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“Orange is the New Black” recap (4.12): Taking Sides

Why is this season so centered on the male CO’s flashbacks? Does anyone really care about Gerber Bayley’s high school years? Anyway, he and his ragtag groups of friends climbed a water tower to drink cheap beer and smoke oregano. The cops come, and they all realize how much worse climbing down from an extreme height is.

Age did nothing for Bayley and his awkward nature as he frightens Caputo shortly after pulling up outside of the prison. He tattles about Humps and his fight club and reveals the lengths in which Piscatella took this entire situation into his own hands.

Suzanne truly deserves better than all of the mess she’s been put through this far. Thankfully, her girls who are on hand to bring her back to reality surround her. The Jim Crow cadets come to make peace and join together against the hellion that is CO Humps. Ranks of hatred are clarified, and an alliance is formed to rid the prison of their common enemy.

Piscatella is obviously compensating for something with this abundance of aggression and the need to punish others. He wakes Red from her slumber and commands her presence down in the kitchen. The power battle between them continues.

Poussey surprises Soso down in laundry for a work break trip into the time machine. They share a silent dance and are momentarily transported out into the real world, free of their punishments. Soso flashes 10 years ahead to a vision of them sharing an overwater bungalow in Fiji and their future almost seems plausible should they ever be released.

Taystee and Sankey take their efforts down to the hair salon to enlist the Dominicans in their cause. It’s not an easy sell, but they counter taking out one guard for aiming at the head of it all, Piscatella. Everyone is in now; let the extraction tactics begin.

Sophia finally makes her walk back to minimum, passing the salon and the offensive sign of her past on the way.

Alex feels guilty about letting Lolli take the fall for the murder and Piper selfishly tells her she’s done the right thing for the both of them. It seems like they’ve hit the light at the end of the tunnel. They commiserate on their fate to end up on that very bunk regardless of the paths they may have taken given their experience so far. Piper offers a post-prison life of reading articles and clipping coupons, but really anything is better than what they’ve been through.

Caputo storms into the CO locker room to confront Humps on his actions. Instead of apologizing he blames Suzanne for Kukudio’s trip down to the infirmary with an ape joke. Piscatella oversteps Caputo’s authority and rescinds the doled out punishment threatening to pull the whole staff if he goes through with it. Regardless of the crimes these women committed to land them in Litchfield they are still women, and basic human decency isn’t too much to ask of those tasked with guarding them. Not a single one of the CO’s deserves praise for any of their work and were subtly reminded that people like this actually exist in this world. Caputo loses the battle, and the war looks like it will follow.

We flash back to Bayley sitting in prison with his friends worried about his future employment opportunities given the recent addition to his permanent record. The police pull a bad cop and scare them straight with tales of trumped up charges and the threat of grown men in prison. It reads of white privilege given the recent real life events, however, art is supposed to reflect life.

The Litchfield League of Nations meets in the library to fine tune their Piscatella extraction plan. Red suggests murder, however, given recent events the satisfaction of that action wouldn’t outweigh the follow-up punishment. Hapakuka suggests a peaceful protest as a solution. They vow to spread the word through their various clans. Their differences nearly sever the deal amongst a firing of microaggressions.

Up in the luxury nest of Judy King and Yoga Jones the aftermath of their romantic tryst is going better for some than others. Poussey braves the after-sex funk for a sit down with her cooking idol and gets an unwanted recap of the other halves night. Not to be deterred from her original goal, Poussey looks to the future and asks for some help from her celebrity friend. Judy King gives her a phone number and promises to help her find employment upon her release.

Sophia strolls into the bathroom in a semi-permanent haze, confused at her own reflection. Gloria tries to help with a compliment and a heartfelt welcome. She’s put back in her place by a weakened but not entirely broken Sophia. Forgiveness doesn’t come easy.

Pennsatucky makes her debut at the normal white girls table with Nicki’s blessing after she helped her detox. Big Boo still hasn’t forgiven her for making peace with CO Coates. Red’s resolve is weakening as she goes longer without rest. It’s then when Pennsatucky fills them in on plans for the movement. They level on the probability of it actually working when Big Boo claims he’s too big of a fish, and they should go after her former enemy instead. Piper chimes in supporting the existing anti-Piscatella movement but Alex reminds her of their vow to take things easy from now on. Red sadly reveals that the entire thing might be over before it could even begin.

Word of the protest moves around the cafeteria though all of the clique leaders doubt that solidarity can truly be achieved between the differing sects. The call to action is heard all around the Black girls table; they have to avenge Suzanne.

Sankey and her crew choose instead to insult everyone in the most derogatory way instead of carrying the mantle to save everyone from the CO’s brutality.

Ruiz doesn’t trust the neo-Nazis, but Blanca reminds her of their numbers and how little they actually need anyone else to make an impact. She argues that between what was done to either of them alone is enough to get things moving.

After what seems like forever, someone finally questions how the CO Alex murdered got hired in the first place given his four different social security numbers. Caputo is up a creek without a paddle; Taystee calls him out on his lack of action, and he blames the process for the delay. He approaches Gerber Bayley and warns him of the evils of working at Litchfield urging him to leave if he can. The comparison is lost in translation.

Actual baby Bayley pulls one of the older tricks in the book and gives a girl a free ice cream on account of the fictional “cute girl discount.” He’s supposedly throwing alley-oops to his friends sitting just outside the stand, and they are bombing in the worst way. Does this method ever work for anyone? It works for one thing: Bayley is fired, and apparently he’s given away hundreds of dollars of free ice cream away. His nerdy band of friends doesn’t seem to care very much about anything important.

As a peace offering, Pennsatucky dumps a pile of snacks onto Big Boo’s bed in hopes to rekindle their friendship. Pennsatucky offers the theory of pain or suffering, the latter of the two being a choice. The Bible taught her about forgiveness, and she is once more a servant to deliver the lord’s message. It’s hard to forgive the people who deeply hurt our friends, so Boo’s perspective makes sense. However, the friendship forged between this unlikely pair is too good to let fall by the wayside and they sort of make up.

Soso falls back into her activist mindset and juxtaposes their last attempt at protest versus the new plan. Poussey can’t hold in her excitement any longer and reveals the job offer from Judy King. Once more they’re not on the same page as far as their personal beliefs as Poussey doesn’t believe that their efforts will make a difference.

Judy King berates her lawyer for botching her release from prison. He seemed to be so good at every other task she threw at him and for $1800 an hour you’d do best to complete the given requests.

Morello catches up with her husband-and by catch up, I mean learns things about her husband and his life on the outside. He’s notably confused about her line of questioning, and it ends with her accusing him of cheating on her with her sister. While it’s still mild as far as Morello’s infidelity delusions it does prove nearly fatal for the hall phone.

Red seeks refuge in Healy’s office, and it seems that he hasn’t moved in quite some time. All she wants is to take a nap but it seems that Healy is tipping over the edge as his reality is a bit delayed. She tells him to pull it together on behalf of everyone, but he doesn’t make it very far.

Big Boo confronts CO Coates in the hall and slaps him. She decides that they’re square despite her immense hatred for him and spills that she was responsible for him waking up in laundry with his pants around his ankles. Oh, to have a guardian angel like Big Boo on your side feels safe.

Lolli’s time machine has turned full love shack, as Alex and Piper are the next couple to take advantage of the privacy. Just outside LeAnn and Angie are critiquing their mid-coitus sound effects coupled with a bag of chips.

Gloria reaches out once more when Sophia needs a brush from the salon. She clears the room with the elder card. Sophia’s wig is a little battered but a few brush strokes, and she’s almost her old self again. Where their friendship appeared to be broken forever, this small gesture shows the potential for healing, which is all Sophia needs right now.

Healy pulls up to a psychiatric institute to check in, knowing his history and looking at his current state of mind this is the best decision he’s made since we were introduced to his character.

CO Coates and Bayley level on the mental effects of working at Litchfield. Coates basically tells him he’s thinking too deeply into it all while lying about his own prison demons. We return to a teenage Bayley pelting eggs at his former boss’s house; another action for which he will get no punishment. They decorate the neighborhood in yolk and even toss a few at prisoners raking leaves in front of Litchfield long before he’s ever employed there. Funny how the wheels of the show’s timeline spins.

As a last resort, Caputo shows up at Figueroa’s door to apologize for underestimating her. She invites him in as a sign of compassion and tells him that he’s scheduled to get another shipment of inmates soon. He’s got this fancy suit, but it doesn’t help him to his job any better since he’s always in the dark about everything.

Instead of being truthful about her marriage doubts, Morello announces that she be Vince are going to try and have a baby. The very consummation of their marriage was pure luck, so this trial is far fetched at the least. Alex and Piper are horrible at keeping the secret of their romance from others, but sometimes you just can’t help those lingering touches afterward.

Piscatella tracks down a sleeping Red in the cafeteria, he kicks her out of her chair and yanks her to the main room to make an example of her. It’s odd how much he claims to care about a coworker dying while on the job, and I’m certain he couldn’t name the guy if he tried. Pushing Red on the ground appears to be the last straw for many an inmate. Blanca starts it off by walking out from behind the counter and retaking her power stance on the table. Piper, then Taystee, Hapakuka, Sankey and even Alex follow her. Before long the entire cafeteria is standing in defiance, Soso was right all they needed were the numbers. Ruiz breaks the silence with their demands and Piscatella calls for backup. Red joins the protest and stands up on the table just before all the CO’s finally make it to the cafeteria.

Suzanne panics at the sight of Humps and Poussey attempts to calm her. Bayley is closest, and he’s tasked with restraining her, knowing the state of mind Suzanne is in Poussey tries to get him off of her. In her rage, Suzanne then attacks Bayley, all while Poussey is slowly crushed beneath his knee. Watching this is the most painful thing because you think that eventually she’ll be saved. Our sweet angel Poussey who wouldn’t hurt a fly is accidentally suffocated on the floor while the madness occurs. Her last breaths accompany each and every one of the tears falling from my eyes right now. She doesn’t deserve this; we don’t deserve this. Taystee sees the tragedy of her best friend happening as she’s yanked from the tabletop. Piscatella pulls Suzanne off of Bayley and Coates pulls Bayley off of Poussey, but it’s far too late. Inmates crowd around her body and Taystee breaks free to see what has happened, she lies next to her friend and weeps for us all.

There’s been a lot of talk about how the writers of this show wanted to mirror the “Black Lives Matter” movement in their story lines. With the most recent events in Dallas and Minneapolis (and countless other cities if we’re going to be honest) this wasn’t the way to go about it. Perhaps it would’ve been handled better had the Black actresses provided some feedback on the script or even if there was a pinch of color in the writer’s room to begin with. As a Black woman, this scene really hurts-like take a two-hour cry break hurt. It’s different than all the other LGBT character deaths we’ve suffered through. Poussey was a rare glimpse at someone who shares my intersections, and she was snatched from us, all that representation gone. The way that Black Death is presented in the media reality we live in today, we didn’t need this.

If you’ve got some inventive methods for self-care tweet them to me @uhitsveronica, we can also discuss different storylines for how to achieve the goal the writers were actually striving for. Remember: No spoilers in the comments, though none of them can be worse than what just happened.

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