TV Review: Orange is the New Black

Orange is the New Black is a tumblr fav, and I confess to watching the show for the sake of figuring out where all these gifs were coming from (and I was quite interested in the race aspects). I'm currently on "break" from the show, but first I'll explain it for those that haven't watched it.


Piper is quite the privileged girl and her experiences in jail are quite eye opening. Piper is sent to jail for something she did in the past- smuggling something (money? drugs?) for her girlfriend (she says she used to be lesbian). The show is a look at jail and the impact it has on Piper.

Many of Piper's experiences are hilarious just because she is a nice, blond, white lady surrounded by other animalistic women, as some people like Piper's mom see it. Piper eventually admits that she deserves to be in jail just as much as anyone else. That doesn't mean Piper adjusts well. Her experiences are often funny.

The show also follows the other ladies Piper meets in jail, and this is where some of the story really shines. Everyone has their own story and it is sad to see how all these ladies were on the outside. Some stories are of a cyclical nature, and it's not hard to feel sympathetic towards these women.


Orange is the New Black also deals well with diversity. There are many different races and these differences are acknowledged. The beauty and strength of all these women are shown, and it was quite fun to see how they interacted with each other. There is also lots of sexual diversity and that is one of the most heartbreaking storylines.

The show is on Netflix and every episode has its own story loop. There does not seem to be a massive overarching plot, and this is where Orange is the New Black stalled for me. I like longer storylines and while I did enjoy the humour and exploring the lives of all the different women, I really would have liked a bigger storyline. I guess I'm not the type for a comedy. Still, Orange is the New Black is pretty good, and I enjoyed watching it regardless, even if it didn't draw me in overall.

-P.E.

4 comments:

  1. don't feel too bad it didn't draw me in either I watched a few episodes and gave up while it's on my Netflix acct I haven't gotten back to it. Piper to me feels flat in alot of ways. Some of the things she does I would never consider doing. Then again I don't think I would land myself in jail either. Great review. New follower through Google+

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    1. There was a little bit of that too. I don't know how far you go but there was a certain episode about a chicken that I was really not into. Still, she was in prison, and I wouldn't know what that would do to your head.

      Thanks for following!

      -P.E.

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  2. Out of the 4 of us, only Kristan watches this show, but she agrees that the diversity is one of the best parts. So many different kinds of diversity -- and you see that even within the racial groups, there are varying backgrounds and world views.

    Kristan also loves that this is a show almost entirely centered on WOMEN, which is so, so rare -- and yet, as OITNB has proved, can be so, so successful.

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    1. Absolutely! I feel like it's a little easy for me to forget about that part because I mostly watch shows centred around women, but this show seems to be representative.

      -P.E.

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What do you think?