How Orange Is The New Black Handled Daya's Cliffhanger With The Gun

Daya with the gun

Spoilers ahead for the earliest episodes of Season 5 of Orange is the New Black. To enjoy this story without anxiety, you better get to binge-watching them.

Well, it's finally here. After a long year of waiting, Netflix's massively popular dark comedy-drama Orange is the New Black is finally back for Season 5, and this season is one heck of a doozy. In a change of formatting, Season 5 takes place over just 3 days within Litchfield, where the inmates have started a riot with intentions to take control of the prison. Season 4 ended with a massive cliffhanger, as Daya took CO Humphrey's smuggled gun and instructed the guards to get on the ground. So what exactly did the formerly pregnant and presently in-control inmate end up doing?

The short answer: she got a little trigger happy. With seemingly the entire prison population screaming at her to kill the Correctional Officers, Daya ended up shockingly busting a cap in Humphrey's thigh after he attempted to plead to her in Spanish. Bad choice, buddy; she doesn't even speak the language. From there, Daya and her "borrowed" piece ended up temporarily at the center of Litchfield's prison-run power, whether or not she wanted to be involved.

Things in Litchfield only continued to get crazier afterward, as the inmates attempted to take over the very place where they'd been imprisoned all this time. And with Daya in possession of the lone weapon, Maria unsurprisingly took this as an opportunity to turn her crew of Dominican inmates into top dogs during the riot. She even tried to take the gun off of Daya's hands for her, which was ultimately refused. Mostly because Daya loses it in the first episode. Oops!

And while Daya seems to be fading back into the background of Litchfield's more colorful inmates, it should be interesting to see if her actions have any repercussions. The entire prison saw her shoot CO Humphrey, so unless blanket immunity is given to the prison population, she's probably up shit's creek regarding her prison time.

Daya's situation went from bad to worse following Humphrey's admission into medical, because he happened to be sandwiched by Crazy Eyes and Kukudio. It was Humphrey's psychological torture that convinced the two inmates/love interests to fight each other, with Crazy Eyes losing control and beating the everliving crap out of her ex. But he got his comeuppance later, when Kukudio blew oxygen bubbles in his IV, causing him to have what appeared to be a massive stroke.

Overall, it looks like Season 5 of Orange is the New Black will be a game changer for the series. The stakes are significantly higher than ever before, and it will take a lot for the inmates and administration to get back to normal. And I have a feeling that more than one character death may be happening during the chaotic riot.

Orange is the New Black is currently streaming all five seasons on Netflix. Be sure to check our summer premiere list to plan your next binge watch, and head to our 2017 Netflix schedule for exclusively streamer-friendly options.

Corey Chichizola
Movies Editor

Corey was born and raised in New Jersey. Graduated with degrees theater and literature from Ramapo College of New Jersey. After working in administrative theater for a year in New York, he started as the Weekend Editor at CinemaBlend. He's since been able to work himself up to reviews, phoners, and press junkets-- and is now able to appear on camera with some of his favorite actors... just not as he would have predicted as a kid. He's particularly proud of covering horror franchises like Scream and Halloween, as well as movie musicals like West Side Story. Favorite interviews include Steven Spielberg, Spike Lee, Jamie Lee Curtis, and more.