10 Best 'The White Lotus' Episodes, Ranked by IMDb

HBO's The White Lotus is one of the best satires of the past five years, an engaging vacation-based anthology series about wealth and privilege. The first season takes place in Hawai'i, and the second is in Sicily. Each has a different cast of characters, yet they both tell a self-contained story about numerous people at The White Lotus hotel over the course of a week. Perhaps the best part for fans is that each season begins with a brief glimpse at the end, where it's revealed that at least one character has passed away—turning what would otherwise be a satirical dramedy into a whodunnit as well. Season three is set for Thailand, and fans are already buzzing.

Created, written, and directed by Mike White, The White Lotus has rightfully won many Emmys—including Outstanding Limited or Anthology Series, Outstanding Supporting Actor for Murray Bartlett, and two Outstanding Supporting Actress awards for Jennifer Coolidge. Some people thought HBO was in trouble after Game of Thrones ended, but IMDb's top ten episodes of this black comedy helped prove that the acclaimed network is still going strong.

The White Lotus

This article contains spoilers for Seasons 1 and 2 of The White Lotus.

10 'Italian Dream' (Season 2, Episode 2)

IMDb Score: 7.8/10

The second episode of season two skillfully builds on the conflicts set in its premiere. Portia (Haley Lu Richardson) joins Albie (Adam DiMarco), his father (Michael Imperioli), and his grandfather (F. Murray Abraham) on a trip to the Greek theater. To everyone else's displeasure, grandfather Bert talks about mythology in a way that emphasizes that he is not even close to self-aware. Besides his casual attitude towards infidelity, Bert isn't doing his grandson any favors with Portia, either.

Meanwhile, Harper (Aubrey Plaza) and Ethan's sex life proves to be nonexistent. Ethan would rather go at it alone, and Harper is more passionate about trashing their materialistic vacation-buddies. One of the best scenes is when Mia (Beatrice Grannò) proves to be a good singer, and another great moment is when Tanya asks for Oreo cookie cake at breakfast. Whether she gets any remains one of the show's greatest mysteries. This episode ends with Dominic having a very good night, though part of him wishes he wouldn't.

9 'Mysterious Monkeys' (Season 1, Episode 3)

IMDb Score: 7.8/10

One of the funniest episodes has got to be "Mysterious Monkeys". Mark (Steve Zahn) undergoes his second significant mood change of the season, now that he knows his father led a double life and never told him. At the same time, the audience isn't exactly shocked that Mark's father would keep his sexuality and party life from his son. Olivia (Sydney Sweeney) and Paula (Brittany O'Grady) hysterically fail at making him feel better, and Mark proceeds to do some drinking that doesn't yield very positive conversations.

Even better: Tanya McQuoid (Jennifer Coolidge) wants to put her mother into the sea, and it's hilarious how she tells everyone she talks to that she's going to be a wreck on the boat. Her dream is fantastic, too. Meanwhile, Shane (Jake Lacy) has finally gotten over getting the wrong room, but now Armond (Murray Bartlett) wants his revenge. This angry hotel manager arranges for Shane and Rachel (Alexandra Daddario) to have dinner on the eulogy boat, resulting in one of Tanya's best scenes by a mile.

8 'Departures' (Season 1, Episode 6)

IMDb Score: 7.8/10

The season one finale uses the organ wonderfully as Armond decides to have a goodbye party on his final day on the job. Then he does something else, something much more reckless, because of course he would. Meanwhile, former phone addict Quinn (Fred Hechinger) wants to stay in Hawai'i against his parents' wishes, and Tanya finally spreads her mother's ashes in the ocean. It's tragic to watch Rachel falling apart and struggling to figure out whether she ought to stay with Shane or not. Hopefully, she'll be happy with her decision.

It is touching and surprising to see how Olivia doesn't rat out Paula, and that their friendship somehow survives the ordeal of this entire vacation. Mark and Nicole wind up stronger together, too, and Quinn is apparently going to fulfill his dream. Quinn might have changed the most of anyone this entire season, and his character arc is a satisfying one. Discovering who dies and how is classic White Lotus, given that it's so funny and sad at the same time. Red herrings kept the audience guessing, and the result is a fitting surprise.

7 'Recentering' (Season 1, Episode 4)

IMDb Score: 7.9/10

In season one's "Recentering," Mark demonstrates how maybe it's not a great idea to tell your son that you committed adultery without consulting his mother first. Telling him that you spent seventy-five thousand dollars on jewelry to make it up to her doesn't help, either. This episode also has another faux-pas: a mother visiting her son during his honeymoon. Shane's mother Kitty (a meanMolly Shannon), specifically, who completely dismisses the idea that Rachel have a job now that she's married into money.

Plot twist: Tanya gets asked out. Greg (Jon Gries) isn't in the "BLM" that Tanya assumes he is, but that's not a deal-breaker. Dinner leads to several uncomfortable conversations, including one about cancel culture in the Mossbacher group that sums up the characters' opinions of each other pretty well. Early on, Kai (Kekoa Scott Kekumano) gives wider context to the show's setting when he explains that his family was kicked out of their home when the hotel bought the land. The final scene contains the episode's biggest lesson, though: always lock the door.

6 'Bull Elephants' (Season 2, Episode 3)

IMDb Score: 8/10

In "Bull Elephants," Harper of all people tries to be the life of the party, and winds up staying the night at a big resort with Daphne (Meghann Fahy). In the meantime, the husbands party with the escorts who previously partied with Dominic. Ethan doesn't wind up cheating, but Cameron sure does—as one would expect from a guy who believes that monagomy was invented to control the middle class.

Tanya is such a mess when her husband insists he needs to go away for a few days. This is wildly suspicious, so Tanya goes to see a psychic—which is as good as it sounds. The Godfather tour is a pretty cool location, too, and sets off an intergenerational argument about the patriarchy. Albie sees the movie as antiquated nostalgia-fodder, while Bert bemoans how people used to respect the elderly and yet now look at them as "just reminders of an offensive past." The show's intriguing analysis of masculinity continues.

5 'The Lotus Eaters' (Season 1, Episode 5)

IMDb Score: 8/10

In the penultimate installment of season one, Kai has gotten his own room in the hotel for himself and Paula. He wants her to stay, but Paula has her life back at home. Still wanting to give him something before she leaves, she sets up the plan for him to steal from the Mossbacher's safe so that he can help his brothers afford a good lawyer. Things don't go as planned, though, and Mark finally gets a chance to gain back some respect from his wife. Their relationship was on the rocks before, but the robbery seems to fix that.

In the meantime, Tanya's much more into her boyfriend Greg than he seems to be into her, but it's nice to see them together at the end. Shane's mother continues to raise the tension between the newlyweds, telling Rachel that Shane had a bunch of girlfriends before her and that she's essentially a trophy wife. This honeymoon just keeps getting worse, and Alexandra Daddario's acting makes the audience sharply feel the intensity of her existential crisis coming to a head.

4 'In the Sandbox' (Season 2, Episode 4)

IMDb Score: 8.1/10

Crossing the half-way point of season 2, Portia meets a guy (Jack, played by Leo Woodall) who's definitely cooler than the guy she's been seeing. An amusing plot point is that Mia tries to sleep with the hotel's piano player Giuseppe (Federico Scribani Rossi) in the middle of the day, so he takes her to a deconsecrated church. He needs a little help, too, but the help that he gets ruins his musical performance and lands him in the hospital. All great stuff, and all pushing Mia into a position where she can become a singer.

Ethan lies to Harper about the boys' night out, an unwise decision that is going to snowball into a bigger conflict for the rest of the season. The episode ends with a very entertaining make-out duel at the hotel bar, as Portia and Albie try to make each other jealous. Lucia (Simona Tabasco) sleeps with Albie after sleeping with his father, which almost makes the audience wonder if she's going to go for all three generations of the family.

3 'Abductions' (Season 2, Episode 6)

IMDb Score: 8.1/10

Season two gathers steam as it prepares for the finale. The part where Lucia is taken away in her alleged pimp's car leads to the Di Grasso men having to meet their Sicilian relatives without a translator. This is a good move, as it ensures their visit will be exactly (and humorously) the opposite of what they expected. To summarize: an old woman threatens them with an artichoke. Bert's disappointment finally results in a scene that leaves him vulnerable for once.

Ethan gets more and more suspicious of Cameron and Daphne, which is his own fault—for not being attracted to his own wife, lying about the party night he had with Cameron, and lying about the kiss. In the meantime, Valentina wants to celebrate her birthday with her crush, but things pan out differently. Though sad at first, her story-line winds up in a very happy place. It also makes for a pretty intriguing power swap between Valentina and Mia.

2 'That's Amore' (Season 2, Episode 5)

IMDb Score: 8.5/10

While Lucia seemed confident in her profession as an escort at the beginning of season two, at this point she's looking for a way out of relying on people (e.g., Cameron and Albie) who sometimes don't pay in full. It's an interesting character shift, as Lucia takes advantage of Albie's ignorance by pretending to be in a dangerous situation. Albie is so unassuming that she might be able to pull this off; and given how many times she hasn't been paid this week alone, it's hard not to root for her.

Tanya hasn't been as interesting as she was in season one, but her story suddenly awakens in "That's Amore." That she goes with her new friend Quentin (Tom Hollander) to see Madame Butterfly carries certain implications, and the episode ends with her discovering that Jack and his uncle might not be who she thinks they are. It's also satisfying to see Mia finally get the go-ahead to sing at the restaurant for a few nights. She's a natural.

1 'Arrivederci' (Season 2, Episode 7)

IMDb Score: 8.8/10

Season two's finale finally shows Ethan and Harper getting to the bottom of her thing with Cameron, and Ethan still thinks she's lying (probably because he didn't tell her everything either). The subsequent fight at the beach is intense, and Daphne's rationale for dealing with marital infidelity makes her character even more complex: "You don't have to know everything to love someone." Also fascinating is the ambiguity behind what she and Ethan wind up doing on that island together.

Season two saved its most surprising twist for last, and it really pays off. Though Tanya's story wasn't as compelling in Italy, she really comes through as the star of this finale. This is dark humor at its finest, serving as a great goodbye to a deeply troubled, tragic, and hilarious character. Lucia's plan to swindle Albie works, as expected, and it's nice to see her and Mia vastly improve their status in this hectic week. With Portia and Albie trading numbers at the airport, season two sticks the landing in pretty much every way.

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