In previous seasons this show would have a time for jokes, then there would be a moment when things got real, and after that they would end with a cliffhanger leaving us wanting more. And all through this they would sprinkle in some really important issues that would make us think. This season they didn't waste any time getting real and took the issue of race head on.
The Good
As tough as it is to take on the issue of race, they were able to give us some laughs. My other favorite parts were the backstories of Suzanne and Blanca. I wanted more on Suzanne's backstory and finally got to see some of it. We new nothing about Blanca and were finally able to see what life was like for her before she was in prison.
The Bad
Piper, Piper, Piper. I'm one of many who just doesn't like her. I'm not interested in her story. This season I noticed a parallel with Gloria and Piper. Both of them had a beef with another inmate (Sophia and Ruiz) and got that person in more trouble (Sophia was sent to the SHU; Ruiz got more prison time). The difference is that Gloria felt guilty and did what she could to fix it. Piper really only thought of herself. Thankfully, she realized what she did was wrong but she never talked to Ruiz to try and apologize and she didn't try to talk to the racist inmates after she basically formed a racist gang. One thing that always bothers me about Piper is that she always thinks of herself and how other people's actions affect her and not how her actions affect other people.
The Ugly
The new CO's were awful! I didn't think they could get any worse than Pornstache but they go so much worse. I just don't understand why they had to be such disgustingly awful human beings! I get that they did it to prove a point. There are people like this who work in law enforcement and they shouldn't. But, these characters were never punished for their actions. A good scolding from Caputo wasn't enough. These people should have been fired, especially Piscatella.
Poussey's death was the hardest, most painful character death I've ever experienced. I don't think I've cried that much over a character, ever! I guess you could say that she got a proper send off with the flashbacks but that didn't make is hurt any less. In fact, it actually made me feel worse. It was super hard for me because all I could think of was the video of the young girl from Texas, who was sat on by a cop after she left a pool party. Or the fact that Poussey said she couldn't breathe which were also the last words of Eric Garner. I really thought that Caputo would tell the media truth, but he didn't and I'm going to talk about that later. I also read and article (here), and the vibe I got from that was that they chose to kill her for shock value. That rubs me the wrong way.
I'm on the fence with the show at this point. I wish that they took a similar route that Scandal took with the episode 'The Lawn Chair.' That episode dealt with racism within law enforcement but left us with a feeling of hope at the end because the officer was punished for what he did. I understand that this show wanted to be realistic, but I think it's possible to do that as well as give the viewers hope.
Two things I want to mention. One, a picture of the writers room came out (here), and there wasn't a single Black person, man or woman. I just don't understand how you can write a show with the main theme of the season being race issues between Black and white people, and not have one Black person on the writing staff. How can you tell a story about racism without the input of Black people?! Seeing that picture, I now understand how some things were allowed. The Black community's voice was not heard and I think that's a real shame.
Second, Poussey is a lesbian character and TV shows have a problem with killing LGBT characters. It happens so often that people expect it or are worried that it's going to happen. If it doesn't happen then it's a huge deal and people are breathing a sigh of relief. This show decided to add one more to that body count. If they were trying to kill of a character to get a huge emotional response from the fans, there's a long list of other characters that they could've chosen.
Lastly, I just want to say that I wished the show didn't end the way it did. I predicted that a mutiny would happen, I just wished that the protest would've worked. I wished that Caputo would've remembered that he had morals and went against the MCC by telling the truth and not by covering for Bayley. I wished that they didn't choose Daya (one the sweetest inmates) to be the one pointing a gun at the CO. I wished that they didn't spend 4 seasons telling us that these inmates are more than just criminals, but actually people just like us, and then reduce them to just criminals in the final moments of this season.
So, I'll be cautiously approaching season 5. I think I'm going to wait and see what people are saying about it before I decide to watch.
Thought? Please share.
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