What I’m Watching: Orange is the New Black

Orange is the New Black: Season 4, Episode 6 “Piece of Shit” (B+)

It catches me off-guard sometimes when I realize that there’s no featured flashback in a given episode. That was the case here, but there’s so much going on that I barely even noticed. It was great to start with a focus on Nicky, a character this show has gone far too long without. Seeing how she kept her spirits up by naming state capitals and celebrating small victories like earning a sobriety milestone chip she couldn’t even hold onto was inspiring, and it’s a shame that Lubschek’s visit drove her to such a place that she felt the need to break her sobriety just as he found a way to get her released and sent back to general population. Lubschek really is an awful person, as exemplified by so many moments in this episode, and it’s great to see him start to realize that maybe he doesn’t have to be so bad. Judy demanding sexual favors in exchange for her help shouldn’t have been entirely unexpected, and now he’s crossing a line that he really shouldn’t be, and even he knows that. Piper also crossed a line by framing her competition, and I can tell that she’s going to regret it, as if she doesn’t already given the years it added to another prisoner’s sentence. Taystee did a great job of negotiating peace between warring bunkmates, and I’m eager to see their partnership continue. I’m loving the relationship between Caputo and Linda, and Caputo really does have the best interests of his inmates in mind. Hopefully this education thing will take off as he envisions it.