The inmates at Litchfield prison are back for the fourth season of Netflix’s critically acclaimed dramedy, but everything’s about to change in this season that is darker than the previous three.
The fourth season premiere of Orange Is the New Black picks up immediately after the third season finale. The majority of the Litchefield inmates are celebrating their brief escape at the lake, completely unaware that the society they built is about to be disrupted with the arrival of 80 new inmates.
Piper is proud to have attained the position of ‘jefe’ within Litchfield after getting her ex-lover Stella (Ruby Rose) sent to maximum security for her betrayal. While some of the new inmates immediately get to work on making their loyalty known, Piper has trouble exerting her authority over her new bunkmate. Ex-jefe Red imparts some advice to Litchfield’s new queen:
You get some power in here, they come running for you darling. Trust me. Especially when they ask for their pay, and you don’t have it… You need to them to think you’re stronger than you actually are.
Meanwhile, Alex is in the greenhouse trying to escape from the hitman sent by her old boss, drug kingpin Kubra Balik. She manages to break free from his clutches, but the aftermath proves to be more difficult than she had anticipated.
To make things more complicated, television cook Judy King (the show’s homage to Martha Stewart) has just arrived at Litchfield for her sentence. She’s originally placed in the ‘ghetto’ to share a bunk with her biggest fan Poussey, but the management at Litchfield is quick to make sure that her stay is comfortable. She’s granted a separate room with Yoga Jones as her roommate.
Outside the walls of Litchfield, Warden/’Director of Human Activities’ Joe Caputo is adjusting to his new position, as well as working within a corporate system. His job has become one of finding ways to save money rather than adhering to regulations, but he’s able to quickly adjust to the corporate mindset.
The number of Latina inmates has grown more than any other group, and the change in dynamic has led to conflict between inmates of different backgrounds. The Dominicans are so large in number that they can control the television, which leads to conflict with some of the newer inmates. The social hierarchy has changed, and we don’t know what Litchfield will look like at the end of the season.
All 13 episodes of Orange Is the New Black Season 4 will be available to stream from Friday June 17 on Netflix and Foxtel Anytime.
Starting from 5.00pm on Friday June 17, Foxtel’s showcase channel will screen a Season 4 marathon airing all 13 episodes.
Leah Rocke is a television blogger based in Melbourne. When not writing about her favourite television shows, she’s extolling the virtues of Mad Max: Fury Road to anyone who will listen.
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