Rating summary

Movie		4.0
Video		4.0
Audio		4.0
Extras		3.0
Overall		4.0

Orange Is the New Black: Season Two Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Jeffrey Kauffman May 15, 2015

Series like House of Cards: The Complete First Season and Arrested Development may be getting Netflix the bulk of their public relations bang for their buck, but according to at least one online source, it’s Netflix’s “little show that could,” Orange is the New Black, that is regularly attracting outsized audiences. This sometimes peculiar blend of drama and comedy has managed against perhaps considerable odds to establish a rather winning tone that manages to explore some of the grittier aspects of women imprisoned in a federal penitentiary, while also offering more whimsical elements which, if not laugh out loud hilarious, at least add a soupçon of humor to the proceedings. Creator Jenji Kohan, who adapted Piper Kerman’s best selling memoir about being locked up for a long ago indiscretion involving porting drugs, is no stranger to crafting shows built around “women in trouble,” and specifically women in trouble due to their involvement with controlled substances, as evidenced by Kohan’s long running Showtime smash Weeds: The Complete Collection. Orange is the New Black doesn’t have quite the deadpan approach that Kohan’s tale of housewife turned drug impresario Nancy Botwin did, but it has proven consistently involving as it has detailed the slightly renamed Piper Chapman’s (Taylor Schilling) matriculation into prison life after what had been a comfortable (and conformist) existence in suburbia prior to her arrest. The second season continues to depict various traumas in Piper’s incarcerated life, while also introducing both new characters as well as more back story for existing characters.

Has Piper moved on from the relatively innocuous crime of drug running to the more nefarious activity of murder? The first season’s cliffhanging wrap up seemed to suggest that that was at least possible, as one of the young woman’s contentious relationships in stir finally boiled over into outright physical hostility. As the second season opens, that question is still up in the air, but the fact that Piper suddenly finds herself being transported to some new, initially unclear, location at least leads her to think she may in fact have killed someone. The truth turns out to be somewhat more mundane, with old nightmares coming back to haunt the character. Also haunting Piper is the seemingly unavoidable Alex (Laura Prepon), Piper’s long ago lesbian lover who got her mixed up in the whole drug mule enterprise to begin with, and who became a thorn in Piper’s side during the series’ first season. Alex is back with a vengeance (maybe literally) as the second season kicks into high gear, and as perhaps might be expected, Piper once again falls for Alex’s prevaricating ways, ending up digging herself into an even deeper hole than she was already.

Perhaps because the series starts its sophomore year in a bit of a disorienting gambit, the typical Lost-esque structure of ping ponging between supposedly determinative back stories and the current lives of the inmates is eschewed, at least temporarily, as a few dangling loose ends from the first season are tied up and Piper has to wend her way through a labyrinth or two before returning to Litchfield. After that marker, though, the series continues to explore the culture within the prison, while simultaneously seeking to delineate elements in society at large which has placed many of the women in these precarious straits.

With both top flight writers and directors (including Jodie Foster) continuing to pilot the series into sometimes slightly questionable waters, Orange is the New Black is consistently compelling, if often intentionally melodramatic. Lines of division between various quasi-gangs in the prison end up providing quite a bit of the through line for this season, as ever contentious power struggles break out, many involving the probably psychopathic Vee (Lorraine Toussaint), a woman with a personal connection to one existing “tenant” of Litchfield, and, it turns out, more than a passing acquaintance with at least one other inmate.

The series continues to mine both weird (and sometimes gross out) humor (like showers backing up with feces due to inadequate plumbing) or push the envelope with supposedly shocking insights into the slightly depraved behaviors of the residents (a sexual conquest contest of sorts breaks out between two of the women). What’s so surprising so much of the time about Orange is the New Black is how effortlessly it segues between the bizarre, slightly askew, comedic elements and the at times more emotionally overwrought personal stories of the women. There are times when the balancing act falters slightly, as in a tangential arc involving Larry (Jason Biggs) and Piper’s former best friend Polly (Maria Dizzia). (It’s already been announced Biggs will not be returning for season three, making this arc feel even more needless.)

The show’s strength continues to be its almost ridiculously overstuffed ensemble cast within the prison, an aggregation of (mostly) female talent that is an embarrassment of riches. Perhaps surprisingly, season one standout Kate Mulgrew is pushed just slightly to the sidelines this year as Red, the former chief executive of the prison’s kitchen, at least in the season’s early going. The good news is that Red figures materially in what turns out to be the second season’s most compelling storyline, a struggle for dominance with the unbalanced Vee.

Performances continue to be spot on this year, with Schilling’s Piper kind of coming into her own in terms of being able to care for herself, while at the same time not being immune to (lots) of stupid decision making along the way. The supporting cast, which includes fantastic work from a huge variety of accomplished actresses, continues to provide the show with really brilliant little character beats in virtually every episode.

The only warning graffiti scrawled on Orange is the New Black’s concrete wall is its tendency to continue stuffing the show with new characters in an effort to broaden the available base of intersecting storylines. The real life Piper Kerman wasn’t incarcerated forever, of course, and so there has to be a limit to this series, one way or the other. Whether cooked up by Red or not, this is a pretty heady stew to begin with, and perhaps doesn’t need any new added ingredients.

Orange Is the New Black: Season Two Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Orange is the New Black: Season Two is presented on Blu-ray courtesy of Lionsgate Films with an AVC encoded 1080p transfer in 1.78:1. While perhaps not consistently as sharp and well defined as some other (probably glossier) series filling niche cable and streaming services, Orange is the New Black continues to look very good almost all of the time on Blu-ray. Shot digitally with the Arri Alexa, the show tends to look best in the bright, fluorescent lit environment of the prison, where elements like the roughhewn concrete of the walls or tears in an inmate's orange jumpsuit are displayed with clarity and precision. Some of the flashback material adds quite a bit of pop to the palette as well, with some good outdoor material that provides solid renderings of sometimes fairly busy environments. The show suffers from a somewhat murkier ambience in scenes with less light, including nighttime scenes within Litchfield as well as even some exterior moments that take place in dim environments. Here, detail and shadow detail are marginally less impressive than in the bulk of the presentation. There is occasional very minor noise in some of these moments. Otherwise, though, Orange is the New Black continues to offer a generally very enjoyable presentation, one with commendable detail and no issues whatsoever with regard to image instability.

Orange Is the New Black: Season Two Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

Orange is the New Black: Season Two continues the series' tradition of well rendered audio with a generally very immersive DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 track. Once again there's at times rather surprising amount of detail in what wouldn't necessarily seem to offer a lot of sonic opportunities, in the cloistered environment of the prison. Simmering tensions occasionally break out with resultant audio force, and some of the busier environments, like the bustling kitchen, continue to offer a wealth of well placed effects and directional dialogue. Dialogue is very cleanly presented and always well prioritized. Fidelity continues to be excellent in this second season, and there are no problems of any kind to warrant concern.

Orange Is the New Black: Season Two Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

Disc One:

• Hugs Can Be Deceiving Cast Commentary features Uzo Aduba, Danielle Brooks, Vicky Jeudy, Adrienne C. Moore and Samira Wiley. It's sometimes hard to know who's saying what in this thing (as well the others featuring so many participants), for obvious reasons.

Disc Two:

• You Also Have a Pizza Cast Commentary features Uzo Aduba, Danielle Brooks, Vicky Jeudy, Adrienne C. Moore and Samira Wiley.


• Back Before the Potato Sack (1080p; 15:26) looks at the way the show reveals various back stories.


• Orange Peeled (1080p; 15:44) focuses on the series' writing team.

Disc Three:

• A Walk Around the Block (1080p; 7:26) features the actual Piper Kerman and production designer Michael Shaw discussing the show's production design while touring some of the sets.


• The Vee.I.P. Treatment (1080p; 10:51) profiles the frequently scary character played by Lorraine Toussaint.

Orange Is the New Black: Season Two Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Orange is the New Black veers slightly away from Piper in this second season, but that's not necessarily a bad thing, especially given the "deep bench" of talent on display in the series. The arc (actually arcs) involving Vee are often incredibly visceral, with violence threatening to spill out at any given moment. Performances continue to be riveting, but the series' signal accomplishment may be its near miraculous ability to wend from whimsical humor to gut wrenching drama at the veritable drop of a hat (and/or soap). Taken as a whole, this second season probably tops the first in developing compelling histories for Litchfield's motley crew of inmates. Technical merits continue to be very strong on this release, and Orange is the New Black: Season Two comes Recommended.