girlfriends.

Throughout the series, these four women have remained friends through countless failed relationships and other serious personal problems.

The girls’ friendship has always come first before marriages, divorces, illegitimate children and countless one night stands.

Whether the show demonstrates women’s liberation or their subordination is subject to interpretation. Those who find the show offensive can choose not to watch it.

As for myself, I know that I’ll be doing the same thing thousands of others will be doing on Sunday night: I’ll be geared up for one last night of great Sex.

Staff writer Whitney Meers can be reached at oraclescene@yahoo.com