Warning: This review contains spoilers for The White Lotus Season 3, Episode 3A lot of hay has been made about the opening theme in The White Lotus season 3, and I agree that this year's circus-like tune doesn't come close to the fist-pumping season 2 intro, but it's growing on me. Like the season itself, the intro, and its looped themes in the soundtrack are greater than the sum of its parts. Haunting and mysterious, you can imagine monkeys playing the instruments on the edges of the frame, enticing the characters to wander off into the dangerous unknown.
I got some answers this episode, and my qualms have (mostly) been soothed. One of my small frustrations with The White Lotus season 2 was that characters did not intersect in the same satisfying way they did in season 1. Season 3 is loosely weaving the stories together, just enough that if one thread breaks, the whole basket won't collapse but that pulling on one thread is still certain to shift another. "The Meaning of Dreams" offers plenty of meaning and kicks off with a dream, or more accurately, a nightmare.
The Walls Are Closing In Around Tim Ratliff
Victoria Can Sense That Something Is Wrong
Victoria (Parker Posey) finds herself on the beach as her family watches her. She turns back towards the ocean and sees a massive tsunami headed her way. Victoria doesn't lurch up in a sweat, instead, she slowly opens her eyelids. Add another tally to her odd reactions this season. She must have heard Lochy talking about the little girl who warned beachgoers in Thailand of an approaching wave during the 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami.
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A wave is coming for her, and she doesn't know why. Lochy's obsession with the devastating natural disaster is affecting Tim (Jason Isaacs) too, though he knows why. There's recognition in Tim's eyes as he watches a video of a man standing in the path of a tidal wave, accepting his fate. Isn't that what Tim's doing? Standing on a beach, frozen, as the full might of the FBI comes crashing towards him and everything he's built (or stolen, perhaps).
Saxon Is Becoming A Much More Interesting Character
The Ratliff Siblings Have A Complex Relationship
Now even Saxon (Patrick Schwarzenegger) is starting to get calls. A paranoid Tim promptly takes his family's electronics and gives them to Pam (Morgana O'Reilly), their personal staff member. The aghast Saxon's eyes glaze over as Tim tries to tell him, probably for the first time ever, there's more to life than your career. Unfortunately for Tim, this also means he has to give up his phone. How's he going to know when that wave is coming now?
Saxon, who I've considered a confusing character, has his moment in episode 3.
Saxon, who I've considered a confusing character, has his moment in episode 3. Not only does he have a legitimate interest in doing the work himself when he could probably coast on being a Ratliff, but Saxon also has some genuine moments with Lochy. The way he quickly straightens his back whenever Lochy is reminded about his posture class is the kind of familiar fraternal relationship The White Lotus has lacked. Lochy mirroring it back and laughing suggests Saxon is more affable than the series credits him.
More curiously, when Piper (Sarah Catherine Hook) teases her older brother, saying he always gets what he wants, Saxon fires back with a, "No you!", so incensed that Piper is startled. I can't believe it, but I want more Saxon. Sex-obsessed, frat bro as he is, he's my guest of the week.
Everyone Gets Their Moment In Episode 3
Belinda Has Her Suspicions About "Gary"
Rick (Walton Goggins) opens up to his wellness therapist, Amrita (Shalini Peiris), saying he'll never get to know his father, but at least he can get some satisfaction. What that means is hazy, but it may have something to do with Sritala’s husband, who happens to be recovering in nearby Bangkok.
Later, after Chelsea gets bitten by a cobra at a snake show, Chloe (Charlotte Le Bon) suggests maybe she shouldn't come on Gary’s (Jon Gries) boat. That's two near-death experiences in a row. Speaking of Gary, Belinda (Natasha Rothwell) reintroduces herself to him. They met in Hawaii, remember? And remember your name is Greg? "Gary" says she's mistaken. Belinda's furrowed brow indicates she disagrees.
Around the resort, Fabian (Christian Friedel) tries to pitch himself to Sritala as a performer. Gaitok offers his service as a bodyguard, but the veteran soldiers mock him, revealing Fabian wanted him fired for failing to foil the robbery. Kate (Leslie Bibb) hints she voted for Trump and later watches in knowing horror as her friends furtively pick her apart, just as she has done previously.
Between the Trump conversation and the mention of the Ukraine War this episode, The White Lotus season 3 is placed in a very contemporary setting.
The episode ends with answers for us but questions for our characters. Victoria asks Tim if something is wrong. Laurie asks Jaclyn how self-defeating Kate must be. And Belinda asks, "The f**k is that?" when she hears something crawling around the dark recesses of her suite. There's a tidal wave coming in The White Lotus; everyone can feel it. But from when and where, we can't know.
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The White Lotus
TV-MA
Comedy Drama Mystery
9/10
61 8/10
- Release Date
- July 11, 2021
The White Lotus is a television series that explores the interactions of guests and staff at an upscale tropical resort. Premiering in 2021, the narrative unfolds over a week, revealing underlying complexities and tensions among the resort's seemingly ideal travelers and employees.
- Cast
- Jennifer Coolidge, Jon Gries, F. Murray Abraham, Jolene Purdy, Murray Bartlett, Sabrina Impacciatore, Tom Hollander, Aubrey Plaza, Stefano Gianino, Connie Britton, Adam DiMarco, Meghann Fahy, Beatrice Grannò, Michael Imperioli, Alexandra Daddario, Theo James, Fred Hechinger, Jake Lacy, Haley Lu Richardson, Will Sharpe, Brittany O'Grady, Simona Tabasco, Leo Woodall, Natasha Rothwell, Sydney Sweeney
- Creator(s)
- Mike White
Pros & Cons
- Saxon is becoming a much more interesting character
- The threads of the story are coming together nicely
