The White Lotus has always been like a magnifying mirror for society, ultimately forcing us to reckon with uncomfortable truths about the system we live in. Each season has followed a familiar pattern: a cast of wealthy, wacky characters stumbles around an exotic, luxurious resort, oblivious to local customs and the inevitable tragedy heading their way. And each season, series creator Mike White has confronted a different problematic aspect of Western culture.

 The first season, set in Hawaii, tackled the insidiousness of white privilege. The second, set in Sicily, offered a damning examination of sexual politics. The third season, which premiered on 16 February, sets the scene in Thailand – and so far, it seems that White has shifted his focus to deception. 

Of course, white privilege and sexual politics are still at play; after all, this is a show about white, rich Americans descending upon a foreign country with little to no self-awareness about their privilege. But the undercurrent pulling us along this season seems to be the idea that our inner selves never quite match up to the outer selves we present to the world – and that existing in Western society is all about keeping that inner self locked safely away.

The trio of middle-aged women is perhaps the plot line where this theme is most obvious. The three old school friends have all taken separate paths and are now reconnecting during a luxurious week at The White Lotus. There’s the Hollywood actor, Jaclyn (Michelle Monaghan); the Texan housewife Kate (Leslie Bibb); and the corporate NYC girlboss Laurie (Carrie Coon).

The women literally cannot stop gushing about how much they love each other. They simper and grin and hug and laugh – the perfect picture of true friendship. But behind their smiles and kind words, it soon becomes clear that there’s something much more sinister going on. Each compliment hides a thinly veiled barb and each thoughtful question conceals a prying, gossipy curiosity. It’s vicious and, disconcertingly, all too familiar.

Sure enough, as soon as two of the women are left alone together, their masks drop just a little and they descend into judgmental gossip. Meanwhile, as Coon’s character finally finds herself alone, the smile that’s been plastered onto her face all day falls away and she lets out a wail of despair.

According to White, who recently spoke to Time about the latest season, this toxic friendship is designed to show “how you become defensive about the choices of your life, and how those people that are so close to you can be a source of pain to you, even if they’re not even trying to be, just because they chose a different path”. It also shows just how much work we all put into keeping up appearances – even, or perhaps especially, with our ‘closest’ friends. 

Meanwhile, there’s the picture-perfect all-American family. Timothy (Jason Isaacs) is the perfect family man whose career in finance has been in service of his three children, while Victoria (Parker Posey) is his charming wife. Just a few minutes into the episode, however, the mask begins to slip. Things get weird when Saxon (Patrick Schwarzenegger), the oldest son, makes a disturbing sexual comment about his younger siblings, Piper (Sarah Catherine Cook) and Lochlan (Sam Nivola). Victoria, who is, it now appears, more than a little spaced out, turns back to the hotel employee who is watching on and says sweetly, “We’re a normal family; you’ll see.” Sure…

Their daughter, Piper, is the only one who seems a little more self-aware. A university senior, she is writing her dissertation on Buddhism. In fact, as the season progresses, it becomes clear that she is eager to shed her own mask and embrace the simple, more truthful existence of the monks she has come to interview. 

As White explained, this season, he’s interested in finding out what we are and what we do when we do let go of the masks we hold up in society – or, as he put it, “it’s dealing with these existential tropes of facing into the nothingness of self”.

It’s a theme that will undoubtedly resonate with viewers. We’ve all faked a smile while secretly judging an old acquaintance or while on the receiving end of a fake compliment. We’ve all overplayed just how great things are going in our lives – just how normal we are. The idea of “keeping up with the Joneses” certainly isn’t new to our society, but in the age of social media one-upmanship, it’s morphed into something darker and, ultimately, more existentially damaging than ever.

If this season is all about hiding who we really are for the sake of appearances, inevitably the pressure of maintaining the facade is going to build and build until it reaches breaking point. The true self will have to come out. And based on previous seasons, it won’t be pretty when it does.

Images: HBO