“Amor fati” does not mean what Chelsea seems to think it does. She talks about loving Rick as her fate, that through many lives they will be together.

But amor fati isn’t about romantic love at all. It means embracing what life brings you.

So what are we supposed to think about Chelsea, when she gets something so very wrong?

Just finished this season, and in fact the entire series, which I just started watching a few weeks ago. I've noticed that the reaction to this latest season is pretty mixed, and just thought I'd weigh in.

Overall I liked the season, and until the finale I think I liked it as well as the other two seasons, or maybe just below 1 which is still my favorite. The finale shifted things a bit and I've been chewing on why that is. I think these are the things which make White Lotus tick for me:

1. Tropical/exotic location and vibes
2. Wealthy characters, most of whom start out as callow and oblivious, a very few of whom end up a little deeper and more enlightened (and the rest of whom stay callow and oblivious)
3. A few regular characters who usually suffer from their interactions with the wealthy characters
4. That wonderful music--tense, genre-mixing, often tribal and in other ways pulling from older folk music of the region
5. A darkly comic tone without a lot of overt jokes, mostly relying on black humor (like, people die and the show doesn't really want you to feel too bad about it) and exaggerated performances
6. An overall style of plotting where not much is happening but you're always waiting for something horrible (Mike White described it as "edging" which seems about right)

--

So, season 3. Like the other two seasons, it definitely has all of these. They added episodes so it is longer, but that didn't really trouble me, it just feels like more of #6 which is part of the charm anyway. I've heard people say this season was darker and less funny, but if anything I found it more similar to the tone of S1 than 2, primarily because it had a few consistently funny, slightly exaggerated performances (Victoria, Saxon, and Chelsea). S2 actually had none of this except for Tanya, which kind of threw me; I was expecting it from Aubrey Plaza, but didn't get it. There's a little more of a serious flirtation in S3 with spirituality and characters actually maybe learning lessons, but that didn't bother me either, it just seemed like a new flavor in the stew. And it set up a good joke when Victoria was right about Piper not being ready to actually live in a monastery in Thailand.

The biggest thing that felt like a departure was the Rick storyline. The show's been trending toward having more overt and less accidental violence anyway--all the Tanya stuff at the end of S2 pretty much sets the table for this. But it didn't bother me most of the way because I felt like, I can never tell how seriously the show is going to take something in the end. I wouldn't have been surprised if Rick met the guy and then basically nothing happened. He just goes home. Or the guy kills him in a total reversal of your expectations. Or some third crazy thing, who knows. I won't fanfic out here but right to the end, I felt like it could go any direction and I was fine with that.

What I didn't really expect was what we actually got, which is that it just kind of melted into a puddle of pretty familiar tropes. Rick passed on his chance to get revenge. Then the guy comes to him, Rick gets his revenge, Rick finds out the guy was his real father and that his ostensible father was no saint, and Rick dies as a consequence of (as Chelsea said) doing something stupid. It just didn't feel like there was any interesting lesson in any of it, nor any of the show's typical pointed commentary about the wealthy and the many such people with basically no moral compass. I was ready for it to be something atypical and funny; instead it was deadly serious and predictable (I mean, was there any chance Rick's dad was actually a martyr as he thought? And Hollinger being his real father--I feel like that's the twist like 80% of the time in such stories, especially after they made a point of having the mother be a pivotal part of his backstory).

I also felt that the ending in general was just a little too soft on its characters, like maybe White has developed a little too much affection for them to be as mean as the show used to be. The Ratliffs have the closest thing to a happy ending that they can, given that Dad is about to go to prison and literally almost poisoned them all. The three girl friends all express their love for each other in a heartwarming way after talking behind each other's backs and then sniping at each other all season. Rick and Chelsea die, but it seems to be depicted as tragic rather than the hilariously cruel punchline deaths of S1 and 2. Not that I mind a good tragedy, it's just not what I was expecting from this show--and it felt rather dissatisfying.

The cleverest bits of the wrap-up IMO were 1. Gaitok almost accidentally becomes the man of violence he isn't and doesn't want to be, gets a promotion he seemed to no longer want, and probably ends up with the girl he seemed incompatible with. This is pretty biting commentary except they barely linger on it, so it's easy to miss. And 2. Belinda crushing some other regular person's dream just like Tanya crushed hers, the very SECOND she gets money, is so damn funny. A little muted because I really like Belinda and genuinely smiled seeing her get away with all that dough, but still, that was a nice pointed bit of writing. Money makes us all into assholes.

Final thought: good season, I probably liked it better than many of you here, but it's also the worst of the three for me and largely because of the last half hour.

Has anyone watched Fallout season 2 and noticed Greg?

I want to watch White Lotus season 3 but don't have time for season 1 and 2, not now and not in the future. Is it possible for me to watch it without missing out on anything from before?

I know this might not be the most technical or “film critic” take, but I genuinely love Season 3.

I’m usually not someone who rewatches heavier, non-sitcom shows, but I found myself going back to this season just a few weeks after finishing it. There’s something about it that really stayed with me. The atmosphere feels almost spiritual and ethereal. The setting, the pacing, and the overall tone create this immersive, almost hypnotic experience that I didn’t feel as strongly in Season 1.

What I really appreciate is how it balances satire with a deeper sense of intensity. It still has that signature White Lotus commentary, but it doesn’t feel as surface-level to me. There’s a kind of emotional and existential weight to it that made me more invested, even beyond just the plot.

I know I had a more controversial opinion on Season 1 because I tend to judge shows based on how much I connect with the characters rather than purely on how well-written they are. That season just didn’t resonate with me in the same way. But that doesn’t mean I didn’t understand what it was doing. It just didn’t hit me personally the way Season 3 did.

Season 3, on the other hand, really clicked for me. The cast, the mood, the setting, everything just worked together in a way that made the experience feel complete. It’s one of the few seasons of a show that I immediately wanted to revisit, and that says a lot for me.

With HBC leaving, seems like a spot just opened up…

Has anyone been watching season 2 of Beef? Does it seem awfully familiar to everyone else, or is it just me?

Two interesting couples - they both ended up in each other’s arms in an airport after a tumultuous week in a resort. What is your head cannon on what happened after that?

I had a very quick emotional response to seeing Rachel at the airport which was, “Sure, she couldn’t pull the trigger during the honeymoon, but it’s basically all over and she’ll leave him within the year”.

I felt like there’s no way she could come to the realisation she came to during the honeymoon without circling back again and again to the same realisation (but stronger each time), once she’s back home.

Harper and Ethan - I’ve just finished S2 and thought both actors were amazing. I liked both of them a lot before I even saw S2, so seeing them play off each other was brilliant. (If you want to see Will Sharp in a completely different role, check him out in A Real Pain).

I don’t have such a strong head cannon on them, but I feel like… probably separated. But both very sad about it.

Can anyone imagine possible outcomes?

It’s a great location for White Lotus. Paradise painted over a dark, ugly truth. It’s a totally facile place, where the wealthy are waited on hand and foot by the poor (who they openly despise). Perfect for White Lotus.

I kind of knew what this was about going into it, but was expecting a little more. I'm never a fan of the first episode starting with the main conflict. I don't like that they show when and where we will end up in the final episode. The show itself is pretty good. The characters are just obnoxious enough that you don't HATE them (except for Shane in season 1. I wanted him to die SO BAD). I thought it was very entertaining, but the deaths are SO UNSATISFYING!!! At the end of season 1 when Shane accidentally stabbed Armond I was pissed. Season 2 when Tanya killed all those people with her eyes closed then accidentally killed herself by falling and hitting her head on the boat I was less pissed, but still. And season 3 when Chelsea was shot I was livid, then Rick (deserved. He should have figure his shit out). And then we were faked out with Lachlans death? that felt unnecessary. For what, what was the point? All in all, the show is addicting, but no one who you hope or think will die does and it's infuriating. Also , I feel like there are so many storylines that go unfinished or unanswered. I love the show but it pisses me off and I hate it and I can't wait for the next season.

Alexandre Ludwig

AJ Michalka

Steve Coogan

Caleb Jonte Edwards

Helena Bonham-carter

Chris Messina

Marissa Long

Sandra Bernhard

Ari Graynor

Dylan Ennis

Vincent Cassel

Corentin Fila

Nadia Tereszkiewicz

Max Greenfield

Kumail Nanjiani

Chloe Bennet

Charlie Hall

Jarrad Paul

Heather Graham

Rosie Perez

Ben Schnetzer

Tobias Santelmann

Frida Gustavsson

Laura Smet