Amidst the conflict the ladies of Litchfield Penitentiary endured while serving out their sentences, there was also a bit of romance on Netflix’s original series Orange Is The New Black. Inmates hooked up with other inmates, some with prison guards, and they stole kisses (and lots more) whenever they had the chance. Some of the relationships were loving, sweet, and honest. Some were simple arrangements designed for convenience. Others were out of boredom, or even curiosity.
Nonetheless, there was a lot of coupling up on the show. Here are 5 couples that were perfect together, and 5 that made no sense at all.
Piper and Alex: Perfect Together
While we hate it admit it, since Alex got Piper involved in the drug business, which put her in prison in the first place, and had her cheat on her boyfriend, it seems the pair are two peas in a pod.
They are good together, passionate for one another, and willing to do anything for each other, which is the great foundation for a relationship. They have the utmost trust in one another and when they are torn apart, it’s like they are each enduring personal torture.
Daya and George “Pornstache” Mendez: Makes No Sense
This relationship made no sense because it wasn’t really a relationship at all. Daya willingly had sexual relations with the CO, who would often trade drugs for sexual favors. But she only did so in order to cover up her pregnancy by another CO who she was actually in love with.
Mendez became infatuated with her while she was more repulsed by him than anything else. Their relationship wasn’t really a relationship at all, and while it helped her save the butt of her secret boyfriend (who then left her anyway), was it all worth it?
Joe and Natalie: Perfect Together
Joe Caputo and Natalie Figueroa absolutely despised one another. Figueroa was his boss and married (to a clearly gay man) who constantly berated and emasculated him. Joe, meanwhile, did whatever he could to take her down.
But it seems their passionate hate turned into passionate love, first as casual sex partners, then in a monogamous relationship. Seeing them in a home they shared together talking about having kids and still able to be playful with one another makes you realize that maybe they were meant for one another all along.
Tiffany and CO Charlie Coates: Makes No Sense
Tiffany “Pennsatucky” Doggett sparked a romantic relationship with CO Charlie Coates, who seemed to really like her, bringing her treats like stale donuts and being a sounding board for her troubles. But the relationship went sour when he raped her.
Aside from the fact that the relationship was forbidden to begin with, he did a despicable thing and the fact that she went back to him and he helped her escape didn’t make up for it. Their relationship just made no sense from the get-go.
Marisol and Maritza: Perfect Together
Marisol “Flaca” Gonzales and Maritz Ramos weren’t in a romantic relationship. But their deep friendship was closer and more trusting than any other on the show. With one another through thick and thin, they considered each other sisters and were bona fide BFFs.
They did everything together, even doing YouTube make-up tutorials. And when they were separated, it was more heartbreaking than it would be for any romantic relationship to see them yearn for the other. They were like two halves that made a whole.
Lorna and Nicky: Makes No Sense
As friends, Lorna Morello and Nicky Nichols were perfect. Nichols took care of Morello like she was a sister and best friend, and Morello gave Nichols a sense of purpose that helped keep her drug addiction in check.
So when they shared a romantic rendezvous from time to time, it just seemed wrong. Their friendship made total sense, but their romantic inclinations, we could have done without. It seemed wrong and as though they needed one another on another level that wasn’t physical.
Blanca and Diablo: Perfect Together
In flashback scenes, we see who Blanca was before getting arrested and imprisoned. And a big part of her life was her boyfriend Diablo, who seemed to worship the ground she walked on. They were passionate, caring, and loving towards one another, seemingly trying hard to start a good life together. And it’s clear he did whatever he could to try to get her released once she was arrested.
Risking his own safety for her, and she for him, they reunited in the end and proved that love can conquer all.
Piper and Larry: Makes No Sense
It’s hard to remember that Piper was actually engaged to Larry Bloom at the beginning of the series before she got arrested. But when he found out about his illicit affair with Alex resuming while in prison, they broke it off for good.
But it seems like they were never meant to be together to begin with. Piper wasn’t happy with her life and the life she would have had with him. And Larry went on to marry and have kids with her best friend, who he might very well have had feelings for all along.
Poussey and Brook: Perfect Together
Brooke Soso was thoroughly irritating and never seemed to stop talking. But she struck up a romance with fellow inmate Poussey Washington and they seemed genuinely in love. They were even planning a future together outside of prison though they weren’t sure how their relationship might be in the real world.
Sadly, Washington’s life was cut short when she was accidentally killed by a CO. And the anguish Soso felt after proved that she really did have deep feelings for the woman.
CO Rick Hopper and Aleida: Makes No Sense
Aleida Diaz was only ever out for Aleida. And when she got released from prison, she went back to her old ways and used CO Rick Hopper to be her drug mule, secretly bringing drugs into the prison.
Hopper didn’t really realize that she was using him and thought they were genuinely in love and working together as partners. Meanwhile, Diaz consistently expressed her disgust for him whenever he wasn’t looking. She was just putting on a charade to get him to do her bidding.
