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Young Daya was spot on. Looks, mannerisms, acting. I was positively spooked it was so believeable. And I'll admit it, on my list of favorite characters; Daya is way down there towards the bottom. :( But the child actor who portrayed her was so peachy I couldn't help but want to adopt her myself!!! :)

Ugh....Piper. I try to like Piper, but all I see is wasted potential. A great central character story ruined by shoddy casting. No offense to Ms. Schilling; I just don't think she was cut for such a faceted role. I'll explain. ----(SPOILERS: Please do not read unless you have completed Season 3)----- Take a deep thought about Piper and her character. Her transition is possibly as huge as Sophia's. Unlike most of the prisoners, Piper was born as a spoiled little WASP rich girl. Rasied by a domineering mother, she never had a chance to bloom and find her inner self. Deep down Piper has the skills and drive to be something BIG, and the natural-born business sense to back it. At times this "true Piper" would peek in throughout the series....like when she was convincing Polly to start their candle business together. But therein lies Piper's weakness - she's never been able to do anything for herself; much like she had admitted many times - most noteably in her speech when confronting the handicapped thug-wannabe girl in the bathroom for the scared straight program in Season 1. Piper always relied on others to get her through and make her decisions. Be it her mother, Larry, Polly, Alex, Stella....she's admitted it pleanty of times - Piper can not (and has never been) alone. She's never taken control of her life by herself; she's never fully been an ADULT. Season 3's turning point could have been HUGE. When she learns Stella is stealing, she uses the manipulation skills first ingrained upon her by her mother, and now honed razor-sharp by the prison system, Piper has made her choice. She doesn't need her panty business for financial reasons - she needs it for her own inner growth. And when she turns in Stella - she's made her decision...Piper is about to live for Piper. She doesn't NEED anyone as a crutch. And this time nobody will stand in the way of her ambitions. Not Polly, not Larry, Not her mother, not Flaca, not Stella, not her brother's non-bisexual panty-idea-stealing wife, - NOBODY. Unfortunately, all this is lost. Put in the hands of the right actress - this whole story arc of growth could have been powerful. Instead, Schilling's portrayal and goofy facial gestures/delivery lands the whole thing as awkward. Awkward was good (and believeable!) in a Season 1 Piper just starting her journey, but at this point- it's just wasted. Schilling just can't play it off. Seriously, imagine that horrible Godfather-panty speech she gave while recruiting the panty girls. Think about how cringe-worthy, cheesy, and awkward it was. Now, imagine the exact same speech.....but this time, given by Red. ......and now you know where Piper's development could have gone. Schilling just isn't able to pull it off. A beautiful take on self-discovery, growth, and independance....utterly lost. Nothing more than a comical footnote. Thank goodness for the rest of the cast. They saved this show.

Chang's improvised dumplings were the bomb. Crushed fritos instead of cornmeal, sweet peas as a substitute of mung or red sweet beans. Chang is a genius. No wonder she has my dream job in Litchfield. Working the commissary is probably the cushiest job in the joint, which gives you access to a lot of perks. :) Little surprise Chang ended up there.

After bingewatching 'em all here are my final thoughts: Things that made me happy: 1. I LOVVVED Chang's backstory. Never saw that coming. Love Chang even more now. 2. THE CHICKEN! So happy to see the chicken. I'll never feel complete closure with this show until Red gets her chicken. 3. The cameo with Rosa pre-cancer made me smile so big. Things that didn't make me happy: 1. All those new prisoners. Double bunks in the cubes. I have this sick feeling in my stomach the new character overload will be just too much, and I am genuinely worried about Season 4, hoping they don't run the show into the ground with all the "new blood". 2. I flippin' miss Nikki so bad. :( 3. The rape scenes with Doggett made me feel so sad for her. Had you told me back in season 1 I would ever, EVER feel anything positive for good 'ol Pennsatucky I would have thought you were nuts. Though I'm happy to see her (and paired with Boo) I now worry about poor Maritza. But anyhow, no matter how much some of the plot lines dragged out for me, it was all redeemed with the chicken and knowing there was hope Red would get her kiev someday and consume it's power. :))))))