What I’m Watching: Orange is the New Black

Orange is the New Black: Season 2, Episode 5 “Low Self Esteem City” (B+)

More and more, this show is utilizing its ensemble to tremendous effect. Starting a war over bathrooms between two of the cultures in the prison is certainly an intense route, and one that’s sure to be full of hijinks. Gloria reducing Vee to tears was a low point, and John going ballistic after Dayanara got tripped was a worrisome moment that won’t be so easy to sweep under the rug. Gloria’s backstory was a powerful one, and watching her abusive husband burn after he tried to take her money was a sign that she is not someone to be messed with. It’s despicable to see how Natalie deals with problems at the prison, reducing everything to a cost figure and mandating showers no longer than thirty seconds for inmates. This episode did manage to make two previously unlikable characters relatively sympathetic, thanks to a chance run-in off-premises between Healy and Caputo. The latter being part of a band called Side Boob was pretty hilarious, and it seems that Healy is the more eager of the two to continue the friendship, mainly because he’s having plenty of trouble at home getting his wife to like him despite the helpful advice he gets from Red. Healy granting furlough to Piper following her all-too-jovial discovery of her grandmother’s impending death was a rare sentimental moment, and maybe it’s indicative of more kindness to come, though I doubt it. Nicky trying to seduce Fischer in her sex battle with Boo is bold, and at the moment at appears to be nowhere near productive.