The White Lotus Thailand: Ep1-4
Forbidden fruit
“I thought it was a monkey!” - Kate
Spoilers ahead for episodes 1-4 of White Lotus season 3.
Read Part 2 (episodes 5-8)… coming soon!
Identity Theft is Not a Joke
White Lotus Thailand is about spirituality. But before we connect to a higher power, don’t we need a sense of who we are first? An identity? Piper’s audiobook on Buddhism rings a warning for this season: identity is a prison.
“No more tsunami videos before bed.” - Victoria
Forbidden Fruit
Family division is central to the Bible. Cain kills Abel, Abraham’s sons battle it out. Fathers, sons, and brothers have…fraught relationships. Meanwhile female figures of the Bible are defined by their sex. Either they’re sexually pure (Virgin Mother) or a temptation (prostitute).
The Ratliff’s are our divided family: patriarch Tim, mom Victoria, and adult-children Saxon, Piper, and Lochlan. Right away we get our metaphorical divide: will youngest son Lochlan go to Duke like the boys, or Chapel Hill like the ladies? But really, this is a question of sex. Will Lochlan be dominant and heterosexual like the men? Or passive and attracted to men, like the ladies?
When touring their villa, Saxon stumbles upon this family’s forbidden fruit: incest.
Saxon picks up the pong-pong fruit, which staff member Pam warns is deadly poisonous. A few minutes later, Saxon comments on his sister’s “fully grown” genitals, tickles her, and picks her up. Oh boy. Saxon is so hungry for sex, I think he would f*** anything—either one of his siblings.
That night Saxon has a naked showing of bravado in front of his brother. He brags about masturbating to porn, which he then does in their hotel bathroom. Lochlan looks uncomfortable, but doesn’t exactly turn away.
“We flew over the North Pole!” - Victoria
Victoria warns her kids about fraternizing outside the family. She goes on to recount how her brother used to pin her to the ground and dangle spit over her face. Pretty sexual.
Dad Tim, while heavily intoxicated and teary, confesses his love for daughter Piper. He touches her face and nearly comes on to her. Meanwhile Tim and his wife Victoria haven’t had any sexual energy.
In episode one, Lochlan wears a T-shirt that reads “Reality Check.” I think that hits the nail on the head. Reality is about to crash down on the Ratliff’s Garden of Eden—and they don’t have any more benzos to numb the pain.
Predictions
I think Saxon is this season’s dead body, killed by sister Piper.
I think Tim will either kill himself by eating the pong pong fruit (not with the gun!) or go on the run in Thailand. I don’t think he’ll return to the US.
“Did she sand blast her face or something?” - Kate
No, You Look Incredible
Time for our trio of blonde girlfriends: Jaclyn (TV star who’s footing the bill), Kate (botoxed-rich-wife), and Laurie (dowdy one). The tension in their decades-long friendship is thinly veiled by strained smiles and phony compliments. Things are about to erupt.
Their story line shows how modern spirituality and religion have shifted.
Spirituality
Physical beauty is spirituality for these ladies. Instead of facing their mortality or self-worth, they obsess over appearances like the Evil Queen in Snow White. Laurie even says how looking at her friends is like looking into a mirror, and their competitiveness comes out big time. Their “self-care” is vanity.
Even their experience of life is artificial. They can’t handle the streets in town or the budget resort. Jaclyn’s marriage is for show. They need “butler” Valentin to orchestrate phony fun for them, with what seem like gigolos. Vanity has made these ladies vapid. They don’t have the sustenance to handle real life.
Religion
One night at dinner, the ladies have a pretty amicable debate about differences in religion. All good. But when Kate mentions going to a southern Christian church, Jaclyn and Laurie are horrified. They don’t care that she attends a different church—they care that she sits next to parishioners who voted for Trump.
Politics are the new religion. Political leaders are our gods and their policies our dogma.
Kate’s conservative “beliefs” mark a phoniness in Laurie and Jaclyn. They view their liberal politics as an aesthetic marker of goodness. But if their friend, who is a mirror of themselves, voted for Trump, are they really that different from the Republicans they despise? All three women are rich and out-of-touch, no matter who they voted for.
Predictions
I think Jaclyn will sleep with Valentin, which will prompt a screaming match between the three friends.
I think Jaclyn will end this season divorced or a widow.
I think the ladies will drink a poison in the hopes of becoming younger, like the Evil Queen. Watch out Mook.
“You’re like a fucking machine gun. You know that?” - Rick
Get Your Joy Back
God is only good if there’s evil to fight. Rick is drawn to the dark side of religion.
The most obvious example is his sympathy for the venomous snakes, who he sees as misunderstood and marginalized like himself. He sets them free in a fit of marijuana-fueled recklessness. Too bad one of the snakes bites the person he loves most, girlfriend Chelsea.
Rick chains himself to an identity pillared by his parents.
His mother died of an overdose when he was a boy. We see an intimate moment between Rick and Chelsea where he tenderly sucks her nipple. It’s very Madonna and child. Rick pushes Chelsea away, but I think he keeps her around because he loves her desperately. Like a petulant boy and his mother.
“Such a Scorpio. So mysterious.” - Chelsea
As for dad…Rick tells his meditation teacher, “I can’t get my life back, but I can still get satisfaction.” He hesitates before saying “satisfaction”…he means revenge. Rick is on a mission to kill Sritala’s husband Jim, who murdered his father. But episode 4 takes an uncertain turn. Rick’s father disappeared in Thailand. There was never a body.
Rick has a strong story of identity. He believes his father was good, that Jim murdered his father, and that he himself is depressed through no fault of his own. That story is about to flip on its head.
Predictions
I think Rick will accidentally kill Chelsea in his quest to kill Jim.
I think Rick’s father is alive.
I think Rick’s biological father is actually Jim.
“You should’ve taken my Lorazepam. I slept like a corpse.” - Victoria
On My Stomach
The guests aren’t the only ones seeking meaning at the White Lotus.
Gaitok wants Mook’s hand in marriage and I think he’ll go to dangerous lengths to get it. But first he’s gotta find that hot potato of a gun—it keeps changing hands!
I think Valentin is behind the robbery. He distracted Gaitok (the guard) when the robbers entered the resort. That whole robbery was suspicious to me. Why break in just to steal a few pieces of not-very-expensive jewelry? Why not break into the hotel safe Pam keeps mentioning?
Fabian seems too eager for Sritala’s approval. Seasons past have not been kind to White Lotus general managers, which makes me worried for Fabian.
Belinda is here to learn about wellness, but instead she’s learning the dark truth behind Tanya’s death. I hope she saves Chloe before Gary/Greg kills her.
Pornchai is sweet and kind. I hope we get a genuine love story between Belinda and him, but who knows. Sweet people have done worse at the White Lotus—looking at you Shane (season 1) and Daphne (season 2).
Enjoy Your Stay
Check back in about a month, for the second half of season 3!
“All actresses are basically prostitutes. If they’re lucky.” - Victoria
Check out Part 2 of White Lotus Thailand (episodes 5-8)… coming soon!
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