Orange is the New Black is a comedy-drama set at a minimum-security women’s federal prison, Litchfield Penitentiary, in upstate New York. The prison is run by private management company MCC. Last season, due to budget cuts, a poorly-trained guard ended up accidentally killing a beloved inmate. Once the prisoners learned that no charges were being filed against the guard, they decided to riot. As the riot was breaking out, one of the other guards pulled out a gun he sneaked into the prison, which fell into the hands of the prisoners, and escalated matters quickly. The fifth season picks up right where we left off, and takes place over the course of three days, following the events inside the prison throughout the riot.

The fifth season is probably my favorite season of the series thus far—it is certainly the funniest. Once the riot begins, there are several civilians trapped in the building—the remaining guards, the warden, and the PR consultant who was trying to help spin the accidental death situation are all captured by the prisoners and taken as hostages. They are tied up and forced to strip. MCC employee Linda manages to escape before the hostages are taken, thanks to Alex & Piper, who help her disguise herself as an inmate after she overhears them talking about the guard that Alex killed. She may be safe for the time being, but she is in for quite a culture shock. Meanwhile, celebrity Judy King’s release wasn’t processed before the lockdown, so she too is trapped inside.

Brook and Suzanne are still mourning the death of Poussey, and Taystee seems to be the only one hellbent on getting justice, trying to ensure that CO Bayley gets punished for murder. Many of the other inmates are just rioting for the fun of it, and a vacation from their usual prison life. Taystee is the only one taking the demands seriously. While she’s pushing for prison reform and justice for Poussey, others are more concerned with getting things like Hot Cheetos & Takis, and an appearance by Beyonce.

Each season this series uses flashbacks to give viewers a glimpse into the lives of the prisoners before they made their way into Litchfield. This season we look into the lives of Frieda as a young Nature Scout learning to survive on her own; MCC employee Linda during her sorority days; Alison as she suggests bringing a second wife into her marriage to help with her daughter; Watson as a disillusioned teenager who gives up trying after seeing the wealth of resources available to the high schooler in the rich part of town; Taystee as she meets her birth mother for the first time; Daya back in high school trying to fit in; a younger Red smuggling blue jeans and starting her criminal career in Russia; Piscatella as a brand new guard falling for one of his inmates; and Piper & Alex just before Piper’s arrest/Alex’s betrayal.

Having everything in the fifth season take place over just three days allows for a much more detailed story. We really get to know the characters and see what they are going through. Alex and Piper play house, and bicker like an old married couple; Frieda reveals a massive secret project she has been undertaking all these years in prison; Lorna wonders if her pregnancy is just another crazy delusion, and she and Nicky have a lover’s spat and try to make one another jealous; and Red plots revenge on Piscatella. Meanwhile, meth heads Leanne & Angie provide much of the comic relief of the season, constantly coming up with ridiculous plans and activities, such as making the guards participate in an American Idol-like talent competition. And Maritza and Flaca also have a fun storyline, creating sexy outfits out of their prison uniforms and starting a beauty tip vlog, trying to become YouTube stars. The season starts off quite comical, and grows a little more serious as the season goes along, but overall remains quite humorous throughout the entire season.

I binged all thirteen episodes in one day and thoroughly enjoyed this season. There are some really creative episodes this season. Episode 4 with the guard talent show is so much fun, episode 9 plays out like a classic horror movie with people getting picked off one at a time, and the season finale is quite action-packed and exciting, leading to a big cliffhanger that makes you anxious to see what happens next! If season 6 had been available, I probably would have started watching immediately.

Lionsgate’s Blu-ray looks and sounds great. The picture remains clear and detailed in both bright and darker scenes. The audio track provides clear dialogue as well as a great ambiance that makes you feel like you are in the middle of the action, whether that be the sound of a blaring alarm, or general riotous noises. The release also contains a small number of bonus features, including a gag reel, a 15 minute featurette with the cast, and audio commentaries on the final two episodes. The episodes and bonus materials are spread across three discs, which come packaged in a multi-disc HD keep case along with a cardboard slipcover, and an insert containing the digital copy code/redemption instructions.

What’s Included:

Episodes: (12:00:23)

Blu-ray:

• All 13 Episodes of Season 5:
  Disc 1: “Riot FOMO”, “Fuck, Marry, Frieda”, “Pissters!”, “Litchfield’s Got Talent”, “Sing It, White Effie”
  Disc 2: “Flaming Hot Cheetos, Literally”, “Full Bush, Half Snickers”, “Tied to the Tracks”, “The Tightening”
  Disc 3: “The Reverse Midas Touch”, “Breaking the Fiberboard Ceiling”, “Tattoo You”, “Storm-y Weather”
• 1080p / Widescreen 1.78:1
• Audio: English 5.1 DTS-HD Master Audio, French 5.1 Dolby Digital Audio, English Descriptive Audio
• Subtitles: English SDH, Spanish

Digital (Code may not be valid after 6/12/19):

• Ultraviolet Digital HD copy of all episodes redeemable via Vudu or FandangoNow

Extras:

Bonus material is spread across all three discs
• Gag Reel (5:34)
  A fun gag reel with the cast cracking up, flubbing lines, and having fun on set.
• 72 Hours In 6 Months: Stories of the Season (14:57)
  The cast talks about the stories of the season, discusses what it was like working on a season that takes place over just 3 days, and talks about the social impact a show like this can have. Includes interviews with stars Lea Delaria (“Carrie ‘Big Boo’ Black”), Yael Stone (“Lorna Morello”), Adrienne C. Moore (“Cindy Hayes”), Selenis Leyva (“Gloria Mendoza”), Natasha Lyonne (“Nicky Nichols”), Jessica Pimentel (“Maria Ruiz”), Danielle Brooks (“Tasha ‘Taystee’ Jefferson”), Laura Prepon (“Alex Vause”), Taylor Schilling (“Piper Chapman”), Amanda Stephen (“Alison Abdullah”), Emma Myles (“Leanne Taylor”), Julie Lake (“Angie Rice”), Uzo Aruba (“Suzanne ‘Crazy Eyes’ Warren”), and Kate Mulgrew (“Galina ‘Red’ Reznikov”).
• Audio Commentaries:
  • Tattoo You (59:07)
    Executive Producer/Co-Writer Tara Hermann & Co-Executive Producer/Director Mark A. Burley provide commentary on the penultimate episode of the season. There is a lot of patting themselves on back, but also some interesting behind-the-scenes info, and they discuss the social commentary of the season/series.
  • Storm-y Weather (52:35)
    Executive Producer Tara Hermann & co-executive producer/writer Lauren Morelli provide commentary on the season finale. This one is a little more lively and informative than the previous commentary. The participants provide a lot more behind-the-scenes stories and note some interesting things, such as the fact that all the CO’s are named after members of writing staff.
• Trailers (5:40)
  Trailers for MacGyver Season 1, Graves Season 2, Grace and Frankie Season 2, and Power.

Final Thoughts:

Orange is the New Black Season 5 may be my favorite—and the funniest—season of the series so far. The entire season takes place over just three days, with allows for more detailed story-telling. While there are lots of laughs this season, the series also raises awareness for the more serious issue of prison reform. Lionsgate’s release contains a solid audio/video presentation and a small-but-entertaining collection of bonus material. This is a must own season for fans of the series, and still highly recommended for others.