What I’m Watching: Orange is the New Black

Orange is the New Black: Season 5, Episode 12 “Tattoo You” (B+)

The riot’s just about over, and it’s not ending the way anyone wanted it to. The governor agreeing to give in to all of the demands because of the leaked Piscatella video was a real victory, but Taystee, who was the one who started the riot, still hasn’t achieved the recognition for Poussey that has always been most important to her. She has no idea, of course, that Bailey actually paid a visit to Poussey’s father to apologize for killing her, and he’s racked by so much guilt that he would be fine turning himself over and being punished for his crime. But the hostages made it out, much to everyone’s confusion, and now the army with the riot gear is ready to go in. Maria, who helped the guards escape, isn’t going to get what she was promised, and Gloria is in particularly bad shape inside the prison, now confined to the cell with Luschek. Nicky was pretty surprised when she found out that Lorna was indeed pregnant, and calling Vinnie was a great show of formidable friendship. Linda’s secret is out, and Big Boo knew exactly how to punish her for lying. The former star of this show took center stage again in this episode as Piper was treated to some flashbacks of her going through a rough patch with Alex and then calling her drunk when she was with Larry. Proposing to Alex was quite the about-face from her poorly-received curiosity earlier in the episode, and let’s hope their happiness can continue once reality sets back in as the riot ends.

What I’m Watching: Sex and Drugs and Rock and Roll

Sex and Drugs and Rock and Roll: Season 1, Episode 6 “Tattoo You” (B+)

There has never been an instance of more perfect casting than having Callie Thorne play Gigi’s mother. While Thorne earned a Golden Globe nomination for her USA series “Necessary Roughness,” it was her work as Sheila on “Rescue Me” that truly astounded me, and she’s an obvious choice for Leary’s latest show, the first major player from that series to show up here in a big role. She toned down the crazy and upped the flirtation factor, largely ignoring Johnny but trying to tempt Flash with her sex appeal to end his relationship with Gigi, which she saw as misguided and ill-advised. There was a lot of explicit talk about vaginas in this episode, but that seems to be par for the course for this foul-mouthed crew, getting away with as much as they can say on FX and bleeping out the rest. I loved the conversations between Cat and Ava in which they complimented each other’s styles and bodies before getting down to real words and insults, ultimately emerging with a more serious and better understanding of where they were both coming from. Flash admitting that Gigi seems like a younger version of her mom and that maybe he was too old for her was definitely honest but also prompted an honest reaction from her in the form of his destroyed guitar. The line of the half-hour, from Flash, was “I’m 50, but my balls are 17,” a truly off-putting and odd sentiment only this show could pull off. More Callie Thorne in the future, please!