Gaslight. Gatekeep. Girlboss. This trio of words is the epitome of how one could describe “Arrivederci,” the season finale of The White Lotus. Every single character is going through it, getting their comeuppance, or meeting their demise (in a rather literal sense).
In classic The White Lotus fashion, the season’s seventh episode contains multitudes of chaos and messy storylines that have you staring at your screen and biting your nails to little tiny stubs. If we go through character after character and discuss what happens to them, that may be the easiest way to go about discussing this episode’s resolutions.
Lucia and Mia
Lucia, played by Simona Tabasco (The Bastards of Pizzofalcone, Perez), and Mia, played by Beatrice Granno (The Time of Indifference, Feel Your Memories) both achieve their goals, making enough money to where it seems like prostitution no longer has to be a career option for them. Not only does Lucia convince Albie to give her 50,000 euros, but she also finally gets her payment from Cam, which simply doubles all of her earnings. Mia, on the other hand, gets to be the pianist for the hotel. With these two young women as fan favorites of the season, it’s nice to see the supposed and original underdogs end up succeeding in the toxic world of the problematic and wealthy.
Cameron, Harper, Daphne, and Ethan
I don’t know about you, but these four provided me with the most consistent forms of anxiety throughout the season. We all know that perhaps Cameron and Daphne are not as perfect as they seem, but then Ethan and Harper also became wrapped up in their games. Ethan, played by Will Sharpe (Flowers, Black Pond), still isn’t wholly convinced that Harper, played by Aubrey Plaza (Parks and Recreation, Little Demon), did not cheat on him. This is so hypocritical considering that she immediately believed and forgave him once she had her story confirmed on multiple fronts. Ethan just can’t seem to let it go, and it drives him absolutely bonkers, making his character more unlikable than he already is.
Ethan and Harper’s marriage finally becomes active again thanks to Daphne, played by Meghann Fahy (The Bold Type, The Lost Valentine). Daphne tells Ethan that you never know what’s going on in people’s lives, and it’s better to not make yourself a victim of life – just do what is able to bring you peace and make you happy. At the beginning of the season I thought that Daphne was just some trophy-wife, ditzy stereotype, but she’s proven herself to probably be the most cunning and intelligent character in this entire season. Not only does she create so much drama and have drama of her own, but she is never actually a part of it – she merely sits back and watches it unravel, but no one ever comes for her because she is incredibly unassuming. I would love to see her in a later season where she’s left her husband, Cameron, played by Theo James (The Divergent Series), and goes on some sort of independent, soul-searching adventure.
Albie, Albie’s Dad, and Albie’s Grandfather
These three are just something else. It’s apparent that these three men represent different generations of toxic masculinity and how it’s kind of evolved with time, which provides some interesting things to think about. While Albie, played by Adam DiMarco (Radio Rebel), seems harmless compared to the behaviors of his dad and grandfather, in the end, he comes into his own set of problems that could be just as problematic. In one of the earlier episodes, he does admit that he’s drawn to helping the “wounded birds” of women, so he definitely has some sort of savior complex issues which he masquerades as just being this nice, empathetic guy. Lucia uses this to her advantage, as we know, to get money out of him. In order to get this money, Albie makes a deal with his dad that he’ll put in a good word to his mom – Albie’s mother and father aren’t speaking because his dad had another affair. The fact that Albie is willing to do this after being mad at his dad for a majority of the season speaks volumes to how his character has ended up developing. Perhaps he isn’t as upstanding as we’ve always thought.
Tanya and Portia
Now this. This is the one that we’ve all been waiting for. The beloved Tanya, played by Jennifer Coolidge (Legally Blonde, The Watcher), and the slightly insufferable Portia, played by Haley Lu Richardson (Five Feet Apart, The Edge of Seventeen). Tanya and Portia’s final moments, where they both realize that they’ve been duped by Quentin and friends, have to be some of my favorite scenes from this season as a whole. Tanya’s quote, “The gays…they’re trying to murder me,” is already blowing up on Twitter and TikTok alike. This fits Coolidge perfectly, and she’s so effortlessly funny. Unfortunately, after an incredible fiasco on the boat, Tanya meets her demise in the most Tanya-esque way possible: she falls off of the boat and hits her head after trying to climb off the railing in heels. If she’d used some critical thinking skills, such as, say, taking off the shoes or using the stairs on the back of the boat, everyone’s favorite character would still be alive and ready for season three. Alas, it is what it is.
Portia, unfortunately, just gets shipped back to the mainland by Jack and is told to just keep moving forward and never look back. She didn’t even get to get her luggage from the hotel! Call me insensitive, but I’d want to get that stuff back, at least. Portia also seems kind of in denial about the whole Tanya situation, but maybe she’s still in shock.
The only good thing to come out of all of this for her is that she and Albie exchange phone numbers in the airport – maybe they deserve each other, after all. I’d love to see them together in season three.
What now?
The White Lotus has absolutely rocked the TV world, and the end of season two has left viewers clamoring for more.
Now that season two has come to an end, creator Mike White has confirmed that there will be a season three, but the location and the cast has yet to be determined. However, what we do know is that after this season has focused on themes of sex and love, White wants to examine themes of death in Eastern religion and spirituality. However he chooses to do that, it’s sure to be a success.
Rating: 9.0/10.0