The Freak is entrenched as Top Dog, while Allie’s attempt to end her fails miserably.

 

After the horror of episode 6, this week’s seemed to quite be tame in comparison. But of course, it’s all relative, and this was definitely no “Charlie and the Chocolate Factory”. 

 

Oranges and Lemons

 

We can, however, start with what seems (at this stage) to be a happy ending for one of the originals of H-Block – Doreen Anderson. She’s had her ups and downs, the worst being her decision to give her baby up to partner Nash, to raise on the outside. Nash, who then of course racked off to the other side of the country, with poor Dors left stuck in Melbourne with an application to be transferred to Perth knocked back and her none-the-wiser as to the reason why. Well, this week we find out that reason, and while the parole board has made Dors feel like crap, the end result is she’s been paroled and is leaving Wentworth tomorrow!

 

So the ‘family’ has a farewell after lock in – and courtesy of Sonia’s single malt in a shampoo bottle, toast Doreen and her life on the outside. Franky’s parting message, which she would do well to listen to herself, is “Don’t fuck up!” But knowing these women, and the way the writers tease  – she probably will. Joan tries to make a connection with Doreen, always having believed that they “had something”, especially after the chocolate chip icecream episode in Season 3. And credit where it’s due, she did kill Jess to save Josh too. But Doreen rebuffs her attempts, and if she weren’t such an abhorrent human, you might almost feel sorry for the sadness she has written across her face as Doreen is leaving; the cold truth that Doreen despises her hitting her hard. 

 

We almost feel sorry for you!

 

Despite Doreen’s panic that she can’t get hold of Nash, and the sadness that she feels leaving the place that’s made her “a better person”, she walks out into the fresh air wondering what next, while being watched over by Franky (get to that later!), and SURPRISE! into the arms of a waiting Nash and a wobbly Joshie toddling to her on his baby legs. Happy family reunion! Fingers crossed it lasts, because I am wracking my brain to think of anyone else who’s had a happy ending on this show that does.

 

Now, it has to be said – Vera is really pissed off. Like seriously pissed off. Just as much about the balloons and decorations still up in the staffroom from her non-birthday celebrations as about Lucy’s lack of tongue, and the seeming lack of control her guards have over the prison population. She knows full well The Freak was behind the attack on Juice, and suspends all her privileges, but how to find that “burden of proof” that’s going to allow her to formally point the finger?

 

So, who does she try to enlist to help with her little problem? None other than one Francesca Doyle, still working on her case, still undetected as the one who screwed with the van, still with a head full of plans to escape. Of course she knocks back the suggestion of taking down Ferguson, with an “I’d rather keep my tongue… for obvious reasons”. Not quite the level of “I’m a vagitarian”, but still reminding us that she’s a lover of the ladies and aren’t we all happy about that! But on a more serious note, even though Franky knows she’s most likely “the only one who can take on Ferguson”, she’s firm that “you’re not dragging me back in.”

 

Joan has assumed the position behind the steam press and the mood in the laundry is sombre. Funereal even. Furtive glances dart between the women, and Boomer says what everyone is thinking, “I hope Kaz is fucken happy.” All they wanted was a Top Dog who played by the rules, not one who tried to revolutionise prison-lore such that they ended up with a narcissistic psychopath running the joint.

 

Despite the bright sunshine, there’s a long shadow over the yard

 

The mood in the yard is just as bad as in the laundry, no-one saying much, everyone watching The Freak, who now has Juice’s boys as part of her crew. Booms again states what everyone else is thinking, “Jesus Christ it’s a bloody barrel of laughs around here. None of this would have happened if Kaz let me bash Lucy”. Franky’s distracted and her brain clicks into overdrive when she notices the guard monitoring the top of the wall. You just know she’s planning something monumentally stupid, especially when she spends the next half hour of the episode walking around examining the aircon vents. Hey Franky, remember – Don’t fuck up!!

 

So it’s no surprise when Franky sneaks herself into Bridget’s office and manages to haul herself up into the aircon system  – that is some serious upper body strength there! She crawls around a bit, and finds herself on the same part of the roof that she saw a guard earlier in the ep. And what’s that? A door! She rushes across the roof, only to find the door is locked! Imagine that – a locked door in a prison! But she’s close – oh so close, and it only fuels her desire for freedom. Plus she gets to witness Doreen’s reunion with Nash and Josh. The juxtapositioning of the two scenes of Doreen leaving Wentworth legitimately, and Franky planning an escape is not lost, as it’s pretty clear to see that Franky’s heart swells with happiness for them, while her frustration at her own situation stabs at her.

 

This is a really bad idea

 

But there is also that issue that she’s just semi-busted out of prison, so that’s kinda bad. I tell you – for someone who is really, really smart, Franky can be really fucking dumb sometimes. Like unbelievably dumb; like beyond “suspend your disbelief this is TV drama” dumb. Bridget comes back into her office just moments after Franky reverses her runner and is super pissed off at both Franky and herself for believing that Franky wouldn’t try something stupid again. Franky’s plea that she’s “doin’ it for us” doesn’t wash, and Bridget kicks her out.

 

Really Franky, really? Are we both that dumb??

 

Now, Kaz and Will – the unlikely partnership, working together to bust the drug ring and bring down Joan. Despite Kaz being adamant there’s a dodgy officer, Will is just as adamant that there’s not; he refuses to believe any of his colleagues aren’t clean. But they do know that if they can stop the drugs they take away The Freak’s power, as it’s only their support that’s keeping her at the top of the pile.

 

Tina demands extra gear from Jake the Snake, who really doesn’t like being pushed around by her, so threatens her with a week in the slot. Tina relents with a “Let’s make money, not war”, and comes up with a plan, to get an early bin delivery (remembering the drugs are coming in through the sanitary bins). Jake is taking bigger and bigger risks now, and puts his order through from his locker, but he knows there’s plenty at stake with Joan breathing down his neck and Tina threatening to get a new supplier.

 

So, up in flames go the sanitary bins, meaning urgent replacements will need to be ordered.  Will works out that must be the source and he and Vera organise a raid to catch the dealers at the heart of it. Tina fully shits herself as she’s caught red-handed opening the bin to retrieve her stash, but when Will checks the bins there’s nothing there. He’s not a happy chappy.

 

I wonder if all the women’s cycles are in sync??

 

He slots Tina for possession of a shiv, but they don’t have anything on her as far as the drugs go. Jake turns up to see Tina, and while she asks him “What the fuck just happened?” he lets her know it was he that saved her skin by calling off the delivery at the last minute, knowing that a raid was about to happen. Up. To. His. Eyeballs. But the beauty of it is that Will now believes Kaz that there’s a dodgy screw, so has more to work with. Of course, the flip side… The Freak. She’ll get him, she always does.

 

The H1 girls are worried about Allie, as she continues on her quest to buy more drugs. They of course, don’t knows she’s stockpiling the stuff, and plans to “hot shot the bitch” Ferguson. Even Joan, who seems to work everything out, is doesn’t see what’s coming when Allie approaches her about Tina not selling to her anymore. The ‘family’ tries an intervention, which goes pear-shaped as Allie keeps up the pretense of being back on the gear.

 

Family intervention Boomer style: subtle as a sledgehammer. “Why you gone back on the gear?”

 

Allie makes an almost fatal mistake when she goes to see Ferguson, begging to get Tina to sell to her, telling Ferguson, “you can have anything in my cell, anything you want.” She then rushes back to hand Bea’s sketch book to Liz for safe-keeping, knowing that if The Freak and her crew come looking, that’s likely to be the only thing they’d want to take from her, and the only thing she couldn’t bear to lose. 

 

Yeah, I’ll talk to her and together we ‘ll further complicate the mess she’s already in

 

Liz misinterprets this as Allie planning to harm herself, so asks Franky to talk to her. Allie comes clean, so to speak, to Franky about her plans to hotshot Ferguson. Franky freaks out realising Allie has “enough fucking shit to kill a horse”.  She tells her “Ferguson is a fucken spider, she’s got eyes in the back of her head”, making Allie flush the gear down the toilet. Only she doesn’t, and her plan continues rolling along. Liz, being Liz, is relieved that Allie is okay, and sneaks into Allie’s cell to slip the sketchbook under her pillow, as a surprise for her. Bah-bow… not good!

 

Okay – another weird plot hole that occurs on a fairly regular basis. Allie wanders into the kitchen, alone, at night, presumably after head-count and they’ve been locked in their blocks. How does a prisoner do this undetected? Surely she’s not a wizard and the bars of the block are not the wall on Platform 9 ¾! But anyway, there she is, and she lucks across Tina’s enormous stash of cash – the proceeds from her dealing. Tina is livid when she finds out, and next thing Allie is on a crash course with The Freak and the dealers.

 

Unknowingly, she walks into a kitchen ambush with the handful of cash that belongs to Tina, to buy the last hit that will give her enough for the hot shot. She thinks she’s been really clever, but surely someone with the attachment to money that Tina has would be keeping a pretty close eye on her stash. She wouldn’t even trust her crew with the kind of money she’s dealing with. So I reckon Allie is pretty dumb not to think Tina wouldn’t notice it missing, and when she suddenly turns up with a huge wad of notes, it’s going to look pretty suss. So The Freak hands Tina her “fuckload of cash”, and when Kim hands over Bea’s sketchbook, Allie is suddenly panicking and vulnerable.

 

This thing worth much you reckon?

 

The Freak then forces her to burn the sketchbook “page by page” in exchange for the drugs she wants. Allie has to make the choice to save or sacrifice the book, in order to carry out her plan to kill Ferguson. She hesitates, The Freak and crew make to leave, Allie relents. It’s heartbreaking watching her burn the drawings, but also reveals the extent of her determination to exact revenge. It’s also heartening to remember that she ripped out Bea’s one self-portrait, so she has at least something that Ferguson hasn’t stripped from her.

 

Shit just got serious – one hot shot coming up

 

Stumbling back to her cell, she finds it’s been ransacked and her grief turns to panic that Tina and co found her stockpile. She finds the hollow book that holds the gear, and the plan is back on. Her relief is palpable, as she goes on cook up her shot, fill her syringe and set everything in motion. Ferguson arrives in the shower block and has her minions check the stalls, finding Allie in one of them, seemingly completely off her face. While Kim tells her to get out, Joan decides to let her stay – she’s doing no harm there, virtually unable to move, and possibly on the verge of O/D.

 

Joan begins taunting Allie with the same words she used on Jodie Spiteri in Season 3, “Look at you. Worthless. Nothing.” Joan’s contempt for weakness is renowned, most likely instilled in her from the relentless harassment and haranguing she received from her father who accepted no less than perfection from her. Allie reaches out her arm, prompting Joan to ask, “do you want to touch me?” and further taunt her that she’s a “whore, drawn to strong women.”

 

What would Bea say?

 

Joan gets closer and closer as she turns the shower on Allie, and as it appears she’s about to kiss her with further gibes of “If only Bea could see us now”, Allie springs up and stabs her in the neck with the needle. But she’s unable to push the lethal dose of heroin into Ferguson’s neck, and as The Freak stumbles backwards, she manages to pull the needle out, quickly overpowering Allie (don’t ever give up the high ground!) at the bottom of the shower stall.

 

The Freak is all over Allie, holding the deadly syringe to her neck as Allie begs her to do it, to drive it into her vein and release her to be with Bea. But of course, Ferguson knows the real pain for Allie will be in living, not dying, so despite everything in her being wanting to kill Allie for attacking her, instead squirts the liquid over her face, letting her know “there’s no easy way out for you.” The symbolic stabs continue, this time with Joan letting Allie know that Bea “threw herself on the shiv to be with you, yet here you are. The love of your life – died for nothing.” Allie is left lying on the floor of the shower, in complete and utter distress.

 

Sopping wet, she finds her way back to her cell, taking down Bea’s picture from its hidden place, and apologising to the picture. Franky follows her in, and Allie’s cries of “I was so close…” turns to sobs of “I want to die”, as Franky holds her close and rocks her like a child. Franky tells her of her adventures on the roof today, and soon they are making a pact that they’re going to escape together – Franky to find out who killed Pennisi, and Allie to live a happy life as revenge on Ferguson.

 

Can’t see this ending well.

 

@SanjaIsWriting