‘The White Lotus’ season 3, episode 7 recap: killer instincts
The penultimate episode of the season puts all cards on the table, setting the moves to the tune of "We all have the capacity to kill"
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This story contains spoilers from this episode of The White Lotus.
HOW MUCH OF A slow burn can you take before you burn out? Watching episodes of the White Lotus these past few weeks (ever so gruelling, two episodes cover the events of one day) has some people waning. Some viewers even dare to question their faith in show creator Mike White. But don’t speak too soon, as this week’s episode sees some final moves being set into place before the season finale next week.
While Rick is finally getting his face time with Khun Jim in Bangkok, the rest of the motley crew are back at the resort eyeing each other off. What White wants us to think about this week plays with the guru’s teachings that narrate the early half of the episode: “We all have the capacity to kill”. The targets are clear for some more than others, while it’s a bit up in the air for the rest. The Buddhist scripture condemns violence in all its forms, the guru says, and one mustn’t give into its source: fear. Fear is indeed the gauntlet that’s set for the guests, the will they, won’t they.
We owe Saxon an apology
If there’s someone walking out of the full moon night with the most revelations, it’s Saxon. At this point, White makes it clear that he doesn’t meddle in things as common as archetypes; he’s made three seasons upending them. Saxon was perhaps the easiest punching bag: white, male, and muscled. With his protein shakes and non-stop blender, he – and Cameron and Shane who preceded him – represents everything we find repulsive about The White Lotus world.
We find him insecure in his own skin as he gets his parents to join him at Greg-Gary’s party up the hill. The rattle of Tim’s lorazepam bottle is growing weaker; Saxon has caught on to his father’s erratic state. When he confronts his father to ask if things are alright at work, Saxon admits something that’s not uncommon for nepotism C-suite hires: without work and the empire his father would eventually pass down, he is nothing. It’s a vulnerable admission nonetheless; maybe Sax and Kendall Roy have something to talk about, though the difference is Saxon might just do something about it.
At the party, Chloe reveals Greg-Gary’s Oedipal complex to Chelsea and Saxon. When asked if he could give an assist to essentially play daddy in Chloe and Greg-Gary’s relationship, he looks over to Greg-Gary sitting alone watching them, radiating harm. Partly scared of the guy, Saxon declines, “I’m not that kind of guy”. “Yeah, you are,” says Chelsea. For all her relative saneness, we have all been Chelsea this season, prescribing this archetype to Saxon. Indeed, we are common.
With Chloe back at square one, Saxon and Chelsea head back to the White Lotus where he wants her to help him develop his spirituality. He no longer wants to be the empty experience, as Chelsea assumed a few episodes ago. Saxon is on the precipice of change, whether it’s through the body or mind is what he wants to find out with Chelsea. As they meditate, palms in each other’s, he gets a little handsy. Of course, Rome wasn’t built in a day. This is the first step in his journey, as Chelsea shows him out with a pile of her spirituality books.
Read Esquire’s recap of last week’s episode:
‘The White Lotus’ season 3, episode 6 recap: denial is a river in Thailand
There will be no second date
If Gaitok is already feeling inadequate, his date with Mook just made it worse. The two White Lotus staff have their long-awaited date to a night market. Sharing some noodles and cold drinks, the gate-keeper admits that he probably won’t be promoted to Sritala’s bodyguard entourage. After being told he lacks the killer instinct by his manager at the firing range, he hoped for some emotional support from his childhood friend. But Mook sets down her chopsticks: violence is essential, she says. Gaitok is himself a religious man, a believer in the Buddha’s teachings that all violence is condemned. Can’t argue with that. But the crux of her argument is that Gaitok lacks the ambition she finds so attractive. She wants someone who can take her out of this life as a wellness worker and into a better one.
The two still go to the fight he scored tickets for from Valentin. Beyond the spectacle of the event, she points out that fighting is itself human. “See, it’s natural. It’s a part of life! It’s human to fight,” she says. The crowd goes wild, and Gaitok spots Valentin and Laurie sitting front-row with Aleksei and Vlad. Noticing Vlad’s shining bald head, it dawns on him that the tall Russian was the driver from the robbery, who at the time was wearing nothing but a face mask, Aleksei was the hooded robber, and Valentin was the distraction. There he sees his chance to win the girl, arrest the robbers and Mook will fall in love with him, or so goes his hopeless romantic thinking.
100 Gs is insulting
While the party is going, and Chloe is occupied with fulfilling Greg-Gary’s sexual yearnings, his true plans take root. He takes Belinda to a remote part of his pad to hash out the details. Playing to the tune of not wanting to deal with the events of Tanya’s death by returning to the US, he found safe haven in Thailand, as most LBHs do. He extends an olive branch that before her demise, Tanya felt bad for leaving Belinda high and dry. Allegedly written in her will is $100,000 for Belinda to finally start up her own wellness centre. We see her consider the ethics of the buy out in real time. Greg-Gary obliges to her sleeping on the insulting offer.
Relaying this back to her son, Zion says to just take it. The lad had just arrived on the scene. Whether or not Belinda takes the money seems immaterial at this point. Remember that the cold open will take place in the next episode, and I don’t think Greg-Gary will come marching down that hill to hear her decision. He’s radiating violence.
Laurie is hot and bothered
For once in her life, Laurie has the upper-hand with her friends. She’s holding it up pretty well too, pointing it like a gun between Jaclyn and Kate. What other ugly truths will she fire next?
To start off, Kate sides with Jaclyn as the two are still under the impression that Laurie is still pissed about her fling with Valentin. A new tidbit is revealed: Jaclyn was flirting with Kate’s husband Dave during Laurie’s wedding. That’s beside the point; Kate has suppressed this for years. Point is, the mask has come down now and they’re trading their long grievances with each other. Jaclyn articulates an ugly truth about Laurie: she constantly chooses her own path of disappointment. The Hollywood actress is giving her guru advice. All the while Fabian is performing a ballad of his own pen. He’s the only one this whole season making a change and pursuing his dreams.
In another first time in her life, Laurie chooses to spend the night with Aleksei and his friends at the fight. They head back to his and have their long-awaited fling. This has been the authentic experience she’s been after all along, but it’s quickly shattered as the Russian asks her for $10,000 for the repatriation of his mother from Vladisvostok. Paypal, Venmo, CashApp; the transactional relationship leaves the room faster than Laurie jumping out the window. But he’s got ten Gs right there in the gift shop jewellery hiding in his closet.
Piper won’t be staying after all
We thought that the freaky little magician had another trick up his sleeve when he suggested he’d spend the night with Piper at the monastery. But the youngest Ratliff also has stuff to unpack at the retreat. We ended last week’s meditation session knowing that he’s also getting the aftertaste of the full moon antics. He doesn’t want to give into his dark side, he tells his sister. He sits at a cross roads between following in the alpha foot steps of the Ratliff men, or creating his own path. Men at this age are deeply unimaginative; the only way to find out is by also joining his sister for the one-year program. Uh-oh.
Victoria will indeed get her prayers answered. Despite connecting more with her younger brother, Piper leaving for Thailand was to leave her family in general. Lochlan following behind her wasn’t in the cards, but it’s how she will dissuade him is the next move. Though is she capable of putting an end to him permanently?
Rick commits elder abuse
The first half of the episode with Rick and Jim’s scenes mirroring that of the Muay Thai fight. If we’re supposed to take the two for the fighters, their conversation wasn’t much of a fight. Frank is meanwhile playing his director friend to chat up Sritala. His filmography? The Enforcer, The Executor, The Notary. Off the cuff, it sounds like a Last Will trilogy.
Rick sticks to his word that he just wanted to mess with the frail old man, deriving some closure from pointing the gun at him. While Jim’s reveal was inevitable, we had six episodes to learn of what it is he has to lose, what made him so powerful to order hitjobs. Funnily enough, Rick fails to actually mention his father’s name, only his mother’s. Rick, is this man all the way in Thailand going to know the name of a dying woman? But the likely case is that there were many hitjobs, and Jim has the far reaching net worth to know concern himself with any of them.
Making their swift getaway, Rick and Frank indulge in a hedonistic night of drugs and women – their creature comforts. It’s mission accomplished for this leg of his journey, but he still needs to pick up Chelsea, who is still back at the White Lotus. In terms of who’s capable to kill, I think Jim’s two bodyguards want some retribution.
Until next week’s finale episode, here is Lek Patravadi’s performance:
Related:
‘The White Lotus’ season 3, episode 6 recap: denial is a river in Thailand
