Orange Is the New Black - TV Series Review

Piper Chapman, a privileged woman whose past crime turns her into an inmate at Litchfield Penitentiary is the main character of Orange Is the New Black. With the series excelling at navigating the interpersonal dynamics inside the prison, they pay respective attention to Piper’s story as well as other inmates’ narratives. Raw honesty and authenticity are revealed in how the series reveals the struggles of personal and collective with the seasons as it mirrors the blunders of our society with open eyes.

Series has set a precedent in the discussion of hard hitting themes such as racial issues, sexual identity, prison corruption and relationships between women. Rather, each story tells viewers to think about justice, compassion, and the humanity of inmates. The pacing vacillates from high comedy to serious drama, an intended effect that impresses and lingers long after due to the fine writing and marvelous, distinct ensemble work from Taylor Schilling as Piper Chapman, Uzo Aduba as Suzanne, Danielle Brooks as Taystee, etc.

All the characters are deep and rich with history, and they are all up to that point, they all have a story to tell. The character development in the series is a huge commendable thing, it vividly portrays these women’s growth and perseverance, all developed in a series of sub plots.

It also has a solid narrative pace, along a more or less emotional intense pace, under the skillful direction of Andrew McCarthy, Phil Abraham, and Michael Trim. The directors incorporate several storylines seamlessly and each character gets their due narrative arc. First direction gives the opportunity to a visitor to feel with all the ups and downs of prison life; music in Orange Is the New Black adds nothing but to the immersion — a soundtrack which perfectly harmonizes with the emotions of each frame. The music, particularly the song to which the theme song of the show refers, as well as the carefully chosen tracks throughout the show, nicely enrich the show’s emotional depth with another layer.

The cinematography is full of intriguing visuals of the harsh life in prison. This adds the monochrome to show how Litchfield Penitentiary comes to life with the characters being the rainbow of colors. Its a decidedly authentic look at a static setting of a prison that becomes a dynamic place filled with stories, and the camera work is often deft taking us in close for intimate moments and wide for the isolating breadth of incarceration.

One series that it also deftly employs special effects in is Orange Is the New Black, and its special effects only serve to make the prison feel more real. Regardless of the shade of orange or the length of cable in use, the meticulous attention to detail in recreating the rust and grit of the prison and other areas heightens the narrative’s plausibility and adds to the already present sense that Litchfield is an existing character in its own right. Orange Is the New Black is strongly narrative driven and its series celebrates that at the expense of visual style that prioritizes the emotional and physical tolls of incarceration. Yet wonderfully the series gets as much out of makeup and practical effects as it does from dialogues.

Its a series that scores points on editing, particularly in how it seamlessly transitions between flashbacks and the post present day sequences. Orange Is the New Black uses visual storytelling techniques to parallel the past and present narratives, and its editors keep an irresistible pace that gives short shrift to character arcs and still finds time to move the plot forward.

High tension sequences are sporadically deftly interweaved with slower, character study episodes that keep audiences sitting at the edge of their seats.

For example, the dialogue is sharp, authentic, and often funny and serves as both storytelling and character development device. While it captures the jargon of prison life, it provides pithy comment about broader societal issues. Orange Is the New Black is an amazing production in many ways but lags a bit here and there, most notably with pacing inches that drag or repeat themselves later on in seasons. Yet these moments are but rare moments and they contribute but so little to the series as a whole.

My journey through Orange Is the New Black was a beautiful one, full of wondering, crying, and pondering. This goes beyond typical entertainment; it is an eye-opener, commenting on issues rarely discussed. What remains with me are the credits; The show spread my human understanding wide and peered at my face with challenges to my human perceptions.