I've been watching "Orange is the New Black" since the summer it came out, and I continue to be impressed year after year with what the writers create. After watching season one, I decided to read the book it was based off of, and while I enjoyed it, there's something about the show that really captures my attention. As you probably know, Netflix shows such as "Orange is the New Black," "House of Cards" and "Daredevil" episodes are posted all at once, and once a year. For those of us with no self control, that means finishing 13 episodes in a week and having to wait another year for more.
After watching season one, I was incredibly impressed with Orange is the New Black. It was something I had heard of, but didn't get around to it until it had been out for a few months. Once I was hooked though, I was really hooked. The next summer, I had the release date marked on my calendar and watched it all. The pattern has repeated itself ending with season four, my personal favorite. One of the brilliant things about this show is that it does an incredible job of addressing issues of race, sexuality, mental health, drug usage, relationships, and first impressions.
Below is a list of all of the particularly well done concepts:
1. Relationships
In a female prison, relationships are bound to happen, whether they be between inmates, guards, or a combination. Upon entering Litchfield in Season 1, Piper, the main character, had no way of knowing her ex girlfriend would be in the same prison, let alone be the reason she was in prison in the first place. As we move throughout episodes and seasons, we see the importance of not only romantic relationships, but platonic ones as well. "Families" are formed between women often of the same race, and it provides a (mostly) non-judgmental community in which new inmates can assimilate. As we learned the hard way in the first 3 seasons, not all relationships are good. Between Daya's unwanted pregnancy, forceful relationship with one guard, and chosen relationship with another, and Pensatucky's rape, relationships are not always for the best.
2. First Impressions.
In a prison, everyone is there for something, but upon looking at inmates, we as viewers and them as inmates all form their own first impressions based on looks, crime(s) committed, and who they hang out with. For a while, Lolly Whitehill seemed dangerous and a huge threat. As it turned out, she ended up saving Alex's life which would end up being her own downfall. Judy King, a new character meant to represent Martha Stewart, was viewed as kind for a while, and although I believe she is good at heart, it became clear when she left the viewing of "The Wiz" and tried to distance herself from Poussey's death that she cared mainly for herself.
3. Drugs
A lot of inmates are in Litchfield for possession of drugs, selling drugs, or somewhere in between, ranging from marijuana to heroin. Inmates such as Nicky and "the methheads" struggle to remain clean. Although drugs are a serious issue, one thing "Orange is the New Black" does very well is that they always view the inmates as people. Even if the guards, especially in season four, treat them more as animals, to us viewers, they are friends. The backstories for relevant characters are a great way of enforcing the fact that they are just like us. They had friends, families and jobs. They lived their lives like us and for one reason or another, made a wrong turn that landed them in prison. In general we view prisoners as something other than people. While we acknowledge that they are people, we only see them for their crimes, and while some I believe are unforgivable, a lot of prisoners will only ever be seen for what they did wrong.
4. Gender and Sexuality
LaVerne Cox makes history as a transgender actress in this show, but she isn't the only one to portray her gender and sexuality. Her struggle with her wife and son are heartbreaking, and being sent to Maximum Security "for her own protection" seemed like an easy way to punish her for being "different." Characters such as Boo, a growing favorite, is very clear about being Butch, and even has it tattooed on her arm. Some characters such as Morello are very open about their sexuality, and others are not. The show portrays lesbian relationships in a positive light, but it also shows us that not every inmate is interested in women, such as what happened between Taystee and Poussey.
5. Race
As I mentioned with relationships, race is the easiest way the prisoners find their family. By dividing into smaller groups, life becomes easier. What I found interesting when starting the show was that a lot of the prison seemed to be unconsciously segregated. By dividing into racial groups, bathrooms were for one race only. Race became an even bigger issue when we were introduced to characters such as Skinhead Helen and other "white pride activists", one with a Confederate flag tattooed on the back of her neck. With tensions high, race seemed to come up much more often than in the previous three seasons.
With Poussey's death in the penultimate episode of season four, race became relevant yet again. With the Black Lives Matter movement in full swing and unlawful deaths happening left and right, I think the writers knew what they were doing when Bayley unknowingly killed Poussey. With her last words being "I can't breath," the writers credited the deaths of many blacks in the past few years, many at the hands of law enforcement. I've sen a lot of articles saying they killed her off because she was a minority in every sense, in terms of race and sexuality, but I disagree. She was my favorite character. Her happiness was contagious and her energy was pure. I've watched the final two episodes of season four three times now, and while I cry and am heartbroken every time, I understand why it had to be done. Killing off such a lovable character alluded to real deaths today in which the person did not do anything wrong and did not deserve to die.
6. Mental Health.
While brought up in reference to Suzanne or "crazy eyes" (in season 1), mental health wasn't often talked about until we got to season four. Lolly killed a guard sent to kill Alex, saving her life, and had always been slightly different from the other inmates, but also harmless. As we saw in her backstory, she has schizophrenia, and trying to get the voices out of her head is what landed her in prison. Her relationship with Healy is special because Healy's mom also had schizophrenia and he understands. He protected her in every possible way, and her heartbreaking walk into the psych ward was powerful.
What I think hurt the most about watching Lolly leave is that she never hurt anyone. Whenever she struggled with schizophrenia before prison, she had ways of getting the voices out of her head. Her confession to killing the guard is what put her in psych, but it hurt to watch because although no one but Alex, Freida and Red will every know, Lolly saved a life. She never intentionally hurt anyone, and when she did, it was because they (the henchman) deserved it. "Orange is the New Black" shed a light on mental illness in prison that isn't often discussed. It showed Lolly needing help, but the help she needed wasn't the psych ward. The screams heard and the woman being roughly held down sent chills down the spine of everyone who watched it.
As I sit waiting for season five of "Orange is the New Black," I, and all the other viewers, have a lot to think about. If you haven't already watched the series, I highly recommend it.
