“Orange is the New Black” was released this summer as a part of the Original Programming service put on by Netflix. Other choice favorites in this series include “House of Cards” and the long-aniticipated fourth season of “Arrested Development.” Regardless of its limited viewership, it has already proven to be one of the best-reviewed shows currently being broadcasted. 

With an increasing number of people turning away from their TV sets and toward various video on demand options, new content is being developed specifically for this online medium. Without the restrictions of the Federal Communications Commission (the federal agency responsible for managing interstate and international communications), industry executives and Hollywood producers are taking advantage of the freedom and making very non-conventional shows. 

Created as an adaptation of a personal memoir, “Orange is the New Black” follows protagonist Piper Chapman’s 15-month stay as a prisoner in a federal correction facility. Piper interacts with a variety of minority women whose story is told through a series of flashbacks. Illustrations into the lives of Asian, Russian, African American, Hispanic and even transgendered women are featured in a manner uncharacteristic to an idea usually associated with men. 

The series confronts a number of social justice issues both onscreen and off. The show’s transgendered hair stylist Sophia Burset plays Laverne Cox, an actor and activist who is also a transgender. Her character challenges the trend of casting a woman for male-to-female roles. The content of “Orange is the New Black” approaches these issues lightly, mixing drama with comedy, a combination which creates a cathartic effect on issues which society might have otherwise looked down upon.