Review: The White Lotus, “Amor Fati” | Season 3, Episode 8
A thoughtful, satisfying enough finale doesn’t take full advantage of the season’s potential
What does The White Lotus owe to its audience? This has never been a show about plot, despite the murder-mystery hook, but even fans who watch this show purely for the vibes still inevitably come to a finale with their own expectations and preferences. For example, while I’ve found the slow-motion collapse of Tim Ratliff’s life quite emotionally involving to watch, some viewers are put off the static nature of the story. I can’t argue with those who are sick of endless haunted reaction shots.
“Amor Fati” is mostly a very good finale to a strong season, with endings broadly appropriate for each character. But it also can’t quite match the previous two finales in terms of either emotional catharsis or sheer entertainment, and I’d say the same goes for the season as a whole. I’ve actually appreciated Mike White’s willingness to let most of the main conflicts play out on an abstract level, and to rejigger the tone a bit so there’s more introspection and a little less quippy banter this time around. But the parts of this season that worked the best were inevitably the juicy parts, the absorbing drama centered around characters we care about rather than just the ideas they represent.
