S03.E01: Same Spirits, New Forms

[blackwing]

37 minutes ago, kittykat said:

Yeah I don't think they would know about each other either.  I assumed Tanya just cut Belinda off after Hawaii.  Portia didn't truly know but the fact that her boss had died and was almost herself killed meant she had to put a few pieces together.  We see in the season preview that Belinda sees Greg and clearly remembers him.  I don't know we'll just have to watch. 

Portia wasn't around in Season 1, so Belinda never met her.  If Tonya had an assistant in Season 1, she didn't bring her to Hawaii.

I don't think Tonya ever shared with Portia her suspicions that the English guy was conspiring with Greg to steal her money.  Portia knew there was something weird going on with the "nephew".  

I wonder how much, if anything, we viewers will learn about what the public was told about what happened on that yacht.  It could very well be that the police attributed the deaths, including Tonya, to persons unknown.

Belinda clearly recognises Greg but she only knew Greg as Tonya's boyfriend.  None of the swindling plot happened until long after Tonya left WL Maui.

21 minutes ago, AstridM said:

Clearly how? And what’s wrong with her hair?

Carrie C00n's character isn't unattractive, but she's definitely being made to feel by the other two like she is the third wheel who isn't good enough for them.  They have been friends since they were 9 but whatever she has done in life doesn't seem to measure up.

Her hair looks bad to me.  The Queen Bee friend's hair looks glamorous, like the TV star she is.  The sidekick friend's hair looks short and professional, like a successful rich mom.  But Carrie C00n (Laurie?) has hair that looks like she stuck her finger into an electric socket.  I wonder if they are intentionally trying to make it look like she cuts her own hair, like she is trying to keep up with her friends but can't afford it.

[susannot]

I don't know, I like Carrie's hair.  I like wavy, natural-looking hair.  Michelle's hair, of course, is gorgeous. I don't like Sidekick Friend's hair.  It looks too salon-y, like it would have to be trimmed and styled every two weeks.  Which is the point I suppose.

[BC4ME]

After all this discussion of Carrie's "horrible" hair, sure not feeling too good about my own hair today, that's for sure.

[SoMuchTV]

1 hour ago, susannot said:

I don't know, I like Carrie's hair.  I like wavy, natural-looking hair.  Michelle's hair, of course, is gorgeous. I don't like Sidekick Friend's hair.  It looks too salon-y, like it would have to be trimmed and styled every two weeks.  Which is the point I suppose.

I agree, I like it too. But I also see how the show was going with the contrast to the other two. 

[kittykat]

Agree that Leslie Bibbs hair looked deliberately styled and staged but from what I've seen she was born to play this role.  

I don't mind Carrie's hair I'm just not accustomed to seeing her as a blonde.  Is she this seasons Portia of dubious wardrobe decisions?

[Giuseppe]

On 2/17/2025 at 1:46 AM, AntFTW said:

Unless I’m missing something, she exited the conversation voluntarily so I’m unsure how she could be mad that they continue a conversation she chose to exit.

I think I kind of understand this...as everyone else notes, she's feeling like a third wheel and left out of the conversation at the table. Claiming jet-lag and saying she's going to bed is her (perhaps subconscious) way of suggesting they all go to bed so that the conversation finally stops and she gets a reprieve (albeit probably temporary) from feeling left out. The fact that she sees the other two still fully engaged in their conversation suggest that they don't miss her, thus hurting her feelings even more than if she'd just stayed at the table. Could be wrong, but that's my armchair diagnosis, anyway. Which may or may not be based on personal experience, lol.

[Blakeston]

Tonya was on the phone with Portia in season two when the two of them pieced together that Greg had set Tonya up to be killed.

If Portia had gone to the police and told them what she knew, Greg would have been in deep trouble. But the season two finale gave the impression that Portia wasn't going to blab. The young British guy had warned her that the consequences would be dire, and Portia wasn't going to put her life on the line to avenge the boss who drove her nuts.

If we're meant to believe that Greg collected Tonya's millions scot-free, it's outrageously dumb of him to hang out at a White Lotus, even one halfway around the world.

 

 

 

[Hanahope]

I would be very surprised if Belinda knew anything about Greg's plotting to have Tanya killed.  I expect they will 'run into each other' and Belinda will ask about Tanya and find out about her death (if she didn't know before) and be sad (maybe) and ask questions (maybe) and make Greg uncomfortable (maybe).

There will be some 'falling out' among the 3 girlfriends.

one of the two men will be involved in the shooting i think, either the victim or the shooter.  

I don't think the older son of the family is after his brother sexually. he thinks he's gods gift to women. he's just a horndog trying to justify his horniness as normal by making sure his brother is just as horny as he is and/or he's compensating because he's an asshole to women.  the younger brother could be gay.

 

[AstridM]

21 hours ago, susannot said:

I don't know, I like Carrie's hair.  I like wavy, natural-looking hair.  Michelle's hair, of course, is gorgeous. I don't like Sidekick Friend's hair.  It looks too salon-y, like it would have to be trimmed and styled every two weeks.  Which is the point I suppose.

I like it, too! Also, we’re talking hair after 2 or 3 long flights PLUS a windy boat trip! How the hell would anyone’s hair look great after all that travel? I would simply have pulled mine back and slapped on some sunscreen. What do people expect??

21 hours ago, BC4ME said:

After all this discussion of Carrie's "horrible" hair, sure not feeling too good about my own hair today, that's for sure.

IKR? What. The. Fuck?

[Night Cheese]

"We're a normal family. You'll see."

 

Oh boy. 😬

[ItCouldBeWorse]

On 2/18/2025 at 1:11 PM, roughing it said:

I think the multiple houses friend has a worse hairstyle with that blunt cut.  

That's Leslie Bibb, who is Sam Rockwell's partner. 

On 2/18/2025 at 8:43 AM, luna1122again said:

I have no idea what Rick's deal is...is he a hitman?

I briefly wondered about that possibility, but he isn't keeping a particularly low profile. Maybe he has a business proposition for Jim.

On 2/17/2025 at 4:00 PM, blackwing said:

There's the lady the English girlfriend met at the bar who apparently is dating Greg.  Is this the same lady that Saxon hit on at the pool?

Saxon hit on Rick's British girlfriend Chelsea. Greg and his girlfriend aren't staying at the resort so probably don't have access to the pool (unlike the bar.)

On 2/16/2025 at 10:50 PM, txhorns79 said:

In fairness, all the kids have beds this time around and I don't mind two siblings sharing a room.  That first season, they put one of the kids in the bar area to sleep.  It was bizarre.

It doesn't seem abnormal to me for 2 brothers or 2 sisters their age to share a room with 2 beds on vacation, even if they don't at home. 

On 2/18/2025 at 2:16 PM, kittykat said:

I just IMDb on a few cast members and holy hell how did I not catch that GM Fabian was Rudolf freaking Hoss from Zone of Interest.

I didn't recognize him, and I still don't! (Just to be clear, I saw Zone of Interest.) I wasn't sure what his accent was, though, so thanks for identifying him.

 

Edited Yest. at 03:00 AM by ItCouldBeWorse

[aghst]

For the Ratliffs, why not rent another room in addition to the family suite?

Seems like a 22 year old man would want more privacy.

So the situation of rooming him together with the younger brother seems like a plot device to set up some shenanigans.

Or maybe the reason to put them in the same room is to have that messed up convo where Saxon expounded on his life philosophy and talked frankly about porn habits while Lochy seemed curious to watch him masturbate in the bathroom.

Maybe nothing more will come of it.

But it was weird, him objecting to Lochy and Piper room together because they both had fully developed genitals.  Strange way to put it.  He could have said Piper might want privacy.

 

 

[Chaos Theory]

The three women:  I think two of them literally get by in their looks.   One is an actress.  The other I think married well.   The third is likely the one who had to work hard for her money.   It’s implied she is a single mother and a corporate lawyer so she works hard for everything she has and is likely the lowest on the totem poll because of this.    
 

This is good portrayal of toxic female friendship.   I am still guessing that none of these ladies actually LIKE each other and the claws will come out completely during the vacation.

[AstridM]

1 hour ago, Chaos Theory said:

The three women:  I think two of them literally get by in their looks.   One is an actress.  The other I think married well.   The third is likely the one who had to work hard for her money.   It’s implied she is a single mother and a corporate lawyer so she works hard for everything she has and is likely the lowest on the totem poll because of this.    
 

This is good portrayal of toxic female friendship.   I am still guessing that none of these ladies actually LIKE each other and the claws will come out completely during the vacation.

Implied where? And why would having to work harder than anyone else make HER the lowest one on the totem pole?

[chaifan]

With Season 2, I had a theory that Greg was a serial predator, and was working with Quentin to find rich, lonely women at these types of resorts to scam.  Tanya was his latest mark, but not his first.  I was wondering if he would appear again this season.  Well, he has, but it doesn't quite fit my theory.  The model girlfriend doesn't fit the mold of "lonely & rich".  She may be rich, but she could get anyone she wanted.  Why she's settling with sour old LBH bald Greg is a mystery.  If Quentin shows up, though, we know for certain something is up.

I mostly liked Season 2, but didn't like how it ended, and had my doubts about watching this season.  Belinda returning and the setting - Thailand - is what drew me in.  I wish they didn't make Parker Posey and husband have those awful accents, they are distracting.  We've got our classic mix of horrible people, as per usual for WL.  I'll be interested to see what happens with the Ratliff daughter and the Buddhism research.  I couldn't figure out why she was dressed in Laura Ingalls hand-me-downs for most of the episode.  At least she had on a normal top in the dinner scene at the end. 

Edited Thursday at 04:16 PM by chaifan

[DrSparkles]

2 hours ago, chaifan said:

With Season 2, I had a theory that Greg was a serial predator, and was working with Quentin to find rich, lonely women at these types of resorts to scam.  Tanya was his latest mark, but not his first.  I was wondering if he would appear again this season.  Well, he has, but it doesn't quite fit my theory.  The model girlfriend doesn't fit the mold of "lonely & rich".  She may be rich, but she could get anyone she wanted.  Why she's settling with sour old LBH bald Greg is a mystery.  If Quentin shows up, though, we know for certain something is up.

I mostly liked Season 2, but didn't like how it ended, and had my doubts about watching this season.  Belinda returning and the setting - Thailand - is what drew me in.  I wish they didn't make Parker Posey and husband have those awful accents, they are distracting.  We've got our classic mix of horrible people, as per usual for WL.  I'll be interested to see what happens with the Ratliff daughter and the Buddhism research.  I couldn't figure out why she was dressed in Laura Ingalls hand-me-downs for most of the episode.  At least she had on a normal top in the dinner scene at the end. 

Yeah, but Tanya was wealthy, no more need to scam.

[chaifan]

1 hour ago, DrSparkles said:

Yeah, but Tanya was wealthy, no more need to scam.

Con artists don't tend to stop after they've fleeced a mark, even a wealthy one.  They'll keep on conning, always looking for a bigger mark, always wanting more.

[Hanahope]

4 hours ago, chaifan said:

I couldn't figure out why she was dressed in Laura Ingalls hand-me-downs for most of the episode. 

She probably had to dress modestly if she wanted entrance to the temple, i.e. with shoulders and thighs (maybe even knees) covered.  it is that way in a lot of cultures.  

[chaifan]

34 minutes ago, Hanahope said:

She probably had to dress modestly if she wanted entrance to the temple, i.e. with shoulders and thighs (maybe even knees) covered.  it is that way in a lot of cultures.  

I agree that you have to be covered to go into the temples, but it wasn't that she was covered, it was the style of the clothing.  What she wore for most of the episode looked very prairie-style.  I was thinking they were Mormon at first.

This is what she was wearing in an early scene, where the WL employee was telling them about all wellness the programs.

 

 

This is what she wore to the temple:

I'm all for respecting local culture and dressing appropriately.  These just seem to be really weird fashion choices for someone her age on vacation in Thailand.  She looks like a pregnant teenage sister wife in this last one.

I was in Thailand about 15 years ago.  I tend to be more covered than not just due to personal preference, so I didn't worry about being inappropriately dressed at temples.  But at one, I was wearing mid-calf length capri pants, and they gave me a wrap skirt to wear.  It was maybe 1/2 inch longer than my pants.  I thought that was odd.  

[carrps]

On 2/18/2025 at 2:21 PM, susannot said:

I don't like Sidekick Friend's hair.  It looks too salon-y, like it would have to be trimmed and styled every two weeks.  Which is the point I suppose.

I saw Mary McFadden interviewed decades ago, and she said she had her hair trimmed every week.

My natural hair is much closer to Carries'. Just a little curlier. I wised up in my senior years and went natural.

30 minutes ago, chaifan said:

But at one, I was wearing mid-calf length capri pants, and they gave me a wrap skirt to wear.  It was maybe 1/2 inch longer than my pants.  I thought that was odd. 

It was probably the pants they objected to, not the length. I liked the dress Piper wore on the boat...looked like vintage Victoriana.

 

[chaifan]

35 minutes ago, carrps said:

It was probably the pants they objected to, not the length. I liked the dress Piper wore on the boat...looked like vintage Victoriana.

Other women were in pants, and I wore the same ones to other temples without a problem.  I don't know what it was.  It was a pretty wrapped skirt they gave me to wear, I wish I could have kept it.

I like Piper's dress better as it looks in the picture I posted above.  But as I was watching the show I was wondering "what is she wearing???"  It's not a bad dress, just a really odd choice for a college student in Thailand.  I wonder if the  overly modest/victorian/prairie styling is intentional to set her apart from Portia from Season 2 (same age, totally different character).  

I was a teenager in the 80's, and her style reminds me of the prairie skirts and Gunny Sax dresses that were so popular in the late 70's, into the 80's.  (I sewed a prairie skirt in 7th grade sewing class!  I was so proud of that skirt!)  

 

[bilgistic]

On 2/18/2025 at 8:43 AM, luna1122again said:

Watching the rich, creepy family from North Carolina, I just kept thinking of Michael Peterson and The Staircase...probably because Patrick Schwarzenegger and Parker Posey were both in that miniseries too. Patrick played a handsome, disturbed son in that too, tho his character here is definitely different. He plays douchebag well here. I hate him.

I'm glad someone else noticed this. Elizabeth Ratliff is the name of the first woman that Michael Peterson definitely didn't murder just like he definitely didn't murder his wife (wink, wink). He and his late wife had guardianship of Elizabeth Ratliff's children after her "accident". I have to believe the name is intentional.

Peterson also graduated from Duke and attended classes at UNC like the White Lotus Ratliffs.

I'm an at-least seventh-generation North Carolinian, and I don't know what the hell the Ratliffs' accents are supposed to be. Literally no one sounds like that. Parker Posey's accent was bad but Jason Isaacs's was painful. He kept slipping in and out of whatever he was trying to do, and it mostly just sounded like a speech impediment.

[susannot]

Someone upthread said that if Quentin shows up, we'll know the scam is still on.  Correct me if I'm wrong but Quentin can't show up because Tanya shot him, shortly before she fell off the yacht to her own death.

[SFoster21]

If there is no wifi in the villas, how is the son pulling up Pornhub on his Ipad?

 

[SoMuchTV]

3 minutes ago, SFoster21 said:

If there is no wifi in the villas, how is the son pulling up Pornhub on his Ipad?

International roaming data? Local burner phone?

[ItCouldBeWorse]

On 2/19/2025 at 8:19 PM, aghst said:

For the Ratliffs, why not rent another room in addition to the family suite?

Perhaps because it's a family vacation, and they don't want Saxon in a probably distant single room, if they even exist.

26 minutes ago, SoMuchTV said:

International roaming data? Local burner phone?

I assumed he's using data. At some point someone in the family will need to text someone else, most likely, and they'll be using data too.

[Irlandesa]

7 hours ago, chaifan said:

Con artists don't tend to stop after they've fleeced a mark, even a wealthy one.  They'll keep on conning, always looking for a bigger mark, always wanting more.

But he didn't just fleece her for X amount.  He killed her and got all of her fortune.  I'd think he'd transition with that much wealth.

3 hours ago, susannot said:

Someone upthread said that if Quentin shows up, we'll know the scam is still on.  Correct me if I'm wrong but Quentin can't show up because Tanya shot him, shortly before she fell off the yacht to her own death.

Yep.  She got the gays.  I think the only co-conspirator who is still alive is Leo Woodhall's character.

[JenE4]

Whelp, with the mom and the oldest son being so over-the-top with their vices, I guess they’re going with the ol’ seven deadly sins/cardinal sins characterizations:

• Mom with her pill-popping and sleeping nonstop is Sloth.
• Oldest son, Saxon, is waaay too creepy with the Lust.
• Dad with his shady business dealings that’s going to get him arrested for financial fraud is Greed.
• The “normal mom” friend is Envy.
• Her fabulous movie star friend and other perfect friend who are constantly flattering each other are Pride.
• The weirdo older guy searching out the wellness program’s husband is Wrath. He seems like he’s on the edge of snapping at all times. He suddenly changed their “vacation” location and was angry to find out the guy went to Bangkok instead. He’s banned from Australia because he’d be arrested. Sure seems like he’s a hitman, or at the very least has nefarious intentions toward this man.
• i think the model his girlfriend met at the bar is Gluttony. The model is going to teach the girlfriend how to milk her own LBH for all he’s worth.

I ran out of sins but not out of characters… I also think the currently innocent youngest brother will be in a good vs evil struggle in terms of indulging in vices with the devil of his brother on one shoulder, and the angel of a sister on the other. And then just in general for everyone, the White Lotus’s program is supposed to be a complete immersion in wellness, but instead I think everyone will fall into complete debauchery. The focus on the monkeys—especially with the killer tendencies in the artwork of the intro—I think, is representative of human’s animalistic instincts. So, we’ll see a complete breakdown in social mores, and these people will act like a pack of wild animals, really leaning into the deadly sins. 

 

Edited Yest. at 03:22 PM by JenE4

[chaifan]

13 hours ago, susannot said:

Someone upthread said that if Quentin shows up, we'll know the scam is still on.  Correct me if I'm wrong but Quentin can't show up because Tanya shot him, shortly before she fell off the yacht to her own death.

Oh, that was me.  I lost track of who died on the boat.  Thanks.  

[peeayebee]

I finally got around to watching last night. I didn't know who was going to be in this season, so lots of the names excited me.

But boy, when Jason Isaacs, whom I love, first spoke, I thought he was doing an Australian accent. It always surprises me when English actors do lousy American accents. Parker Posey's southern accent is too OTT. 

I guess I missed that she was a pill-popper. I thought she was just wiped out from jet lag. I remember her saying (in bed, IIRC) she had taken a pill (the name of which I can't remember), but where did we see or hear of her taking other stuff?

I only noticed the daughter's clothes at the temple. I was glad to see pics here of what she wore elsewhere. My thought is that she's a budding Buddhist, so she has taken up wearing modest clothes.

The older brother is a real creepo, but I get the feeling that we'll see that facet of him crack.

It's always great to see Walton Goggins. Wonder what his interest in the resort owner's husband is.

And I was happy to see Belinda, too. No clue where her storyline will go.

The reveal of Greg was a gasp moment. Yes, he's a bad guy, but I was excited to see him. I expect the show will use him well. As I recall, he came across as a nice guy when we first met him, so he knows how to hide his true nature and attract apparently nice, attractive women like like the one at the bar. I guess they've been together for at least a year.

I'm not a fan of monkeys, so every time we see them in the trees, watching, I get the creeps.

[iMonrey]

I'm not a fan of movies and shows that open with a dramatic ending teaser without context, then flash back to the beginning of the story. It's an overused gimmick, and a story should be able to stand on its own and engage a viewer from the start without trying to hook us with a promise that something exciting happens . . . at the end. But I realize both the first two seasons started this way so I guess it's formula for this show.

A lot of table setting this episode and aside from the flash forward hook, not much going on.

2 hours ago, peeayebee said:

I guess I missed that she was a pill-popper. I thought she was just wiped out from jet lag. I remember her saying (in bed, IIRC) she had taken a pill (the name of which I can't remember), but where did we see or hear of her taking other stuff?

It was a generic form of valium. I don't recall mention of any other kind of pill. 

2 hours ago, peeayebee said:

It's always great to see Walton Goggins.

Why? Damned if I know why people seem to love this actor. Is it because of Justified? I could never get into that show, and don't know the actor from anything else.

[peeayebee]

I find him charismatic and always interesting to watch.

I don't think I've seen him in tons of stuff. Justified, Fallout, The Shield. Looking now at his credits on IMDB, there's more that I've seen him in, but those three shows are the stand-outs.

[AstridM]

36 minutes ago, iMonrey said:

I'm not a fan of movies and shows that open with a dramatic ending teaser without context, then flash back to the beginning of the story. It's an overused gimmick, and a story should be able to stand on its own and engage a viewer from the start without trying to hook us with a promise that something exciting happens . . . at the end. But I realize both the first two seasons started this way so I guess it's formula for this show.

A lot of table setting this episode and aside from the flash forward hook, not much going on.

It was a generic form of valium. I don't recall mention of any other kind of pill. 

Why? Damned if I know why people seem to love this actor. Is it because of Justified? I could never get into that show, and don't know the actor from anything else.

I can’t even recall ever seeing that actor before 🤷‍♀️.

[luna1122again]

46 minutes ago, iMonrey said:

I

Why? Damned if I know why people seem to love this actor. Is it because of Justified? I could never get into that show, and don't know the actor from anything else.

He's a great actor with a lot of charisma and talent, or anyway, a lot of us think so. I knew him before Justified, but that's the show, and the role, Boyd Crowder, that sealed the deal for me. He handles comedy and tragedy with equal finesse, and he can play villain or hero or leading man (or woman, see Sons of Anarchy) or crazy Uncle Baby Billy (Righteous Gemstones)  or noseless ghoul (Fallout) or pretty much anything that's asked of him. I think he's brilliant. But if he isn't your thing...then he's not. 

[heatherchandler]

12 hours ago, peeayebee said:

I guess I missed that she was a pill-popper. I thought she was just wiped out from jet lag. I remember her saying (in bed, IIRC) she had taken a pill (the name of which I can't remember), but where did we see or hear of her taking other stuff?

Lorazepam (generic Ativan).  She mentions pills a lot, she suggested the husband take one too.

Edited 12 hours ago by heatherchandler

[SFoster21]

18 hours ago, AstridM said:

I can’t even recall ever seeing that actor before 🤷‍♀️.

If you like funny, check out The Righteous Gemstones, where, as Uncle Baby Billy, he will charm your socks off.