The Orange is New Black binge continues. Dare I stop for lunch? No, lunch is for the weak and leads to crumbs on the keyboard. Netflix released Season 4 on Friday which means I should have watched all 13 episodes on Friday. This is what comes from stopping for meals and bathroom breaks. In any case, here are my stream-of-consciousness ramblings on an empty stomach. Let’s go!

1. You’d think Aleida’s release would be a happy event, but it’s bittersweet because her chances of thriving on the outside are iffy. She’s not sure that she has any skills. Being a lousy mom is not a career. I don’t want to see her back at Litchfield, but recidivism is real. Just ask Taystee. Buena Suerte, Aleida!
2. Blanca is tough. She has not buckled. Her punishment for rebelling against the unreasonable stop and frisk policy is to stand on a table until she gives in. She’s been up there for two days, but head corrections officer Piscatella doesn’t want the “brotherhood” to show any weakness by treating the inmates as if they aren’t human beings. Thank goodness this is only fiction…
3. The White Powerpuff Girls are enjoying this. Piper, who started the fire, feels a teensy guilty.
4. Unlike selfish, toxic Piper, Sister Ingalls made the sacrifice to get herself thrown into SHU to find the MIA Sophia.
5. Oh, thank God Sophia is alive! This storyline has caused me way too much stress over a fictional character. Really. I won’t rest until she is out. Winning a civil lawsuit would also be nice.
6. So one of the “brotherhood” had fun punishing Maritza by forcing her to eat a live baby mouse. This season is grueling.
7. Ooooh, here is a great setup. Taystee uses her new administrative powers as Caputo’s assistant to show The Wiz at movie night. Nobody wants to see it–except Crazy Eyes, though she prefers the original movie because of Glinda.
   

   This Glinda from The Wiz Live looks familiar

   Nicely done, OITNB, nicely done.

8. Nicky’s hooked again and Red who has been set free from the snoring storyline wants to use her influence to crack down on the drugs in Litchfield. Red gets roughed up by a CO who doesn’t care for her tone. I’d like Season 1 Red to kick his ass.
9. Piper, who Piscatella will never find adorable, goes to the CO to protest the harsh treatment of the Latinas. He tells Piper to shove her complaints up her ass. Considering what’s been going on, she’s lucky that’s figurative.
10. Bad news: Sister Ingalls’ grand plan to document what’s happening to Sophia is foiled when she drops a phone she smuggled in. Seeing as she’s in a towel, we won’t linger on where the ex-nun was hiding that phone. Good news: Caputo finally shows up at SHU and after chiding Sister Ingalls confiscates the phone and uses it to take a photo of Sophia, confirming her whereabouts. Doesn’t he have the power to just free her?
11. That’s right, Piper, atone for your ways by joining Blanca on the table to protest the injustice of it all. Don’t you worry about the powder keg you sparked with the White Powerpuff Girls who are rather liberal with the word “nigger” these days. Not to say that they wouldn’t have used it anyway, but you’re the one who organized them enough to embolden them. You know, just like Donald Trump.
12. The prison needs to do something to the sewer something about something and Piscatella gives the order to destroy the greenhouse and garden. When you go digging around, you never know what might crop up.
13. Well, looky here, remember that assassin Alex killed and buried?

This was a strong episode. The original inmates have to be released at some point. Aleida got sprung but she didn’t disappear and we got to see her attempt to adjust. I hope the show follows some of the former inmates we’ve grown to know. Some loose threads started to come together; Crazy Eyes’ first relationship which took off and ended in a day or two in-universe was addressed again. Have we clamored to see Crazy Eyes’ first near-orgasm? Uh, no. We didn’t want to see her urinate on the floor in Season 1 either, but it’s classic Crazy Eyes. A nun harbored a cell phone in her vagina for the greater good. I just wanted to type that.

We enjoy clever and astute observations from OITNB fans. Comments don’t appear right away, but we promise we’ll get to them after disinfecting that phone.

Elaine G. Flores, Chief Editor

Elaine is the chief editor of TV Recappers' Delight. She's an experienced entertainment reporter, reviewer, editor, blogger, columnist and Bon Vivant.