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By Allie Windergerst Aug 19, 2013
Why I’m Not in Love with Orange is the New Black
I’m about to share some pretty unpopular opinions about this show so you may want to quit reading if you’re a die-hard fan. There may be some spoilers too so be warned if you haven’t watched the show yet.
I was immediately skeptical when my friend told me about this show for the first time. The fact that it’s a fictional prison drama was a turn off for me at first (unless it’s Cops or Lockup, which are technically reality shows, I’m generally uninterested).
After numerous friends pressed me to watch, I finally gave in. My first impression was pretty negative; it took three or four episodes for it to get interesting to me at all.
In all honesty, I don’t find Piper’s character to be that compelling. I don’t mean that the acting is bad; it’s generally fine. She just doesn’t do it for me. I don’t think her personality is portrayed very complexly until the season’s ending episodes. I get that she’s supposed to grow as a character but she mostly bores me except for a few moments that are redeeming (like when she tells off Mr. Heely for being homophobic and misogynistic). I think she bothers me mostly because she refuses to take the blame for her own mistake.
And yes, it was a mistake, but it was one she actively chose to make knowing the potential for repercussions—so the fact that she acts so “woe is me” in the first few episodes was really annoying to me. (And I know that if I were in her situation I’d probably act the same, but I don’t think it makes for an interesting television character still).
My biggest issue lies in the final episode. It maybe ruined the whole series for me, depending on whether or not the person who loses the fight at the end is dead or not (I’m trying not to spoil things here!). I say this because if the woman is dead then I feel like it’s sort of a cop-out. I get that it’s supposed to reveal the kind of person both characters really are, but I think they could have done that in much better or more interesting ways. It was a little too predictable as well. I suppose they did their job since it made me want to at least watch the first episode of next season, but still.
One fantastic thing the writers do is the inclusion of backstories for the prisoners. I love how they show what each woman was like before they were imprisoned, since often it’s quite different than how they act behind bars. It definitely made me more sympathetic towards their situations, and gives context for why they act in certain ways. It also makes the minor characters especially much more interesting and well rounded. The best example of this for me was when they explained the real reason Miss Claudette was imprisoned. It changed my whole view towards her (although I never had a negative opinion of her) and made me actually quite admire her.
I also think the writers do a great job of showing the female prison experience. I don’t think there are many prison dramas that get to the heart of that, so I think it’s refreshing that they’ve done so with such a wide range of characters and personalities. I had a hard time adjusting to the more provocative scenes at first because I wasn’t expecting them to be so explicit, but I think that adds to the overall effect as well.
Ultimately, I’d say that I liked the show, but I definitely didn’t love it like a lot of people seem to. I’ll give the second season a shot for at least a few episodes, but I don’t think it’ll be a show I add to my list of binge watching anytime in the near future.
