The White Lotus: Lochlan’s Tombolo “Reptile Dysfunction” Full Moon Party Shirt
Sam Nivola as Lochlan Ratliff on The White Lotus, Episode 3.04: “Hide or Seek”. Photo credit: Fabio Lovino.
Vitals
Sam Nivola as Lochlan Ratliff, timid and self-questioning high school senior
Ko Pha-ngan, Thailand, Spring 2024
Series: The White Lotus
Episodes:
– “Hide or Seek” (Episode 3.04, aired 3/9/2025)
– “Full-Moon Party” (Episode 3.05, aired 3/16/2025)
– “Denials” (Episode 3.06, aired 3/23/2025)
Director: Mike White
Creator: Mike White
Costume Designer: Alex Bovaird
WARNING! Spoilers ahead!
Background
This weekend, revelers gathered on the Thai island of Ko Pha-ngan for the monthly Full Moon Party, a celebration that coincided this month with the start of Songkran—the vibrant three-day festival observing the Thai New Year. While the April Full Moon Party is often the biggest of the year for this reason, the 2025 celebration is especially significant as it markst he 40th anniversary of the first Full Moon Party on Haad Rin Beach in 1985.
The intersection of Songkran and the Full Moon Party was depicted on the most recent season of The White Lotus, which ended last Sunday. While most characters from the ensemble cast were removed from the central Songkran action, the privileged Ratliff brothers Lochlan (Sam Nivola) and Saxon (Patrick Schwarzenegger) joined their new friends Chelsea (Aimee Lou Wood) and Chloe (Charlotte Le Bon) on the island for a night of neon-lit chaos and self-discovery.
Among The White Lotus‘ characteristically excellent ensemble cast, the third season offered a breakout performance for 21-year-old Sam Nivola as Lochlan, the shy youngest sibling navigating the uncertain space between adolescence and adulthood and the masculine and feminine forces in his family. His parents bicker about whether he’ll follow his father’s legacy to Duke (much to Duke’s chagrin) or his mother’s to UNC—both equally unappealing to a young man quietly wrestling with identity and purpose. He finds himself pulled between his domineering older brother Saxon, a swaggering embodiment of their family’s toxic masculine traditions, and his more introspective sister Piper (Sarah Catherine Hook), whose interest in Buddhism is what brought the family to Thailand (not Taiwan, Victoria!) in the first place.
Perhaps in response to Piper confiding that she plans to stay behind in Thailand, Lochy feels both abandoned and set adrift as he follows Saxon and his party-first attitude into an extended evening of drugs and debauchery, throwing himself into the kind of chaos that can only be found under a full moon in Haad Rin.
When Piper confides in Lochlan that she plans to stay behind in Thailand, he feels both abandoned and set adrift. In her absence, he flirts with Saxon’s party-first lifestyle, pushing limits even his brother won’t touch—taking mystery drugs, testing the bounds of his sexuality, and throwing himself into the kind of chaos that can only be found under a full moon in Haad Rin.
What’d He Wear?
While Lochlan’s questionable choices after that party may have left some viewers divided (to put it mildly), his style arguably resonated with much more certainty. After Walton Goggins’ splashy prints dominated the menswear conversation through the first three episodes, Lochlan swiftly took center stage in his croc-printed shirt. Fans scrambled to accounts like @whitelotuscloset to learn more, while Google searches surged for “Lochlan shirt” and “Lochlan White Lotus shirt”—peaking on March 11th, just two days after the shirt first appeared on screen in “Hide or Seek”.
This popularity speaks to the skillful costume design of Alex Bovaird, whose work across all three seasons of The White Lotus subtly reveals character through their often not-so-subtle wardrobe. While Saxon and his parents all exemplify North Carolina wealth-core, Lochlan demonstrates more individuality in his clothing that includes bolder prints and the occasional ironic tee.
One of these things is not like the other; Lochlan’s shirt print is the most visually striking of the Ratliff family attire as they join whom Victoria (Parker Posey) disparages as “the boat people” for their party. Clearly Saxon takes cues from his father Tim (Jason Isaacs) as both wear linen long-sleeved shirts, light-colored shorts, and boat shoes. Lochlan’s cream-colored shirt has navy-banded edges that visually align him most closely with his sister Piper, who also wears off-white with navy-striped trim. His trousers also echo her longer dress, which could suggest Lochlan’s rejection of her and shifting alliances to Saxon when swapping his slacks for swim trunks.
In a family dressed for appearances, Lochlan’s loud shirt and cosmic watch hint at a different kind of inheritance: one of doubt, identity, and the desire to escape.
The Tombolo Shirt
Lochlan wears the Tombolo “Reptile Dysfunction” shirt, crafted by New York “escapewear” brand Tombolo in collaboration with UK-based Deya Brewing Company. The shirting is 100% Tencel, with a cream-colored base detailed with navy-blue border stripes along the edges of the sleeves, straight waist hem, and pocket. The all-over print of blue-and-pink crocodiles and flowers is an original design by Deva Brewing Company designer Thom Hobson.
“There has been so much reptile imagery so far in this season (in the opening title sequence, in the snake-charmer pit, in the stolen piece of jewelry from the hotel boutique),” observed Brooke LaMantia for The Cut. “If we know anything about the way Mike White writes this show, chalking these sorts of details up to ‘coincidence’ is not his style.”
The design is a meaningful choice for Lochlan at this turning point in his story, as crocodiles in Buddhist narratives often symbolize destructive desires that threaten spiritual growth and lead to suffering.
The short-sleeved shirt has a deep-notched flat camp collar and a patch breast pocket with a notched top that splits the navy border print. Four reverse-engraved Agoya shell buttons fasten up the plain front, which is reinforced with a double layer of the voile-like Tencel fabric that follows the front edges of the shirt into a V-shape. The back is box-pleated.
“Reptile Dysfunction” is an ironic name for Lochy’s shirt during these episodes, as we learn that—much to he and his brother’s ultimate chagrin—dysfunction is far from his problem that night, reptile or otherwise.
Trousers and Trunks
Lochlan initially coordinates his outfit by wearing navy-blue linen trousers that have a straight cut down to the plain-hemmed bottoms with a short break, high over his ankles. Little other detail can be discerned on screen about these trousers, save for the on-seam side pockets. He also wears brown leather flip-flop sandals.
As the party continues, the Ratliff boys change into their swim trunks; Lochlan may have worn his under those linen trousers or he may have toted them along in the bag he had when boarding GreGary’s yacht. Either way, Lochy and Saxon exclusively wear swim trunks as their bottoms until returning to the White Lotus resort the following day.
Lochlan’s trunks are the now-discontinued Orlebar Brown “Flight of Fantasy” swim shorts in their standard mid-length, characterized by a six-inch inseam. Colorfully patterned against a pale rose-pink ground, “the print features lively exotic birds zipping between branches and luscious flora” as the brand described. Made from 100% recycled nylon, the shorts have side pockets, a zippered back-right pocket, and a white tubular drawstring through the waist, sealed with contrasting red-and-white rubber ends.
The clashing prints of the shirt and swim trunks are an appropriately chaotic combination, given the evening to follow.
In his confused discomfort the next morning, Saxon pulls on Lochlan’s wild-printed Orlebar Brown swim trunks, leaving Lochy to resort to Saxon’s discarded pastel-striped swim trunks. Surprisingly made by fast-fashion brand H&M (as also identified by The White Lotus Closet, of course), these polyester short-inseam trunks feature a vertical block stripe alternating between lavender and a sherbet shade of orange, tightened with a white drawstring and detailed with two side pockets and a set-in back-right pocket.
In addition to the narrative rationale, the switched swim trunks also indicates a shift in their dynamic, with Lochlan now asserting himself and leaving Saxon as the more confused sibling—and thus sporting the more “confusing” pattern. (Fans spotted the switched swim trunks in promotional stills and began theorizing even before the episode aired!)
Photo by Stefano Delia
Persol Sunglasses
Lochlan balances his youthful fashion choices with his Persol 649 sunglasses. This classic pilot-informed design dates back to 1957, when Persol developed the frame to protect Turin’s tram drivers from dust and glare but gained cinematic style cred thanks to icons like Marcello Mastroianni and Steve McQueen, the latter popularizing the “folding” 714 variation.
Styled in Persol’s classic Havana acetate, the 649 follows an aviator-style silhouette with its large round teardrop-shaped lenses and dramatic keyhole bridge, defined by a trio of vertical ridges flanked by a trio of peaks on each side, as well as the brand’s signature silver “Supreme” arrows and “Meflecto” stem system on the temples.
Photo by Fabio Lovino
The MoonSwatch
Lochlan’s budget-friendly Omega x Swatch MoonSwatch “Mission to Saturn” indicates another gap between him and the rest of his family. While designed in collaboration with prestige brand Omega, the Swatch-engineered bioceramic MoonSwatch series is considerably more affordable with its sub-$300 price tags. Meanwhile, Lochlan’s parents each sport solid gold Rolex Day-Dates and his brother Saxon arrived in Thailand with no less than three watches—a bulky blacked-out Hublot, an Apple Watch to keep him connected to the job he loves, and a green-dialed Rolex Milgauss that connects him to his parents.
“For Lochlan, the relatively affordable MoonSwatch makes sense,” propmaster Michael Cory explained in a GQ Reel. “As a high school senior whose extreme wealth can afford him nearly anything, the MoonSwatch Mission to Saturn is difficult to find, making in undeniably cool.”
The watches within MoonSwatch series are dimensionally and functionally similar, as all are quartz-powered chronographs with the details of their 42mm bioceramic cases designed to resemble the iconic Omega Speedmaster. Lochy’s “Mission to Saturn” ref. SO33T100 chronograph has a matching sand-colored bioceramic case and dial, contrasted by the fixed brown bezel with its white-printed tachymeter scale. Two sub-registers at 10 and 2 o’clock contrast a taupe-brown against the dial, while the second-counting sub-register at 6 o’clock depicts the planet Saturn. The white non-numeric hour indices, hour and minute hands, and 6 o’clock sub-dial hand are finished with Super-LumiNova® to glow in the dark, while the main second-counting hand and top two sub-dial hands are olive-green.
The watch comes on a branded brown Velcro® strap, though Lochlan has swapped his out for a non-stock brown strap detailed with a beige center stripe—still echoing the watch’s overall colorway.
What to Imbibe
Under Saxon’s tutelage, Lochlan leaves those MexiCokes behind and begins drinking beer on the boat, despite the fact that “mom and dad are right there!” The green bottles sport a fictional “Classic Beer” yellow label, though are clearly meant to stand in for the Thai beer brand Chang.
On Ko Pha-ngan, Chloe buys the group buckets of vodka—among other substances. Based on the bottle size and the ease with which Lochlan throws them back, I initially assumed that the buckets were filled with Smirnoff Ice, the citrus-like malt beverage with its beer-like ABV around 5%… until I realized the word “Ice” was nowhere to be seen on the label and Lochy was tossing down full 80-proof Smirnoff “Red Label” vodka.
It’s no wonder that Saxon warned him to “pace yourself!” but you can’t blame Lochlan for finding straight vodka more palatable than those disgusting smoothies.
How to Get the Look
Sam Nivola as Lochlan Ratliff on The White Lotus, Episode 3.04: “Hide or Seek”. Photo credit: Fabio Lovino.
Lochlan Ratliff’s croc-printed Tombolo shirt in The White Lotus became an instant fan favorite, appropriately named the “Reptile Dysfunction” for a chaotic night of debauchery and self-discovery. Paired first with navy linen trousers, then clashing Orlebar Brown swim trunks, and accessorized with Persol 649 sunglasses and a MoonSwatch “Mission to Saturn” chronograph, Lochlan’s evolving outfit—and Alex Bovaird’s thoughtful costume design—captured both his inner tension and his break from his family’s old-money uniformity.
- Cream (with blue-and-pink crocodile and flower print and navy-banded edges) Tencel short-sleeved shirt with notched camp collar, 4-button plain front, notched-top breast pocket, box-pleated back, and straight waist hem
- Tombolo “Reptile Dysfunction”
- Navy-blue linen trousers with on-seam side pockets and short-break plain-hemmed bottoms
- Pale-pink tropical bird/floral-print nylon swim trunks with white-drawstring waist, two side pockets, zippered back-right pocket, and 6″ inseam
- Orlebar Brown “Flight of Fantasy” Standard Mid-Length Swim Shorts
- Brown leather flip-flop sandals
- Persol 649 sunglasses with Havana acetate frames
- Omega x Swatch MoonSwatch “Mission to Saturn” ref. SO33T100 quartz chronograph with sand-colored 42mm bioceramic case, brown tachymeter bezel, sand-colored dial (with 3 sub-dials), and brown strap with beige center stripe
Lochlan wasn’t the only character to wear Tombolo this season either, as many of the Thai location staff’s uniform shirts were also Tombolo—designed specifically for the series.
Do Yourself a Favor and…
Check out the series, currently streaming on Max.
The Quote
What if this life is just a test to be see if we can become better people?
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