CherithCutestory

When I saw it the first time I was still under the impression I would hate Piper because of what some friends had said to me. So, I didn't really realize how cool she was in this episode. I loved that she was about to tell Healey about her and Alex to get a transfer and stopped herself. Piper decided early on to take care of her own issues by herself. Or Pornstache mocking her as she cried and when he walks away it was because she is sucking jalapenos to make the cream and held it the entire time he was there. The cream was resourceful but I think her throwing away the cornbread Alex gave her was bad ass. And I think it had as much to do with her getting food rights back as the cream. Yeah, she didn't do it because she was respecting the rules and refusing to eat in the caf until she was allowed to but Red didn't know it. And Norma's smile when she threw it away said a lot. I also loved how Taystee had said she wouldn't like how she had to get the cocoa butter but when we saw her after she was just smiling and pleased with herself. Not remotely upset. Larry refering to Piper being starved because she insulted the food as "foot in mouth disease" was so infuriating. What an asshole. It just is not the proper response to a loved one in prison telling you they are being starved. And the ditzy girl he is affectionately describining isn't the person who in her very short time in prison is already figuring out how to elaborately barter, risking starvation over taking something from an ex who snitched, and refused to ask Healey to fix her problems. It isn't like we are talking about a long period of time and prison has changed her. She is clearly a smart resourceful person. And he just doesn't seem to think of her that way. People always seem to make Piper into what they want her to be. Larry sees her as a kind of ditz. Red sees her as the women who mocked her. But she really is a pretty consistent person not someone just changing with the wind here.

I think that may very well be true. Especially since that is the real life and the show was more faithful to the broad strokes of the story (if not the details) at first. But, since Alex was still in the prison at the end of season 1 and, if anything, they seemed to be setting up a quasi-"love" (sex) triangle with Alex/Piper/Nicky I doubt she was supposed to be gone right away in Season 2. I mean by mid-season 1 they had to know where all the chemistry was. And Alex's anger was so deep felt and harsh that I don't think it was meant to be "oh, I'm not holding grudges today" in the very first episode of the next season. The story didn't seem over. Although I know they'd get to Chicago eventually since it is a big part of the book how she was written out seemed hastily written and was full of holes that aren't typical of how they write, which is usually broadly similar to reality (no federal parole, plea deals with people already convicted and sentenced do not work so that you walk that day, Piper wasn't told what was happening). Also, Piper's storyline was so all over the place in season 2, often with her just talking about Alex, it felt like they had to completely redo their plans for her. I know she wasn't meant to be the focus for season 2 but they could still make her less prominent storyline cohesive and sensible rather than scattered. Plus, now that Alex is back it seems like she'll be prominent again so it doesn't seem like having her on the backburner was as intentional as they like to claim. So, I'd be curious to find out what went down. She isn't exactly a bad actor but I think she is fairly one note but it works for the character, if that makes sense. Like, she plays Alex much like she has played almost every role I've ever seen her in. What she does with Alex isn't that different from Donna on That 70s Show. But doing that brings a more down to earth, essentially decent but immature quality to someone who on paper could just be a straight up sociopath. She comes off like someone who is stuck in that place she was when she was an angry teenager desperate for love. Rather than someone who shamelessly (in fact she reminisces about it with tenderness) uses people and seldom takes responsibility for her own culpability in the outcomes. It makes her much more likable and almost a girl next door type. Although it also means that she doesn't come off as the free fall through life, doing X on a beach in Cambodia type at all. The Alex we know would be so fucking annoyed stuck on a beach with a bunch of idiots doing X. She'd be snarking about them and just want to be home spooning with Piper (who would be up for either the X on the beach or spooning). I think a great example is the scene where they have the confrontation about Alex lying to Piper in the kitchen. She kind of just reads the lines from one thing to the next without really connecting them all together with consistency. She doesn't play it as what is happening. That after Piper said she loved and hated her, Alex turned it all around on Piper and magically ended up making Piper feel more guilty than angry. That she continues to make Piper out to be the bad guy for the rest of the episode, which is either delusional, narcissistic, or manipulative. I mean it is just fucking crazy to be angry at someone in their thirties for not choosing to free fall with you through life. But it is even crazier when you have just been caught lying to that person and manipulating them into feeling bad for suspecting you of something you did do. What sane person would choose Alex at that moment in time? But, as played by Prepon, what happens later has no connection to what happened before so those things get lost. Another example is that there isn't even a hint of suggestion in the first episode of season 2 that Alex's "not holding grudges" that day coinciding with Alex needing something from Piper (perjury) isn't entirely accidental. Nor is there a hint in the acting that it is based on the fact that she was really worried about Piper when she was in the box after a really devestating incident (which would have been a positive reaction). She doesn't deliver lines poorly, at all. She isn't bad. She just sort of reads the lines without much reflection on how it is being said in response to the past or future. A better actor would definitely embrace and explore the overall character implications more and probably bring a character who is more sinister. But would that make her actually better to watch? We have lots of great actors on this show doing interesting things. Prepon's note works. Katharine Hepburn may of had the range of A to B. But that got her four oscars. Sometimes range is overrated. Although it does mean I don't have a ton of interest in a super expanded role for Alex. I don't know that I could buy her as the villain selling heroin in prison. Even in flashbacsks she seems way out of her league as a big heroin trafficker. In the scene with Kubra, Piper was a much more dynamic presence in the room. Piper is almost always a more dynamic presence in the room when they are together. And Alex seems to cling to her and be completely vulnerable to her charisma rather than the other way around (which is how the writing suggested it worked in Season 1 but sort of backtracked on in Season 2). And I don't know that I could buy her as a junkie using in prison. Those things seem like they'd require a lot more acting skill than she typically brings. Maybe she'd surprise me. But, as of now, I don't have a ton of interest when she isn't playing off Taylor Schilling. I think Schilling props her up a bit. But I also think she seems to have a comfort level playing off of her that she doesn't with others (I thought her crying scene with Nicky in Season 1 was kind of painfully bad but her crying and devestation in the flashback with Piper after her mother's death was fairly good). I think Taylor Schilling is a much more nuanced actor who is very willing to explore the negative aspects of her character. Which is why even though there really isn't even a little bit of moral equivalency between these two people (Alex is by far a worse human being and has been worse to Piper) it comes off that way sometimes. Because Schilling is more willing to go there and make Piper unlikable. If anything she seems to love doing the stuff where Piper is being manipulative, hypocritical, selfish and narcissistic. Whereas Prepon seems to really shy away from the more sociopathic aspects of her character (even in interviews she justifies rather than glories in the dastardly aspects). And it works to make the couple seem more equal. Piper is played like a complicated, often manipulative and selfish but also capable of great generosity and kindness, adult and Alex is played like a cool teenager. No matter what they tell us the facts are, you can't see them on screen and see any way that Piper is being manipulated and often used by this person who is so obviously and completely in awe of her and desperate for her love and approval. In the end, Piper has too much power over Alex to allow the audience to remember how she has been lied to and manipulated by this person. And Piper knows she has that power and uses it. I was talking about the Taystee story, elsewhere. And it made me think about how similar Taystee and Alex are. Like insanely similar. Both incredibly intelligent but were never able to put that intelligence toward anything productive. Both charasmatic, funny, and enjoy books. Both essentially have fairly low feelings of self-worth despite high confidence in their own best qualities. Both are people you easily fall in love with. Both think nothing of using the weaknesses of people like Nicky to further their career. Although, Alex basks in and loves ruining those lives to a degree Taystee doesn't. Both quickly turn on those they genuinely care about and love. Alex furious and calling Piper an asshole for not being willing to do a drug run for her (which leads to her getting dumped) is not that unlike Taystee and Poussey. Not to mention quickly turning over on her. Except, of course, Taystee has a lot more reasons to be in the situation she is in. She never had a loving mother or a shot unlike Alex. Alex was relatively poor kid with a single parent who got picked on by some mean girls. But Taystee was an unwanted orphan whose only parental figure was a sociopath. It is interesting seeing how different it feels and how different people react to see it play out in real time rather than in flashbacks. How Taystee offering Nicky heroin feels different from Alex talking about how quickly she would have had her be a drug mule. And the fact that getting people like Nicky using was her entire life's career, which she loved. How Taystee choosing the drug ring over Poussey feels like a betrayal in a way Alex flipping out over Piper's refusal to be a drug mule again doesn't.

She is loyal. To the only mother she has ever known. I do think the dots were connected for that considering their backstory. Poussey is nothing to her compared to the long time Vee has been in her life. .

I really fucking hate Healey. A lot. But, in his defense, he had several scenes with Taystee in Season 1 that suggested a fairly positive relationship. And he was supposed to write her a letter of recomendation to get out. I don't know if he did but she did get out so I assume so. In general, the white inmates seemed to be favored by the whole place. At least until they couldn't turn their back on Red's smuggling anymore. That is why inmates trying to clam Piper gets special treatment is kind of silly to me. Half of the white inmates run around like they run the place.

I'd love more Gloria. She is really too good to be on the backburner. I'd like more Red/Piper development. Considering Alex is the type of person still holding a grudge against someone who dumped her eight years ago, I'm thinking she won't be getting over what Piper did anytime soon. They might have sex but she is going to be furious. I don't think they'll have anything close to the friendly relationship they had in mid-Season 1. Personally, I don't care about Alex except for how she relates to Piper. I don't care about Alex scenes if they aren't with Piper. But I also think she might start using in prison. I know she told Nicky she didn't miss it and was always a horrible junkie. But she doesn't have Nicky's support network to help her stay clean. And she lies to herself and others. My bet would be an episode with flashbacks to her after her mom's death, her starting using, and the arrest. Punctuated with her using again in real time. She could be dealing instead but I don't know how much of a villain they want to make her. Taystee was under the influence of the only mom she ever knew and was quickly removed from the drug circle after it went to heroin and she gave it to Nicky. They let her go very dark for about a second before they pulled back. Alex would just be a bored, angry girl pissed off she is back in jail for the crimes she did commit. It would make her irredeemable. Being a dealer to unknown strangers is one thing. Doing it to girls that we have come to know and love would be another especially after Tricia. I am not sure they want to go there and have Alex be the new Pornstache/Vee. But who knows. If they do she won't be in season 4. There won't be anywhere else to take that character. Another Alex possibility is she starts using with Nicky. Nicky stayed clean because of the influence of her prison family. She could easily be led astray by a friend who is using. That would be a way to make Alex dark, having her contribute to Nicky's fall, without committing 100%. I don't think the third season will go by without Nicky ODing (fatally or not).

There shouldn't be testimony concerning unconfirmed accusations of stalking at a trial for mail fraud. And it would be uncomfirmed if there had never been a trial on it. Christopher also pointed to copious evidence of it (texts and letters) so I don't see why they wouldn't put her on trial. Crossing state boundaries to stalk and harrass, as she did when she followed them on vacation to Jersey, is a federal crime. And that is what we saw her on trial for. So, I think it is safe to assume she was convicted of it at some point. Even if she was later convicted of mail fraud and is serving a split sentence with a state sentence. If she was ever convicted of it, even if that isn't why she is in Litchfield, then it would be on her BOP and they would be well aware of it. http://www.victimsofcrime.org/our-programs/stalking-resource-center/stalking-laws/federal-stalking-laws It would be horrible writing to show a scene in a court room discussing evidence of stalking and have that be completely unrelated to what she was convicted for.

It was dickish but I don't think Piper was wrong to leave Alex when she did. She had already broken up with her. You don't have any obligation to go to your ex-girlfriend's mother's funeral. Piper obviously has little to no self-control around Alex. I mean she risks the SHU to be able to be with her. She had to leave when she had the resolve. And it isn't as though she just randomly got sick of Alex and the business. She left specifically in response to being asked to do more illegal shit. Illegal shit we know was going to get her prison time and would have gotten her more time had she done more of it. And this is a woman who tried to hide her passport to strand her in a foriegn country to prevent her from leaving. She is going to try to manipulate her into staying with her given any oppurtonity. I am not saying Piper couldn't have been more sympathetic. But, ultimately, Alex was all alone when her mom died because Alex is a drug dealer and incapable of making compromises for the people in her life. And who has alienated everyone from her life. Her choices got her to that point. Just like Piper's choices got her into prison. In the end, it wasn't on Piper. As for her not even being there as a friend, I think it is clear that these aren't two people who are ever going to be capable of being friends. Sex is too integral to their dynamic.

I will forever think he is the least redeemable person on this show after what he did in this episode. He used to not want her to be gay. In this ep, he doesn't want her to be alive or have any happiness because she dared to like having sex with girls.

And even after getting the ultimate revenge she is still laying guilt trips on Piper about it. That is what kills me about Alex. Piper apologized to her and she is in prison so she has surely suffered for it and it still is not enough to let it go! Throwing the "you broke my heart" at her almost right off the bat. Basically blaming her for becoming a heroin addict at AA/yoga. Dropping the jab about her mom dying when Piper was sad about Tricia. Admits that her anger over Piper leaving played a part in her naming her. Acts like she was doing her a favor for not "holding grudges" that day in Chicago (when all Piper had done was choose the person who didn't name her and lie about it and would actually like a real life). And she never seems to get that she is being totally unfair and unreasonable. I mean Jesus Christ. I've broken up with people and I've been broken up with. It sucks but by eight years later you usually regain your ability to function. Bitch needs lots of therapy. I do like Alex when I don't think about her too hard. But I definitely think Piper is a more well-adjusted, self-aware person. I mean almost anyone is. Morello might be a more well-adjusted, self-aware person. Although, here snitches get self-righteous indignation. I'd love to hear Piper explain to someone who actually knows a thing about the drug trade how she got berated and cut off for gently breaking up with the person who snitched on her.

I completely agree. I actually think they are really similar, really flawed people. They are genuinely people who if things had been different would be very compatible partners. They both like the same books, travel, have very similar senses of humor, share passion, call each other on bull shit. Both are selfish and narcissitic at times with streaks of dedication and generosity. Alex is chill when Piper is impulsive and hot tempered, which compliments each other. It is very rarely the case in these sorts of good girl/bad girl (or boy) love stories that they are genuinely people who, had things been different, would be a good, stable couple. But at a point way before Piper met her Alex just gave up on ever living a real life. She just accepted her fate of being a drug dealer and drifting through life with no real plan. Decided the person she was when she met her father (desperate, angry, alone) was the person she would always be. Gave up on going to college or taking any steps to better her life. And that isn't Piper's fault. It isn't Piper's fault that at some point she had to get off the ride and begin her real life. And it seems like Alex focuses so much of her anger about her own choices onto Piper. Putting it all onto that one day when Piper left. Piper is obviously drawn to Alex on a very physical level. There is no way she could be her friend or go to the funeral and act like a girlfriend and still have the ability to leave. She had to go while she had the resolve. I thought it was interesting when she was talking about her rock bottom story. How she didn't have one because she was living it. But then described taking heroin for the first time after Piper left. Without any realization or self-awareness that that was her rock bottom. That was the moment when her addiction to the drug trade caused her to lose everything. That was when her addiction to the power of being a dealer meant she had alienated everyone in her life and was all alone. And it was all because of her choices. Instead, like a lot of addicts, she rationalized. Put the blame on someone else. And embraced being at rock bottom by adding a new addiction (to heroin). And she is still doing it. One thing I really like about the flashbacks is the whole image of Alex being this bright light that Piper was just drawn to is really shattered once they explore it. Like the flash back in the premiere with Kubra. Piper was no background figure. She was out partying with Kubra and co after Alex went to bed. She was perfectly comfortable in their presence. And they seemed comfortable with her. Not dismissive of some girlfriend hanging around. Or Piper reclaiming Alex after the whole Sylvie thing. That was sexy as hell. Just as sexy, or more, as Alex's initial pickup tricks. Or Alex's insecurity after she said I love you. You defintiely see that Piper was as magnetic a force to Alex as Alex ever was to her. Maybe even more so. And that Alex had a lot more riding on that relationship. And I think you kind of see it in prison too. Yeah, she gets in a lot more trouble and people dislike her more. But she also makes a lot more friends. She is also active in a lot more worlds in the prison (helping decorate for Taystee's going away, crocheting with the old ladies, the newsletter, yoga, writing appeal letters, the track). Tries to interact and even make things better. Piper is an active particpant in whatever world she is in. That can be a really bad thing (it is why she is in prison and why she gets on people's bad sides) but it can be a good thing too. She doesn't just hang back and watch life happening to other people. Alex is really more of a spectator. A spectator who survived on latching onto other people's life experiences and turning them into profit. And then latched onto Piper, who is brimming with life, to make her feel like a whole person. And fell apart when Piper walked away and left a shell. I'm really sorry about bumping so many threads. I just rewatched this weekend and it is all fresh in my mind.

Almost drug distribution/trafficking offense could be a federal crime under the theory of aggregation in the commerce clause. Meaning that drug sale and activity crosses borders and even if one person is only selling within the confines of their state it impacts the drug trade in aggregate. So, you can be in violation of federal law. This is a huge issue in states where marijuana is now legal becaue technically the DEA could come in and shut down an otherwise legal store. And that has happened with medical marijuana stores in California. These are places that grown their own they aren't importing. Currently there is just an agreement not to do that but they could. Yoga Jones would be a classic example of this. They just usually don't get involved with low-level drug stuff on the state level. But if there is any relatively signifcant ring the feds very well could be the one to sweep in on that. Which is probably what happened with Vee and Taystee. When I was a prosecutor a lot of the cops I worked with also belonged to federal taskforces. And assisted the feds with penetrating local drug rings. Cops like to work with the Feds on drug cases because the Feds are much more aggressive about asset forfeiture than the states (which is saying something because a lot of states are pretty damn aggressive with it already). And they have more resources to really dig in and go after everything a person has (homes, cars, boats). And the local guys get a percentage of anything that comes in through asset forfeiture. And DA's are usually okay handing things over to the Feds, unless it is a really high profile case, because they are already overworked. And a local DA's office also usually gets a small percentage of asset forfeiture money if they have provided any help with the case (drafted affadavits for warrants, sat in for a transfer of the case, sat in for an arraignment). Also, RICO is a very broad statute and a lot of people could fall under it. And there are all sorts of gun charges that come under federal law. So, there are all manner of ways federal jurisdiction can kick in. And the power dynamic being what it is, if the Feds want it the Feds usually get it if they could plausibly have jurisdiction. Also, Morello crossed state lines in order to stalk Christopher and his fiance. She followed them on their trip to Jersey something they made a point to tell us twice. And there are federal anti-stalking laws if you crossed state lines to threaten or harrass. So she could very well be in for stalking and not mail fraud, which she may have never been caught doing. http://www.victimsofcrime.org/our-programs/stalking-resource-center/stalking-laws/federal-stalking-laws

I disagree. Alex literally lied to Piper about being responsible for ratting her out. And she did it because she wanted her to like her. That is an essentially dishonest and deeply needy person right there. It wasn't pragmatism. It was a girl who never got over having her heart broken and desperately needed her old girlfriend to want her. Beyond that she guilt tripped her and made her feel like a horrible bitch for daring to assume it was Alex (when it was Alex). That is not a more honest, self-aware human being. After brief initial denial, Piper is honest about her own culpability in her situation. She laid it out for her mother in the first few episodes. She is honest with Larry about how she feels about Alex when asked. She is always honest to Alex about how she feels about Larry and the status of their relationship. By contrast, Alex still thinks she was somehow wronged by Piper who left her just because she asked her to be a drug mule/money launderer after Piper made it clear she didn't like that and tried to hide her passport to trap her in a foriegn country. (After a breakup you don't get to insist your ex go to your mother's funeral. It is abusrd to expect that.) She has the audacity to blame Piper for becoming a junkie. Even after ten years. Because all of this time later she still can't admit that she was a drug dealer and that is why she lost everything good in her life. As Piper said. A decade later, Alex still refuses to take responsibility for her own part in screwing up her life. She dares to be furious that Piper would choose a real life over X on a beach in Cambodia when she is in her forties. I mean what else is Piper supposed to do there? Piper is right in saying that she has changed in the last ten years. She has. We see a more confident and mature person than she was in her flashbacks. Almost anyone would have changed in ten years. There is something deeply wrong if you haven't. And it goes to Alex's essentially pathetic loser core that she hasn't. That sounds mean but I really think it is positive. I don't think Alex is a snake. I think she is basically kind of a cool loser who never got over the girl that got away and has no ability to make a real life for herself. And losers can change and grow. Snakes don't. So, I mean it in a good way!! But that was also Piper taking responsiblity for her own choices. She didn't try to pretend to be an innocent in the situation. She didn't try to pretend she played no role in the breakup. She straight up said she took advantage and made the move when she knew Alex was in a relationship. Which is just as true and honest as what Alex said. Piper took advantage of knowing Alex wanted her despite being in a relationship. Alex let her because she is and adult. Both are accurate. If Piper were someone who couldn't take responability and be honest with herself she would be putting the blame on everyone else. I like the two together despite myself because of the chemistry and the dynamic. But, in the end, Piper is a much more fully realized human being right now. She is very flawed. But she acnkowledges it and seeks to change. She doesn't see them as some immutable part of herself and then shrug and say "well guess I'll be a drug dealer forever". I don't think she did it to hurt Piper. She just did it without caring that Piper was going to get hurt. I don't find it very credible that she knew for a fact Piper would tell the truth. Since, she knows full well the hold she has over Piper. She knew it was at least 50/50 that Piper would lie. And when she walked out past Piper's holding cell she knew full well she had screwed her over and wanted to explain. There was no confusion. She was an incredibly valuable witness to the prosecution and it defies belief that she couldn't get some leeway to alert Piper of the change in plans. I really do ship the couple a lot. They have great chemistry. And the way they just look at each other is adorable. But it is frustrating for me because it seems like Piper spends a lot more time apologizing to Alex than the other way around. When up until the probation call their crimes against each other weren't remotely proportional. Breaking up with someone is something most of us have done and it is okay. Choosing a more stable life is okay. Thinking the only person who really knew you well in a drug ring turned you in (and being right) is okay. Ratting out your ex-girlfriend for a slightly reduced sentence is pretty shitty beyond normal relationship shittiness. Lying to her about it and manipulating her into feeling bad is pretty shitty. Convincing her to perjure herself is pretty shitty. But when they are together it is like Piper is almost always the one who feels like she is in the wrong or is being unreasonable. Like her palpable relief that Alex didn't hate her in the opener. She had no legitimate reason for hating her in the first place! She never lied about the fact that she wanted to be with Larry. Alex had absolutely no future to offer her and had just recently been caught lying and manipulating her. Piper made a choice and was honest about it. She didn't do anything wrong. Yet there they were with Piper just so damn happy Alex would speak with her and wasn't "holding grudges" as though she had messed up.

Yes, in government jobs you are usually not in the Union for the next three to six months. Until then you are at-will like everyone else. Even then it still isn't this easy to fire someone but it isn't that big of a stretch. She really was bad at the job. I don't think Chapman's family is extraordinarily wealthy. She is obviously better off than 99% of the inmates but they are upper-middle class not rolling in dough. It would also be insane for someone like her to ruin her life by escaping prison. She had a sentence of a little over a year in a minimum security prison. If she fled she would be doing twenty in max. And Chapman isn't a deluisonal stalker, which the administation had to know Morello was. Delusional stalkers sometimes make irrational choices. I am pretty sure she just didn't feel comfortable or safe being naked around other people. Not because of anything revolting but because it just wasn't within her comfort level. He threw Piper in solitary (and was willing to leave here there indefinitely) for dancing with a woman. As has been pointed out through out the series, that is a pretty serious punishment and shouldn't be overused. When even Pornstache said that was unacceptable. He called a fiance about uncomfirmed lesbian rumors. He, an official responsible for her safety, was willing to leave her to die as she begged for his help. Because she likes have sex with women and because he got in very mild trouble for his own actions. I don't think he has anyone's best interests in mind. He wants to be thought of as a nice guy. But he isn't one. He just wants the girls to like him.

In the third episode when Vee was rolling her eyes about her and turning Suzanne against her I did think the show would end with Vee having it in for her in that way. And then the only other interaction they had was when they took the phone from her. Although I loved how she wasn't cowering or particularly intimidated in that scene. I was relieved. I agree it would be way too much to have a major threat every season for her. I hated Vee. I think the depection was one of the best depecitions of a sociopath I've ever seen on television. Incredibly charming even lovable when she wants to be but there is just nothing there. Not even the ability to form a genuine emotional bond. The problem is genuine sociopaths are ultimately boring. They don't really have conflict themselves since they only care about their own survival. Watching other people fall for their shit becomes annoying fast even if you can understand it logically. And, in the end, all they can do is fuck shit up and die. There is no nuance to it. That isn't to say there is no nuance in the amazing performance. Alex was about to commit a felony. Didn't Alex tell Piper that it was Piper's own choices that got her in prison not Alex ratting her out? Didn't Piper agree with that and tell her mom that? How is it any different when it is Alex's own choices? And it isn't that easy in 2014 to just escape with active warrants on you and not be found. Especially when she doesn't have any money or contacts anymore. Especially when you are a tall woman with green eyes and many identifiable tattoos. Kind of sticks out in the crowd. And even if the government won't find and extradite her an international drug lord probably will have his ways. Alex's was likely going to end up caught and in max. Since the government doesn't love having to chase you down. And the government would have had to chase her down. Because they needed her testimony for Kubra's retrial. Another likely scenario is that she would be dead. Alex wasn't a small time street hustler. She was a conncected player in a huge international drug trafficking ring. She isn't someone the government will shrug at losing track of when they need her testimony. She isn't someone Kubra will forget about getting vengence on. I have no doubt Piper did it for selfish reasons but Alex was about to do something insanely stupid and reckless. I have zero sympathy for her. First of all, she would have done the same to Piper in a heart beat (and has) if it beneifted her in any possible way. Second, she was about to commit a major felony on top of the felonies she has already committed. At best, Alex is no worse off than she was before. As for Piper only having a short time on her sentence (which I don't think is true anymore since the prosecutor still might pursue perjury charges and the Queen of SHU certainly isn't getting any time off for good behavior), her issue wasn't that she needed Alex to be her prison wife. It was that she wanted her in her life, at all. Which wouldn't be possible even after Piper got out if Alex were on the run or, far more realistically, dead. Alex was telling her that was the last time they would ever see each other at their meeting. Also, I loved the scene where she called Larry to get him to do it. How when he is annoyed that she just wants Alex back in prison Piper doesn't justify herself or explain it away. She just calmly turned to Polly instead. Well it was hot but usually sweet love doesn't end with being punched in the face by your sex partner's giflreind.

Most of those things have been mentioned in passing. Obviously, the track was important to Piper to run (she didn't just open it up again for Watson). She said it was the most important part of her day. We see her reading a good bit, getting new books, and going cube to cube to get back the books everyone stole from her. We have seen her do yoga. And she mentions how she is excited to learn how to do electrical work (although that was part BS). Like you say it wouldn't be too interesting to focus on but I do think we have seen that from her.

Personally, I think condoning the murder of someone because it turned out she liked to have sex with girls is in the "bad guy for life" category. I also think his motives for therapy group are purely selfish. As he told Piper, the girls used to like him. He just wants to be liked. He doesn't actually do anything to help anyone, in general. Nicky says he hasn't been to visit since the third week she got there. I can fanwank that her sister with her brother-in-law or something visited early on and she was so new at the time no one thought twice about it. But after she talked endlessly about Christopher for months people would have been curious and strolled past the window to see if she got visitors. So, she never lied about him being the one to visit again. Well, she also says she never thought he would be so mean and he wasn't the man she thought he was. Which is acknowledging she didn't know him. She is obviously still being crazy in that he had reason to be upset. But I looked at it like she was weaning herself off of the fantasy rather than going cold turkey. "I never thought he would be a mean guy. I don't want a mean guy." as a way of distancing herself from the man she thought she knew. And that was also Piper taking responsibility for her role in that breakup. She didn't shrug and say she did nothing wrong. She admitted she went after a woman in a relationship when she saw a weakness. They both admitted their own fault in the same conversation. Piper isn't the best at taking responsibility but she is leagues ahead of Alex, who still blames Piper for a breakup that was 98% Alex's fault, in that department.

I just did a rewatch of the whole series. I don't think she thought it was a special dish but that she was just pleasently surprised and relieved she didn't screw up too badly by insulting her.

I just have to say Piper calling him the moon was the most perfect description of a character I could think of. I wouldn't mind never seeing Larry again. One thing I do like about their scenes is how Piper talks so profusely about how she loves him and cares for him but seems to have nothing but varying degrees of frustration to disdain when they are actually together. I think she liked being the Alex in the relationship to a degree. The one who shines. The one who is adored and desired. Although she was actually the Alex in her relationship with Alex, too, but I don't think she knew that, at the time. But I imagine having a boyfriend who fits in with her friends and she can do Yuppie NY things with was very appealing, in general. I find him boring as hell but I can definitely see how he could seem nice and interesting.

I think she clearly did think about how it might affect her future. Since she refused to ever do it again. And got the fuck out of there the minute Alex asked her to do it a second time. She also didn't seem to find it very exciting, at all. She hated it. I also don't think it is accurate to say she liked it until she didn't. Their conversation during the breakup suggested a long-term issue between them. Piper even said that Alex was making excuses because she couldn't deal with the fact that she was a drug dealer and it ruined everything good in her lfie. That didn't seem like a sudden revelation, at all. It was clearly something she had thought about or even said in the past. (ANd something I wish she would say to her again when Alex bitches about having her heart broken.) And she left when Alex asked her to put herself directly at risk for a second time. (And then hid her passport.) It wasn't unprompted or a sudden "I'm sick of this". It was a pretty intelligent reaction to the events. Anyway, I also actually like Piper a lot. I am usually the first to hate on characters like Piper. But I think she is suprisngly funny and entertaining. It helps that she is written with the writers and actor clearly aware of her flaws. I particularly like the fact that she is basically always working an angle even if she doesn't realize it. If she could just be more subtle then, In some ways, prison is perfect for her. I like it because they have turned a sort of general upper-middle class white privilege thing into a kind of personal idiosyncrasy of hers. And I like that they gave her a genuine bubbling anger under the surface that keeps erupting. I also have a hard time hating on her for being selfish or narcissitic since pretty much everyone is. And in some ways Piper's flaws are more glaring only because she openly acknowledges them. Which is an admirable characteristic. Plus, I definitely don't think she is more privileged than most of the other white characters many of whom also get away with a lot of shit. I think in Season 1 the relationship with Alex helped me get ahold of Piper, a lot. You come to see that of the two Piper is really the one less fragile and more capable of adapting. And it colored how I saw her in other interactions. I really don't understand the hate she gets. She isn't Carrie Bradshaw or even Nancy Botwin. She is selfish in an environmenet where everyone is selfish but she isn't someone who uses people more than those around her. And she is genuinely funny, which goes a long way for me. Like she genuinely has a sense of humor not just fun to laugh at her antics. Yeah, Piper will take care of Number 1 first and foremost. But if she can help others along the way she will. I think she is similar to Red in a lot of ways, personally. We didn't see most of the negotiation and Caputo did cancel it. Plus, Piper knew she was the only reason those people were being transfered. It was a cover so it wasn't obvious she was being transfered because she talked to a reporter. If hers if cancelled there is no reason for the others to have to go. I think Piper shows a lot more self-awareness than Alex. Alex exhibits self-loathing, which isn't the same. I'd say that is true of Nicky as well. Even after all these years Alex still walks around thinking Piper wronged her somehow in the past. Rather than she broke things off because she didn't want to be a drug mule. By contrast, it is pretty quickly shown that Piper understands that her own choices landed her in prison. She expreses frequently that she is in the wrong and apologizes. Whereas Alex justifies every shitty thing she does. Piper will acknowledge her flaws and when she is wrong. She'll get mad at herself. But she doesn't hate herself for them like Nicky and Alex can. I find that refreshing. Self-loathing is such a stereotypical part of an antihero. Piper gets upset at herself over flaws but mostly she thinks she is pretty great. I love that about her.

How many people on this show aren't self-absorbed? Everyone is self-absorbed. Most of them see it as survival in there. Piper just actually acknowledges that she is self-absorbed and privileged. And Suzanne doesn't have a lot of room to talk about nice people. While she is clearly mentally unstable and I feel for her the fact is Piper didn't do anything to her except tell her fiance the 100% honest to God truth.

Cory Montieth was submitted as supporting last year. If Cory wasn't a lead then Darren isn't. And if Matthew Morrison's contract forbids it then if it wasn't a snub to put Cory there it isn't one to put Darren there.

Darren Criss wasn't submitted last year either. Although he did later submit himself in the supporting category. Blake was submitted last year too but as a guest. I would guess that Fox has plans to try to cast or do something with Blake down the line and want to keep him on the hook.

One Joffrey is worth ten normal deaths. It was a glorious wedding even by Dothraki standards.

Cat had no trouble showing disrespect to Stannis. I am sure Cat wishes that too. If the Lannisters didn't want her they might have gone for it. Stannis would never have been an option for marraige. Better Queen of the North than not at all. But it would never have been a first option. Personally, I think Stark/Tyrell alliance just might happen way down the line. In the form of Jon/Margaery if he has any claim to being king. The only person I would bet money on being in power at the end of this show is Margaery Tyrell. The only person smart enough to win the love and loyalty of the people of King's Landing. (Historically, if you held London you held the crown.) Honestly, I don't even believe the Tyrells wanted Winterfell or the North at all with the Sansa marraige. They rule the most fertile lands and have one of the most beautiful homes in all the seven kingdoms. From their perspective the North must seem like a barren wasteland filled with a conquering army. It was Olenna's plan. And she seemd more about defensive strategy than offensive. She wasn't on board with joining Renly. And seemed less than pleased at Mace's insistence about the Joffrey wedding. I think they just didn't want a Lannister or anyone else to have the claim and double their lands more than they wanted it themselves. If Robb had wolf cubs and they knew Brann and Rikkon were alive they would have been fine with just sweet but dim Sansa. If they were all erradicated they would have pressed the claim to prevent anyone else. I think. I think "Growing Strong" works great for them. They started out as nothing. And as all the noble houes are dying around them they are still growing strong. "Winter is coming" great. It came. Now what? "Ours is the fury" cool. Yours was the crown. "Hear me roar" that is literally all we ever hear. Your constant roaring at each other. Meanwhile here are the Tyrells just continuing to grow strong.

I think Loras has a good amount of political astuteness. I think anything he said to Catelyn can be taken as seriously as him giving Sansa the rose. That is, not at all. He is just playing the part of the dashing young knight. Trash talking the other sides. In the end, it wasn't his decision to support Renly (his father had a say) and even if it was we know for a fact that it had little to nothing to do with Stannis's personality that attracted him to Renly. I think his early scene with the Hound and the Mountain showed that. He knew when to try to back off and how to play the scene. In general, I think he is much like his sister. Just working the image the best he can. Of course, I doubt he is quite as smart. And I think Olenna is very fond of him. Even if she trusts Margaery a bit more. I also am not totally sure that Olenna is the ultimate plotter in the family. I think that is Mace and Olenna is mostly concerned with making sure his plots don't blow up too horribly. Sansa was all her, of course. But I think she mostly is just concerned that Joffrey doesn't hurt Margaery. Or that Loras doesn't end up hurting Joffrey for hurting Margaery. I liked that. And I think it is clear that the Tyrell's, in general, are the type that might tease each other but will not abide outsiders doing it. Olenna's delight in Brienne was my favorite thing.