Orange is the New Black: Series 2

This time last year, Netflix’s original programmes were still a novelty, and the original run of Orange is the New Black formed an important part of the first wave of instant television that secured the site’s name as a valid producer, as well as a distributor, of entertainment. This sometimes made it hard to divorce talking about the (excellent) show from the business side of things. Does the second series hold up now that the freshness has worn off? Well yes, for the most part.

For the uninitiated, OITNB chronicles the life of Piper Chapman (Taylor Schilling), a painfully middle class socialite who is sent to prison for 15 months when a darker chapter of her past resurfaces. A colourful supporting cast of guards and inmates, ranging from benevolent nuns to psychotic meth addicts, rounds out the action.

While the show has its roots in a true story (Piper Kerman, who wrote the memoir of the same name, serves as executive producer), the connections to reality now feel as if they’re getting a bit tenuous.

source: bbc.co.uk

In fact the show is less focused on Piper altogether this time round, instead spreading the screen time between several major storylines. This is probably for the best, since the vast number of characters means that episodes can feel like they’re bursting at the seams, even at 60 minutes. It’s testament to the quality of the writing that things never feel rushed, even at their most chaotic.

The plot this time include political corruption, drug dealing, hunger strikes, beatings, pregnancy, cancer the ongoing collapse of Piper’s life outside prison, and the return of a former inmate with unfinished business. There are also dozens of smaller conflicts and romances going on throughout the series. Some of them feel a tad superfluous but it’s so consistently entertaining that you probably won’t mind.

With so much going on, it’s no surprise that this season takes its time to get going. The first few episodes lack a sense of drama but it later becomes apparent that they are picking up the pieces from last year and setting the stage for the finale. More importantly, the build to the finale becomes so urgent that the lax start is soon forgotten.

Otherwise, if you’re familiar with the first series you know what you’re getting into this time round. And that’s far from a bad thing; the cast are still great, the scripts are still sharp and the blend of black comedy and pop culture references (Angry Birds! Lady Gaga! Toy Story 2!) is still pretty hilarious.

As before, the real heart of the show lies in its characters and their stories are still some combination of poignant, repulsive, and humorous. There are a couple of conspicuous absences (nothing can quite fill the hole left by Pablo Schreiber’s “Pornstache”) but the trade-off is that some underdeveloped personalities get fleshed out a bit more. A couple of formerly one-note characters have their backstories revealed and it’s absolutely heart-breaking.

If you’re familiar with the first series you know what you’re getting into this time round; the cast are still great, the scripts are still sharp

There are (wisely) only a handful of new characters but they make an impression. Soso (Kimiko Glenn) is great fun and makes a fantastic foil for Piper, playing out the same ‘privileged kid adjusting to prison’ arc that we’ve already seen the latter go through. New “villain” Vee (Lorraine Toussaint) is suitably menacing, although she feels a little underdeveloped in comparison to the more ambiguous characters.

Online origins aside, OITNB also still feels ahead of its time in the diversity of the cast. While so much comedy is still dominated by generic white dudes, it’s refreshing to see a cast of every gender, race and sexuality getting to be hilarious.

If you haven’t seen the first series it’s probably worth starting there and if you didn’t care for it there won’t be much new to tempt you back here. Nonetheless, Orange Is the New Black remains television of the highest calibre. It might lack some of the impact a second time round, but there’s still plenty of fun to be had at Lichfield Correctional Facility.