Guilty Pleasure Binge

OMG! Where do I start!? My heartbreak at the end of season 8 was real. I fell in love with these characters. This one's for all the bad girls in the house! I never got into Orange Is the New Black past the first season or so, but, Wentworth!? I was all in and more! I'm a sucker for accents and more recently, (ever since living in LA) the Aussie accent is my jam! The storyline was so well developed, each season was more and more immersing. Also, an all women's prison is where I would definitely want to go, if I had to go to prison.

Gangs in Jail.

These women were vicious! I will spare you all the juicy details because you should go watch it for yourselves... My favorite characters were Franky Doyle and Joan Ferguson, each evil in their own way. Well, Franky wasn't exactly a psychopath, just the "Top Dog" aka gang leader. She later studied law, sorry for the spoiler but the wits about her was the reason she was able to outsmart even a psychopath. Joan (expletive) Ferguson, now she was the epitome of evil. I literally yelled at her time and time again in the last two seasons. I liked these characters most because they were the only two not overreached by each other throughout the seasons. I'm not sure which character I related to most but maybe I'll revisit that later. Gosh, you've got to see how season 8 ended but not before watching the whole thing. You'll need the context.

The Appeal.

Stuck at home verses stuck in a correctional institute that became more like home to the ladies at Wentworth? The layout of the prison and their own private rooms with what looked like heavy metal doors instead of bars, made it seem like quite the communal-living, hang out spot. I've lived in communal-living housing, for an entire year at that and would've probably preferred this prison. Private rooms and private toilets? Yes please! The grit was unavoidable and completely necessary. To see us women at our core primal nature, forced to live together while establishing territory and ranks, was fascinating. I don't even have 3 women in my life (simultaneously) ever, maybe 2 at best. When me and my girl friends fight (girls that are friends) it's still too polite. Do we actually say how we're really feeling? Do we actually say anything? It just sounds like yelling at high pitched notes and tears. I'm not the emotional type. I choose my words very carefully and I shut down when people cry around me and honestly, I rarely fight with my friends. Definitely why I have never had many female friends. Some women are born combaters, I'm way too laid back for all of that energy. I'm a tomboy at heart, I grew up climbing trees like Mowgli in the Jungle Book, that's my true nature, at one with it. Trees don't fight back. Maybe that's why I found it liberating to see aggressive fights and combative words thrashed around without consequence on Wentworth. Where's my grit? I'm actually thinking of taking up boxing not because of the show or anything...

Joan Ferguson

What is our obsession with psychopaths, seriously!? In Wentworth, we see a few different sides of Joan, "The Freak," including a pre-evil-psycho Joan. Well, then again, she was still evil back then but she wasn't as cunning or manipulative compared to present day Joan in her new role as Governor. In season 8, the season finale, we see Joan forget who she is. (spoiler alert) Can you imagine a psychopath forgetting that they're a psychopath? Amazing!

Vera Bennett

With Joan out of the picture, Deputy Governor Vera Bennett joins the ranks as "Governor" the main "you know what" in charge. I actually love how this show celebrates women. Is celebrate the right word? More like, displays women in all their shapes, sizes, sides, you get the point. She's pictured here wearing the pants. Vera's character mainly exists to add some justice to the prison, or, to sell the integrity of Wentworth as a rehabilitation center. Which it is not in the slightest of ways. At first, she's depicted as the push over, people pleaser especially to her colleagues while maintaining a high rank throughout. We learn why Vera is the way that she is and surprisingly, she bags two of the hottest guys on the show. Hello, femininity, naivety and vulnerability! (If guys are your thing)

Franky is my Queen, gosh, I even love her haircut and tats. She's got adventure in her eye at all times, I appreciate that spirit. Doreen is the ultimate homemaker type, you'll see what I mean after you watch it. Liz is something else, that's all I have to say about her but she serves as Motherly figure. (and snitch, sorry for the spoilers) Boomer is the ride or die chick, she's cool too, a little dumb but loyal and that's what matters. Last but definitely not least, is Bea. Bea doesn't even really belong in the prison but she becomes a fan favorite and a hero, so, kudos to her and this brilliant array of character development!

Wentworth Is My Guilty Pleasure.

I said it once and I'm gonna say it again! This show's binge-worthy factor is off the hinges! I'm definitely going to re-watch it and maybe try to laugh more this time around. It can be a bit comical at times when they're not busy coming up with new ways of making shiv's and stabbing each other. According to Newsweek, "Wentworth has been in the Netflix U.S. series charts for the last week, with the Australian prison drama currently at number seven on the top 10. This means that a lot of American viewers have made it to the end of the most recent set of episodes and are ready for Season 9 of the series." See what I mean? Who doesn't want to see women strategically and brutally fight!? You'll be glad that you Went, it's super Worthy! See what I did there? You're welcome.