At first glance, Orange Is the New Black appeared to be the tale of a waspy entitled woman finding herself in a place she didn’t belong. The hardened criminals, sexual predators, and shared bathrooms were the enemies of one Piper Chapman — condemned to the perils of prison as a lily white ex(ish)-lesbian.
For fans of the show, we know this premise to be but the surface of what the show is truly about. Piper is a Trojan Horse meant to lead us behind the walls of Litchfield where complex, engaging, and engrossing characters sucked us into a binge worthy show like no other. The cultural, social, sexual, racial, and class divides and clashes are dealt with a slight hand filled with nuance, humour, and occasional tragedy.
Seasons one through three are ripe for the watching on Netflix, and on June 17th we can all go back behind bars to see what our favourite characters — and brand new players — are up to. Series creator Jenji Kohan and the team have got some ‘splaining to do with the cliffhanger we were left with last season. Also, does anyone actually buy that Piper Chapman is a “boss”?
You can catch my binge-a-thon recaps of season four starting June 17th, but in case you want a refresher about what happened last season you can check it out here.
