What happens in episode one, ‘Same Spirits, New Forms’?
WARNING: Major spoilers for season three, episode one ahead.
A peaceful one-on-one meditation session is thrown into chaos when an unseen gunman starts a rampage across the White Lotus resort in Thailand. Zion, a young man just graduated from college, flees to find his mother, seeking refuge in a pond and praying to a Buddha statue for their safety. He then spots a dead body, floating face down in the water next to him.
Rewinding to a week before, the White Lotus staff, led by manager Sritala, is awaiting a boat containing a new influx of guests. Among them is The Ratliff family – Timothy, Victoria, and kids Piper, Saxon and Lochlan; Rick Hatchett and his younger girlfriend, Chelsea; and trio of lifelong friends, Kate, Laurie and Jaclyn.
Finally, there’s Belinda, a massage therapist who has come from The White Lotus Hawaii (season one) to learn more about Thai massage practices for the next few months.
Introduced to health mentors and brought to their villas, the group should be delighted with the lap of luxury they are in, but each immediately runs into annoyance. Timothy and Saxon aren’t happy with the resort’s ‘digital detox’ policy, refusing to give up their phones.
As Rick and Chelsea settle in, Rick grills health mentor Mook about Sritala's husband, asking where he is and becoming agitated when she informs him he has fallen ill and returned to Bangkok. As Chelsea encourages him to unwind and embrace the resort, he snaps at her, but she brushes it off, asking if they should get drunk that night before embracing their detox.
Laurie, Kate and Jaclyn are loving their villa, with Laurie excited over seeing the monkeys in the surrounding forest. It’s revealed that Jaclyn, who is a semi-famous TV host, has paid for the entire trip. As the group open a bottle of wine and exchange niceties, Jaclyn denies having any cosmetic work done, but admits to ‘getting maintenance.’
Belinda is shown around the resort, finding out that it is tradition to give offerings to statues in order to provide protection and good health. As she’s shown to her room, Belinda shares that her son will soon be visiting.
Mook shares a friendly flirtation with Gaitok, a security guard of the resort, though he gets jealous when he spots her talking with other men.
At the pool, Saxon sets his sights on Chelsea, and later attempts to flirt with the women around him but gets nowhere. He later shares with Lochlan his hopes to have sex while on holiday, telling him ‘it’s a numbers game.’ Meanwhile, Piper heads into town to visit the Buddhist temple.
As the Ratliff parents unpack, Victoria refuses to move from her bed, and Timothy receives a string of voicemails from a reporter at the Wall Street Journal. Later at dinner, Timothy talks to his kids about their plans for the trip, pressuring Lochlan to attend Duke University. He then breaks the resort rule and answers his phone in a public space.
Taking it outside, Timothy’s nose is put out of joint when he speaks to the journalist, who grills him on a business associate – telling him that they will be running a story in the next week. Judging by his reaction, it’s clear that he’s been involved with some shady dealings.
Chelsea and Rick suffer an awkward dinner, with Rick complaining about the menu but perking up when he sees Sritala arriving. Chelsea insists she’s been sent to him to ‘bring his joy back,’ but not even the proposal of sex seems to perk him up, and he leaves her to eat alone.
She later heads to the bar to drink by herself, making friends with another woman who is there with her older partner (who viewers may recognise as Gregory from seasons one and two – but now going by the name of “Gary.”) Bonding over their shared annoyance with their partners, the woman shares that older men are common in Thailand, referring to them as LBHs: Losers Back Home.
As the wine keeps flowing between Kate, Laurie and Jaclyn, the group begin to share subtle jabs at each other and their chosen life. Returning to her room, Kate drops her facade and begins crying.
That evening, Saxon and Lochlan start talking about their sister, with Saxon taking interest in her lack of sex life. He believes she’s avoiding life through her interest in Buddhism, telling Lochlan to get laid and not do the same as her. He then disappears into the bathroom to masturbate as Lochlan awkwardly looks on before he shuts the door.
In bed, Timothy and Victoria share their dislike of Rick and Chelsea, declaring their life better than theirs after a couple of run-ins, but then sit in silence, with little else to talk about.
Who is the man in the orange shirt?
For fans of The White Lotus, the man in orange, played by Jon Gries is a recognisable face. He’s Greg Hunt – the husband, now widow, to Tanya McQuoid-Hunt (Jennifer Coolidge).
While we only saw him briefly this episode, his history with The White Lotus resorts is vast, and his appearance makes him the only character to appear in every season to date.
Over the course of the show, it’s revealed Greg is somewhat of a conman, initially seducing Tanya in Hawaii when she was vulnerable after the loss of her mother. Taking her out to dinner, he convinced her to pay for his treatment for a terminal illness.
In season two, his frustration in the marriage becomes evident as they arrive in Sicily, and he later flies back to Denver. Tanya befriends a group of older, gay men, but it’s later revealed to be a set-up by Greg, with the group’s leader, Quentin, possibly romantically involved with Greg in the past.
When she discovers their deception, finding a gun and rope in a bag, she becomes convinced they are planning to murder her so Greg can inherit her fortune. She’s able to kill the men but dies trying to escape.