The White Lotus is an HBO hit. The first episode began in 2021. It is now in its third season. 

By sheer coincidence, one could find it on Amazon Prime. Series One, Episode One is found for free viewing. Unfortunately,  each subsequent episode even those from Season One still cost $4.99 to view, while an entire season will set you back $22.99. Here are a few impressions after seeing Episode One, Season One on Amazon Prime.

The White Lotus is an elite vacation destination in Thailand, catering to a wealthy clientele. 

We first meet a handsome young man looking distracted, as he nervously fingers his wedding ring at an airport waiting area. A chatty, middle-aged couple try to engage him in conversation.  We quickly realize when he mentions that a coffin is being loaded on board their plane that he knows the deceased. We can do basic math, adding two plus two that it equals that his wife is the deceased being shipped by air.

We then cut to a motley crew of couples, a family, and a faded star aboard a boat that is bringing them to The White Lotus. And thereby hangs a tale of spoiled, entitled, isolated, rich, yet troubled and sad people being catered to by a staff which is mostly Asian. Before continuing, spoiler alert for what lies ahead. 

The series creator wrote a statement that the series explores the decadence of White millionaires, and their interactions with the staff who walk on eggshells, eager to guess what might please their mercurial guests.

The question arises: Why White millionaires? 

As common knowledge has it, many billionaires are Asian. And dozens, if not hundreds, are Hollywood celebrities of color enjoying fortunes well into the nine figures. Be that as it may, this racial frisson is a recurring theme.

Jennifer Coolidge, a comedic actress, shines as the conflicted, melancholy millionaire one spoiled teen referred to as the “American Brigitte Bardot.” Her raging entitlement is stoked when she finds one staff member who can actually make her feel alive. Meanwhile, a famous woman and her husband bring their two children along, with a friend of the daughter’s. It appears that the unfortunate man is awaiting test results whether or not he has testicular cancer. His wife is cold and rather blase about it. Their daughter is a spoiled brat who sneers at everyone since she is far better than anyone else, except for her tall and lovely friend of color. The son is treated badly, relegated to a cot in the kitchenette by his cruel sister. Then, we have the newlyweds, who seem fine at first, until the husband becomes obsessed with not having the suite promised by their website.

Since The White Lotus is a melange of The Love Boat, Fantasy Island, and Blue Velvet, we must have even more dark stories. Instead of Ricardo Montalban and Herve Villechaise, we have a starched actor with Australian charm with his female Thai sidekick.The sidekick is a woman who seems to be prone to bumbling and preoccupation, and turns out to be really pregnant. So much so that her moaning as she clutches her stomach suddenly has her water break by the reception desk, and walks away.

A priceless feature of this Amazon listing is their Parental Guidelines. We learn that this series is unsuitable for those under age 16. We are also informed that characters take drugs, smoke, and have sex. And that male nudity is common. Male nudity, not female nudity.

A curious instance of totally gratuitous male nudity happens when the chap suspecting that he has testicular cancer is stroking his penis, and shaking his rather large, low-hanging balls. 

We see him, then a cut-away image to a body double, then return to the action. The frontal nudity could have been better done, unless the actor refused to do it.

We hear that Patrick Schwarzenegger, in Season Three, now on HBO, is quite the dish in his nude scenes. And so it goes.

The White Lotus is a great success for HBO. Season One continued with the same cast, until Season Two had different guests. Now, Season Three has yet more changes, with viewer comments often saying that they don’t understand the plot. 

See for yourself, and try it for yourself either on Prime, or on HBO.