*Disclaimer: Like Supergirl, Orange is the New Black is a fine show that does a lot of things really well but falls short in certain aspects. Namely, like way, way too many shows, it features multiple characters with disabilities played by able-bodied actors. Seriously, if characters with disabilities were cast appropriately, actors with disabilities would be all over Hollywood in prominent roles.*
After
gushing over the utterly wonderful Poussey and Taystee, I figured I ought to
write about the show in general. Orange is the New Black was a slow
starter for me; it began as a show to watch when I had time, but it grew
addictive as it went on, and by the time I finished season 1, I was a definite
fan. I’m currently trying to figure out
how I’ll pace myself when season 2 arrives, knowing I’ll have a full year to
wait before getting any more.
In Orange is the New Black, Piper Chapman
is taken from her cushy life when she’s called up for a decade-old crime In her early 20s, she carried money for her
then-girlfriend, an international drug smuggler, and she’s now been sentenced
to 15 months in a medium-security federal prison for her sins. At first, she approaches her situation intellectually,
doing research on What to Expect When You’re in the Clink. She plans to keep her head down, power
through, and come out unchanged, where her fiancée and a season of Mad Man will be waiting for her.
Clearly,
Piper has a few things to learn. She’s
instantly overwhelmed by the dehumanization, the loss of privilege and
privacy. She’s thrown into a culture
where women don’t stray outside strict racial boundaries, the bathroom stalls
don’t have doors, and any sign of disrespect (to inmates or staff members) invites danger.
Her habit of putting her foot in her mouth has her in constant hot
water, and her usual method of conflict resolution – level-headed discourse –
doesn’t fly here.
Likewise,
Piper and her fiancée Larry see just how difficult it is to maintain their
relationship with Piper in jail. Piper’s
entire world has turned upside-down, and Larry has no way to truly understand
what she’s going through. Matters are
further complicated when Piper realizes she’s incarcerated with Alex, the
ex-girlfriend who presumably informed on her.
Despite the obvious bad blood between the two, there’s a magnetic pull
to their interactions, and Piper’s thoughts about the alluring, untrustworthy
woman do her head in.
Aside
from the central characters, the show is populated by a stellar ensemble of fellow
inmates. Their lives and stories are
revealed gradually, initial stereotyped impressions reshaping into women who
are deftly drawn and well thought out.
Each episode includes a flashback or two about one character’s
pre-prison life, and it’s great to see different facets of these women and get
a glimpse of what started them down the path to their current predicament. The show’s greatest strength is this unique,
complex, and sympathetic cast of characters.
They are of different ages, races, social classes, orientations,
national origins, and abilities. They
wrestle with hopelessness, power struggles, indignity, mental illness, rights
of gender identity, betrayal, and corruption, to name just a few. They also fall in love, adopt fierce
loyalties, chase the things that make them feel normal, and find reasons to
laugh. The show uses them to put
stunningly-individual faces to the often faceless circumstance of the
imprisoned. If Piper moved steadily down
my list of favorites throughout the season, it’s only because I kept finding
more to love among the supporting players.
Warnings
Swearing,
sexual content (including nudity, sex scenes, and masturbation,) substance
abuse, some violence, racist and homophobic slurs, and frank depiction of
bodily functions.
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