Jackson Ball reviews the third episode of Orange Is the New Black Season 2 …
Since its inception, Orange Is the New Black has been nothing if not a crowd-pleaser. It knows exactly what its fans want to see and it (usually) delivers as such. One such example of this sort of fan-pleasing is this episode, in which we finally get a flash-back history of one of the shows most beloved characters: Suzanne, aka ‘Crazy Eyes’.
Warning! Spoilers Ahead – You have been warned!
We’ve always known that Suzanne (Uza Aduba) has had some sort of social difficulties, but this episode we finally get to see how those difficulties have transpired and exasperated over the course of her life. A fantastic example of this is her flash-back, in which we see her as a child, meeting her adopted parents’ new-born baby. Kudos has to go to the shows casting team, who have seemingly found Aduba’s pint-sized double to play her younger self. The young actress brilliantly demonstrates all the wide-eyed innocence of the adult character, as well as the unique blend of anxious ticks and twitches.
It is so nice to have her character fleshed out in these flash-backs, as prior to this episode it can be argued that, while she was certainly lovable, her personality was a little one-dimensional. No longer is she just the quirky, socially awkward side-kick who pops up every now for a bit of comic relief or plot exposition; now Suzanne is a fully rounded character, complete with her own troubling past.
Elsewhere in this episode, we see Piper (Taylor Schilling) back in Litchfield following her recent excursion to Chicago. Unfortunately, it appears that the only one happy to see her back is new inmate and resident pain-in-the-neck Brooke Soso (Kimiko Glenn). Soso is more than a little annoying, and pushes Piper to her limit with her endless chatter, prompting schilling to once again enter badass mode:
“Nobody has a fucking clue what you’re talking about, ever! We are not friends. I’m not your safety blanket. I’m not your new Meadow… I am a lone wolf, and a vicious one – don’t make me rip out your throat with my teeth.”
Ouch! It’s a great bit of dialogue, once again delivered beautifully, but it’s also a great insight into what state Piper is in right now. She’s just had a stressful trip to Chicago and been thrown under the proverbial bus by her two-time lesbian lover, the last thing she need is an annoying new inmate following her around. That being said though, there’s no real need for her words to be quite as dark as they become, which again shows how she has adapted to prison life; she may not be the hardened, emotionless bitch everyone now thinks she is, but she’s certainly not the little ‘dandelion’ she was at the start of season 1 either.
Jackson Ball – follow me on Twitter
Originally published June 9, 2014. Updated April 12, 2018.
