Last time I noted how the repeated structure of the episodes—we start in bed, then with breakfast, etc. etc.—becomes a means of showing how characters are changing over the course of the season. Ethan starts with a very clear structure to how he starts his day; by the finale he's completely lost it, and he's lying in bed, obsessing over the possibility that Harper and Cameron had sex.
But that repetition of action—watching them all wake up, for instance—also becomes a way of establishing contrasts (and sometimes similarities) among characters. So often in those opening sequences, we'll cut from one character or couple to another character or couple they're paired with. So in 105 we go from Albie having sex with Lucia—and her treating him a little bit like a child (which fits)—to Portia, the woman he was initially paired with, who is in bed with a sleeping naked Jack, the sex clearly passed. Their relationship is clearly a lot less naive and innocent than Albie is with Lucia. And to underline that, Portia gets the call from Tanya saying they're going to party in Palermo and does Portia have some proper clothes, to which Portia rolls her eyes. Of course she does. She's no dope.
But there's also a sort of world-worn quality to her moment that we don't see with Albie; at the end she takes the blanket off the bed and Jack is just lying there passed out and naked. And there's not much sexy about it. He even scratches his ass. He is basically the human equivalent of a used condom.
So the two beats speak to each other, highlighting the differences in their journeys and point of view. And at the same time, there's something similar here, too, in the underlying lack of satisfaction. Albie thinks he's happy, but we know he's being played. The moment is not what he thinks it is. And pretty soon we'll discover actually they're both being played. Even as their journeys look different, or opposite, they are actually in another way on the same journey.
In the finale White gives us all of the couples in bed: Ethan and Harper; Cameron and Daphne; Albie and Lucia; Dominic; Tanya; Portia and Jack; and Valentina and Mia. And while they're each different, the thing that stands out is how they're all kind of the same. In each one of these moments, the two people are on different wavelengths, are going in different directions. Ethan is going crazy while Harper is fast asleep, looking the best she has all week; Daphne is doting on her kids while Cameron won't come to the phone, and literally has to force himself to smile before going to her; Dominic is looking at pictures of his family and crying; Tanya is complaining about Portia for not being there; and Portia is discovering her phone is missing and maybe she's in trouble here.
Albie and Lucia seem quite different—they're curled up in bed, very lovey dovey. He tells her he's going to get her the money she needs; she tells him she doesn't want him to go. It would be the opposite of these others, except she's playing him.
(I love how White gives us this moment and also has Tanya first so very happy about the night she's had—changing up the tone keeps the sequence from feeling repetitive, as does making Cameron and Daphne's moment all about their family, and Portia's much more of the opening of the final act in a horror movie.)
The sequence ends on what is a great punchline. Of all the couples on the show, the one that is actually happy is Valentina and Mia—not any of the guests who actually pay so much to come here and relax, but the repressed lesbian and the somewhat aimless singer. And they really are happy; the scene starts with the maid coming in and Valentina being discovered, which given everything we've seen of her seems like it should lead her back to repressed and aggressive. But no, even if she's scared and vulnerable, she's also happy. It's so totally unexpected that it's the perfect conclusion.
Shared situations are another way that White does this same work of establishing character and relationship by way of similarity and difference. When each group gets off the boat in 101, they're given champagne and have a bit of interaction with Valentina. In two of the three cases, Valentina says something blunt or inappropriate—that's something they share. But they each react in different ways. Among the DiGrassos, Albie and Dominic just take the drink; but Bert immediately flirts up the woman who serves them.
In the party of four, Harper refuses to drink, which makes Ethan so uncomfortable he forces her to hold the glass. And Cameron and Daphne just sort of roll with it—the Harper and Ethan drama doesn't really mean anything to them (and won't). And then Tanya gets a glass and chats with Valentina; meanwhile Portia is completely ignored.
You want to who your characters are, and also how they relate to each other—watch them do the same thing.
