Spoiler Alert: This article contains spoilers regarding season two of The White Lotus.In season two of The White Lotus, what is supposed to be a relaxing vacation for some extremely wealthy people, was anything but. Mike White’s great HBO series continued to awkwardly explore issues around relationships, sex, class, and power, this time set against the beautiful backdrop of Sicily. The final episode of season two was a whirlwind and left some viewers wondering what the heck happened. Let’s take a look.
Who Dies in The White Lotus?
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In the first episode of The White Lotus’ season two, Daphne is swimming in the ocean and accidentally runs into a dead body which results in the beach closing and the authorities finding more bodies, but it is not revealed who died. In the final episode of the season, viewers slowly discover who died on the beach in the first episode.
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Without going into too much detail, Tanya’s husband Greg has been shady since the first season, but at least in season one, he was charming. By the finale of season two, it is revealed that Greg hired his childhood friend Quentin to kill Tanya (the great Jennifer Coolidge) for her inheritance. There is a stipulation in their prenup that Greg gets nothing if they divorce, but if Tanya dies, he gets everything. Greg left Italy so that he would have an alibi, and so Quentin’s plot begins.
The death unfurls on Quentin’s yacht when Tanya steals Niccolo’s bag and the gun in it. In a final effort to save her life, she shoots and kills Niccolo, Quentin, and their friends, Didler and Matteo. She almost survives and gets away with it, but after Quentin’s friend tries to swim away, Tanya jumps off hoping to land in the small tender boat attached to the ship. She misses and hits her head on a metal rail, falling unconscious and subsequently drowning. In a callback to their first episode, Daphne finds her body on the beach. The only way we’d see Jennifer Coolidge (the sole cast member to return this season) in season three of The White Lotus would be through flashback.
Portia, Jack, and Albie
Portia is off with Jack instead of Albie which creates a mess of problems, not to mention how cute they were together. It is revealed that Jack is not Quentin’s nephew, but his lover and hired gun, someone to distract Portia while Quentin kills Tanya. Jack seemingly feels guilty over what he’s done and drives her to the airport to escape and insinuating that Tanya is dead. If Portia and Albie had gotten together early in the season, Tanya might be alive and Albie’s family might not be out €50,000.
Portia and Albie reunite at the airport, where they swap vacation horror stories and phone numbers at last.
Lucia and Mia
In the absence of Portia, Albie gets with Lucia who claims that she needs help escaping her pimp, Alessio, because she owes money to him. Albie, being a naive ‘white knight,’ offers her to join him in Los Angeles which inadvertently gets her out of having sex for money, for now. Albie bribes his father Dominic into giving him €50,000 to give to Lucia, saying he would put in a good word with his mom, who Dominic has been trying to win back. Dominic gives Albie the money and calls Abby. Dominic hopes that their relationship can be saved and Albie sends Lucia the money.
The next morning, Lucia sneaks out before Albie wakes up, thus making the most money she ever has off of sex. Albie was conned and that’s just another thing that getting with Portia earlier would’ve solved. Another plot point that, if avoided, would’ve saved their family grief: Dominic trying to get back together with Abby. It’s safe to say the men of this family make poor decisions when it comes to women.
Lucia’s partner in crime, Mia, has been busy while Lucia was getting money out of Albie. While all of that was going down, Mia was having sex with the White Lotus’ manager, Valentina, for selfish reasons just like Lucia. After their eventful evening together, Valentina hires Mia as the full-time lounge singer, replacing Giuseppe.
Once Giuseppe recovers from the drug reaction Mia caused him by giving him molly instead of Viagra, he is furious. Not only did she drug him, but she stole his job. Valentina says the guests like Mia more. Lucia and Mia are later seen strolling through Sicily, where they run into Alessio, who is actually their friend. They thank him for his help in their scam and stroll off into the sunset having happily scammed their way into their dreams.
Ethan, Harper, Cameron, and Daphne
These two couples have had their issues throughout the season, and it comes to a head when Cameron asks Harper if she wants to go back to his room with her. To clarify, Ethan (the great Will Sharpe) and Harper are married and Cameron and Daphne are married, so this is suspicious. Ethan saw Harper and Cameron return to the room together, but she insists they only kissed. Ethan doesn’t buy that, and he rushes to fight Cameron.
On his warpath, he runs into Daphne, and she tells him that basically some secrets are sexy; you don’t need to know everything about someone you love, and that he shouldn’t be a victim of life. This speaks to one of the biggest themes of the show — how to be in a relationship when we’re incapable of ever really knowing someone. She then invites him to go to the obfuscated Isola Bella with her, which viewers can only assume was to get even. Later on, Harper asks Ethan if they’re going to be okay, and the two kiss and end up having sex for the first time in the whole season, finally. By the end of the episode, both couples are seen at the airport, paired off correctly, looking blissfully in love.
More Murder Mystery Than Rich Rivalry
This season of The White Lotus still held the same commentary about rich bored Americans and dark insight about relationships, but became much more of a murder mystery. The murder mystery theme gave this season a little more clarity and direction than the first season. Season one and two of The White Lotus can be streamed on HBOMax.
