Warning: This review contains spoilers for The White Lotus Season 3, Episode 2

The table setting of The White Lotus season 3 was necessarily going to be followed by one that dug deeper into the new cast of characters and, instead of highlighting one or two of the visiting groups, The White Lotus season 3, episode 2, "Special Treatments", gives equal time to just about the entire troupe from the premiere. While the first episode threatened to collapse under the weight of introductions, "Special Treatments" gains a strong foothold despite even more stories to tell.

Picking up right where the previous episode left off, "Special Treatments" wastes no time digging into the anxieties and frustrations threatening our vacationers. As everyone wakes up slightly worse for wear from the night before, which is odd considering this is supposed to be a wellness retreat, they begin the activities laid out by their lovely, and still amusingly amateurish, employees. Every guest receives their "Special Treatments" and while some guests take to their massages, for others, no amount of shallow breathing is going to alleviate their worries.

Every Guest Has A Noteworthy Character Moment In Episode 2

Mike White Is Fleshing Out His Characters Slowly But Surely

We hear what Kate (Leslie Bibb) and Jaclyn (Michelle Monaghan) were saying while they thought Laurie (Carrie Coon) was asleep. Their sharp barbs disguised as concern come so easily that it's clear this is a common dance for the pair. However, the end of the episode offers a grimly satisfying twist. After Jaclyn departs early for the night, it's Kate and Laurie's turn to tango, and the pair wonder quietly about how much cosmetic work Jaclyn has done on herself. Jaclyn watches from her room. Whether she's considering her own role in this pas de trois is left unsaid.

The Ratliff family has their individualized sessions, lending credence to Piper's (Sarah Catherine Hook) comment that the hotel is, "Disneyland for rich bohemians from Malibu and their Lulu Lemon yoga pants". Despite the personality tests they all took at the beginning of the visit, no one in the family seems to be gelling with their wellness regimens. "I feel really claustrophobic," Victoria (Parker Posey) drawls from inside her private open-air gazebo. The Lorazepam she's popping like candy seems to be doing the trick. Perhaps her husband could use some.

Timothy (Jason Isaacs) is getting more calls from reporters about a money laundering scheme and from the sound of his threatening call to his ex-partner, Kenny, the FBI could be waiting for the Ratliffs when they land stateside. The worst part? He only made $10 million on the scheme, hardly worth a room that doesn't even have a blender in it. Saxon should know as he spends his afternoon opening cabinets looking for one while making jokes about not getting a happy ending at his massage. Piper grimaces but Victoria doubles over laughing. Still weird, we'll come back to this.

Rick (Walton Goggins) and Chelsea (Aimee Lou Wood) once again claim my guest of the week award.

Rick (Walton Goggins) and Chelsea (Aimee Lou Wood) once again claim my guests of the week award. Chelsea is the only one who understands how to enjoy a therapeutic facility such as this: she's closed eyes and mild chit-chat, no need to overthink it. Rick's session with Amrita (Shalini Peiris) reveals that his father died before he was born, and now, he considers himself nothing. His grimness is offset by Chelsea's cheeriness and whatever faults he may have, his feelings for her seem sweet and uncomplicated. Oh no, this observation might seal her fate (but I hope not).

The White Lotus Season 3 Has A Winning Group Of Employees

Belinda Recognizing Greg Is Sure To Come Up Again

"Special Treatments" wisely leaves time for the employees, who are becoming this season's secret weapons. The developing relationship between Mook (Lalisa Manobal) and the security guard Gaitok (Tayme Thapthimthong) is endearingly high school. Mook turning down Gaitok's advance feels more like a childish game than it does a cruel rebuff. When Gaitok is later accosted by a pair of thieves who stole from a shop at the resort, a theft witnessed by Chelsea, Mook goes to check on him, and it seems she may reconsider her earlier refusal of the guard.

Belinda (Natasha Rothwell) learns the finer points of massage therapy, hilariously and modestly looking away when her jacked Thai co-worker, Pornchai (Dom Hetrakul), arrives as her training subject. It's someone else who has her eye, anyway. As Greg (Jon Gries), Chloe (Charlotte Le Bon), Chelsea, and Rick have dinner together, Belinda can't help but stare. Hasn't she seen him somewhere? Her thoughts are interrupted by a concert put on by a White Lotus co-founder, Sritala Hollinger (Lek Patravadi). It's a poppy but haunting tune the mousy general manager Fabian (Christian Friedel) seems almost jealous of.

Greg Hunt of the Bureau of Land Management is going by the name of "Gary" in Thailand.

The White Lotus episode 2 has cracked open the characters and released them like a masseuse unfurling a tight knot in your neck. Things are starting to make more sense. It's only one small step forward, but when our heel comes down, we're standing in a completely new place, and I can't wait to see where I'm led next.