Orange Is the New Black 7.11

God Bless America

Piper gets invited to a fancy charity fundraising event by Zelda. She runs into Bursett who helps her get her hair ready for the event. Piper's mother helps her with finding a dress to wear.

Ruiz volunteers to work in the ICE kitchen. She tries to make amends with Mendoza but Mendoza is not interested in wiping the slate clean.

There is a surprise inspection of the cell block. All of Daya's drugs are found. Aleida seems to have had something to do with it. None of her stuff is found.

Linda has a court room installed in Litchfield. Carla's hearing is moved up. The judge denies all her reasons for wanting to stay in the United States. Flores gets a second chance but only by asking that her plea deal for her role in the riot be thrown out and that she be put on trial.

Shani doesn't get another chance to see Nichols. She writes her a note that Flaca eventually passes to Nichols.

Taystee comes up with an idea for microloans for recently released prisoners. She talks to Caputo about it. He likes it but doesn't want to get involved himself. He promises to pass it along to someone else.

Vinnie comes to see Nichols. She doesn't realize that Morello's baby died until Vinnie tells her. She goes to Luschek and pleads with him until he agrees to get Morello transferred to her cell.

Alex calls Piper. She and Piper talk but when Alex finds out about the event and that Piper is Zelda's plus one she gets concerned she is losing Piper. Alex tells McCullough that she wants to end things between them. McCullough is ready to end the smuggling but not their personal relationship. McCullough later confronts Piper outside Piper's apartment.

Mendoza lets Carla use her phone to call her kids. Carla gets a few minutes to talk to them. Bell later hears the phone ringing when one of Carla's kids calls back. Bell wants to know to whom the phone belongs. Mendoza, Ruiz, and Flaca all remain quiet.

One of the ICE detainees is pregnant as a result of getting raped on her way into the United States. She wants to have an abortion but ICE won't allow it. Fig finds a way to get her the pill she needs to induce an abortion. 

Thoughts

Carla, Shani, and the pregnant ICE detainee get the backstory spotlight. Each of them get just one scene. 

Red, Suzanne, and Cindy are not in this episode.

Linda's dress looks like it is the same shade of red that the ICE detainees who were convicted of crimes wear. Linda flirts with Litvak. Yuck!

This was not a well made episode but it had lots of moments that got to me. There is a certain amount of hand waving in this episode. There are lots of things that happen without being fully explained. If it weren't for the fact that there are just two more episodes left then I might not be willing to shrug it off.