The 10 Biggest Questions I Have After Watching Orange Is the New Black Season 6

Do you hear that? It's the sound of my heart palpitating right out of my chest now that I've finished Orange Is the New Black season six. The latest batch of 13 episodes meanders along for the first half of the season, but its last episode ends with a punch straight to the gut for some characters, while a few others get bittersweet strokes of luck. Naturally, there are quite a few unanswered questions that Jenji Kohan's dramedy leaves us hanging on, so let's discuss.

Warning: Major, MAJOR season six spoilers ahead! Proceed with caution.

01
Did Lorna Actually Give Birth to Her Baby?
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Did Lorna Actually Give Birth to Her Baby?

Admittedly, this question is pretty low in terms of importance, but it's still something I'm wondering about: did Lorna have baby Carmine, or nah? The last we see of her, one of the guards is helping her get to the infirmary as she screams out in pain from labor. What's more is that while we see Lorna throughout all the stages of her pregnancy this season, we never see her interacting with her husband, Vince, during visiting hours. Is he still in the picture?

02
Is Cindy Ever Going to Tell the Truth About Taystee?
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Is Cindy Ever Going to Tell the Truth About Taystee?

Early on in season six, we discover that Desi Piscatella's season five death comes with unforeseen consequences. Instead of the guards copping to what actually went down — one of their own accidentally shooting him in the head during the riot — they tell their superiors that they found Piscatella's body in the pool, already dead. What they don't realize is that Cindy and Suzanne are down in the pool as they plot to do this, listening in on their scheme.

As the federal investigation into both Piscatella's death and the riot itself progresses in each episode, it soon becomes clear that the agents want to (and do) pin most of the crimes on Taystee. Although Cindy knows her friend is innocent, she ends up lying on the witness stand during the trial, telling the jury that the last time she saw Taystee, she had the gun aimed at Piscatella. Taystee is unsurprisingly found guilty.

03
Will Taystee Be Able to Get Her Sentencing Changed Even If Cindy Does Come Forward?
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Will Taystee Be Able to Get Her Sentencing Changed Even If Cindy Does Come Forward?

In season seven, if Cindy does come forward with what she saw, will it change anything? It's obvious that Caputo is already on the trail of the guard who actually covered up Piscatella's death after they got into that stairwell tussle in the finale, so maybe between both of them, there's hope for Taystee after all.

04
Is Piper Going to Write That Memoir?
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Is Piper Going to Write That Memoir?

In the most meta moment of the series thus far, Piper turns to Alex and tells her that when she gets released from prison, she's going to write a memoir about her time at Litchfield. Obviously, Orange Is the New Black is based on the real Piper Kerman's memoir of the same name, so it seems like the show is about to come full circle. Does that mean next season could be its last?

05
Will Red Ever Forgive Frieda, or Is She Becoming Carol 2.0?
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Will Red Ever Forgive Frieda, or Is She Becoming Carol 2.0?

A major season six storyline tracks the decades-old beef between Carol, Barb, and Frieda, and the drama ends up spilling over into Red's life. She and Frieda aren't exactly besties going into the new season, but they're definitely more than acquaintances given all they've been through together. But their amicable relationship is tested once Frieda retreats into survival mode, throwing Red under the bus to save her own skin and avoid mixing with the feuding sisters.

Red, understandably, doesn't give a sh*t about Frieda's rationale and is out for blood. In one of the later episodes, she goes so far as to choke Frieda out by the visitation room, landing her in the SHU. Will that time in isolation give her time to cool down and tap into her humane side the way she did when sparing Piscatella's life in season five, or will her fury leave her permanently bitter?

06
Will Pennsatucky (or SOMEONE) Spill the Beans About Linda?
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Will Pennsatucky (or SOMEONE) Spill the Beans About Linda?

Barb and Carol might have been the season's most obvious villains, but the finale proves that Linda is actually the show's most formidable threat; as if squeezing more inmates into already-tiny cells isn't bad enough, her cruel new plan to open up immigration detention centers has already cost Blanca dearly. I kept waiting for at least one of the inmates to drop some hot truths about what Linda got up to while going incognito in the prison during Litchfield's season five riot, but alas it seems she's gotten away with it . . . for now.

Given Linda's mean streak and overall stench of desperation, I have a feeling that she's going to trip up at some point down the line while trying to cover up her involvement in the riot. Something tells me that MCC — sorry, PolyCon — won't take kindly to the idea of their vice president hooking up with an inmate.

07
What Will Happen to Blanca? And Are There Any More Undocumented Inmates?
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What Will Happen to Blanca? And Are There Any More Undocumented Inmates?

Orange Is the New Black pulls the rug out from all of us in Blanca's final scene, when it's revealed that instead of getting an early release into the arms of her true love, Diablo, she's intercepted by ICE and loaded onto a bus with a group of other women as she sobs. It's gut-wrenching. Will Blanca return to us in some way, or is her story going to be phased out in the way other missing characters were this season? For what it's worth, if any show were to tackle the horrors of immigration, I'd want it to be OITNB.

08
Is Alex Going to Take Over Carol's Gang?
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Is Alex Going to Take Over Carol's Gang?

Now that Carol and Barb are blissfully out of the picture (though I did enjoy their soap opera antics), who is going to run the prison? As much as I wish all the characters could get along in an idyllic, friendly paradise, that's just not how things work in this show (or in real life, for that matter). Piper begs Alex not to do anything that could extend her time at Litchfield, but someone with the business acumen she has isn't going to just sit idly by.

09
Will We Ever See Sophia Again?
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Will We Ever See Sophia Again?

There is finally justice for Sophia. After enduring a horrifying six-month stint in isolation in season five, Linda persuades Sophia to take a deal for $300,000 and an early release in exchange for never going public about what she went through at MCC's hands. Now that she's free, will the series check in with her and her family on the outside like it does with Aleida?

10
Is Daya Going to Get Clean?
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Is Daya Going to Get Clean?

Daya's story takes a dark turn this time around. Once she's branded a "guard killer" after the riot, she continuously gets the sh*t beaten out of her by the COs, driving her to a drug habit. The kicker? Her mother, Aleida, is the one supplying the prison with much of its drug flow. Aleida does express regret about her role in her daughter's scary addiction, but it doesn't outweigh the financial benefits their operation is affording her (she's saving up to get the rest of her children out of foster care, if you recall). The only hope I have is that Aleida's CO boyfriend, Hopper, comes to his senses and stops smuggling the drugs in, saving both mother and daughter.