“Identity is a prison.”
We’re only one episode into The White Lotus’ much-anticipated third season. But let me posit already that this throwaway line may well prove to be the central thesis of Mike White’s latest sojourn into the world of affluent and clueless tourists who travel far afield to try (and maybe fail) to find themselves.
This time around, we’ve left the mellow vibes of Hawaii and the operatic ones of Sicily to alight in Thailand, where from the get-go we’ve been offered the very thing every season of The White Lotus hinges on: a violent death. Call it formulaic but it’s been fascinating to watch White turn this HBO series into a slick, ensemble-driven whodunnit franchise. Yet, as with seasons past, the dead body (or might it be dead bodies?) at the center of this third season, will likely just be a backdrop for more scintillating conversations around, well…wealth (perhaps) and identity (most definitely)—and likely faith and desire. But I’m getting ahead of myself.
We begin with a young man hoping to meditate. Zion (Nicholas Duvernay) is trying to relax. He’s in Thailand visiting his mom and he wants nothing more than to quiet the world around him. Which is hard when gunshots take over his immediate soundscape. It’s unclear who is shooting or why, who may be hurt and to what extent. And then we get that classic White Lotus title card: One Week Earlier.
From here on out, every episode will give us one day in the life of this newest cast of characters. We have a perfectly normal-seeming all-American family (corporate dad, sleepy mom, horny son, demure daughter, and babygirl son), a trio of girlfriends (blond actress, blond BFF, blond third wheel), and a May December couple (shifty guy, flirty gal). We see them all arriving at The White Lotus hotel by boat where, ashore, they’re welcome by the hotel’s affable employees and, most crucially, Sritala (Lek Patravadi), one of the owners of the place who’s keen on impressing them all—but mostly the famous TV actor in their midst.
What clearly has brought everyone to this specific White Lotus—including season-one fave Belinda (Natasha Rothwell)—is the hotel’s world-renowned wellness program. Not that Timothy Ratliff (Jason Isaacs), already complaining about the trip and the technology detox, is all that excited about it. But he and his wife Victoria (Parker Posey) have organized the getaway as a family outing in support of their daughter Piper (Sarah Catherine Hook), who’s studying religion and is eager to interview a nearby monk, something that baffles her older brother Saxon (Patrick Schwarzenegger) and impresses her younger one Lochlan (Sam Nivola).
Meanwhile, Jaclyn Lemon (Michelle Monaghan) is clearly eager to show her two good friends, Kate (Leslie Bibb) and Laurie (Carrie Coon), a great time—which will be made all the more fun with the hunky wellness guide they’ve been assigned.
One person who’s not at all thrilled about any of this? Rich Hatchett (Walton Goggins), an aptly-named sourpuss of a guy who’s brought his younger girlfriend Chelsea (Aimee Lou Wood) to Thailand for reasons that are curious. He’s all too interested in knowing whether Sritala’s husband is anywhere to be found. Which is to say: He’s not there for the meditation, the fruit, the detox, or anything of the sort.
A first episode of The White Lotus is clearly all table-setting. And that’s very much the case here, with every scene slowly unfolding as a way to tell us more about these varied guests—and those hotel employees who’ll be there to serve them, including sunny health mentor Mook (Lalisa Manobal) and equally sunny security guard Gaitok (Tayme Thapthimthong). So what do we learn about these folks?
Well, for starters, we know that Timothy and Saxon are workaholics who refuse to hand in their phones as part of the hotel’s no-phone policy. Which is serendipitous, considering Timothy gets a call from a Wall Street Journal writer who wants a comment on a former colleague of his for an exposé that’s bound to drop soon. As for Saxon, he’s just as insufferable as his name and Schwazenegger’s chiseled jawline would lead you to believe. He spends his first day at the hotel pool trying to casually flirt with Chelsea (who doesn’t give him the time of day as he conspicuously towels himself off right by her) and with the “cougars” he remembers from the boat (who similarly dismiss his coy advances when he tries to ingratiate himself with them with a smug smirk).
Maybe that’s why he seems so sexually frustrated later that night and decides to lecture his younger brother on the important things in life: porn and wanton desires. “It is good to want things,” he says. “As long as you can get them. I mean, getting what you want in life is happiness, bro.” Only his brother is less clear about what he wants…though the way his eyes linger on Saxon’s naked body as he heads to the bathroom to jerk off to porn (yes, really) may well be a clue as to what he can’t bring himself to admit to his brash older brother.
At a nearby cabana, the three blond gal pals are reminiscing about how close they once were, how that changed when Jaclyn became famous, and how maybe this weekend will be a chance to rekindle their close-knit friendship. Only Laurie feels like the odd one out, especially because Jaclyn and Kate keep insisting on surface-level conversation and flattery (“Who’s your doctor?” and the like) that keeps her on the outside looking in—quite literally. She bids them goodnight, grabs a bottle of wine, and finds herself sobbing as she watches her friends having a great time without her.
But it’s clear that Goggins’ Rick may be the one to watch. He’s clearly on a mission, even if Chelsea has no idea why they are in Thailand at all. But she won’t let that stop her from having a good time—first by ignoring Saxon and later striking up a conversation with a friendly model who’s there with her older paramour herself. So much to bond over!
Clearly wheels are already in motion to what will happen a week from the arrival of this eclectic array of guests. Which brings us back to Belinda, who is so excited (monkeys and lizards aside) to be in Thailand to learn more about the wellness center at the hotel and to welcome her son in a few days time. Are you already dreading what I think may happen? Do I have to worry about affable, easygoing, lovely, hilarious Belinda for the remainder of the season? Darn you, Mike White! Although maybe it might be a change of pace given how central gay deaths have been to the franchise already.
In any case, we’re now all checked in and ready to take in the sights. And we’ve learned who everyone is and maybe who everyone still hopes to become (identity-as-prison metaphors be damned). Until next week!
Stray observations
- • “Just finishing some finals…and some other stuff” is the kind of line at the start of the episode that should have us more openly wondering why else Belinda’s son needed a much-welcome rest from his life.
- • Speaking of Belinda, what a joy to have Natasha Rothwell back on our TV screens—especially since her show How To Die Alone was unceremoniously canceled not too long ago.
- • We must talk about Parker Posey’s awhccent work. I’ll admit it first threw me for a loop. But I’ve slowly been warming up to it and keep finding it ever more hilarious.
- • Line of the episode: “What am I supposed to do all week without my phone? Eat fruit?” or “This is so on brand for you. Be a victim of your own decisions.”?
- • Who’s going to start using “victory tour” (over “midlife crisis”) and LBH (“Losers Back Home”) from here on out?
- • Which begs the question: We all caught who that LBH is, right? Greg (Jon Gries), a.k.a. Tanya’s husband! Which had me wondering, what is he doing there with his sidepiece (Charlotte Le Bon), Chelsea’s new BFF, and how might this season’s storyline dovetail with his own?
- • Will Piper ever get to meet the monk she’s there to interview? What is it she’s after?
