S01.E06: Departures

[peachmangosteen]

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Rachel shares some harsh truths with Shane and confides in Belinda, who’s reeling from bad news of her own. As the Mossbachers turn the page on their harrowing scare, Quinn reveals major life plans. With nothing left to lose, Armond goes on an all-out bender – and exacts the ultimate revenge on his nemesis.

Airs August 15th.

[Samsnee]

Hey I called it!

That was a frustrating finale. So basically all the rich white people learned nothing and stayed the complete same as when they came on the island  

So ranking of worst people on this show:

Paula. Acts like she’s a woke activist but just ruins a guy’s entire life but then making it all about her. If she cared she would have confessed so that makes her the worst of all of them 

Tanya. Leads Belinda on the entire show and gives her false hope 

Shane. Obvious reasons

Quinn. Spoiled kid who is either complaining about not having his toys or thinks he can just stay in Hawaii on his own

Mark. Completely self involved and puts his own need for whatever idealized belief that masculinity should be ahead of everyone else 

I really wish Belinda and Kai were able to get some sort of positive karma in the end. Feel bad for Rachel as well and seems odd they’ve been building the whole season for her to be independent and completely abandoned it. 

It was a fun watch but it left a bad taste in my mouth. 

[PurpleFishHead]

11 minutes ago, Samsnee said:

Quinn. Spoiled kid who is either complaining about not having his toys or thinks he can just stay in Hawaii on his own

But Sam, he got to live his dream and paddle the boat!

[answerphone]

I’m disappointed!  

Why wasn’t Shane arrested?  

Kai wasn’t shown after the arrest?  

Paula wasn’t questioned?

Rachel is biting her lip and continuing with Shane, who now has a shaky future.

Quinn’s parents didn’t notice he’s not on the plane, like Home Alone?

[Laurie4H]

I think that was a first for me watching someone take a dump in a movie or tv show lol.  
Obviously Quinn will be searched for.  Legally he would have to be returned home if found.  
How much money did she give Belinda?  
I don’t think Kai’s name would be mentioned when asked what his name was.  I would think that would have been confidential 
Paula was the worst.  And was that family that bad?  I didn’t think so.  Quinn was a naive kid.  The daughter showed some emotion at the end and the parents meant well. 

Edited August 16, 2021 by Laurie4H

[SeanC]

Just now, answerphone said:

 Why wasn’t Shane arrested?  

Pretty easy self-defense case (particularly since he's a rich guy).

Just now, answerphone said:

Paula wasn’t questioned?

That definitely is something that doesn't make much sense to me, at least if we're meant to think this was the end of it.  Even if she didn't discuss anything on the phone with Kai about the robbery, she evidently did text with him; in the process of looking at his phone they'd presumably learn that he was in close contact with one of the guests of the place he robbed.

[meligator]

Poor Kai - he didn't mention Paula when questioned?

That's 2 things I never thought I would see on a TV show.

So disappointed in Rachel going back to the manbaby.  His mom came on the honeymoon - RUN AWAY FASTER

 

[MerBearStare]

I definitely thought Armand would be the one to die, but I thought it would be an accidental overdose, not an accidental stabbing.

While Rachel's ending is sad - and probably not the one anyone wanted - I do think it's realistic. Rachel kind of reminds me of Megan Draper. Two very pretty, young-ish women married to rich men who want their own career in a field they're actually pretty mediocre in (Rachel journalism, obviously, and Megan acting).

Aside from Shane, who literally killed someone, Paula wreaked the most havoc while staying at the hotel. So while she may think the Mossbachers are bad, she is much worse. Congrats, girl. 

I did feel a tinge of sympathy for Olivia when she was crying. 

Loved Belinda saying she was all out of advice. Hopefully she will set better boundaries in the future. Don't take on the emotional baggage of people who don't give a shit about you.

In the span of a couple of days there was a jewel heist by an employee and a stabbing that resulted in death. I can't imagine what kind of Trip Advisor reviews this week's guests are going to write.

[TV Glotzer]

The White Lotus must have the worst Yelp reviews ever. 

[txhorns79]

10 minutes ago, MerBearStare said:

 

Loved Belinda saying she was all out of advice. Hopefully she will set better boundaries in the future. Don't take on the emotional baggage of people who don't give a shit about you.

I got that Tanya clearly set unrealistic expectations for Belinda, but I also kind of felt like Belinda can't be quite as naive as they made her out to be.  Surely Tanya isn't the first wealthy guest to make a fuss over Belinda's services, befriend her and then have it lead to nothing? 

26 minutes ago, Laurie4H said:

How much money did she give Belinda?  

I couldn't completely tell, but I would have guessed a few thousand dollars.  Not enough for any business plan, but kind of an "I'm sorry, here's a lot of money to make it better," tip.

I'm not shocked that Rachel reconsidered.  She doesn't appear to be a strong person to me, and it would take a huge amount of strength to walk out on a brand new marriage during the honeymoon. 

[Cheezwiz]

I suspected Armond was going to be the one going home in the casket, but I was honestly expecting him to OD or drop dead of a cocaine induced heart-attack.

37 minutes ago, Laurie4H said:

I think that was a first for me watching someone take a dump in a movie or tv show lol.  

Yeah, I really didn't need to see it depicted that graphically. The initial shot would have given the audience the picture. 

Bummed that Rachel went back to her douchebag hubby - I was really rooting for her to flee. Was happy when Belinda decided she wasn't going to take on wealthy clientele problems anymore. I hope the tip Tanya gave her was a whopping amount.Maybe not enough to start a business, but hopefully enough for her to go on a well-earned luxury vacation of her own.

I guess Kai is facing consequences on his own - both Paula and Olivia suck.

No, it was not realistic in any way, but I was still cheering for Quinn.

Interesting that a sea-turtle wound up being an important creature this episode - if anyone has watched "Enlightened", Mike White's series from a decade ago, it popped up as a symbol there as well. Maybe it's Mike White's spirit animal.

[DoubleUTeeEff]

All through the episode, I kept expecting either Dylan or the other guy that was partying with Armand was going to end up dead of an overdose. A little bit of a twist that a younger guy would be the one to end up dying and something that Armand would feel guilty about. However, it did make sense that it was Armand because of the whole Shane/Armand feud. We always knew the more privileged one would end up without consequences while the less privileged would end up suffering. Plus, they brought out Chekhov's knife.

Pretty much everyone is stuck at the same place if not worse than they were at the beginning. Belinda obviously didn't get her business and has to continue to stand on the shore and smile and wave at new guests. Armand is dead. Kai is arrested and facing serious charges. $75,000 is a lot of money and he assaulted two people. Paula's harebrained scheme didn't pan out and she ends up disillusioned. At least she felt guilty. (I'm assuming that's what the vomiting was about.) Rachel goes back to Shane. Tanya finds love but with someone who could drop dead any minute. It's an ironical kind of pairing; it's because he's so ill that he is willing to go with the flow but if he were healthy and was planning a future, would he even put up with Tanya? Only Mark and Nicole are happier in their marriage and even though it's doubtful that Quinn is going to get to stay long, at least he got to canoe some more like he wanted.

I was most sad about Rachel because it really seemed like she was 95% out the door. I mean, she told Shane she made a mistake and even got her own room. It's not at all unrealistic, though. So many people end up in terrible relationships because of fear of being alone or lack of self esteem. I don't think their marriage is going to last. Even if Rachel does stick around for a long time, Shane seems fixated on having a "hot wife." Who's to say he doesn't throw her over for a younger woman when she gets old?

I loved that they subverted the Magical Negro Trope with Belinda. She just got up and walked out on Rachel.

50 minutes ago, SeanC said:

That definitely is something that doesn't make much sense to me, at least if we're meant to think this was the end of it.  Even if she didn't discuss anything on the phone with Kai about the robbery, she evidently did text with him; in the process of looking at his phone they'd presumably learn that he was in close contact with one of the guests of the place he robbed.

I don't think they'd bother to look through his phone. If they've caught him with the goods and he ends up confessing for a plea deal, it's over. It's not some huge case they are going to use a lot of resources and do a lot of investigating for, it's just a garden variety robbery.

[Irlandesa]

55 minutes ago, answerphone said:

Why wasn’t Shane arrested?  

 

I'm surprised he wasn't kept a little longer but the hotel had a break in which involved assault and he already knew that there was an intruder in the room.  He called out and was ignored.  And it really was an accident when he went around the corner when he should not expect anyone in that room. 

26 minutes ago, txhorns79 said:

I'm not shocked that Rachel reconsidered.  She doesn't appear to be a strong person to me, and it would take a huge amount of strength to walk out on a brand new marriage during the honeymoon. 

Exactly.  I think the only thing that surprised me is that it took Shane killing Armond to make her reconsider. I thought she would have caved before he killed Shane.

Tanya was the only guest who I think might be a tiny bit worse off than when she came.  She made this big speech about not wanting a transactional relationship but I do kind of think that's where she ended up.  She's going to arrange her life to be close to Greg and make her life appealing/easy for him.  And he's sick so she might be flying out to wherever S2 takes place to spread his ashes.

I loved Murray Barlett's performance in this series.  I might even like it more than I did when he was Dom on Looking.  I loved how Armond took a lot of drugs and I thought he was going to wreak havoc but instead, he gave the service of his life.  It was just an amazing sequence.

 

[AzureOwl]

It really needs to be said again, but Alexandra Daddario is a seriously good actress. At the start of the episode your could feel her silently freaking out, and your exactly what Rachel was feeling without her having to say a word.

1 hour ago, SeanC said:

Pretty easy self-defense case (particularly since he's a rich guy).

That is true, but I wouldn't imagine that things would be cleared up fast enough for Shane to leave in less than a day. Hell, Armond's body was released to be sent back home just as fast. There couldn't possibly be time to even do an autopsy.

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That definitely is something that doesn't make much sense to me, at least if we're meant to think this was the end of it.  Even if she didn't discuss anything on the phone with Kai about the robbery, she evidently did text with him; in the process of looking at his phone they'd presumably learn that he was in close contact with one of the guests of the place he robbed.

Only if they were motivated to keep investigating. The police already caught the guy and recovered all the loot. They really have no incentives to keep looking just in case he had accomplices. And in a place that lives off of tourism, I would imagine the police would be in a hurry to close the case as quickly as possible.  

1 hour ago, Laurie4H said:

I think that was a first for me watching someone take a dump in a movie or tv show lol.  

Definitively the first time they showed the actual matter coming out. Other movies/shows they just show the person squatting and doing a face, but they always keep the camera on their face.

Quote

How much money did she give Belinda?  

That was a pretty fat envelope. At least 20,000 dollars would be my estimation.

[txhorns79]

11 minutes ago, DoubleUTeeEff said:

At least she felt guilty. (I'm assuming that's what the vomiting was about.)

I was thinking she was throwing up because she was terrified she was going to get arrested. 

[AzureOwl]

2 minutes ago, txhorns79 said:

I was thinking she was throwing up because she was terrified she was going to get arrested. 

It's probably both. 

[letter8358]

This was the worst finale I ever seen and I seen some bad finales. Not worth my time.

[Adgirl]

Was I the only one hoping Shane and Armond would end up in bed? ::shrug:: okay.

The world would be a better place if the plane carrying these fuckers back crashed into the ocean. None of these people have any redeeming qualities. Olivia is the same girl that flirted with Paula's boo and made Rachel feel small just for wanting a little human interaction. Nicole's pontificating about the plight of the straight white male-narcissistic, entitled claptrap.  I'm so glad Belinda didn't give Rachel any energy.  Rachel needs to stand on her own two feet but I think that's a by-product of mommy-issues People like Paula are the reason actual activists soured on the term "woke" even before Fox News found it.

1 hour ago, txhorns79 said:

I got that Tanya clearly set unrealistic expectations for Belinda, but I also kind of felt like Belinda can't be quite as naive as they made her out to be.  Surely Tanya isn't the first wealthy guest to make a fuss over Belinda's services, befriend her and then have it lead to nothing?

Yes but when she closes herself off someone will come along to tell her how she should be open to possibilities and new experiences blah blah blah--at least that's what happens whenever I pull up my drawbridge. 

That better be 15K in the envelope.

 

Edited August 16, 2021 by Adgirl

[gesundheit]

1 hour ago, txhorns79 said:

I got that Tanya clearly set unrealistic expectations for Belinda, but I also kind of felt like Belinda can't be quite as naive as they made her out to be.  Surely Tanya isn't the first wealthy guest to make a fuss over Belinda's services, befriend her and then have it lead to nothing?  

She did laugh it off at first, her son talked her into considering it, and Tanya really did keep insisting. I'm sure she has rich folks making a fuss over her service and trying to befriend her all the time, leading to nothing, but she probably doesn't often have a rich woman traveling alone swear to her up and down that she will pay serious money for her to start her own spa to the point that she's asking for a business plan. I think it's understandable that she let herself get caught up because Tanya was really keeping it going, it wasn't an offhand comment that the others probably make.

So glad she walked out on Rachel. "Make me feel better about having married someone so rich that I'll live in luxury and never have to work again" was not what Belinda needed. It's not that Rachel was wrong to feel the way she felt, it's that someone who works in hospitality should never be the shoulder she chose to cry on about it.

[Paws]

Quote

Interesting that a sea-turtle wound up being an important creature this episode - if anyone has watched "Enlightened", Mike White's series from a decade ago, it popped up as a symbol there as well. Maybe it's Mike White's spirit animal.

Mike white sort of has a turtle-ish face and demeanor. The way he almost won Survivor was classic turtle…super patient, easy going, and there he was at the end.  I love Turtles and consider this a compliment.

It was nice to hear Jennifer Coolidge speaking in a non-zonked voice during her chat w Belinda, but ouch that was hard to watch Belinda listen to it. Poor Belinda.

[AzureOwl]

7 minutes ago, Paws said:

It was nice to hear Jennifer Coolidge speaking in a non-zonked voice during her chat w Belinda, but ouch that was hard to watch Belinda listen to it. Poor Belinda.

Poor Belinda indeed. I'm so happy that at the very least she'll have that 20 grand to make up for Tanya's bullshit. 

[chocolatine]

Paula has done a lot of shitty things, but throwing the necklace into the ocean was the worst for me. One of those beautiful sea creatures is going to choke on it or get tangled up in it. Fuck her and her "wokeness." (And FWIW, I think she was throwing up because of sea sickness, not guilt.)

I have no sympathy for Rachel. If she chooses to stay with Shane, her unhappiness will be her own fault. Also, she can use fancy expressions like "Faustian bargain" all she wants, but at the end of the day she's just a basic bitch who settled for a guy because of his money. At least Faust made the bargain in order to obtain limitless knowledge.

Armand had it coming. Shane was a difficult guest, but he didn't do anything that hotel staff isn't trained to handle. Going on a drug binge while on the clock, then breaking into a guest's room and taking a dump on their clothes was beyond the pale. He did look happy and at peace in his final moment though, so maybe it was a relief of sorts.

I'd love to see a 10-minute bonus feature where Quinn tries to make it on his own in Hawaii - finding a job and a place to live, etc. - and gives up after a couple of days. It's great that he's found something he's passionate about, but he doesn't have the life skills yet to live independently. He can make it his goal to apply to colleges in Hawaii and/or save up money to move there when he's 18. Right now he's still an immature and coddled rich kid, demanding to have exactly what he wants, immediately when he wants it.

35 minutes ago, AzureOwl said:

That was a pretty fat envelope. At least 20,000 dollars would be my estimation.

The total amount depends on the denomination of the bills. If those are $10 or $20 bills, the amount will be much lower than $20k. A big tip, and helpful in the short term, but not life-changing, like funding her business would have been. (And even if those are $100 bills, that's still nowhere close to what she needs in order to open her own spa.)

Edited August 16, 2021 by chocolatine

[CarpeFelis]

1 hour ago, txhorns79 said:

I got that Tanya clearly set unrealistic expectations for Belinda, but I also kind of felt like Belinda can't be quite as naive as they made her out to be.  Surely Tanya isn't the first wealthy guest to make a fuss over Belinda's services, befriend her and then have it lead to nothing? 

I couldn't completely tell, but I would have guessed a few thousand dollars.  Not enough for any business plan, but kind of an "I'm sorry, here's a lot of money to make it better," tip.

I'm not shocked that Rachel reconsidered.  She doesn't appear to be a strong person to me, and it would take a huge amount of strength to walk out on a brand new marriage during the honeymoon. 

Belinda has been around long enough to be the manager of the spa  and have a teenage kid — she’s no naïve twentysomething — and she didn’t seem dumb by any means. So it seemed odd to me that she was actually taken in by Tanya’s talk about setting her up in her own business, because everything about Tanya absolutely screamed “flake” from minute one. I didn’t blame Belinda one bit when she told Rachel she had no advice to give her. Even though she’d given Rachel her card and said to call if she needed anything, it was really tone deaf of Rachel to take her up on it. Couldn’t she call her mom? Does she have no girlfriends back home to call?

As for Rachel, I was disappointed she went back to Shane in the end. But yeah, she doesn’t seem to be a terribly strong person. Not only would it take strength to walk out on her honeymoon, but she’d be left to start over with nothing and that had to be a scary prospect. If she’d had a less shaky career she might have been able to pull it off. My husband and I are both engineers and I actually earned more than he did for several years (I’m older and started my career 9 years before he did) so if I’d needed to walk out on him during our honeymoon, I had the resources to cope just fine. Rachel couldn’t say the same.

At least we finally got the explanation as to how she got sucked into marrying him after knowing him such a short time, and how she was so busy with the wedding planning she didn’t realize what living with him would be like. I did really love it when she called him a man baby who was spoiled by his mommy who showed up on their honeymoon!

I wonder how long Quinn got to stick around on the island. How did he think he was going to support himself? Where would he live? No doubt his parents would have found him before long anyway.

[nilyank]

16 minutes ago, chocolatine said:

The total amount depends on the denomination of the bills. If those are $10 or $20 bills, the amount will be much lower than $20k. A big tip, and helpful in the short term, but not life-changing, like funding her business would have been.

I really don't think that Tanya would have gotten at least three thick stacks of $10 or $20 to give to Belinda when she could have gotten a smaller stack in $100s to pay her off. Those were $50s and $100s which amount to nice amount to put away for a rainy day. If Belinda meets a couple of more Tanyas like that, she would be able to finance her own dream.

[AzureOwl]

25 minutes ago, chocolatine said:

The total amount depends on the denomination of the bills. If those are $10 or $20 bills, the amount will be much lower than $20k. A big tip, and helpful in the short term, but not life-changing, like funding her business would have been. (And even if those are $100 bills, that's still nowhere close to what she needs in order to open her own spa.)

6 minutes ago, nilyank said:

I really don't think that Tanya would have gotten at least three thick stacks of $10 or $20 to give to Belinda when she could have gotten a smaller stack in $100s to pay her off. Those were $50s and $100s which amount to nice amount to put away for a rainy day. If Belinda meets a couple of more Tanyas like that, she would be able to finance her own dream.

I tried to check on HBO Max if we can get a good look at the bills inside the envelope, but it is kind of blurry. I can't read the number on the corner, but does anyone recognize the picture on the bill?

There seem to be four stacks inside the envelope.

Edited August 16, 2021 by AzureOwl

[chocolatine]

9 minutes ago, nilyank said:

I really don't think that Tanya would have gotten at least three thick stacks of $10 or $20 to give to Belinda when she could have gotten a smaller stack in $100s to pay her off. Those were $50s and $100s which amount to nice amount to put away for a rainy day. If Belinda meets a couple of more Tanyas like that, she would be able to finance her own dream.

Startup costs for a high-end spa are around $500k, much higher if it's in a prime location like Hawaii. Even if the envelope contained $100 bills, it's still a drop in the bucket. It's really just an insult, Tanya thinking that Belinda should be happy with a large tip after Tanya dangled Belinda's dream in front of her and then crushed it.

Edited August 16, 2021 by chocolatine

[Rosebud1970]

As the series progressed, I sort of thought it might be Armond in the box. But, then, Armond is Australian (at least by accent) so why is he being shipped back to the mainland, rather than back to Australia? Of course, the expression on Shane’s face in the first episode made it clear that the deceased was going to be someone with whom he had interacted frequently. This leaves out just about everyone else in the cast.

So, no Mossbachers, no Tanya, or any of the other staff. It kind  of had to be Armond.

Fanwanking here, Rachel goes back to Shane long enough to get back to NY, where she has friends, family, resources, can find a competent divorce attorney and get herself out of this marriage. Shane is toxic. Of course, Rachel is a weak person, with a not so good sense of timing. Understanding it was a plot device, IRL, Rachel would have waited until she was back home to tell Shane she didn’t want to be married to HIM. Not pulled the trigger so far from home, where she’s isolated and alone.

Edited August 16, 2021 by Rosebud1970

[For Cereals]

1 hour ago, Adgirl said:

Was I the only one hoping Shane and Armond would end up in bed? ::shrug:: okay.

I kind of thought Shane was going to join the party, so right there with you.

Nope, definitely a defecating first…

I enjoyed the show, but I’m ok with it being one season.  I wasn’t expecting miraculous epiphanies like Fantasy Island, especially given the writer, so I’m satisfied.

[7-Zark-7]

Turns out the real mystery is how they got me to watch a show where nothing much happened for six episodes.

[Mannahatta]

My fantasy is that the Mossbachers won't press charges against Kai - not out of kindness, of course, but because they got all their jewelry back and a long-distance court case would too much of a bother. Also, the resort has no motivation to pursue the case because it would generate bad publicity for them. So Kai might just wind up only losing his job but not his freedom. 

I actually felt for Quinn. I didn't see him as a spoiled brat but as a kid who's a lost soul - who had all his senses awakened only to realize what an empty screen addicted life he's been living. 

As for Tanya - right after she says she doesn't want to have any more transactional relationships - she hands Belinda an envelope of cash. That pretty much summed her character up - a little smidgen of insight, an iota of kindness, and a whole lot of oblivious self-centeredness. 

I'm curious about Season 2. I read it will be in the same hotel but with different travelers. Is it going to have the same theme of privileged people carelessly running roughshod through the lives of the staff? That could be redundant - so I wonder if another theme will be used. Anyway, I appreciated the writing and was awed by the acting - so I plan to tune in for season 2.

Edited August 16, 2021 by Mannahatta

[Harvey]

The show was great. The finale was not all that though. I feel like for such a great build up, it left wanting a lot more.

Anyway, Jennifer Coolidge is trending on twtiter, as she should. She has consistently been the best part of this show. Give her an Emmy please.

[bobbyjoe]

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That was a frustrating finale. So basically all the rich white people learned nothing and stayed the complete same as when they came on the island  

Unfortunately (because it’s so realistic) I think that was one of the major points of the series.   The rich come in, wreak havoc and destroy all these people around them, and then they walk off feeling like they get happy endings.

Notice it’s almost entirely the minorities who get used up and discarded:  Kai, Belinda, Armand (who I think pretty much voices the point of his character tonight when he talks about how the exploited turn around and exploit), even Paula, who showed the potential for awareness but instead ends up corrupted as bad— or even worse— as the rest of the damaging class.

Armand refers to them in the previous episode as “the lotus eaters” and the title of the show also calls up that image:  in Greek mythology the lotus eaters ate the narcotic lotus plant which made them stoned and apathetic to anyone but themselves.  I think that pretty clearly runs through all the storylines (particularly Tanya and Shane).

This show is actually even bleaker than Mike White’s previous “Enlightened” because most of these stories do either end in tragedy or tragedy soon-to-come (Rachel traps herself in what’s inevitably going to be a horrible life; Belinda is trapped in her unfulfilling job; Tanya is okay for now but she’s tied herself to somebody who’s going to die soon and we’ve all seen how well she deals with that; and, well, Armand is dead).  Yikes!

Is it disturbing to say I still enjoyed this?   I might have been more primed for the kind of ending we got because I’ve seen a lot of Mike White’s other works which— to say the least—  usually don’t end with clean and tidy happy endings.

[ichbin]

Loved it until the end when things wrapped up too much too fast and unrealistically.  

In the end it boils down to people being imperfect, regardless of who they are or what they have.  

Shane is a dick, but Armond was too and fanned the flame needlessly by lying and being unprofessional from the start. A guest booked into the most expensive suite deserves the room that was booked and paid for regardless of who is paying for it.  If Armondhad acknowledged an error had been made and taken steps to make up for it from the get go, Shane would still have been a dick but would have gotten over it. The only reason things escalated was because Armond kept compounding the issue which was initially created by himself.  

Paula looks down on her hosts, thinking them terrible people while she winds up being the worst of them all by being the reason a young man's life and livelihood are ruined.  Kai is a nice guy, but he allows himself to be talked into doing what he knows is the wrong thing.  The stabbing could actually be traced back to what Paula started since it was the reason that the knife was where it was and considered to be needed as a weapon.  

Belinda is a nice, empathetic person, but yet the way she ultimately treats Rachel wasn't great since she is the one who opened her door and welcomed Rachel in knowing she was having a crisis of some sort. Belinda also knew that Tanya was a loony from the start but allowed her own desires to be a blinder of that.  Nobody is perfect.

Every one of the characters pretty much showed different facets of themselves through the show.  I remember watching Mike White and his father when they were on The Amazing Race.  They were delightful!  Funny to think that he is the creator of something as dark and complicated as this was. 

The one seemingly true innocent, Quinn, was allowed to have his happy (although totally unrealistic) ending.  

I'd like to see Rachel and Shane show up in the next season.  I can picture Rachel having gone full trophy wife and blossoming into Kitty 2.0.

[thuganomics85]

Well, I guess it is safe to say that staying at The White Lotus is one hell of an experience!

So, in the end, the mysterious death was (cue drumroll)... Armond!  Not the most surprising choice since I did suspect his continuing spiraling was eventually going to catch up to him, but I did not predict it would be by him getting stabbed by Shane, after he broke into the room to, well, leave a going away "present" (and Shane was on high alert due to hearing Mark and Nicole's somewhat exaggerated tale about the break-in.)  While he is/was a fascinating character, Armond really was the instrument of his own downfall in a lot of ways.  Sure, Shane was a prime example of the worst kind of customer one could have, but it felt like Armond made every wrong decision possible when it came to handling it, and just kept escalating things.  And the sad, but realistic truth was that Shane would always have more power over him, and there was never going to be a way for Armond to get the upper hand.  Sometimes you really have to choose your battles and this was one where Armond would have been better off avoiding.  At least he found some form of peace since I suspect he probably never ever had it before.

As for Shane, I'm not surprised that he is likely not going to face any real repercussions (especially since Armond did break into the room), but I was initially surprised that Rachel is still with him.  But the more I think about it, the more I can sadly see how, even if I think it's a major mistake.  She probably feels wrong about leaving him right after he killed someone, but I also kind of suspect that despite her claims about wanting to find her own voice and be more than a trophy wife, she is just too afraid to take that risk.  Especially when she's with someone that might be an asshole, but is one that at least claims he loves her and will certainly always shower her with gifts and wealth.  Again, I think she'll live to regret this; assuming she sticks with it in the long run; but I can see how it all came about. 

Meanwhile, it certainly looks like Kai is going down for the robbery by himself, so Paula's quest to "stick it" to the Mossbachers ended up just destroying someone else's life instead.  And with Olivia easily figuring out Paula's role in it, it looks like Paula is going to go back to being her friend in order to save her own ass.  Not sure about Olivia's goal yet.  Judging from her crying scene in the bathroom, I do think she was actually hurt on some levels that Paula thought so little of her, but I can't help but to think that Olivia is still self-centered enough that she is going to keep her secret simply so she can have a loyal friend (or even lackey) for as long as she wants it.  Of course, in some ways, this might be fitting for both characters.

Realistically, I'm sure the Mossbachers can (and likely will) easily go back and snatch Quinn back up, but I'm glad he had his little act of defiance and moment of happiness.  At the very least, I'm hoping that once he does hit the big 18, he truly makes steps towards getting away from this toxic family.  I can hope.

Not surprised that Tanya disappointed Belinda in the end, but it was still painful to watch: especially since Belinda was probably kicking herself for daring to hope, even though she knew it probably wasn't likely.  Natasha Rothwell facial acting in that moment was devastating.

Someone was really having too much fun with that defecating scene, heh.  I was kind of just trying to figure the practical elements.  I guess they had some kind of tube/device strapped to Murray Bartlett's side or something.  Certainly don't think they were just "Hey, Murray!  Next time you need to go number two, let us know first.  We've got a scene for you..."

All in all, it was a show I can definitely see not being for everyone, but I ended up kind of loving it and finding it fascinating.  In some ways, it reminded me a lot of some of Danny McBride's shows on HBO (Vice Principals, The Righteous Gemstones) where I find almost all of the characters unlikable, but still find myself invested in them and even wanting to see if some of them can get happy endings (or something in the ballpark of that.)  I just love how it made me find some characters hatable but still admit when they were right, and others were I was rooting for them, but deep down knew they were in the wrong or were going to lose.  Certainly helps that they had a hell of a cast, and pretty much everyone delivered, with highlights including Murray Bartlett, Jennifer Coolidge, Connie Britton, Steve Zahn, and especially Alexandra Daddario showing a side to her that I hope leads to bigger and more varied roles going forward.  Glad I checked this out.  And I'm definitely curious about checking out Enlightened because I really dig Mike White's style and I want to see more of his work.

[ichbin]

4 hours ago, Laurie4H said:

 And was that family that bad?  I didn’t think so.

I agree. Actually, the only bad ones out of that bunch were Olivia and Paula who treated everyone like crap, including each other.  The parents were pretty much normal people with normal issues that are common across a variety of demographic groups. Unfair to vilify them  just because they were white and wealthy.  Quinn was harmless.  

[Cheezwiz]

6 minutes ago, thuganomics85 said:

omeone was really having too much fun with that defecating scene, heh.  I was kind of just trying to figure the practical elements.  I guess they had some kind of tube/device strapped to Murray Bartlett's side or something. 

That was the worst part of the whole scene for me, because as someone who is (only tangentally) connected to the Film Industry, all I kept thinking was "okay, so how did they rig that up?" while simultaneously thinking "MY EYES! MY EYES! I DO NOT WANT TO THINK ABOUT THIS AT ALL!!!" Even being aware it was fake, It was just so gross.

3 hours ago, AzureOwl said:

It really needs to be said again, but Alexandra Daddario is a seriously good actress. At the start of the episode your could feel her silently freaking out, and your exactly what Rachel was feeling without her having to say a word.

I 100% felt her panic attack in my chest watching that scene, and she was also outstanding in the scene where she finally worked up the nerve to confront Shane and admit that she had made a mistake marrying him. She's a very good actress - hope she gets better roles in the future, as in the past she's usually been relegated to eye-candy parts (so, some perceptive casting on Mike White's part).

[Traveller519]

I read Rachel's decision as being one out of fear as much as anything. "I can be happy" said through the most strained emotional output.

She's looking at the prospect of needing to execute a divorce from an obsessive sociopath who has just faced no consequences for killing someone she knows he had a grudge with ms she asked him to leave alone. That seems terrifying 

[Cheezwiz]

Hey, if you're like me, and a fan of the wallpaper design in the opening credits, here's a fun article:

https://www.salon.com/2021/08/15/the-white-lotus-wallpaper-meanings-hbo/

I especially love the white lotuses that close out the sequence. Will look to see if I can follow the illustrator on Instagram.

[aghst]

How much drugs could have been in that bag?  Armand goes on a bender at least a couple of times along with those other employees.

He has no right to be mad that he was going to lose his job.  When he was caught in the office eating ass, did he really expect he was going to be able to keep his job, after deliberately antagonizing a guest?

So I don't buy him seeking to get revenge, even though it fits with the monkey theme I suppose.  But why a monkey theme in Hawaii?  one tropical place is like all other exotic, tropical places to the white writer of the script?

Or just blame it on the drugs.

How can Shane, going around holding a knife out and causing a man be exonerated so quickly?  There would have to be involuntary manslaughter charges cleared?

Forget about bad reviews, once they find that a guest stabbed and killed a previous hotel manager, because there was a big beef between them, that place is gong to be destroyed.

Not to mention a big attempted robbery involving a physical altercation of hotel guests.

Why didn't they show the aftermath of Kai?  Probably has something to do with the rushed shooting schedule.

Mike White is going to have to put some more thought into next season, polish it up more.  Maybe hire some other writers so that they could check each other.  There doesn't have to be another death or a burglary with physical confrontation but how much can happen to people staying at a hotel or resort during a short vacation and still make it interesting to watch?

 

[Armchair Critic]

Fuck I feel like Shane had no repercussions and he even gets his wife back. A second season will be lacking without Armond.

[aghst]

1 hour ago, Traveller519 said:

I read Rachel's decision as being one out of fear as much as anything. "I can be happy" said through the most strained emotional output.

She's looking at the prospect of needing to execute a divorce from an obsessive sociopath who has just faced no consequences for killing someone she knows he had a grudge with ms she asked him to leave alone. That seems terrifying 

I think they showed her in one scene in her own room, talking to someone?

I think it was rushed so they really didn't show how she came to change her mind.

After the things they said to each other, why would she go back and why would he take her back?

Mike White had to deliver a show which could be shot in one location over the winter months.  There were no typical revisions to the script.

I guess they wanted to settle on 6 episodes and they didn't supersize the finale or any of the other episodes.  So the Shane and Rachel plot, they showed all the ways she would become alienated from him through most of the season but in the finale, she says she doesn't want to continue in the marriage, then they have a big argument, then she gets her own room, apparently talks to someone on the phone about what she did and then in the final or penultimate scene, she grovels back to him?

Yeah she'd be poor if she divorced him.  But she conveyed how creeped out and uncomfortable she was to be in bed with him, had to make a reason to jump out of bed and get away from him.

Hell instead of confronting him and telling him why she can't be with him, she could have sent him a text to say she was leaving him, which would be typical of this age.

[Armchair Critic]

When Olivia cried to her mother I thought it was a fake boohoo and that she was going to rat out Paula and act innocent like she just found out about Paula and the robbery. But I guess she was genuinely crying.

[Harvey]

2 hours ago, Armchair Critic said:

Fuck I feel like Shane had no repercussions and he even gets his wife back. A second season will be lacking without Armond.

 

3 hours ago, thuganomics85 said:

As for Shane, I'm not surprised that he is likely not going to face any real repercussions (especially since Armond did break into the room), but I was initially surprised that Rachel is still with him.

And should Shane be facing reprecussions? We all saw the scene. The killing was a total accident. Of course he was on edge after he heard about the burglary. And a drugged up (!) person literally broke into his private space. It would be stupid to send him to jail over something like this.

[Nellise]

I was mostly joking  when I said I in a comment on an earlier episode that I was only watching the rest of the series just to hate watch it. But after seeing the whole thing, I feel completely justified in my hate. This was garbage from the start and the last episode just confirmed for me that the writing was terrible and I wasn't misunderstanding this show.

I was so confused about the discussion of this show that kept referring to it as biting satire that I spent hours researching what satire was because I just wasn't seeing it. This last episode showed that it wasn't satire at all, it was just really bad writing, so at least I feel better that I really wasn't confused.

[Rickster]

14 minutes ago, Harvey said:

 

And should Shane be facing reprecussions? We all saw the scene. The killing was a total accident. Of course he was on edge after he heard about the burglary. And a drugged up (!) person literally broke into his private space. It would be stupid to send him to jail over something like this.

I’m not sure he would face repercussions like jail time, but I also don’t think an investigation into killing someone he had such open conflicts with would be wrapped up so quickly.

I thought this series was very uneven. I thought the actor playing Armand was terrific and I liked the Shane/Rachel story and actors. On the other hand, I found anything involving the Mossbachers and Tanya to be a complete waste of time.

Besides that, I did enjoy the Hawaiian choral music.

[kn51]

Interesting book choices for the girls at the end.  

I'll miss Armond.  

 

[AheadofStraight]

So we see Paula texting Kai in this episode. Makes absolutely NO sense that she wouldn't have texted him (or even called in a panic) when the diving plans changed and Nicole went back to the room. 

[Empress1]

6 hours ago, bobbyjoe said:

Rachel traps herself in what’s inevitably going to be a horrible life

Both Shane and his mother are going to throw this honeymoon fight in her face whenever they get a chance, and she's going to end up throwing parties and sitting on boards that she hates, and Shane will cheat on her.

(I know of someone who left her marriage after her honeymoon because her husband slept with the bartender at the resort. She was my work friend's friend; my work friend was in the wedding. A couple weeks later she was like "Hey, so you remember that wedding I was in a few weeks ago?")

 

[preeya]

Holy shit!

A first for me: watching someone shit themselves to death.

Cause of death two turds in a suitcase.

From a Mike Whit interview:

"No. I actually think I told him that the shot of him crapping in the suitcase was not going to make it into the [final cut]. I think I said, “Oh, I’m just going to use this as a set-up.” But then later when we were [editing] I [realized] I had to show it. And I was like, “I need to tell him.” But I never did. I guess I’m kind of procrastinating. He’s going to go down in history as the guy who ate out ass and then took a crap out of his ass." [Laughs]

 

 

Edited August 16, 2021 by preeya
Added MW interview quote

[txhorns79]

5 hours ago, Traveller519 said:

 

She's looking at the prospect of needing to execute a divorce from an obsessive sociopath who has just faced no consequences for killing someone she knows he had a grudge with ms she asked him to leave alone. That seems terrifying 

In fairness to Shane, he truly thought there was a prowler in his room, and he was on edge after hearing about how the other theft led to a guest being assaulted.  Aside from guilt, I don't think he should face more serious consequences.  I also don't think Shane is a sociopath.  I think Rachel had it right in calling him a man baby.  He's very immature, but not dangerous in the sense that Rachel should fear for her safety.