The White Lotus season 2 Poster

I hope someone rims Will Sharpe in this season.

Who did Theo James fuck to get a role?

This series isn't out of this world great, but I Ilike that it's not some wish-fulfillment fantasy takedown of wealthy elites. It's more realistic and morally ambiguous than that. It shows how human beings really operate (whether they're rich or not, imo) without falling into nihilism.

I don’t feel fully represented in the poster 😞

Meh part 2

Of course I’ll watch but it isn’t that great

^ The first season was that great.

I'd love to see Belinda from S1 follow Tanya to Sicily and slap her viciously.

I'm going to miss Hawaii. Wish it was placed in some exotic country.

Giving us a look at Theo James cock right off the bat? 10/10.

It’s called a fucking prosthetic. Same shit he used in that other show.

Yes, when I looked for picture of it and it is easy to tell on closer inspection that its a fake dick. Should have known. 0/10.

First impressions are that Aubrey Plaza is of course going to nail this role and was also really impressed with the prostitute character. Not sold on the resort manager, she didn't click for me. Murray Bartlett is missed. Was a little disappointed it's a dead body mystery as the set up again again, but I guess that is to be expected.

We will see where it goes.

How do you know it's fake, I assume it is because there is no reason to show off your real one with your back turned. So, how can you look at it and tell it's face cause I've seen some that look like that.

Because I have working eyes. And Theo James used a prosthetic for his other show. He wouldn’t show dick. I doubt he had a change of heart.

I enjoyed S1. I'll try S2 but don't have high hopes with this cast.

As much as I liked the first episode, something seemed off.....was the lighting too bright and harsh, art direction too colorful and saturated? And was the pacing of lines awkward at times? Some of the scenes seemed sort of badly ad libbed to me. I guess I can't expect it to look and sound just like Season 1....we'll see.

Also, I didn't quite buy Aubrey Plaza and Will Sharpe as a couple.

We will see. Give it time r16. I didn’t find season 1 to be amazing from episode 1. It was great as a whole though. It’s not fair to compare a full season to 1 episode.

Agreed, r17. I also remember feeling like S1 E1 was trying too hard but I did come to love the season. I think I watched it all 3 times.

I wasn’t all that impressed with the new characters either, but it is only the first episode, and, most of it was invested in lining up the characters and establishing plot lines. The second episode will most likely make or break the show.

Audrey Plaza is quite a character in real life and I was hoping that they would have developed her character around her real life persona, but the opposite seems to be the case.

Adam DiMarco is pretty hot looking. I’m looking forward to seeing more of him.

I don’t think a second episode will make or break it.

I don't think F Murray was acting.

I actually prefer this cast (so far) than that of Season 1.

Aubrey Plaza is, as everyone agrees, always someone to watch. She's basically playing Daria and she's hilarious in her sourness. The passive-aggressive "pleasant conversation with slight disagreements" she had with Theo James was a terrific scene. He's good casting too and damn nice to look at.

I love that Jennifer Coolidge has an "assistant" (even though Jen's character literally does NOTHING all day) -- and how hilarious to fly the assistant to an Italian beach resort and then insist the assistant stay in her room all day.

The grandfather, father, and son are a great combo. Grandfather's an open lech, father is a secret one, and it's clear the son thinks he's more enlightened than either of them in his treatment of women. I'm sure we (and he) will find out that's not the case.

If there's a Season 3 of this, I'd love to see it set in Asia (maybe Hong Kong).

I'm watching it now from the beginning—is that a Raffaella Carrà song playing for arrival day?

I want to be in the Blossom Circle™!

Anything gay yet?

James is a terrible actor. Even the scene changing his clothes to exert power over Plaza's character didn't come off naturally - it just seemed forced.

Has he finally realized he can't act so he will get jobs by showing off his ass and now dick for gay show runners? Seriously? Third show he's done this in [Sanditon, Time Traveler's Wife and now this).

Theo Kardashian.

“It’s a penis, not a sunset!”

Knowing HBO, it had to be a prosthetic, right?

This is a weird coincidence, I was just watching a music video from the show the Magicians and the guy who played Albie popped up and I had remembered how cute he was and I was wondering what happened to him as an actor.

Is prostitution legal or illegal in Italy?

So far I like it and the beautiful setting. I already like it more than season 1 except I do miss Murray.

For r30

[Quote]Prostitution itself is legal. Streetwalking, operating or working in a brothel and promoting prostitution are illegal.

I don’t give a fuck if Theo James can act or not. I just like looking at him. He does seem older than Will Shape, so didn’t really buy them as college roommates.

Theo James is 37 and Will Sharpe is 36, that's good casting for characters who were college roommates r33.

Will Sharpe was the writer/producer/director of that incredible HBO series last year called LANDSCAPERS with Olivia Colman and David Thewlis.

Thanks r34, didn’t know. I thought Sharpe was in his 20s.

It's the heavy bangs, r36. They're quite youthening.

Will Sharpe is half Japanese, often ethnic people do tend to age a little better than white people.

Eldergay here. I'm totally unfamiliar with this Aubrey Plaza person. Not very impressed from last night's performance. What's she been in and done that makes her so fabulous?

I wish the two leads from MY BRILLIANT FRIEND were in this.

Aubrey Plaza first became well known thanks her turn in Parks and Recreation r39. Her caustic and sarcastic humor are usually her calling cards and she has been cast in a lot of roles that take advantage of that. She is actually playing a more normal role here, though still being written with that Aubrey Plaza vibe. Of gay note she also played a lesbian in the Christmas gay romcom Happiest Seasons last year and ran away with the movie.

Sometimes lightening is not in a bottle twice.

Even Meryl couldn’t save Big Little Lies season 2.

Theo James and his magical dick can’t save this.

weary of that hog jennifer coolidge

I know it's only episode 1 but how does that young couple not have any sex life? I guess we'll find out.

I'm curious about the direction Jennifer's character's husband is going. That marriage is rocky.

Jennifer Coolidge makes breathing look painful.

I'm trying to figure out where the gay angle will appear this season. I guess Tom Hollander could bring it on but I don't see who will be his partner in crime.

R35. Wow, I didn't know that! I loved Landscapers.

Does Tom Hollander come in later as a love interest for Coolidge?

I think she's somewhat ill or something R45. My silly schoolgirl type crush on her is still going strong, however! She just needs to reign things in on her p.r. so she doesn't become over exposed and she'll be good to go with her Shelley Winters stage of her career.

I'm really curious as to what John Gries character is up to. He was fishy from the break if you think about it because he was with his friends from BLM but they were never seen. How's that work? And it's like Tanya knows but doesn't fully care because of sex and her self destructive qualities basically and so she brings a pointless assistant with her who's job it is to dole out her Xanax or something? I'm at a loss but dig it overall.

Aubrey Plaza has aged well. She's cute. It'll be nice to see how far she goes with her role. It's all in the facial expressions with her.

This is nice escapism thus far. I like Mike White's work. He's wonderfully creative, works quickly from what I have read, and is as Gay as the day is long. Works for me.

How did filming of this go down without the lockdown making a resort available? I’m guessing the hotel lobby and rooms are sets this time and things like big dining rooms, the pool and beaches were the primary things filmed primarily on location?

I think the gay angle is going to be Theo and Will.

I thought Tanya's husband was terminally ill. Could have sworn that came up in S1. I'm expecting that hubby planned their meeting in S1 to get his hands on her money up to and including her meeting a tragic end. Loving husband he's not though she is an exhausting void on neediness.

I'm not familiar with this Aubrey person but her character is completely humorless and unlikeable so far.

R52 That’s exactly the reason Aubrey is beloved, so she’s in her element and typecast.

Good premiere overall that established the season's story arcs well. The first season was kind of aimless for its first few episodes, but this was much more focused.

Meanwhile, in season one, Greg said he could drop dead at any moment and was constantly coughing. That seems to have been forgotten.

I wondered if the gay angle would be Aubrey and Theo's wife. They both seem like they are really miserable in their relationships. Theo's character seems manipulative and kind of a con man so maybe he put all the assets in his wife's name and she and Aubrey run off with the money. Leaving him alone like a broke fake dick.

I saw a picture of James alone in the airport staring at a plane taking off - I think he's supposed to be looking sad or something. But maybe it is him and Will.

I'm sure Coolidge's husband medical condition is going to be addressed, it's not like Mike White forgot about that from Season 1.

I believe right there in the coming attractions for next week (or maybe later episodes?) we see Theo and Will having a go with the 2 prostitutes while their wives are on an expedition of their own.

I see the Plaza character making a go for Theo's character. Will he rebuff her or go for it? She obviously doesn't like sex with her husband.

How old do you have to be to have never seen or heard of Aubrey Plaza???? She’s been around for years now and never not working. Seriously. It’s 2022. Try to keep up.

And why the fuck does someone keep going on and on about a “gay” angle? Maybe there isn’t one. Newsflash, there are millions of families and couples that don’t have a gay in their circle. You know, the same thing you all bring up when it’s pointed out there isn’t a black person in a cast…

So, serious question, are you men or women? Because if you’re a man you should be able to tell Theo’s dick was a prosthetic. He hasn’t shown his actual dick once. This one didn’t even look real. If you’re a man and couldn’t tell that was fake….

And the Asian guy looking younger than the white guy isn’t a stretch. Asians and Black people tend to look younger than white people. They say white people tend to “age like milk” for a reason.

This

Think that people are hoping that since our showrunner is gay there will be one r60, but you are correct that there is zero guarantee we are going to get anything gay this season. Guess we will see.

R63 Mike White's bisexual but everything else is true

Mike White was quite the character on his season of Survivor -- I dig his humor.

Mike White is a genius at making me feel secondhand embarrassment. And sympathy for unlikeable characters.

Will Sharpe did a crazy wild overblown series called “Flowers” that blew my mind. It was really something.

I thought this was slightly better than the first episode of Season 1.

Tiny quibble, but did anyone notice when Theo said "deepo" around the table outside instead of "depo" (short e) when referring to a deposition? I think it should have been dubbed out.

I'm there to look pretty r68, not to accurately pronounce legal jargon.

Uncle Rico is kinda of a douche.

This will probably be better than S1, but won't have as much notoriety It reminds me of that Star Trek quote from Wayne's World.

[quote] Tiny quibble, but did anyone notice when Theo said "deepo" around the table outside instead of "depo" (short e) when referring to a deposition? I think it should have been dubbed out.

Did anyone else repeat that mistake? You know, like the lawyer at the table? If not, then maybe it was meant to show despite his wealth and arrogance that he was an airhead.

Or maybe Mike has a crush and doesn't want to offend his leading man.

That’s the case more so than not r71.

The episode didn't bore me so I'll keep watching.

Or the director just felt it worked well r72, like when Alicia Silverstone mispronounced Haitians. She wasn’t supposed to, but Amy Heckerling thought her mispronunciation worked.

Given they made sure to establish Aubrey Plaza's job as an employment lawyer, I suspect Theo James has an employee bringing a bad suit against his company that is coming to her firm. She, not her husband, is the one he is trying to spring a proposal on. It would fit getting naked in front of her, hoping his good looks will start to seduce her.

Theo James can’t act. He’s been coasting off of his looks for years now.

R76, that's an interesting theory but it sure makes him an idiot. An idiot who has no respect for women - but then that seems to be clearly his handicap. But I never thought of that angle. I figured Aubrey would help his wife get his money somehow and leave him broke.

I liked it. It's missing all the US class subtext of the first season but it was a good episode nevertheless.

R79 they said they were shifting the focus away from that.

Will Sharpe played gay in Giri/Haji - a terrific crime drama miniseries that aired on Netflix a few years ago. I think he’s much more attractive than Theo James.

For those asking "Who is Aubrey Plaza?" -- think of Parker Posey 20 years ago. Good, quirky actor who picks interesting projects.

Only Parker Posey never had the natural sarcastic energy Aubrey does.

Lol, during this scene I was thinking it might be Drea de Matteo, but no one would could tell because they only know her with a thick New Jersey accent.

Parker Posey can claim a certain uniqueness, but the oddity that is Aubrey is all her own.

Coincidentally, just before coming to this thread, I watched Dazed and Confused (I’ve seen it a few times), in which Posey has a small part and was cast in before she was well-known, and there’s no comparison between Plaza and her. Apples to oranges, as they say.

To get a sense of what AP is like, watch a few interviews with her on talk shows and red carpets. You’re never really sure if she’s truly being herself or just sculpting a crazy mystique.

Watch Ingrid Goes West

Here you go. Tons of clips that show what r85 is speaking about.

Aubrey would have been PROUD to have David Letterman mispronounce her name.

Impressive numbers.

Aubrey Plaza is posting all over this thread.

I really believed it was Laura Dern when I heard but then thought…surely not…because Mike White and Laura’s relationship collapsed during Enlightened (which is the REAL reason there wasn’t a third season. This is written about in the book about HBO called Tinderbox)

Glad to see they buried the hatchet?

Is the untalented Theo James any good this time?

Despite his mispronunciation of "depo" Theo James does an immaculate American accent.

I agree with the earlier comments about Aubrey Plaza. She's a unique talent, and once I've seen her in a role I can't think of any other actress in that role. There are only a handful of actresses that I feel that way about. Madeline Kahn comes to mind.

I thought he was honestly fine in the premiere r92. He was just asked to be a bro basically so no deep character work, but he did his job and was charismatic on screen.

To me the person who stood in a bad way was Will Sharpe, his acting wasn't bad but he was so uninteresting on screen. I guess his character is supposed to be boring, but it doesn't make for an interesting person to watch.

Three of the actors are English and I had no idea. It's interesting that the show is set in Italy and easily could have British vacationers but made them all American.

Mike White is American, so it's going to be way more natural to write Americans than try to switch believable British characters with British cultural references r96.

Well a lot of vacationers in Italy are American.

I like the remix of the song and new art during the opening credits.

They should have brought Sydney Sweeney back. She was the best part of season 1!

Sweeney will make a cameo. A party boat full of loud, drunken, coked up rich Americans wearing MAGA hats and flying confederate and Nazi flags will cruise by during one of the scenes, and Sweeney and her black friend from last season will be among the revelers.

Sweeney’s friend was black?? Doesn’t look black to me.

Mixed race, I believe, R102. Her father is Irish/Irish-American (O'Grady).

R103 that I can see. But just a black girl like that poster said? No.

I hated how rude and mean they seemed to Alexandra Daddario’s character in the premiere, when she’s introducing herself.

It was accurate, though, R104. Characters like that would certainly have low empathy for someone like Rachel, who didn't tick the right (demographic or political) boxes. Though annoying, the characters were faithful portrayals. It was good to have dog-face Sweeney in that role as her default facial expression is a sneer.

Exactly, r95, Theo James is good for this undemanding role (so far). Either I was particularly horny or there was quite a lot of eye candy in this series, with Will Sharpe, the grandson, Christopher, etc.

Aubrey Plaza (whom i also didn’t know) was nicely, if improbably, obnoxious. From her interviews upthread it seems like she os basically playing herself.

I was surprised Plaza's character isn't 'quirkier.' She is always borderline annoying to me in interviews and I feel bad about it because it seems like she may be on the autism spectrum or something. She's wired oddly. But her character seems relatively down to Earth and normal (from a neurological perspective, anyway). I'm impressed Plaza is playing the role straight instead of with her trademark absent-minded snarkasm.

I’m impressed with Aubrey as well

I guess I'll watch the next episode - but I'm not on board yet......

Theo was cast with reason.

Also, he said that his character getting naked in front of Plaza’s character and a lot of other things coming up is with purpose. His character knows exactly what he’s doing when he does the things he does.

Mike White said the first seasons subtext was “racial privilege”, the second seasons subtext is “sexual politics”. So that should tell you something.

I know a lot of people who hate Aubrey Plaza. Not in real life, they don’t know her, but her personality etc. they find her nothing but annoying and obnoxious. However, I always liked her. I loved Parks and Rec and watched stuff with her after. I love her sarcastic humor. I also LOVED Ingrid Goes West.

For the premiere she had her people find out what Elizabeth Olsen was wearing so she could show up in the same thing because in the movie her character is obsessed with Olsens and stalks her and tries to become her lol. Olsen was clueless but played along. I remember seeing that and laughing.

I'm excited for this season but have to hold off. I have a vacation in early December and want to have a nice show to watch on the 10 hour coming and going flights. I've found international video on demand options to be hit or miss.

How nice to have plans!

This show is peak "Shit White People Like" and I'm loving it. HBO knows their audience.

R114 HBO’s audience is only white?

[quote]How old do you have to be to have never seen or heard of Aubrey Plaza???? She’s been around for years now and never not working. Seriously. It’s 2022. Try to keep up.

You must be new to DL. There are a number of posters on here who are older and stopped paying attention to the world circa 1990. DL can be a weird time warp.

I have always thought Aubrey Plaza was hysterical. Theo James reminds me of a young Ben Affleck.

R117 WHAT? Theo and Ben look NOTHING alike.

I absolutely love her!!!

Aubrey was fantastic on the series LEGION, and was the only reason to watch the last season as the show went off the rails in every other way. She’s also good as a lusty nun in THE LITTLE HOURS from 2017.

Who’s the blonde I thought was Shannon from LOST?

^ she looks nothing like Shannon from Lost

jennifer c such a big ole heiffer......oy.

[quote] we see Theo and Will having a go with the 2 prostitutes

Puttane!

Why does Coolidge act so dummie in all her roles, even on chat shows..... sad

Aubrey Plaza elevates anything she's in.

R125 because like Aubrey Plaza, that’s actually an element of their personalities and they bring that to all their roles.

I am interested in the Jennifer Coolidge storyline. I do want to know what's going on with the husband. I hope he does more nude scenes. Love his body.

I have to give Jennifer credit for not shying away from her weight and letting it be a part of her characters story much and how disgusted Greg is about Tanya's size.

jen getting big as a damn house.

I love seen Coolidge onscreen, but everything she does feels like a riff on Stifler's mom.

She created Stifler’s mom. She was given a script but the way she delivered the lines was her own doing. That’s why she got the part.

Is Coolidge's age her actual IRL age? I had always imagined her as a bit older.

Aubrey's character was right -- why would they want a connecting door between the couples' two rooms? When she said they wouldn't likely need it, everybody looked at her like she'd just taken a dump on the floor. And is was also perfectly fine to refuse the prosecco at arrival. What was the big deal about that?

She could do a little more work to hide her annoyance with everyone. I'm sure she'll only get more annoyed as the trip goes on, so she shouldn't go full bitchface is the first 15 minutes. You'd think she'd be able to hide it a little better.

Jennifer Coolidge's assistant also seems pissed off from the first minute we see her, which is a little odd because, as far as she knows, she's about to get paid to spend a week at a super fucking upscale resort in Italy. Shouldn't she be a little happier at the start? Maybe the trip was difficult.

I loved how ass-kissing but obliviously rude the resort manager was to the guests when they arrive. She would be a nightmare in real life, but she's fun tv.

R133 in real life some people can’t hide their feelings. I’m one of them. If I’m annoyed people can tell, no matter how much I try hiding it.

R133, I found Jennifer Coolidge's personal assistant annoying as well. She was right to force her to hide in her bedroom.

If Audrey Plaza's character hid her emotions this would be a very boring show to watch, the entertainment is in the conflicting personalities.

Also try to imagine what it must be like to work for Jennifer Coolidge's character, she is a crazy person. It made sense to meet why the assistant is so exasperated when we meet her.

I thought prostitutes didn’t kiss on the lips.

Also, in the beginning of the episodes, after the dead body has been discovered, Rocco tells the manager other guests have been found dead. Did he mean in the past? Or that there were more people discovered that day?

R119, I love Aubrey Plaza's performances in practically everything, but her Hot Ones appearance was pretty uncomfortable. She was trying too hard to overcome the "challenge" of the show with her antics. Even Sean, who's remarkably unflappable, seemed taken aback with the milk snorting moment. And he's had people shit their pants in front of him.

I thought she was great r138. That’s who she is. I don’t even think she tries.

Albie kept referring to his grandfather as no-no. 'Grandpa' in Italian is 'nonno,' pronounced naw-no.

[quote]Albie kept referring to his grandfather as no-no. 'Grandpa' in Italian is 'nonno,' pronounced naw-no.

That's what I thought, too. But I figured they wouldn't make a mistake that big.

Though it kinda works in showing how American and very not Italian these characters are. Mike White was definitely poking fun with them telling the hotel staff how they "are Italian too!" even though they don't speak the language and know nothing of the country. Very cliche of Americans with Italian ancestry.

R141 it’s not a mistake. They’re American. Italian Americans love to think they’re just like the Italians in Italy when they’re nothing like that.

Some thoughts ..

I loved the hotel manager! Some funny lines - 'She is one fast slut!' 'It is so far away and you are quite old!'

The actress playing Daphne, Theo James' wife, looks a lot like Courtney Thorne-Smith.

I could have done without Tanya and Greg's sex scene.

I think Cameron is already a more interesting character than Shane from S1.

The strange and interesting relationship between Paula and Olivia was my favorite thing about S1.

Any predictions as to who the dead bodies will be and who was the killer? I knew early on that Shane was either going to kill or be killed by Armond.

Portia (Tanya's assistant) is probably going to be my favorite from this season.

I like the theory that the two prostitutes accidentally murder Cameron, Ethan and Dominic.

One of the prostitutes will turn up dead / pregnant a la “The Talented Mr. Ripley.”

In fact, the whole show can be analyzed through a “Ripley” filter.

Theo James was supposed to be the next big thing in Hollywood. Now he is stuck on tv.

TV is where most actors are now r151. Welcome to 2022. What year is it where you are? 1990?

He was never gonna be a big deal. He can’t act. He’s just pretty. He would have been nothing more than a teen heartthrob flash in the pan.

it werqed 4 cavill and hemsworths, why not james?

If Theo James were the next big thing in movies, that would just mean he was cast in a Marvel franchise because that's all big movies are now. TV is much better quality writing than almost any movie nowadays, and Mike White is about as good as screenwriters get today. He still gives us subtext and mystique and irony. Movies just give us superpowers and jumping from rooftop to rooftop and bam bam bam gunfights.

[quote]know nothing of the country. Very cliche of Americans with Italian ancestry.

So are Irish Americans.

Datalounge is officially an Aubrey Plaza Stan Site

That was NOT on my bingo card for 2022, lol

As one of the dinosaurs here who's just being introduced to Aubrey Plaza with this series, let me say, I just don't get the fuss. It's not her fault she's playing an unpleasant character, which could be great fun, but her comedic timing seems very off to me. So far she's so very one dimensional.

Who’s Aubrey Plaza? Never heard of or seen her before.

R157 The fuss isn't about her performance in this role.

[quote]If Theo James were the next big thing in movies, that would just mean he was cast in a Marvel franchise because that's all big movies are now.

Which is funny since Aubrey Plaza was in one Marvel TV series (Lenny/The Shadow King in Legion) and is about to do another one (Agatha: Coven of Chaos.)

R143 You should see the Irish-Americans disappointment with the locals when they don’t give a shit about their ancestral pilgrimage to Dublin.

Ireland would be a fun setting for a future season because the Irish are so sarcastic and snide. I’m not sure where a White Lotus would be situated, though, maybe a converted castle with recreational falconry and horse riding.

Every time I see Aubrey's name in this thread, I read it as Aubrey O'Day for some reason, and try to imagine her in the role.

White Lotus can be a global franchise, like Hilton or Marriott. There are Hiltons in pretty much every city all over the world.

Of course this is a resort, but it’s believable.

The show can literally take place in any city. Season 3 can be another European city, or Sydney, or South Africa, or a place like Jamaica, or Cancun, or Singapore etc.

There are tons of places they can set a third season.

Or what if there is a White Lotus in a colder climate setting, like Alaska?

Well Aubrey O’Day isn’t an actress.

They're going to Sri Lanka next.

Great article on the intricacies of the title sequence.

You missed the obvious comparison, The Four Seasons! r163.

Season 1 filmed at the Four Seasons in Maui, and season 2 filmed at the Four Seasons in Taormina, Sicily.

The White Lotus is definitely based on being a Four Seasons type company.

There's a Four Seasons in Georgetown (DC). That would offer some disappointing scenery—basking on the shores of the C&O Canal, and instead of swimming with huge sea turtles in Hawaii, swimming with fallen branches in the sludgy Potomac. Maybe paddle boating in the tidal basin! Thrilling.

In Episode 1, when Cameron (Theo James) is teasing Ethan (Will Sharpe) about being an incel in college and then he tries to reassure Ethan but telling him he's handsome, does Cameron then say, "I'd do you"? He says it so quickly that I couldn't make out the words.

Isn’t there a gorgeous one in Laguna?

R169 He does. Let's see where they go with that.

R164 Debatable!

Thanks, R166. Interesting. I thought they were going to be actual historic paintings, but they altered them to show the characters' traits.

Detracts a bit for me.

SEXUAL POLITICS. Cameron knows how to use them. A lot of good looking men do.

R171, fingers crossed because that would be a hot pairing!

Every time I read Aubrey's name in this thread, I see Audrey Totter. Or, I wish I did.

I'd love to see Season 3 set in Kenya around an African safari.

R176 I thought of this. Kenya or somewhere like Barbados. Mike White would do amazing at writing a group of wealthy white assholes vacationing in a mostly black city/town lol.

I don't think Mike White would do somewhere bland like DC because I see this series as an excuse for Mike White & Co to go on vacation. That's definitely what the first season was - it was done early in the pandemic and everybody used it as an excuse to get out of their houses, to be trapped in a gorgeous Hawaiian resort for several weeks. I wouldn't blame him at all for continuing that - if I could get HBO to pay me millions of dollars to go to some luxurious resort for several weeks damn better believe I'd do the same thing

I haven't seen the series at all. And up until the remake of "Child's Play" in 2019, I thought Aubrey Plaza was one note. I was pleasantly surprised by her performance. I hope she continues to get parts that stretch her creatively.

She has def gotten better as an actress over the years, and relies less on her P&R persona now

Why don’t users like r180 realize the persona on P&R wasn’t created by a writer, but by the actor?

[quote]She has def gotten better as an actress over the years, and relies less on her P&R persona now

Long story short, the casting director for Parks & Rec and co-creator Michael Schur himself thought she was weird when they met her. Quiet but able to make you feel like you needed to entertain her because she only ever spoke in deadpan and made everyone feel awkward and uncomfortable. He then based April around her completely.

So if you want to know what Aubrey Plaza is really like: that was her, right there.

R182 exactly. R181 here. The characters personality was based on the actress. And that’s very very common in comedy shows/movies.

Building a character to an actor is pretty common. Most actors aren't doing Meryl Streep transformations. As writers and directors get to know an actor, their personality and ticks they try to play to their strengths.

Or they don’t write any of that down and just give the actor a script and let them do their magic. The Director of Romy & Michele did that with Lisa Kudrow.

This series is satirical, but mostly played straight and relatively realistic (especially the characters' personalities).

There are many different readings of this show.

The most common seems to be:

1. It's a takedown of the 1%

2. It's a thinly veiled celebration of the 1%

I personally believe it's neither: Satirical, but largely a realistic and morally ambiguous depiction of the 1% (and just human beings in general).

R187 that’s the best though. I love when a show feels like something different to different people.

I think Mike White is there Jonathan Swift of the 21st Century.

Jon Gries has a surprisingly nice body, ass included.

I laughed when Tonya and Greg were fucking and she had those visions of the head statues and freaked and kicked him out of her and he slid right off the end of the bed. Hilarious 😂

I was hoping Greg would be a decent guy, but I didn’t like him in the premiere. He’ll probably hook up with the prostitute at some point. If he’s going to be a dick, I’d have rather had him die of his lung cancer or whatever and not be in this season.

I surprised Greg isn’t fucking the assistant.

I thought he might have been and that’s why he didn’t want her around. He looked uncomfortable around her. Maybe he tried it on and she rejected him but she didn’t tell tonya because Tonya would probably fire her for it.

[quote]I personally believe it's neither: Satirical, but largely a realistic and morally ambiguous depiction of the 1% (and just human beings in general).

Mike White explained the point of the show in an EW interview:

"I just wanted to get at how money really impacts all relationships, beyond even just guest and employee. But how some of these classic relationships ­— ­a couple on their honeymoon, a family on vacation, a woman who's maybe looking for love or looking for some kind of relaxing vacation on her own — and just try to orchestrate it around who has the money and calls the shots and how there's these power dynamics, even in these relationships that seem like they would transcend that kind of thing."

As someone else mentioned who interviewed him, it's about how the problems of the rich don't go away just because they go on vacation and it's about power dynamics between the "have and have nots" or the staff and the guests.

R191, Greg has been a dick since Season 1.

He was alright in season 1.

When will we see Jennifer Coolidge ride a moped, as promised on the poster?

[quote] I thought prostitutes didn’t kiss on the lips.

All prostitutes do not all do (or not do) the exact same thing with their johns. It's not like they have a guild with a behavioral guide in Sicily.

Some prostitutes won't kiss on the lips, but many will.

A lot of prostitutes charge based on what you wanna do.

Others have a set price and do this or that.

Others won’t do this or that.

All depends on the person.

I liked this first episode quite a lot. I laughed out loud several times: at Tonya freaking out at Greg's face during sex, at the insensitive things the hotel manager keeps saying to the guests, at Tonya vainly telling herself "He's always thinking of me" after Greg went to wash his "swamp crotch."

I like of the two vacationing couples that they're both horrible couples in different ways--Cameron and Daphne are arrogant and dumb, while Ethan and Harper are smug and joyless. They're each on to the other couple's horribleness, but they're also attracted to them too. I predict each of the foursome will get together with each one in the other couple at some point.

I hope we don't have F. Murray Abraham farting every episode.

Wasn't Greg dying with a fatal disease last season? They didn't mention it this episode.

I love that Tanya has an assistant simply because she's so incredibly helpless she can't even just live her purposeless, work-free life otherwise.

Where does Tanya's money come from?

We don't know yet, r202, other than it's inherited money from her horrible late mother. Her assistant said this episode that Tanya is worth half a billion dollars.

Ok. So we know where it came from. It was inherited. There you go. Lol

[quote] In Episode 1, when Cameron (Theo James) is teasing Ethan (Will Sharpe) about being an incel in college and then he tries to reassure Ethan but telling him he's handsome, does Cameron then say, "I'd do you"? He says it so quickly that I couldn't make out the words.

Yes, he does say this. I'm pretty sure we'll see Cameron and Ethan v get together (though it may be in a threesome).

I feel like I’m the only person watching who sees what Cameron is doing with his little comments and nudity etc.

It would be wild if Cameron was one of the dead characters since Theo James’s claim to fame is playing “poor Mr. Pamuk” on Downton Abbey.

Overall, I loved the first episode of Season 2 and think it’s a bit of revisionist history to portray episode 1 of Season 1 as some great accomplishment. Also, the new theme song is brilliant.

My only critique is that I know too many people like the Daphne character on real life…so I’m bound to find her unbelievably annoying.

R207 his claim to fame in the states was Divergent.

Not being familiar with her sitcom work, I like Aubrey Plaza in this role. In fact I like the whole thing better than Hawaii. Not missing the bratty college girls or the airhead newlyweds at all.

The often mediocre Theo James was cast really well. He has an intense, aggressive air that he cannot turn off - his love scenes in Downton Abbey, Divergent and Sanditon had people debating if the character was a sadist - so as a wealthy tech prick he couldn’t be better.

I'm confused why the two couples have adjoining rooms when the wives did not know the other couple very well. They need a line of dialogue to explain it, but this was what was so annoying about the first season: they needed just one line of dialogue to explain why Steve Zahn's family did not have enough proper beds in their insanely expensive suite, but they never bothered to include it.

R210: Even of the wives didn’t know each other well, the husbands were college roommates. It was established the couples knew each other so the hotel thought they were being attentive to customers’ needs by putting them in adjoining rooms.

Also, even when I’ve roomed next to people I know, I’ve never utilized the door between our rooms!!

When I travel with friends, we never have adjoining rooms. I only think you should do that if you're in the same family and you get along very well. I would never do it even with my former college roommates (and we are still close).

So I see James has parlayed his lack of acting ability but willingness to offer up cock, balls and behind into a new leading role. Do they realize he can't actually act or will that be apparent in the reviews? Or won't it matter?

My early guesses for who dies: Greg, one person in the couples (Cameron maybe), either the grandpa or the father in that trio. But I could even see Portia dying.

(R87, I am now an Aubrey super fan. Those clips are hilarious. She really is, usually, the best thing she's in. Now I get why.

Okay, back to the thread...)

r213 Theo James is good in this. He's perfect for the role of a rich tech douche.

R212 cool. That’s you. Clearly the old college roommates were fine with it.

R213 it’s a prosthetic. Know this… most dicks you see on film or tv are fake.

[quote]When I travel with friends, we never have adjoining rooms. I only think you should do that if you're in the same family and you get along very well.

Or you want to get freaky deaky with your friends.

It's all good bro.

[quote] Or you want to get freaky deaky with your friends.

Well, that may explain it then--maybe Cameron wants to get it on with Ethan 9which many of us have already surmised), and thus wanted the adjoining rooms.

Looking way too heterosexual to me…hard pass.

CAMERON IS CALCULATED. HE KNOWS WHAT HE IS DOING AND NOTHING HE DOES IS NOT WITHOUT REASON.

I really can’t believe I’m the only one understanding this.

R221 how do you get through life then??? The world is mostky heterosexual.

Very carefully r223.

R222, maybe not everyone is giving this as much thought as you. You've already written almost a quarter of the posts on this thread, so maybe give yourself a rest instead of just repeating what you've already said in your (many) existing posts.

[quote]Looking way too heterosexual to me…hard pass.

People like you are so tiresome. Expand your horizons. Not everything you watch has to be GAY GAY GAY. That is so sad.

I think Jennifer's husband is SO hot. You all can have pretty boy Theo. I'll take the daddy.

R225 lmao. The exact response I’d expect from an uneducated lying twat like you. A man who claimed he is from her south last night and then claimed he’s from Europe today. Using the same account lmao.

I didn’t give it much thought at all. Maybe, just maybe, my brain works completely different than yours and breaks down things while yours is brain dead and you take everything at face value.

Lord knows, we all have to constantly break things down to the dumbest denominator for you.

When I look at Jon Gries all I see are Uncle Rico and Laslo Hollyfeld.

R226 I am sick of breeder television. You don’t like it? Douche with some battery acid.

I gave my thoughts on Theo's motivations way back in post r76, r222.

Obviously he is calculated. That scene where he gets naked in front of Aubrey Plaza then even walks in closer to her with the "are these trunks are too tight" act was clearly on purpose.

I like Adam Dimarco

👅

What a tiresome twat r230 is.

James seems to revel in these creepy characters. He also excuses the behavior in interviews. Is making women uncomfortable on screen with sexist behavior toward them hiding his real self?

Not nearly as tiresome as you r233, dripping your breeder worship saliva over everything. Kill yourself.

Mel White's dad is the gay pastor of MCC in Dallas. He grew up in the gay church. I don't think he is bi at all. Totally gay in my opinion. Lotus 2 is really beautiful, gay beautiful.

Girls, girls, GIRLS! You're letting your interpretations of the second season of "The White Lotus" tear you apart!

[quote] Looking way too heterosexual to me…hard pass.

A major gay character will be introduced in upcoming episodes, played by Tom Hollander--a rich, short, middle-aged gay man who travels with a posse of younger gay men.

Also, I think we're pretty much guaranteed at this point that Cameron will eventually have sex with Ethan.

Imagine watching a series based on whether there is a gay character or not… but then that same loser poster will bitch if black people want black representation

R228/cunt, where did I say that I was from "her south"? Clearly, you are embarrassed that I drew attention to the fact that you've written more than FIFTY posts about this single episode. And you are quite right to be embarrassed because that it a total waste of anyone's time.

Just put the troll(s) on "Ignore."

Do not keep feeding them by fighting with them. You only encourage them.

Good advice, R241. The poster's other posts hadn't seemed particularly troll-like but, then again, there are so VERY many to slog through... I will take your advice

R240 wtf lmaoooo. No. I’m embarrassed you’re so pathetic, stupid, low class and unaware of your own stupidity. You lie so much you can’t even keep track.

Let's not forget to mention Adam DiMarco's early role as, "Jared" in the gay movie "Date and Switch."

R244 ok, and?

I think an earlier poster referred to Sydney Sweeny's character from S1 as MAGA, but neither her nor her parents are MAGA. They're not even Republican. That's what makes this show so interesting, accurate and scary. Connie Britton's character is the worst kind of neoliberal Democrat. These types are all over DL.

R246 Those references were not to Sweeney's character's family as Trumpsters. The references are to Sweeney's real life family, who threw a birthday party this summer for her mother at which everyone wore red MAGA hats.

Also, Sweeney is Tiffany Trump's döppelganger.

It's funny that she became a sex symbol.

The setting of Taormina has a long gay history. Wilhelm von Gloeden was famous for his island landscapes and his photographs of scantly clad beautiful Sicilian boys dressed up in classical garb that fulfilled the need of 19th century erotic material for gay men and created the location as a huge sexual tourism destination for wealthy men. Oscar Wilde joined him there after he and Boise had a blowup in Naples, because they were so well known and drew attention from their scandal.

Von Gloeden photographs, trigger warning, lots of foreskin.

Boise?

That Oscar sure got around.

Spell check is both a gift and a curse.

WHERE ARE THE TRANS AND NON-BINARY WOMEN OF COLOR???????

Just what the world needs, more stories about wealthy white cis het people!!!!!

Why isn't Che Diaz a character on this show????? They could perform their hilarious stand-up comedy for the guests!

Sweeney and Trump look nothing alike outside of the hair.

Wilhelm von Gloeden Wasn’t Sicilian.

I wonder what the chopped off head is foreshadowing. Clearly they want us to think there’s trouble coming among these 2 couples and someone dies from it. Or is it a red herring like the few in season 1?

White is a master when it comes to the ambiguity of characters (are they good / right, are they evil / wrong?) like with the couples and Harper making it awkward by not going along with the majority's decision.

Because of HBO's Hack, all I can see about the assistant is that she's a ripoff of Hannah Einbinder's Ava. Loved how Tanya freaked out when she saw her in the hotel dining room. And once again ambiguity. Couldn't the assistant order in (she already was outside at the pool area meeting Albie)? But of course, Tanya is the bitch for putting her assistant in that awful position in the first place.

I don't like Aubrey Plaza at all. She's a humourless shrew and looks like an insect.

My wild guess: Daphne and Cameron try to recruit the newly rich Ethan for their sex cult, which is a mashup of Scientology and NXIVM. They seemed awfully proud of not watching the news. Something cult members usually do, no outsiders polluting their precious minds with facts and fake news.

I thought it was interesting that Harper almost immediately told Ethan what Cameron did. It's very un-TV drama to share these type of things right away when it's usual to keep secrets that come out in a big dramatic way causing further drama.

What's with all the hate on Sweeney.? It's s not like she can choose her own family. Or her breasts size.

I agree with F Murray. Dicks are ugly

I agree with F Murray too.

R260 it’s a non-issue people want to be an issue.

R261, maybe his is, and nobody wants to see that mess.

[quote] I agree with F Murray. Dicks are ugly

Well, you can't suck a sunset. That's the real joy.

Since this season is about sexual politics, they should have patterned one of the stories out of the Falwells/pool boy story. Have a couple that takes advantage of some poor, hot Italian pool boy due to their wealth. Would have worked in season 1 as well.

R264 You've seen one, you have seen them all

"Theo James cock right off the bat"

Oh dear, were we absent from school the day they taught how to form the possessive?

In theory, yes, r264. But also, no. They are all dicks but they don’t all look the same because of different sizes, shapings, head to body size ratio, width, girth, length, cut or uncut, penis size to ball size ratio, coloring etc.

Most of them are kinda gross but once in a blue I’ve seen one that I found genuinely pretty. I’ve said to myself, “wow, what a good looking penis”. And it was.

Not to mention that’s a prosthetic

R269 "Most of them are kinda gross"

Time to turn in your gay card.

DL experts, How do you tell a real one from a prosthetic? Are the fakes bouncier when soft?

I liked the old guy who kept farting.

I hate the way HBO doesn’t release all episodes at once for binge watching.

Good. R274. They’re smart.

What kind of perks do you think come with being in the Blossom Circle?

R276 Playdates with Joey Lawrence and Six!

[quote]Playdates with Joey Lawrence and Six!

hahah....whoa!

Was the Sydney Sweeny MAGA birthday stuff just for her mom or is she MAGA as well? I'm shocked that someone with a fairly solid mainstream Hollywood career would be that openly MAGA.

It wasn’t even real MAGA gear. The hats said “Make Sixty Great Again” etc. it was all in fun. People are so sensitive

Is Joey going to be one of the dead bodies? I hadn’t heard he was in the cast.

I heard he leads the Blossom Circle jerk.

Things like free room upgrades, R276.

I heard a rumor that the MAGA hats were photoshopped.

R284 lmao you’re doing too much.

I knew there was no way a solid B-lister would be openly MAGA. And Thank the entertainment gods that it was all just a stupid sick joke. I don't blame those people for freaking out. You can never be too sensitive when it comes to people with horrid beliefs who want to destroy democracy.

The gay angle will be between Theo and Will--100%. They foreshadowed Theo's inability to have a woman in his life in like 4 different very obvious scenes in ep1.

There was also an extended shot during the spritzer table chat when Will stares longingly and later in his platonic, cold bed scene with Plaza he makes a comment about how they are meant to be.

These are strange, dark times. I don't think anyone can be too sensitive anymore.

What they’re showing is Theo doesn’t view people as anything more than business ventures. He uses people.

Literally no service does that other than Netflix, and even Netflix stopped doing it for all shows r274. The binge model is pretty widely considered a failure in the industry.

People are trying to make Skinemax Sydney Sweeney a thing, that’s all.

The big downside of binging new shows, it doesn't keep the buzz going for a month or two. Maybe it's a "water cooler" conversation starter for a week, but by the next week, there's something else to talk about. Twists and turns don't get much attention beyond the show's fandom.

[quote] The gay angle will be between Theo and Will--100%.

I have confidence Mike White will make the gay angle between two men, and not cop-out and make it between two chicks like most straight douche filmmakers do.

Given the season's sexual politics theme, I don't think anything significant same sex related will happen. This is more like a gender war where the sexes battle each other, hence the ancient story set up of the local girl beheading her lover who wants to ditch her to return to his wife and kids. Tanya vs. Greg, for example. I guess Tanya's assistant will save her when Greg thinks she's all on her own and defenseless.

The Sydney Sweeney obsessive is the Brooklyn Seacow.

Poor Rocco. That hotel manager is always yelling at him

R287 Who says there is going to be a gay angle? And when did they foreshadowed Theo's inability to have a woman? Did you have your characters mixed up?

Most Republicans in government love to bend Democracy, but the MAGAs want to straight-up destroy it.

Yeah, overall, I am not for Red Scare tactics but diminishing and disempowering any Trumpster in any way possible is important. He does absolutely have the potential to be a Hitler type. It sounds crazy to people, but the reality is that the death camps is only on facet of the damages Hitler caused. And those death camps didn't come until the very end of World War II when Hitler really lost his mind because he was losing. Trump has potential to be a Hitleresque leader. His followers are fanatical and nonsensical like Nazi followers were, believing in invented stories of their own grandeur rather than believing in common reality we all understand and cohabit in. So yeah, if Sweeney is partying with her family while they wear MAGA hats, Sweeney is a problem person because she has a lot of fanatical young people who love her tits because of the HBO high school show.

Oh, God. Another thread ruined by antiMAGA dumbfucks.

[quote]Boise? That Oscar sure got around.

He never made it to Boise, but he did get as far as California, Utah, and Colorado during his famous 1882 North American lecture tour.

[quote] And those death camps didn't come until the very end of World War II when Hitler really lost his mind because he was losing.

Oookay. R299, back to European History 101 for you.

The fact you're also failing to see a totalitarian and censorious streak in both parties is troubling and what leads to naive sheep being led to the slaughter.

Enough of that dopey-eyed trick. I can’t wait for tonight’s episode!

Any bets on whether Theo will bare all again tonight?

Will he bare his prosthetic again? Maybe.

He didn't bare all. They used his body double.

This time they got Will Sharpe to be the eye candy. Audrey Plaza's character is different than, cause nothing would have stopped me from jumping in that shower with him.

Most women wouldn’t just jump in the shower.

Will Sharpe isn’t much of an actor…but who cares?? Holy shit, what a body.

If this was Tarantino and women's feet, you'd all be calling White out for being a sexist pig using his actors for his own sexual gratification.

Looks like we know how people got their roles. You think White has a casting coach of sorts? James says he auditioned for White.

Ethan is built. Loved the visible bush in the shower. But, the shower was incredibly short. He needed to be in there longer.

[quote] Will Sharpe isn’t much of an actor…but who cares?? Holy shit, what a body.

Will was great in Flowers and Giri/Haji. I think he may be concentrating too much on the American accent in this one. Or maybe he’s nervous about all the nudity.

He isn’t American? Fooled me. American accent is good. I like his slight lisp.

Will’s real voice.

r310: let me get this straight... here you are on a gay gossip forum, and you are actually BITCHING than Mike White is objectifying Will Sharpe?

WTF is your problem???

Favorite dialogue so far:

TANYA: "Guess who I am?"

MANAGERESS: "Peppa Pig."

TANYA: "Monica Vitti!"

Blowsy, fleshy Jennifer Coolidge on a moped did not disappoint.

Jennifer Coolidge looks a lot like Miss Piggy as an ageing drunk.

R315, I'm saying we have double standards. I'm saying we can be hypocritical.

Peppa Pig was a great line.

It's unbelievable to me the Haley Lu Richardson character would be unattracted to Adam di Marco. Nebbishy or not, he is so hot.

[quote] [R315], I'm saying we have double standards. I'm saying we can be hypocritical.

You're saying you're a lesbian.

I'm saying we have double standards. I'm saying we can be hypocritical.

And I'm saying this in English.

Well, someone was asking how Tanya's family made their money, and we found out tonight: shipping.

Jennifer Coolidge can really make me laugh with her incredibly timing and delivery. She always catches me off-guard. But I cared about her character last season, and this season I just think she's an idiot who is getting everything she deserves with her husband cheating on her.

Haley Lu Richardson's looks and mannerisms remind me so much of another actress but I can't figure out who. Any suggestions?

It appears the gay angle will involve Tom Hollander’s character, who shows up in episode three. He apparently plays an older rich queen who brings a bunch of his younger gay friends to the resort, or something along those lines.

Haley Lu Richardson looks like Zoey Deutch.

Also Mae Whitman.

Sorry, meant Allison Lohman.

R325 here. No, it's not any of them who I'm thinking of.

Zooey Deutsch is the daughter of Director Howard Deutsch and Caroline in the City's Lea Thompson....But I suspect R327 knows that. hahaha

I find myself wanting someone (anyone) to have sex with someone they're not supposed to have sex with (other than Michael Imperioli with the two girls).

I thought ep 2 was a disappointment. The two rich couples are pretty boring. Tanya's borderline disorder "I hate you, don't leave me" is wearing. We learned nothing new about the de Grassos. Only the Italians - Valentina and the two would-be hookers were fun.

Seeing Sharpe's bush in the shower was ... wow!

I am baffled by Ethan and Harper. Morning person vs. evening person? That kind of stuff that should end a relationship right away.

Tanya on that Vespa trying to cough out the bug was everything.

The hotel boss is hilarious. She even makes the scene with Dominic giving the prostitutes access to the hotel and his hotel room funny.

I don't know why, but I am drawn to the foreboding score this season. The waves, the female wailing voice, like something wicked this way comes.

The score reminds me of Bram Stoker's Dracula.

I think Haley looks like Kiernan Brennan Shipka.

The actress who plays Mia, when speaking English, has an Estuary accent. She was interviewed on the VF podcast and it turns out she trained in London and has a theatre group here.

I don’t know if anyone here has ever read the classic comic book series, STRANGERS IN PARADISE, but it’s been knocked around for years with different people wanting to adapt it as a tv series. It could be great, but I could never think of who would work as lead character, Katchoo, until I saw Haley Lu Richardson in WHITE LOTUS. She would be perfect! She looks so much like the comic book character.

Anyhoo, back on topic…

Will Sharpe’s pubes!!! HOT.

Are Will Sharpe and Theo James dubbed by American actors? Seriously.

[quote]Will Sharpe’s pubes!!! HOT

I'm curious if those are his natural pubes or was that a little merkin thing he was wearing. So many guys are clean shaven down there.

Haley looks like Florence Pugh.

[quote] What's with all the hate on Sweeney.? It's s not like she can choose her own family. Or her breasts size.

She has a career solely based on her breasts. She has 14+ million IG followers because of her breasts. It’s mind boggling.,

I can't decide who I want more. Cameron or Albie.

Albie is TOO nice, it’s definitely suspicious. I won’t be surprised if he murders Portia.

Albie's speech about girls not liking nice guys like him was a giant red flag r343. It's clear he is going to end up being more like his Dad and Grandpa than he is trying to pretend.

Tanya is unhinged enough to murder Greg. Dominic could die in a sex game gone wrong. Cam and Ethan could roughhouse in the sea and one accidentally dies.

That kiss between Albie and Portia was so cringe. Was that deliberate, as in asking for consent robs kisses of their romance?

I also think that Haley Lu Richardson looks a bit like Florence Pugh. Same body type, too.

The hotel concierge is the real scene-stealer this season. The husband and I roared at her Peppa Pig line, and her clashes with the hookers have been a hoot: “That is one fast slut!”

They’re throwing so many clues and red herrings at us it’s hard to pinpoint who ends up dead.

Why did Greg marry Tanya if she made him sign a pre-nup? Why did Tanya marry Greg if he had to spend most of his time at his job?

Albie's nice guy discussion was straight out of the incel playbook. It will be interesting to see how his relationship with Portia goes.

It never matters to me who ends up dead in this show. It always just seemed like a necessary evil to give the show a "hook". I never watch it as a murder mystery personally.

Jon Gries is in incredible shape for his age. His nude scene in the first episode of this season is pretty decent.

I once dated a total asshole who thought of himself as the nicest guy in the world.

I broke it off because I was getting a lot of red flags. He flew into a rage and said basically “it must be so awful to have a stand-up guy like me interested in you.” The implication being other people I had dated were not on HIS level and I should consider myself lucky.

He was also an absolute social idiot, so he wasn’t the prize he thought he was.

The Albie-Portia conversation was complete deja vu.

He really is, 65 years old and still looks good naked r352. That is some impressive work on his part.

I agree with the poster upthread who is finding Jennifer Coolidge's performance this season a bit wanting. The impetus to spread her mother's ashes seemed to give her a purpose in the first season but now she just seems like tiresome comic relief. Certainly, some of this can be blamed on the writing.

But I can imagine the world tiring of Coolidge quickly if this is what's on offer. She has none of the range of Jean Smart, in comparison.

I love that Theo James has not been glamorized, oiled, shaved and plucked in his appearance here, as he was as poor Mr. Pahmuk. The natural look works so well on him.

At the risk of being a DL cliche, in the most recent episode, the bare body scenes with Will Sharpe were certainly inspiring. Holy moly.

I mean the camera was making love to Will Sharpe's body r357, the audience was meant to be drooling.

[quote] That kiss between Albie and Portia was so cringe. Was that deliberate, as in asking for consent robs kisses of their romance?

Yes. Mike White is not a fan of wokeness, and wokeness dictates that college students (as Albie just was) are now instructed by their RAs that they must ask permission before they kiss anyone.

[quote]Why did Greg marry Tanya if she made him sign a pre-nup?

He likely did not realize when he married her that he would want to stray so quickly (he probably though he could last the full ten years).

Also, for all we know, so far he and his secret girlfriend are planning to push Tanya off a cliff so he can inherit her dough.

Finally, you can still make a decent amount of $$$ from a pre-nup.

[quote] Why did Tanya marry Greg if he had to spend most of his time at his job?

Tanya is desperate for affection and will take it where she finds it. She probably thought when he explained he had a job that he would find ehr so fascinating he would eventually leave it just to be with her. Her narcissism is off the charts.

I don’t have an issue with asking permission. But the character seems like a dyke so why bother?

[quote] They’re throwing so many clues and red herrings at us it’s hard to pinpoint who ends up dead.

As someone else said above, that's really not the point of watching this show. Just let it take you for its ride.

WILL SHARPE'S BUSH HAS ARRIVED

I'm disappointed Will Sharpe is heterosexual and has two small children.

sually don't like AUbrey Plaza because of her constant almost breaking character smile she does when she thinks she's being cute. She's good in this though.

Primo bush.

Cameron scared Harper in the water! You won't believe what happens next week when he bumps into her ass! Mike White drags things worse than James E. Reilly. Unlike Reilly, White doesn't have payoffs that make you feel like it's worth it. This whole series feels like a glorified vacation for the cast and crew.

Tanya eavesdropping on Greg's phone call should have been the ending to episode 1, not 2.

Will Sharpe's bush in the shower was everything.

I would've jumped into that shower and licked every inch of him.

I don't like when shows pack too much into an episode, but it's just as bad when nothing really happens. This was a problem in S1 and an even bigger problem with this one. I wish HBO made it available for binging. This series is just not exciting enough to wait a whole week.

I love that they included a song by Mina Mazzini, she's a gay/camp icon in Italy.

Mike White is kind of "woke" himself and this show has been accused of being too "woke" by some far-righties (and grifters). But "woke" means different things to different people. Why is asking permission to kiss someone a bad thing? It's even "woke", it's always been around.

Did the Will Sharpe/Audrey Plaza characters even like each other at the time they married? When she asked him if he wanted to suck her breasts or cum on her face, and he wasn’t interested, that told me he wasn’t into her. Straight guys would love such a proposition, and immediately jump on it. Now that he has this fortune, he might be planning to get rid of her so he doesn’t have to share in on the fortune if they divorce.

When you got the far-right in this country running rampant, complaining about "wokeness" is really tone deaf and idiotic.

Asking to kiss someone is fine, but Albie's timing was very off. Learn to read the room (or your ladyfriend), dude.

R371: And Pink Martini's "Una Notte a Napoli," too! I had to laugh because I'd heard it earlier in the day, thanks to a random shuffle.

And for those complaining about not being able to binge the show, I guess you could just wait until all the episodes have been aired.

"woke" is the new "SJW" which was the new "PC." Some of the complaints are legit, but it's mostly just reactionaries, tone-deaf jerks and pandering grifters.

The real problem is Portia’s truthfully not really into Albie like he is into her.

The timing of him asking for permission to kiss her was indeed off, but I'm more pissed at that poster saying that this was Mike White taking a shot at "wokeness." I think he's taking a shot at fake nice guys and potential incels.

The fabulous Mina Mazzini

"It appears audiences are hungry for more of The White Lotus.

The second episode of Season 2 grew to 1.6 million live + same day viewers on Sunday night across across HBO Max and linear telecasts, according to HBO. That’s up about 2% from the premiere episode’s 1.5 million total viewers.

After one week, the Season 2 premiere is currently tracking at 5.3 million viewers across platforms — a number that the premiere episode of Season 1 didn’t hit for about three weeks."

I like this show. People are completely over-analyzing it. It’s meant to be fun and a social satire of rich people. I love the cast.

Oh to have a flat stomach like R380! I think that Cameron and Daphne are scared. Deeply. By avoiding the news in all its forms, it insulates them. They don't have to think about what is possible. What happens if they don't have money anymore. They'll have to concern themselves (unwillingly) with social currencies such as politeness and concern for others and they just don't want to do that.

Valentina is a cunt, but I cracked up when she guessed Tanya looked like Peppa Pig.

Also, Harper watching Tanya fumble around before saying someone is probably coming to help (without attempting to help) is how I wish I could be.

A few thoughts on episode 2:

-I really hope the Harper-Cameron thing has a decent payoff . -Tanya is really boring and annoying

-A lot of gratuitous female butt shots

-Will Sharpe looks super young for 35/36.

I love Valentina. Spending every day catering to the ridiculous needs of spoiled rotten rich people would really turn a person quite cynical.

According to a recent review, things won't really take off until the second half of episode 3. Pretty much like season one.

Looks like things get wild next week for Ethan and Cameron. Can’t wait! Hope there’s more bush and ass shots. Theo James has always been so beautiful to me, but I’m really liking Will Sharpe’s adorableness. His face is so cute.

I think Tanya is going to smash Greg over the head with one of those head statues. He might die he might not. Not sure yet. Were there any of them in her room? I know Ethan/Harper had one. She seemed to be awakened by some tribal chanting noises right before she heard Greg on his secret phone call. I predict those voices/visions will make her get violent with him.

Can’t wait!

R360, why do you think this particular pre-nup is on a vesting schedule and will expire in 10 years?

Unless Mike White has retconned the series, Greg was on borrowed time, lucky to last 10 months at the most, not 10 years. Ten years of Tanya would put anyone in an early grave.

I live in Italy and I can tell you, for an hotel to run at a 5* level, you need someone like Valentina in charge. Rocco is absolutely typical.

It's also odd that a guy like Greg, who's supposed to be at death's door, is playing games and cheating on Tanya. If you know you're living on borrowed time, you tend to be less fake and more forthright, trying not to waste any more minute.

I’m sensing that Greg has been a setup from the very beginning, going back to Hawaii, he’s been playing the long con all along.

Agreed, R392. Someone from the Bureau of Land Management can’t afford these expensive holidays, unless he has money. He’s likely not sick, but uses it as a ruse to take advantage of people and situations. He does have a nice body.

Loved, loved season 1, but struggling to get through episode 2.

I hate Will Sharpe's hair in this. It's so distracting and ugly.

I was surprised to learn that Will Sharpe played Rodney in Giri/Haji. Shocked actually.

[quote] The timing of him asking for permission to kiss her was indeed off, but I'm more pissed at that poster saying that this was Mike White taking a shot at "wokeness." I think he's taking a shot at fake nice guys and potential incels.

I don't think White's writing is about 'taking shots,' and I think that that is where the divide lies between people who hate his work and people who love it. I love it.

Someone way up in the thread said White's writing is amoral, and that is how I see it, as well. It seems like most people are preprogrammed to read everything as some kind of condemning judgment. What I see is that White puts characters who have different perspectives and traits and levels of power together and shows how those factors affect how they interact.

Tolstoy said Shakespeare was a terrible writer because Shakespeare was amoral, showing how human beings behave without moralizing how they behave, and Tolstoy thought the entire point of writing was to impart morality and to teach people how being unvirtuous will get you punished.

I don't see any basis for seeing Albie as a condemnable 'incel' in the writing, nor do I see him as being overly 'woke' in the sense that he talks obsessively about sociopolitical issues and annoys everyone. What I saw is that he explicitly considers himself a 'nice guy' in reaction to seeing his father and grandfather as creeps, and he feels like women weirdly prefer creeps, and he's into this girl who basically told him she is into what he perceives to be creepy male behavior. He's a bit clueless, so far exactly the nice guy he described, and she's exactly the type of girl he described who doesn't get turned on by nice guys. She told him so, that she 'just wants to have fun' and do wild things, and in the preview for next week she says he's nice but he doesn't get her juices flowing. Albie's a romantic and the assistant girl wants to be tied to the headboard and banged mercilessly—or something. In short, they are incompatible.

All the couples are incompatible based on what we have been shown except the one with kids, and something is obviously amiss in their relationship.

But I really don't think this is about good guys vs. bad guys and good guys winning and bad guys losing. In the last season, what we saw was that everyone, rich and poor, was an opportunist who tried to take advantage of what they could with whatever power they could get, and the poor people (who most would see as 'the good guys') lost out in the end while the rich people mostly got their ways and remained miserable.

White is an 'everything is relative' writer, not a 'here's how to be a good person and why it'll pay off for you' writer.

I just got into this show a few weeks ago and binged the entire first season. It's a favorite that's for sure. And I read through all THREE of the season 1 threads and was so mad I couldn't post. Re: the Greg cliffhanger, I too think it's a long con and he's specifically targeting Tanya, with no intention of it ever being a real marriage. Although I have no idea what his motivation would be and why he'd specifically target her. Maybe some affiliation with the shipping company her dad ran? I found it interesting they finally dropped the source of Tanya's wealth so strangely through the Portia character.

I didn't expect Theo James to be shirtless 70% of the time. I couldn't take my eyes off his pecs during the beach scene.

I'm also very distracted, R398. My boyfriend says, "Ugh, he's a terrible actor", which I hardly notice because I only look at his (gorgeous) face intermittently.

[quote] I love Valentina. Spending every day catering to the ridiculous needs of spoiled rotten rich people would really turn a person quite cynical.

She is just like the hotel manager from season one except that he smiled aggressively at clients while she is deadpan and more straightforwardly insulting. Seems like she gets away with it because she is 'foreign' (in her own country!) and people are probably taken aback by what she says and then dismiss it because of the cultural and language barrier. But she really seems to be almost the same character as the gay hotel manager all in all.

I don't really care about the Greg and Tanya dynamic for some reason. I'm not invested in it. But I do love Jennifer Coolidge's presence. Before the show was out, I read a review that said Tanya is wholly unnecessary to the story this season but also wholly welcome in every scene she's in, and that's how I feel about it. This show is a TV comedy. Why get mad about a funny woman being funny in a TV comedy? I think people who don't like her in the show are taking the show way too seriously.

It's probably just because of my own orientation in this world but I did find the first season's dynamics more fascinating. I am single and cynical and while I can romanticize a lot of things in life, marriage and coupling are not one of those things. I see them from the outside and they are messy and quite a while ago watching couples constantly bicker and self-sabotage and build resentment while building codependence lost interest to me. So this season's whole basis has a lot less punch to me than the classism and racism dynamics of last season, which I found brilliant and also darkly funny. But I am intrigued by the characters and the setting alike this season.

I agree with whoever posted above that the hooker and her friend are the most interesting of all the characters.

The hotel manager and Tanya are great straightforwardly comic punctuation to the smoochy-smoochy stories.

And individually, the people in couples seem unpredictable and mysterious in a lot of ways, and that brings its own tension. The blonde mother seems like a straightforward type of blonde who doesn't pay attention to news or vote, but I feel like she holds some potential for surprises. Harper seems most transparent and predictable. I have a very strong instinct about the flirty hot dude's character but he could surprise me, and Harper's husband is pretty mysterious as a person and I do want to know more about him. Is he bored or is he boring? Is he a jerk or is he a pleaser? He has embarrassed his wife but also seems to do all he can to pacify her. Does he lust after his friend or are we being misdirected to misinterpret his reactions or is he being coerced against his nature to lust after his friend? So many possibilities with that one.

I really want to know what Cameron's angle with Harper is - he seems to be trying to hit on her but for what ends? I don't think Ethan is gay/bi because they showed him jerking off to a female porno.

I get the feeling that Cameron is the type that wants everyone, male and female, to desire him sexually, because it gives him power over them. When they don't, like Harper, he feels invalidated and doesn't like it at all.

Harper guesses Ethan wants to rub his new money in Cameron's face for constantly demeaning him in college. But it doesn't seem like Ethan is showing off his new wealth. He seems rather shy and timid around the others. He seems to enjoy himself the most when he's alone (going out for a walk in the morning and jerking off). He seems more of an introvert.

I definitely could be wrong about Cameron, but my hunch is that he is a guy who flirts with everyone as a means of using his charms to manipulate people and feel powerful, and that that gets it out of his system and while he causes some havoc in others' lives and makes them confront their own reactions, he may not be anymore disruptive than that. Kind of a trickster-deity archetype in human form.

His wife said he has bottled up rage that explodes now and then but never toward her. I suspect that they may actually have a strong and stable relationship overall and she may hold the cards. He seems to be more powerful than she does but she did tell him last night in a weird romantic moment that she could cut off his balls if she wanted even though she won't. That shows she has the upper hand in all of it.

He mentioned a sexual harassment suit but it hasn't been explained further and I feel like it could possibly turn out to go nowhere. He got naked in front of Harper and flirted with her in the water. Depending on one's interpretation, he either flirted openly toward his friend or else complimented his friend openly in front of everyone. We saw a preview that next week he appears to hit on him. We are all being led to expect sex between the men. Cameron would be sexually harassing these people if he worked with him, arguably, but also he arguably has not done anything explicitly offensive. What if Cameron just antagonizes people to frustrate them and then backs away and freaks out at them when they come onto him? I could see him pushing both Harper and her husband to finally accept what they see as his advances and him freaking out and telling them he is a happily married man and leaving them feeling like shit, confused and questioning themselves and their relationships. He might be a 'good person' after all in terms of not being a seducer and a 'bad person' in terms of pushing people until they fuck up their own lives. And his wife might enjoy the control she has over him as she witnesses him do that to people and maintains her outward composure toward others, helping to reinforce their awful feelings that something is actually wrong with them for misreading signals.

Cameron is the type that would let a man blow him, but he would never reciprocate; he might even top them, but he would never admit he was gay or even bi.

I was thinking that Cameron's angle may be about cucking his former roommate; a predatory power thrill. Cameron kind of made fun of Ethan for not getting a lot of action when they were roommates. But if Harper is right and there's a money angle, maybe that's it. Cameron did mention that his wife spent all of their money and they clearly live it high.

The cinematography this season is just stunning, I can't believe Mike White had that in him. Finally on the level of the sound design, which was the standout technical aspect of the first season. I'm glad the writing improved in the second episode over the season premiere as well, I was getting a bit worried there for a minute.

Will Sharpe is gorgeous, but the slight munchkin voice is an acquired taste.

Maybe I'm blind and deaf but I just don't see Cameron flirting or coming onto Ethan in any way.

I didn’t think Greg had any hidden agenda in season 1. I thought he was in a trip to Hawaii with his friends, met a voluptuous women who was staying next door to him, hooked up with her because she was willing, and was enjoying his time fucking and drinking- knowing that he could die any minute.

I was hoping they would stay together until he died, then season 2 would be Jennifer lost again after Greg’s death. Now I’m not sure where they’re going. He seems over her and annoyed at everything she does. If he’s cheating I think she will kill him. And get her assistant to help with the body.

Jon Gries did look good for his age, except for the chicken legs, but I could overlook that.

I did think it was weird a billionaire couldn't just chuck her husband a million or whatever so that he doesn't have to work. But maybe Jennifer Coolidge's character is smarter than we think she is if she doesn't *and* got him to sign a prenup... Especially when he's on the phone to someone else like that.

This show needs DL fave Lorraine Bracco!

She would be a hoot and what a fun reunion for her and Michael Imperiioli!

I missed how Ethan achieved his wealth. Can someone explain?

is he jap/anglo or samoian? who new that was under the shirt?

Didn't he sell an app he created?

We are told Will Sharpe's character started a tech company and someone recently bought it, which is the big windfall that made them newly rich.

The Theo James character we don't know a lot of details, though he is supposed to be in the finance industry.

F Murray Abraham deserves more interesting scene partners

F Murray Abraham is amazing in his episode in Guillermo del Toro's Cabinet of Curiosities. So far his greatest contribution in this is his character farting and saying that penises aren't supposed to be pretty like sunsets.

I hope his character will get some great scenes out of scolding his son for being a sex maniac, ruining his marriage

The Peppa Pig line would never, ever, happen.

[quote] This show needs DL fave Lorraine Bracco! She would be a hoot and what a fun reunion for her and Michael Imperiioli!

Did they ever appear together on The Sopranos?

No R420

But speaking of The Sopranos, I find those scenes with Imperioli sparring with Abraham dull and unconvincing because I miss the great Italian characters who acted opposite Imperioli. F just doesn't cut it for me. He seems impotent.

I would be okay if Tanya was the dead body. Jennifer Coolidge is way overexposed and her shtick is tiresome. She is not a lead.

She’ll be around for season three I bet. White Lotus Bali, perhaps? Maybe Bora Bora or some other South Pacific locale.

Portia reminds me of a mashup of young Emma Thompson and a young Janeane Garofalo. And some Florence Pugh, I guess. She has no social graces at all. I can’t believe the Nice Guy kid was at all interested in her. He seems like he’d fall for some shrewd mean girl. Maybe she is one in disguise.

THat Portia character is so underwritten. There's nothing there for the poor actress to play other than put-upon.

Jennifer Coolidge slurping up the pasta with her fish lips was exaggerated perfection. Probably the funniest bit of the whole episode.

And Greg’s look of disgust/annoyance. Loved it.

What complicates the Sicilian American tirade a bit is the fact that the Imperoli comes off as more more old school Italian than Abrams as his father does, and that in theory it should become less with each succeeding generation. Not to say that the wife/mother might have been more entrenched and he picked it up from her, but I kind of wish Abrams had leaned a bit more into the stereotype and exaggerated beyond what Michael’s doing.

Imperioli seems asleep

I don't like what's happening to Tanya. As selfish, annoying and demanding as she is, it's unpleasant to see her exploited by a grifter like Greg.

R431 Of everything that happened in the first season, the two people who came off as the most sympathetic victims were the desperate local Hawaiian guy who was talked imto criminal behavior and the spa owner who Tanya strung along and fucked over. If you rewatch season one, you may feel less sympathetic toward Tanya.

Tanya is an energy vampire. She sucks all the joy, and other positive emotions, out of her victims.

She's entertaining from far away (like the Eddie and Patsy from Absolutely Fabulous), but horrendous to be around up close.

Actually I have recently rewatched S1. Tanya gave the spa owner a fat envelope that contained at least hundreds of dollars as thanks and compensation. She was at a very fragile, traumatic time of her life following her mother's death. She had not made a definite commitment to the spa owner, who should have known that Tanya was unstable.

If it turns out that Greg is indeed playing the long con, this was foreshadowed in S1 by the hot young guy wanting to sit by Tanya at the pool. She had his number right away, no doubt having been approached by men like him in similar places.

After my father died, I was appalled at the people who preyed on my mother, including ones who had known her a long time.

The young Hawaiian must have been dumb as a box of rocks not to have remembered that there were security cameras throughout the resort.

R431

[quote] The young Hawaiian must have been dumb as a box of rocks not to have remembered that there were security cameras throughout the resort.

Paula pushed his buttons, knowing how he would respond to her going on and on about the hotel owners are exploiting him, his people, and the land of his people. People let go of all reason when their buttons are being pushed, just look at the idiot Deplorables trying to storm the US State Capitol in 06/01/2021 live on camera, in the news with their proud, smug, uncovered faces.

I hope that the last scene for this season is Tanya dead in the water just bobbing along with the currents and "Dido's Lament" playing in the background gently at the "...thy hand Belinda, darkness takes me..." part.

Jennifer Coolidge is a character actress and this is it. She needs a nice break from things until her next project and to just give things a rest with her p.r. Laura Dern should be cast next season and she has a built-in way for that to happen actually.

F. Murray is intriguing me. His character more than likely has a past.

Portia is just there. I don't get it.

I'm just enjoying the ride. I read that the critics were not privy to the last two episodes and so I'm riding this season through to the end, man. Mike White is wonderfully creative and really loves nature and architecture I do dare say. He has a great eye.

R419 And that's fine because it's a TV comedy, not a documentary series or a 60 Minutes segment.

Well, if I see someone all decked out in pink, and I feel like being snarky, I will say, 'You look just like Peppa Pig!'

I would probably enjoy the Tanya character if Coolidge didn't feel like she was sleepwalking through it.

The Coolidge backlash is both inevitable and expected since she as an actor was so beloved in the first season, and it represented a long-coming breakthrough and acknowledgment of her huge presence even in small scenes. She's absolutely unique. Like any character actor who has such a one-of-a-kind presence—Eugene Levy, Robin Williams, Christopher Walken—she is bound not to be for everyone.

The only thing that confuses me is that the backlash seems to be based in "she's just there for comic relief."

The series is a dark comedy. It's not Nobel- or Pulitzer Prize-aiming dramatic literature or a work of serious theater. The whole entire thing is a farce. Her role is more overtly comedic than any of the others except (as in last season) the hotel manager and she is playing it for comedy, with layers of pathos and melancholy underneath a loud veneer of oblivious narcissism. I don't know how people can fault her for acting comedically in a comical show, or for playing out the plot and scenes as they are written, which is over the top. Satires like Network and Dr. Strangelove aren't realistic, either. People seem to be reading this show's intention very differently than I see it, as if it is meant to be a true-to-life documentary.

The conflation of characters with the actors who play them is also weird.

I think Coolidge and the Tanya character are fine. I’m enjoying the craziness.

I wouldn’t want to know Tanya in real life, she would drive me insane, but it’s fun watching her.

[quote]Jennifer Coolidge slurping up the pasta with her fish lips was exaggerated perfection.

I met Jennifer Coolidge many times when she was getting her hair done by my boss during a stint in NYC around 2002. She reminded me of a ‘30’s B grade starlet, and she doesn’t walk, she “floats” about.

She is exactly like all her characters in person, it’s not acting. She has comedic timing with everything she does and a slyness, as well unassuming and disarming attitude about who she is and who she is NOT- not an egotistical bone in her body.

And funny as all hell.

^what a pro- she didn’t get any sauce in her chin. Brava!

I read a review that for E3 , Mike White is inspired by his old film Chuck and Buck. I did remember it's about a straight guy and gay guy. So Cameron and Ethan - who's gay?

Sorry, I have to contradict eldersage at r443. I've met her and spent a bit of time with her and was amazed how not like her characters she is. In fact you can see it in some of the interview for the show. She comes off as super normal, very smart and funny. I loved her.

^ I can’t imagine Mike White would be so close to her if she wasn’t smart.

Based on interviews I've seen with her, it also seems to me that Coolidge does not act like her characters. She does seem smart and down to Earth. However, she shares certain irreverent sensibilities with them. She has bragged unselfconsciously many times that she fucked 200 guys as a result of playing Stifler's mom. She does slip in and out of seemingly farcical personas during her interviews seamlessly but the real Jennifer seems pretty normal. In one interview, she discussed how when she was young, she would always act like one of her dumb horny blonde characters when she was pulled over by cops and they never gave her a ticket, so yeah, she's quite aware of the difference between herself and what seems to be an alter ego she plays for laughs.

Well. Duh. Rowan Atkinson isn't Mr. Bean in real life either. Some goes for Coolidge and her slapstick, comic relief movie and TV characters.

You've got to have all of your senses together to be a good comedian, or a celebrity in general, without being a total mess in public like, say, Andy Dick.

R449 You don't know what you're talking about.

Jennifer C won the Emmy for this role so she and her character are not going anywhere anytime soon. I’m more interested in Tanya’s relationship and storyline with the assistant than the husband.

I thought the bit with her eating the bug and almost knocking over the moped flailing around was really funny.

Chuck and Buck suck and fuck. I liked that movie.

I have a friend who worked on a project with F. Murray Abraham. He asked him what the "F" stood for.

Abraham replied: "Famous."

Jennifer lives full-time in New Orleans when she's not filming, and just sort of enjoys the town. People leave her alone.

I liked season 1 more.

R455 Jennifer’s house was used in American Horror Story: Coven. She says she artfully stood in the yard raking leaves hoping Ryan Murphy would be inspired and cast her in something. He finally did with Watcher.

R361 Who are you talking about?

Will Albie's dad have sex with Portia? She said she wants to experience something wild and crazy, to have an adventure. And Albie toldmher she should aim higher.

Maybe Albie, being stupid, will misread her cues and end up assaulting her thinking it's what she wants.

Aubrey Plaza is very pretty in this. She's naturally somewhat frumpy, but with the right makeup artists and wardrobe and hairstylists she can really look fabulous.

I loved Jennifer Coolidge in S1.

I think she's fine in this season so far, but Tanya's presence on the show does seem a little superfluous this time around. It feels like she was written in strictly because of the Emmy win, and to provide some sense of continuity from the first season. I'd probably rather have another pair of interesting new characters instead of Tanya and Greg, but we'll see where it goes. ' I gotta hand it to F. Murray Abraham. The guy brings a certain gravitas to the screen, no matter how thinly the character is written. He hasn't been given all that much to do, but when he's on screen he's really in command.

Aubrey Plaza is not pretty at all. With make up and careful filming and photography she can be interesting looking.

I think Aubrey is pretty. However, she always comes off creepy, because she's usually filmed from a downward angle where she looks up with her big eyes like a predator ready to pounce.

That's her schtick. It's a unique sense of humor that she capably marketed as her persona and it has gotten her good work.

I don't find her conventionally attractive. I find her unconventionally alluring. She's rather odd looking but in an entirely appealing way. I would not call her 'pretty.' If the term 'exotic' weren't frowned upon these days, it would fit. Ultimately, she just has a unique appearance that goes beyond her simple features and includes her unconventional expressions. Her face moves in curious ways and contorts her expressions into impish ones that I think appeal to most people. Everyone is a bit curious about trickster types and she comes across as that type. She might make you laugh. Or, like similarly impish Mary Louise Parker, she might stab you in the hand with a fork and laugh.

Aubrey makes me wish that a young Jeneanne Garofalo was in this role instead

Aubrey has a bit of a Gloria Grahame thing going in her mouth, like her upper lip has been anesthetized..

R465. Yes, that's it. She has an alluring charisma. Her movements, her expressions and something about her voice can be quite captivating.

I like her. She brings a really interesting energy to a lot of her performances.

The characters in S1 and S2 are interesting, but Mike White doesn't quite know what to do with them. A better could see it through.

Aubrey Plaza sounds like a lovely place to go sit outside and have tea.

Cameron telling Harper that he needs her to like him in the water…seems like he has an arrangement with Ethan already.

Aubrey Plaza is a single-note actress. Nearly always expressionless. Kind of an energy vampire.

My thoughts exactly, r472. I don't get the DL love.

If DL can love Madeline Kahn, they can love anybody.

There is no Jennifer Coolidge backlash. Lmao. Wtf. Everyone is loving her. Only on DL do you see anyone complaining, and it’s mostly one person using more than one account. The same person bringing up “wokeness”.

Dude, it’s a show on fucking HBO. Go watch more of the Hallmark movies you shill on here if you can’t handle anything that isn’t super white straight and conservative.

R462 how was she shoehorned in because of her Emmy win less than 2 months ago when this was filmed before she won her Emmy?

Did you think before posting that?

A. Mike White does do the cinematography for the shows. Someone upthread said they didn’t know he had it in him to create such beautiful cinematography, well, he isn’t.

B. Valentina very much would and could say some of the stuff she is because she is in Italy. Hate to break it to you, but the rest of the world isn’t the USA.

You'd be amazed at what people can say in Italy - comments on age, looks, weight.

But I don't think they say it to the tourists' faces unless they are being exceptionally rude. The hotel lady is pretty blunt to some of her guests (calling Bert old and Tanya Peppa Pig) without them being rude to her. Comedy galore, but not something you'd come across in the hospitality business worldwide.

True, R479. They are very always polite in a professional capacity.

I like Aubrey Plaza…the recast I would do would be Theo James’s wife. I think someone like Yvonne Stavorski from Handmaids Tale would knock the role out of the park!

R479 have you traveled? People can be quite blunt in general, especially in certain places. Italy is known for the natives being blunt, with staring issues If you’re an obvious tourist and if you’re fat they have no problem telling you. If you’re old they have no problem telling you. And if you’re black they have no issue being racist. Openly. Because they can.

I think everyone is doing amazing in their roles and I think it’s weird someone on here is imagining other people in the parts. Just watch the show or don’t. But you’re just being ridiculous now.

Mike White created and wrote the show. He cast who he saw to fit the roles of his characters. He knows what he’s doing.

The old saying is "Everyone's a critic."

That's not good enough for DataLoungers.

Here, everyone's a story editor, a director, the head casting agent, the accent coach, the cinematographer, the editor, makeup artist, hair stylist, fashion designer, cosmetic dermatologist, pharmacist, personal trainer, body hair groomer, concierge homeopath, eyebrow trimmer and orthodontist to the stars.

Read r484 in the voice of Julia Sugarbaker.

R485, that’s hilarious and it really does work.

The actress who played Paula should have received an Emmy nomination

[quote] Italy is known for the natives being blunt, with staring issues If you’re an obvious tourist and if you’re fat they have no problem telling you. If you’re old they have no problem telling you. And if you’re black they have no issue being racist. Openly. Because they can.

Not. In. The. Hospitality. Business.

You can find xenophobes in every country when you leave the safe spaces, like resort hotels, specifically made for tourists. The only time staff is rude to you is when you are rude to them first. There was one time I travelled with a group and one guy got hit very aggressively on a female staff member and didn't take no for an answer. The next day, the entire group was asked to leave. Turns out the girl was the daughter of the hotel owner, learning how to run a hotel.

R488 I’m sure everyone is the same. At least you seem to think so. Happy I know better.

There are plenty of rude people on the hospitality business.

[quote] There are plenty of rude people on the hospitality business.

All you do is prove me right. You act like a total cunt. No wonder you are aware of rude people in the hospitality business, you're a so-called ugly American.

r489 knows what she talks about. Staff and crew can be so rude sometimes!

I liked the second episode more than I liked the first.

Will Sharpe's masturbation attempt was most amusing.

It's also high unlikely that prostitutes would look that attractive.

Even most high class escorts don't look that good.

[quote] I liked the second episode more than I liked the first.

Agreed, especially the latter part.

As to the 2 prostitutes, I wonder if we'll get any kind of back story on them? They behave a bit like two wayward debutantes on a drunken spree.

As to the 2 prostitutes, I wonder if we'll get any kind of back story on them? They behave a bit like two wayward debutantes on a drunken spree.

I think the singing one is a goner. We are meant to root for her getting a singing career, but she dies instead.

I think the dad will accidentally kill her, the other will flee and get some backup (a pimp and his goons?) and kills the dad and maybe hurt or kill others who are in the way (like Albie, the son?).

I hope Mike White is better than a Dead Hooker plot

R499 The aspiring singer friend isn't a hooker. Her hooker friend has failed to hook her and reel her into the business. So she wouldn't be a dead hooker; she'd be a dead dreamer.

Last season, I recall lots of predictions about who'd die including few predictions it would be the hotel manager followed by lots of claims "I knew it would be the hotel manager!"

It really had to be one of the working-class people because I don't think White is conventional enough of a storyteller to go for the American-style the-bad-guy-gets-his-comeuppance ending. In his world, justice is pretty realistic, not idealistic.

It's likely to be someone lower class, and someone who is not entirely redeemable because that would also feel too cynical.

I really have no idea what will happen but I do think the dreamer girl will be corrupted or fucked over by the end. The piano player guy could do something terrible to her to pay her back for the humiliation she caused him.

Albie could die because he is idealistic and naive, which puts him on an unsophisticated level that makes him impoverished in a way. He might do something risky to impress the assistant and end up dead.

Tanya is a big crazy miserable loser and she'd be put out of her misery if she died.

I can't believe the happy couple is happy in the way they have been shown. I'm guessing we will find out about some devastating thing that has compromised them and find out their motivations for inviting the boring couple along, and we'll learn that Aubrey Plaza's character's instincts were right from the beginning. She's a lawyer and incisive. If that happens, then we could see that she was made to question herself and feel bad about herself and that could set her up as a potential tragic underdog figure.

The body might turn out to be Mike White bloated and dead. That seems like something he might do. He does like to show up in his own projects.

Aubrey Plaza is doing a great job here. She’s showing more rAnge.

Picadilly Circus > Aubrey Plaza > Rockefeller Center

[quote]Re: the Greg cliffhanger, I too think it's a long con and he's specifically targeting Tanya, with no intention of it ever being a real marriage. Although I have no idea what his motivation would be and why he'd specifically target her. Maybe some affiliation with the shipping company her dad ran?

He's probably secretly a corporate spy like Meghan Draper!

I don’t think Alvie us some naive good guy at all. I think he’ll turn out to be rather sinister.

Albie is

Do rich people only eat fruit for breakfast? In season 1 whenever we see them eating breakfast it’s fruit with coffee or water or juice. In season 2 episode 2 they’re eating breakfast and it’s… fruit.

I’ve been to resorts and while fruit was available most people still are eggs or at least toast before some fruit. I’m sure some people only eat fruit (I know someone from Germany who eats strawberries for breakfast) for breakfast but it seems far fetched.

Also, Theo James character doesn’t feel like a NY rich guy whatsoever. Actually, I envisioned him and his wife living somewhere like Denver. When he said NY was home I was like “nah”.

Ate* eggs

On a warm weather film set like this, it's easier to keep fresh fruit on plates that the actors are expected to eat than pancakes and eggs.

On a warm weather film set like this, it's easier to keep fresh fruit on plates that the actors are expected to eat than pancakes and eggs.

R508 not an excuse. Most actors don’t even actually eat the food in front of them.

Ethan went for his morning jog, then when he got back to the room he laid on the bed to jerk off. Without showering.

[quote]On a warm weather film set like this

I don't think it was that warm when they filmed this (October-December)

Theo James and wife seem very Dallas to me. Especially the wife.

(Dallas culture, not Dallas the nighttime soap.)

R513 yes! Dallas is actually more fitting than Denver, and probably the city with a D I was thinking but couldn’t put my finger on it lol. But my point is they don’t feel like NY rich snobs, or LA rich snobs, but more southern city or Midwest city rich snobs. But then again they don’t give off Chicago vibes either, so not just any Midwestern city.

She's really pretty in this

[quote]Do rich people only eat fruit for breakfast?

Acai bowls. And you'd better get it quick.

I think they've made Plaza look very classy in this, and it's not just that she belongs to a certain class, but that she also has a certain taste and strength of character.

That's completely correct r513, they definitely feel like a rich Dallas more than a NY couple. Their personalities don't give off NY vibes.

I assumed they were a Dallas couple.

I'm having flashbacks to the S1 threads on DL where posters were predicting the worst kind of daytime soap plot twists imaginable. It ain't that kind of show.

R521 Only last season? Immediately this season, people here have predicted graphic gay sex among the husbands, that the rich happy couple belong to a cult and are trying to lure in the other couple, a mafia boss coming in to beat people up for the freelance hooker and her friend. Next think you know, they'll have Sir Ian McKellen showing up as Gandalfo the Red and hosting a pagan Roman orgy for the ancient pantheon.

Some people have fun guessing and theorizing. Big whoops.

I remember how pissed some DL posters were when a certain fan-theory was proven correct at the end of Westworld's season one.

i certainly think the theo couple wants a threesome.

the dallas looking woman is beautiful.

>>>I'm having flashbacks to the S1 threads on DL where posters were predicting the worst kind of daytime soap plot twists imaginable. It ain't that kind of show.

That's true. I'm pretty sure I never saw rimming on a daytime soap, or someone shitting in someone's suitcase.

i shit in my anal, asshole's roommate at boy's state weekend.

Have any of you people commenting that Theo James and wife don't seem like they're from New York been to New York lately? Tons of people like that there now. Very little sophistication or uniqueness and just crawling with blindingly white (in every sense) people. After 15 years in Chicago, I'm shocked every time I go back to NYC.

[quote] I'm pretty sure I never saw rimming on a daytime soap

What are you talking about? John and Mamie used to do it after every Abbott family breakfast.

chocolate and rose...

The Peppa Pig line was funny, but Jennifer Coolidge reminds me more of Miss Piggy.

And that’s not a total diss, Miss Piggy was formidable.

Tanya’s assistant looks like a female Dillon from season 1. Maybe it’s just the blonde hair/dark eyebrows, but she reminds me of him.

So far I'm disappointed--we're halfway through, and yet the worst thing we've seen happen is for Dominic to fuck both prostitutes, Daphne to lie to her husband, and Cameron to fuck the alpha prostitute. And for Ethan to kiss the other prostitute but turn down the opportunity to fuck her. That's not very much, considering we knew from the first episode that Dominic is a cheater and that Cameron and Daphne are rich assholes. I was hoping we'd see Dominic and Ethan seriously making out, but no such luck.

I want something more interesting to happen. So far it's attractive sights and attractive people, but nothing new happens.

I get the impression that Valentina may be lonely. She seemed surprised when one of the staff befriended her.

Great episode for the Daphne character. Her resigned acceptance to Cameron's ways and playing little mind games with him is very true to life. I've known that girl.

Valentina is definitely lonely r533, her job is her life. We see her making friends with the stray cats as a form of connection.

Preview for next episode highlighted Theo James character didn't have the full cash to pay the escorts for the night, definitely going to be in financial trouble wland he is struggling to keep up the appearance of wealth. He is going to be desperate for money from Will Sharpe's character to survive.

R532 it’s a limited-series. Nothing happened through most of season 1 either. This isn’t a soap opera. It’s a dark comedy about rich assholes with some subtext to those rich (mostly) white people.

Season 1 focused on racial privilege. In the end the rich white assholes who were all out of touch in their own way walk away and go back to their lives after affecting someone who isn’t rich in some way, all for the worse. In the end, no matter what, the wealthy white people win.

Season 2 is focusing on sexual politics and how someone who looks a certain way (on top of wealth) has all the power they want, easily, and can push boundaries and rules with little to no repercussions.

I feel some of you think you’re watching a daytime soap opera. You aren’t.

Also, when Valentina fed those kitties, it made me feel affectionate toward her. So far, she's my favorite character.

R527 those are transplants. Not natives. So you’re right, Theo James and his wife are most likely transplants.

Don't hire a fortune teller if you don't want to know the truth.

Am I supposed to like Tanya? Because I don't. At all. She's an annoying, clingy loser.

Albie gives off "nice guy" vibes -- he says all the right things about feminism and appearing to be progressive. But in the end, he'll probably be just as bad as his dad and grandfather.

This is likely a long shot, or just a coincidence, but the melody playing over the outro scenes sounded similar to Dua Lipa's "Boys Will Be Boys."

I went into this expecting to be most sexually attracted to Theo James, but it's really Will Sharpe who is the hottest.

So far the acting honors go to Imperioli and Abraham, and the woman playing Valentina. But I've been impressed with Plaza.

Gurl, Tanya is showing out like a toddler this episode.

[quote] Am I supposed to like Tanya?

The first season i think you were supposed to feel sorry for her; but this season she's just being written as a rich needy unrealistic asshole. Jennifer Coolidge is very funny, though.

[quote]Am I supposed to like Tanya? Because I don't. At all. She's an annoying, clingy loser.

Her season 1 arc was screwing over Belinda. She has always been a character with a lot of flaws.

I was happy we finally got her husband's medical situation brought up.

S2 EP3 was lackluster and a bit of a disappointment. I was left feeling apathetic at the end of it as to what what might happen next between most of the characters. There were vague hints of something sexual between Cameron and Ethan, but only on Cameron’s part. It seemed that it might be more of a dead-end plot tease than anything else. Hopefully, something further will develop between them other than bro-bonding.

The two characters I’m actually curious about now are Albie and Portia. Albie’s truly naive and things will most likely end up badly for him. He’s making every effort to win Portia’s attentions but her heart lies elsewhere, which as of this episode, seems to be in the direction of the tatted hot young dude who came by for a swim in the pool just prior to Albie’s arrival.

At this point I was expecting things to heat up a bit more than they have so far, which hasn’t happened.

Am I wrong in assuming that the unplanned girls' outing is just some kind of pretext to separate Ethan from Harper so that he could be suckered into some kind of Madoff-like scam? Which was probably the main reason why the two couples are traveling together.

I'm wondering if Albie will end up date-raping Portia out of both frustration and a mistaken notion she wants him to be more aggressive with her.

The Jet-Ski ballet is very camp

R544 please tell me how things “heated up” in season 1 episode 3? I rewatched it a few days ago, so it’s very fresh in my mind.

Like I said upthread, you think you’re watching something you’re not.

The point of this vacation for Theo James character is undoubtedly to swindle money out of Ethan r545, this episode wasn't subtle about that. No implication to me that Daphne is aware or involved.

Now you’re speculating rape??? Jesus. This show is way too clever for some of you. You clearly are watching the wrong show. Go back to watching Days of our Lives.

R549 agreed. And they’re using their looks and sexuality as a tool to manipulate and separate Ethan and Harper to make it all easier to do.

Tanya looks extra-puffy.

If Daphne was supposed to be in on some big plan she wouldn't be telling Harper how the guys Ethan works with are evil psychopaths. I think that's a reach.

Think Daphne just is who she is presented as being, that's generally how Mike White writes

R550 it’s not a reach to think nice guy Albie will lose his cool if Portia doesn’t go further than kissing him or if he sees her with another guy (like sensitive nips tattoo guy). I think his arc will be that he thinks he’s so ‘woke’ and not like his dad or grandpa, and so respectful of women, but he’s actually worse than them.

But, I won’t be mad if he ends up just being a boring, nice guy.

His father and grandpa are cheats and womanizers but not rapists or abusers.

Yeah, that’s why he’ll be worse than them.

[quote] Tanya is showing out like a toddler this episode.

R541, that's exactly what I thought. Cringe-worthy breakfast behavior.

My favorite moment in Italy was having an argument in a grocery store in Milan over cheese with my husband, and realizing people were just blatantly watching us. I got sheepish and was sure we were going to get some homophobic shit about it, when an older lady, with a huge crucifix around her neck, came over to me and whispered, "It's not worth fighting over cheese. Let him get the Reggiano and go kiss and make up." I smiled, and she smiled, and she went back to looking for the right brand of espresso bean.

These people are blunt and may seem conservative, but they are also awesome. Valentina being so direct doesn't seem out of character with the people I've met in that country.

There is a lot of homophobia in Italy. Your experience doesn’t speak for all of Italy

I finally figured out why Will Sharpe looks familiar — he's like an Asian version of Andrew Shue in Melrose Place.

So is Valentina a dyke?

[quote] Think Daphne just is who she is presented as being, that's generally how Mike White writes

I think that maybe Cameron has put everything in her name to protect him against lawsuits or bankruptcy or whatever. And that she walks away taking it all with her and maybe the kids, too. Maybe she is playing the long game to con him out of it all and payback for his treatment of her. She knows he doesn't love her. I noticed in a clip that when he is discussing her difficult delivery that she tells him she loves him and he doesn't return it - he just looks at her blankly - of course that could have just been bad acting. She's not as innocent and complaint as she acts.

That's compliant above at R562, not complaint

Any mystic worth her salt doesn't spill the beans in the first three minutes, no matter what cards are drawn. You need to drag it out so the person feels they got good value. You don't lead with: you're doomed.

^^^And she was pretty negative.

I like Jennifer Coolidge, but Tanya is not working for me this season. She seems like a novelty character and she has the worst storyline with the mousey assistant and bad marriage. It's cringeworthy acting.

I like the actress who plays Daphne. She is a New Yorker in real life. Theo James is really easy on the eyes, I think he's perfect for this role.

The Gen Z characters are either awkward Americans or prostitutes.

I give props to Aubrey Plaza - she is completely different in this show and that's a good thing for an actor.

F. Murray Abraham is hammy but good.

[quote] Like I said upthread, you think you’re watching something you’re not.

R548, I’m fully aware that what I’m watching is not a soap opera, and am not expecting it to play out like one. And, for the record, I don’t watch soap operas.

Just because I have a particular expectation from a limited series to be more engaging in certain ways doesn’t mean I desire trite, overwrought melodrama and a smorgasbord of predictable love triangles. As I remember it, TWL in S1 had significantly more tension between the characters building up and greater plot momentum than S2 does at this point.

My prediction is the bar piano singer will be one of the dead bodies. Mia or her friend will kill him.

Tonight’s episode put me to sleep several times & I missed so many of the captions. I don’t know if it’s just me but I feel like the show is losing steam. Tanya used to be funny but is now just pathetic. Cameron is nice to look at but he’s totally flat & one-note. Albie’s a snooze & his dad is kinda wooden & miscast.

I love Aubrey, Ethan, & Portia the most, & Abraham is always outstanding but he hasn’t been given much.

I wonder if too much of the audience found Tanya to be funny and sympathetic in season one and overlooked her bad behavior, so Mike White doubled down on it this season to drive home the point that she's really not admirable.

More of Leo Woodalls sensitive tits please

More of Cameron kissing Ethan, please.

For an excellent but outside her usual schtick Aubrey Plaza role

And a great but typical Aubrey role

I loved Mike White’s 21st century ode to Ruth Orkin, that was hilarious!

“I make people money, Bro!”

I wish they would lean more into Theo’s Greek heritage and push a little further with the Dionysian vibe he presents. He would really be an interesting choice to play George Michael in a biopic.

I'm a bit surprised Portia, who is not from a wealthy family, is such an idiot. Wouldn't getting together with Alby, whose father is rich, be a ticket out of her dead-end job with Tanya? It might make more sense if Alby were not rich, or not well built and good-looking, or not nice; but her other current options seem too limited for her to be sneering at what Alby has to offer her.

The actor who played Christopher in The Sopranos is coming off repugnant in this too

Why did Cameron kiss his friend, some gay context there between them?

Portia looks like a lesbian dwarf

I am entranced by the beauty of this series; the opening music, the scenery, the cinematography. It lacks the dramatic tension of the first series however. I agree that Daphne deliberately separated Harper and Ethan so Cameron could hustle him, but am undecided if she did it on her own or planned it with Cameron.

As in the first series, there are some entirely bad characters, but the rest are a mix of good and bad. There are no entirely good characters. In the first series, Belinda and Quinn were entirely good.

I loved Valentina feeding and lunching with the stray kittens.

[Quote] He would really be an interesting choice to play George Michael in a biopic.

George Michael had charisma. Theo James is nice looking, that's it.

R583 So did Freddie Mercury and that weird little bug eyed man who played him and won an Oscar did not, that the point of acting.

Well, R584, exactly. James doesn't have charisma in RL and he can't act. The looks distract from that reality.

Hmmm, might Cameron try a little blackmail on Ethan as incentive to invest?

R580 I interpreted that kiss as a Godfather-esque kiss of betrayal.

R535 They're going to keep expecting it to be a daytime soap, and because it's HBO, they expect the two guys to have a graphic gay sex scene. Nothing less will satisfy. And if it were to happen, well, last season was so much subtler and superior—this show has jumped the shark!

I wonder if culture was always like this, with audiences lamenting that all the great storytellers are of a bygone era and rewriting every story they hear, and then when a new story comes along revisiting the most recent and comparing the newest unfavorably to that one. Like, did audiences listen to Homer's Odyssey and then sit around drinking wine and bitching that the once-great story now sucks and it needs more graphic penetration and kittens?

Agree, R586, although the hook-up with the hookers was not planned.

R582

R539 You are supposed not to like Tanya and also to find her funny and grotesque. She's there to be laughed at and to make you feel uncomfortable for not having sympathy despite how miserable she is.

Do straight finance bros kiss each other in the orgy? I thought that was what women do in men's fantasy.

I did like Portia standing by the film car with the bad mannequin to speak on the phone and have her day “blow up” like what happened in the movie.

Very disappointed in this season so far. Last night was boring, everyone just spinning wheels like hamsters in a pretty cage.

I'm glad grandpa finally stopped farting.

[quote]I'm a bit surprised Portia, who is not from a wealthy family, is such an idiot. Wouldn't getting together with Alby, whose father is rich, be a ticket out of her dead-end job with Tanya?

I'm a bit surprised you think Portia is that mercenary.

I’m not sure how I fell about this season, but it’s great to see Meg Tilly working again.

That scene in Noto - was Aubrey just high and imagining all those men leering at her? She's not that hot. So far, I'm enjoying this season. It maybe slow burn (which I also read from reviews) but not bothered by it in any way. Not everything should unfold or happen right away.

Italian men are horndogs. A thin, youngish woman in a dress definitely would get catcalls and leers despite her not being a beauty (though Aubrey Plaza isn’t ugly). The amount of men around was exaggerated, but the gist of it was correct.

I need to rewatch the last episode as I came in late after drinking with friends and watched at around midnight but I do remember Tanya being a fucking pain in the ass. Her character is so toxic and needy. In real life, someone would have killed her or committed her years ago. If I were Portia I'd tell her to fuck off and head home. I can't believe she made her sit and read a magazine while she napped. I'm curious what Theo's character is up to and what his wife is up to getting that palazzo which I love. Is this planned between them?

Boooooooring.

The Aubrey Plaza scene on top of showing the leering culture of Italian men was also a recreatin of a famous Monica Vitti scene.