Obviously, there are spoilers for the finale of Season 3 of The White Lotus, so if you’re not caught up, now’s a good time to get there with a Max subscription.
The wonderful thing about The White Lotus is that different people take different things away from the show. How one person sees the ending and the lessons learned can be completely different from how another person sees it. One of the most talked about parts of the 2025 television schedule was the fate of Lochlan Ratliff (Sam Nivola), or Lochy, the youngest (though not the most innocent) child of Tim and Victoria Ratliff (Jason Isaacs and Parker Posey, respectively). Lochy didn’t die after consuming the deadly seeds of the poison fruit, and I think the show’s brilliant creator pulled his punch there. Allow me to explain.
The White Lotus Has A History Of Tragic Accidents
In each of the first two seasons of the HBO hit, tragic accidents have befallen fan favorites. In Season 1, it was the accidental stabbing of hotel manager Armond (Murray Bartlett) by Shane (Jake Lacy). In Season 2, it was everyone’s favorite character, Tanya (Jennifer Coolidge), who tripped, fell off a boat and drowned after narrowly escaping an attempt on her life.
In Season 3, this exact kind of tragedy is avoided when, despite drinking the poison and tripping out for a bit, Lochy awakens in his father’s arms. I understand that Mike White was bringing together the concepts of faith, Eastern Religion and redemption that were the overarching theme of the season, but that still would have worked had Lochy died. The theme wasn’t dependent on him living, and for me, it took away from the theme.
Returning To The Ocean
Lochy’s final moments had him imagining himself drowning, unable to reach the surface of a rough sea, just as the Buddhist monk had described death to Tim in an earlier episode. When we die, the monk explained, we return to the “one giant consciousness.” The monk compares it to being a drop of water returning to the ocean, just as Lochy envisions it. It would be a tragic end to Lochy, but it would've reinforced the theme, just as his redemption ultimately did, too.
The fallout from Lochy’s death would have been intense, but it’s not like he was an innocent bystander this season. Whatever was going on between him and his siblings was anything but innocent, and that was on him. I’m not saying he deserved death, but his journey to enlightenment wasn’t complete until his near-death experience, and it could have come from living or dying.
I think Mike White let us (and Tim Ratliff) off the hook, and while the deaths of Rick and especially Chloe hit us hard, it wasn’t half as hard as it would have been watching Tim react to his youngest son’s death in his arms. I guess, like Lochy, we were spared that, but maybe we shouldn’t have been.
It's going to be a long wait until Season 4 of The White Lotus, and we're not sure where the show will take place, but I do know that I'll probably be thinking about the end of this season until it returns.
You must confirm your public display name before commenting
Please logout and then login again, you will then be prompted to enter your display name.
