The White Lotus
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Denials isnt so much an episode of television but its aftermath.
Last weeks Full Moon Party was taut; storylines overlapped in ways literal, spiritual, and metaphorical.
Then we catch sight of Lochlan on top of Chloe, her feet at his ass.
These guys will never speak again, I worried.
The Ratliffs are over.
Unable to comprehend the enormity of whats transpired, Saxon ignores it.
Because Saxon is obsessed with being Saxon.
He is the most important son of a most important man.
He is a hetero stud bucket.
He is 12 percent body fat, 70 percent Adderall, and 100 percent all-American.
Buddhists, though, reject the notion of a permanent self of 100 percent anything.
They eschew ego for the very reason that itdoescause suffering.
Instead, Saxons sense of himself is obliterated.
Im significantly less concerned about Lochlan.
On second thought, a monastery is exactly where Lochlan needs to be.
Shes desperate to separate from her family, ideally without hurting them or getting hurt, which is impossible.
And hes met terrified parents like the Ratliffs, too.
Western malaise isnt the prerogative of only the young.
Tim is a cautionary tale of what can happen to a man who defines himself by his attachments.
What happens when we die?
Tim asks Luang Por Teera.
Their tete-a-tete is affecting but also comic perfection.
(I hooted at Yoons delivery of the line Great question, haha.)
When we die, we get reabsorbed into the ocean, he says.
Death is like coming home.
Were all sea spray.
He wants us to visualize death and understand how nearby it is.
Tim has not one but two suicidal fantasies across the hour.
In the first, he kills only himself.
But at what cost to himself?
At the firing range with Pee Lek, Gaitok turns out to be a pretty accurate shot.
Whats a man to do?
Theres really only one way to prove a killer instinct.
It made me wonder what Rick did in a past life to earn these return favors.
In comparison to the Ratliff familys self-destruction and RicksHamletcampaign, the juvenile bickering between the ladies feels quaint.
But the goss doesnt elicit Lauries trademark cackle.
Shes pissed at the deception.
Almost immediately, Laurie tells Kate that shes going to say something.
Nay, that shehasto say something.
Its like all three of them are auditioning for the role of biggest piece of work.
Later, shes caustic with Jaclyn.
Its not that I dont sympathize with Laurie; I (kind of) do.
Borrow a charger, dude.
Its a film set not a digital-detox resort on Koh Samui.
Its fascinating to me that Jaclyn is caught off guard by Lauries questioning.
I would have workshopped my cover story infinity times before turning up to the pool.
Some people dont need to rehearse, I guess.
They were born to play themselves, which is the point Laurie makes.
Jaclyn has always been needy and dishonest.
Kate is prim and dishonest.
Laurie is petulant and dishonest.
Were still the same people we were in the tenth grade.
Belinda, however, is in a vacay rom-com.
The worst things to have happened to her so far would make for mild punchlines.
Her son walks in on her in bed with a new man.
I want Belinda to stay in this private popcorn movie.
I want Belinda and Pornchai to start their dream spa, get married, and have gorgeous babies.
I want Zion to fall in love with his new dad.
All she needs to do is not do anything that could directly or indirectly lead to her own death.
That may prove impossible.
On the docket for the coming evening are at least five separate occasions with the potential to be calamitous.
In town, the long-foreshadowed Muay Thai fights are finally happening.
Expected attendees include the Vladivostok organized-crime group and maybe the three girls, but definitely Laurie.
And, most menacingly, Gregs hosting a dinner party!
Chloe will be there, for sure.
Belinda and Zion are firmly on the maybe list.
She would be wrong, of course, but it does sound like her well-intentioned and trusting.
And thats whereThe White Lotusleaves us: on the cusp of more suffering.
Season three has been darker; it stands to reason it might be deadlier.
