Denials

Wow. As usual, the music was excellent, the writing was sharp, and of course the acting was superb (Patrick Schwarzenegger stood out this episode). With the White Lotus, I've come to expect these aspects to shine-but the storytelling in the back half of this season is proving to be very effective.

This episode was shocking, yet surprisingly grounded. One of the things that makes this show so special is the way that tension escalates. Each character is progressively mentally unraveling, and the murder mystery aspect keeps the tone ominous. Mike White knows how to keep us guessing, and this show is the perfect example of that. I'm very excited to see how this story concludes.

Season two of The White Lotus was so awesome, I knew season three would likely be a disappointment. I was not prepared for how bad it would be.

There is not a single character in season three that is interesting or compelling. Parker Posey is as close to interesting as anyone gets. They all seem half-developed, and lack intention.

For the first time watching this series, I've started to fast forward through scenes. The hapless security guard irritates me the most. Then the unlikeable guy on a mission to "see" someone in Bangkok. The pervy brothers are repellent. The sister wanting to join the monastery, is boring beyond words. The three reunion women are cliches, with no redeeming characteristics. It's so unlike season two, where every single character drew me in, and the plot was electric.

Come on, really? I was so excited to see what would happen between the two women and the brothers from the last episode, but really? Saxon vomited just thinking about it, and I can understand that.

The reviewers who were complaining about the brother-brother thing in the last episode might not be able to digest what happened in this one. The show is getting interesting story-wise, but I feel like all the characters are just waiting for the final episode to do something crazy because it's the rule-killing usually happens in the finale, so they're just waiting for it.

Also, who hired that security guard? For two episodes now, he's been scared about something that someone stole from him, and to get it back, he's behaving like a thief-even though it's his own thing he's trying to take back. Were the resort owners looking for a security guard to take care of Mook or the resort?

Overall, the tension is building up. I just hope the characters don't wait for the finale and actually do something in the next episode.

Was a bit skeptical during the first 1/2 of this season and now feeling like the S03 is picking up and starting to develop the juicy themes and entangling plots that made the previous seasons so intriguing and worthy of the hype.

This episode had much more intriguing plots for each character that actually allowed them to develop into more 3 dimensional characters with depth as opposed to the first episodes where characters feel introduced as cheap stereotypes and pastiches. The previous seasons did this to a certain extent but nice to see this season take its time to bloom into that even though everyone was holding their breath. Excited to see how it wrap up!

I always forget to give a shoutout to Parker Posey from this season, but her accent and the way she acts are hilarious and adorable. This was another solid episode that pulled down a bit from the prior episode, but still kept the same energy. Seasons are always slow burns with beautiful shots and slow pacing, but it works every season. Whether it's some of the Ratliff family that are taking on the repercussions of their decisions or Rick, who is aggressively pursuing what he came to do in Thailand, they go in different directions, but somehow give that uneasy anxiety that pulls you in as you get deeper into the season. Can't wait for the last two episodes. 4/8 stars.