Plot it all out on paper, and between the first and sixth episodes ofThe White Lotusseason three, very little changes. The opener was so efficient that by the end of the first hour, we knew pretty much everything we needed to about the new characters: the Ratliffs are a rat nest of moneyed, prescription-pill-popping dysfunction; the trio of 40-something women who say theyre best friends actually hate each other; Rick is powered by poison and adorable Chelsea should run a mile; and masseuse Belinda is right to worry about Greg/GaryOver the next five episodes, all of that initial construction has only been confirmed. Thats why this season, more than the previous ones, has felt at times as though theres been little story progress, because whathashappened only deepened our well-directed first impressions. Aside from the usual guessing game of who will and wont survive the murder mystery this time, thereve been very few questions we need answered.Instead, season three has doubled down on the shows raison dtre: depicting the moral vacuum inside Western capitalist ideals.The White Lotushas always been an eat-the-rich satire populating the screen with wealthy grotesques. In season one, there was boorish Shane Patton, who couldnt be happy in paradise because his beautiful and luxurious hotel suite wasnt themostbeautiful, luxurious hotel suite in the complex. (To Shane, luxury is a zero sum game: in order for him to win, somebody else had to lose.)In season two, there was Cameron and Daphne, whose perfect marriage was revealed to be a points-scoring death match in which Daphne had played the winning shot by getting pregnant by her personal trainer so that whatever Camerons indiscretions, she could always reassure herself that shed secretly humiliated him more. In both seasons, Jennifer Coolidges Tanya McQuoid was a lonely overgrown toddler whose millions not only couldnt buy her the love she craved, but also made her a target for murder.Thats just a section ofThe White Lotus expensive patchwork of unfulfilled, unhappy and unconscionable rich folks. So far, Mike Whites show has delivered the message that while having the kind of wealth that allows you to stay in these tropical palaces looks aspirational, other misery will get ya. Theres a price to pay for these peoples luxurious lives, which leave casualties in their wake. Even being around them is dangerous, as hotel manager Armond found out in season one.Season three goes one step further. The inclusion of the Buddhist monastery next to the hotel complex is the shows clearest depiction yet of the battle between consumerism and spiritualism. More than ever before, the drama is drawing a line between the hideous rich and the spiritually content. This time around, were not just invited to laugh at a bunch of unhappy, black card-carrying millionaires, were invited to question their essential humanity.It all comes down to one of Chelseas lines in episode six. When a hungover Saxon petulantly asked why shed refused to hook up with him the night before (maybe indirectly blaming her choice for the fact that hed subsequently had an incestuous threesome with his younger brother), she told him that hooking up with him would have been an empty experience because he was soulless.Shes not wrong. Saxon Ratliff is an abomination, and designedly so. Beyond sex, money, and protein shakes, he has zero values. When his mother asked him if the new friends whod invited their family on a day cruise were decent people he looked nonplussed. Durr. They have a yacht, he assured her. Ofcoursetheyre decent people. To Saxon, wealth is the deserved reward of good people who make the right decisions.Its no surprise he thinks that; so does his Lorazepam-addicted mother Victoria. Money is so central to her value system that she told husband Timothy in episode six that she wouldnt even want to live if they didnt have it. (Not that hes told anybody, Timothy is currently facing FBI assets-seizure and a prison sentence for a fraudulent financial arrangement with LGBT+-murdering sultanate Brunei. If Victoria survives the season finale, shes going to have a choice to make.)Are the Ratliffs decent people? On no level. TheyreThe White Lotus ultimate creation a family so driven by acquisitive ideals that theyve become rot-filled husks so value and morality-free that their sons tumble into having sex with each other. TheyreGame of Thrones Lannisters, but less likeable.Join our mailing listGet the best of Den of Geek delivered right to your inbox!Well, not all of them. Daughter Piper has recognised the hollowness of their cosseted lifestyle and is seeking to escape to the Thai monastery. Depending on how thoroughgoingThe White Lotus cynicism is, there could still be hope for Piper Ratliff. There may also be hope for youngest son Lachlan. With two episodes still to go, his potential goodness hangs in the balance, though the choice he made to share a room with Saxon instead of Piper in the season opener felt like a spiritual crossroads moment that he got wrong.Season threes other guests are less extreme but still shore up the shows thesis. Franks unforgettable monologue in that Bangkok bar was a short story about the danger of getting trapped on the hedonic treadmill, always insatiably wanting more. Model Chloe may as well be a Ratliff for all her moral-free, self-serving acquisitiveness. Her murderer boyfriend Greg/Gary literally killed for his millions (or at least planned to). Even actress Jaclyns obsession with youth so ingrained that shes married a much younger man whose fidelity she constantly doubts is shown to lead nowhere good.Its all building not just to the gunshots and the discovery of whose corpse were about to see floating face-down in the resorts crystal blue waters, but to an almighty ideological clash: Consumerism v Spiritualism, Greed v Generosity, West v East, the Soulless v the Ensouled. Dont say that nothings happening this season because this is the big one: its Armageddon in paradise.The White Lotus season three continues on Sunday nights on HBO.