Vote for why you think it jumped
Never Jumped
Accelerated aging drugs
Singing ("Variety" - The Musical)
Death (Adebisi)
Death? (Augustus)
Shark Bytes
Entertaining show, but this jumped the shark.
You got guys doing plays and stuff in prison, Nathan forgiving and getting involved with the guy who killed her husband?
You got guys doing plays and stuff in prison, Nathan forgiving and getting involved with the guy who killed her husband?
I really liked this show, and wouldn't say it completely jumped at any point, but Beecher's Freddy Krueger-inspired fingernail slashing - an attack resulting in death, no less - of an antagonistic prison guard was very silly and entirely unbelievable, in my opinion. I mean, I always enjoyed the "guaranteed weekly novelty death" as much as the next guy, but come on...
Oz had a few jomps here and there. The death of Adebisi was a big one...but not the biggest. I think the biggest jump was everything that had to do with the character of Dr. Nathan. Her husband is murdered and she goes back to work in the same prison that the murder and the man who ordered the murder are in? Then, she gets raped and again goes back to work where the rapist is residing? Then she falls in love with the man who ordered the death of her husband? She starts sharing rape stories with Peter Shibeda? She empathizes with Ryan when his brother...the man that murdered her husband...is sent to death row?! Give me a break!! Come on. I mean, I LOVED, loved, loved OZ, but Dr. Nathan was waaaaay too ridiculous of a character to be believed, even with suspension of disbelief! Anytime she came into a scene the show lost credibility. Other than that, I think the show was great.
Okay, I've gone through some of the complaints you all have lodged about this show, and you all have some badly held conceptions about what happens in prisons. I've got 20 years experience as a guard in a prison system in the midwest, so I just want to get some of the complaints out of the way, from personal experience.
#1 complaint - More people die in the prison than they do on death row. Sorry, kids, this one is completely true, death row has the advantage of 23 hour lockdown, so someone on death row is not likely to die until they are executed.
#2 complaint - Why didn't anything bad ever seem to happen to Ryan O'Reily? There are guys like this in prison, they don't have anyone that will have their back, so they will play sides off of each other, or they can provide a service, or get the guards to have his back (usually by being an informant). O'Reily was basically an amalgamation of that type of person.
#3 complaint - How were the inmates able to meet in secret, behind doors? No doubt this happens this very day, but was way more prevalent prior to the 90s when there was a lower guard to inmate ratio. And in most prisons, you don't have lockdowns until bedtime or if there was an assault or murder committed.
#4 complaint - Sex isn't allowed in prison. How right you are gentle viewer, but once again it comes down to you can't watch everyone at all the time. You are going to get rapes and consensual sex in prison and the guards will bust down on it, provided they are not busy trying to either confiscate contraband or stopping inmate assaults.
#5 complaint - They don't let prisoners be telemarketers. Guess what, the state of Nevada has a telemarketing firm that uses prison labor to ******* orders.
However, there were problems that I had with the show also. The first one being that the visitors were in close contact with the entire prison population on the way to the waiting room, that plus they were able to visit the prisoner without any search. Those go right into the category of not in any lifetime.
The next one is the character of McManus. Seriously, an idiot like this would have been run out of prison well inside of a year. Either the guards would have gone to the warden to get him removed, or the warden would have seen his utter incompetence. He had no control over the inmates on his block, so Glynn would have fired his ass after the first inmate death, if not sooner.
The jobs that Adebisi got, here is another problem that I have, there is no way that Adebisi would have been allowed any where near food preparation or taking care of patients. His pre-trial sentencing report would have had enough red flags so the watch commanders would have had him doing nothing no more important than say mopping floors or washing the dishes.
Also, the killing of the week that went on in Season 6, I mean at that point the guys must have been in the bullpen smoking crack and dropping acid at the same time to try to figure ways to kill everyone.
At the end of the day though, I give this show a big, Never Jumped, because I still like watching it on DVD now that I'm retired.
#1 complaint - More people die in the prison than they do on death row. Sorry, kids, this one is completely true, death row has the advantage of 23 hour lockdown, so someone on death row is not likely to die until they are executed.
#2 complaint - Why didn't anything bad ever seem to happen to Ryan O'Reily? There are guys like this in prison, they don't have anyone that will have their back, so they will play sides off of each other, or they can provide a service, or get the guards to have his back (usually by being an informant). O'Reily was basically an amalgamation of that type of person.
#3 complaint - How were the inmates able to meet in secret, behind doors? No doubt this happens this very day, but was way more prevalent prior to the 90s when there was a lower guard to inmate ratio. And in most prisons, you don't have lockdowns until bedtime or if there was an assault or murder committed.
#4 complaint - Sex isn't allowed in prison. How right you are gentle viewer, but once again it comes down to you can't watch everyone at all the time. You are going to get rapes and consensual sex in prison and the guards will bust down on it, provided they are not busy trying to either confiscate contraband or stopping inmate assaults.
#5 complaint - They don't let prisoners be telemarketers. Guess what, the state of Nevada has a telemarketing firm that uses prison labor to ******* orders.
However, there were problems that I had with the show also. The first one being that the visitors were in close contact with the entire prison population on the way to the waiting room, that plus they were able to visit the prisoner without any search. Those go right into the category of not in any lifetime.
The next one is the character of McManus. Seriously, an idiot like this would have been run out of prison well inside of a year. Either the guards would have gone to the warden to get him removed, or the warden would have seen his utter incompetence. He had no control over the inmates on his block, so Glynn would have fired his ass after the first inmate death, if not sooner.
The jobs that Adebisi got, here is another problem that I have, there is no way that Adebisi would have been allowed any where near food preparation or taking care of patients. His pre-trial sentencing report would have had enough red flags so the watch commanders would have had him doing nothing no more important than say mopping floors or washing the dishes.
Also, the killing of the week that went on in Season 6, I mean at that point the guys must have been in the bullpen smoking crack and dropping acid at the same time to try to figure ways to kill everyone.
At the end of the day though, I give this show a big, Never Jumped, because I still like watching it on DVD now that I'm retired.
Last I checked OZ was a wounderous world,not a jailhouse.
In 50 years OZ will be remembered as the land that Frank B. created and not an unoriginaly titled show,that aired on a by then defunct channel called H-B-O.
In 50 years OZ will be remembered as the land that Frank B. created and not an unoriginaly titled show,that aired on a by then defunct channel called H-B-O.
The worst actors on this show were Ernie Hudson and Terry McKinney (McManus). They brought the show down and over-acted. The suck at acting.
This show jumped the shark when Said wasn't punished for starting the riot and shooting a gun into the air. Said always walked around with a chip on his shoulder, he breathed heavily through his nostrils and spoke through clenched teeth. It's like dude, relax. And when he gave up the pardon, I was like, okay, Said is an idiot. Said thinks he can CHANGE THE WORLD while he is a prisoner inside Oz. Is he insane? Prisoners are criminals and have no rights and can't change the world. He could have been free and done more on the outside with his racist religion than he ever could inside Oz.
How convenient that Keller ended up to be Beecher's cellmate when he arrived in Oz to brutally torture him and do everything but kill him.
How is it that all the inmates can roam the halls and meet up in the storage closet - unit b - without supervision?
How is it that more inmates died in Em City than they did on death row?
How did Ryan O'Reily never get raped? He had no friends. No one to back him up or protect him. He was everyone's enemy and he lied to everyone (yet people kept believing everything he told them - idiots) yet no one ever raped Ryan. How is that possible? Ryan was responsible for most of the problems in Oz yet he is never raped. THAT was unrealistic.
Why did Governer Devlin hold all of his press conferences at the prison? What governer does that? Governers hold their press conferences at the state capital, their offices, a special "press conference room" or at a public event focused on what they are talking about. But Devlin spent more time in Oz that the COs that worked there. I mean, he was assassinated there (almost). What's he doing at Oz so much?
How did Warden Glenn get warden of the year? More inmates died in his watch than in any other prison to date. And no investigations happen when people die. It's like they move on as if nothing happened.
When the rev cloutier disappeared into thin air, Mukada felt the bed like okay, whatever, but then no one ever said anything like "OH MY GOSH. AN INMATE DISAPPEARED INTO THIN AIR!!!! LOCK DOWN!!! LET'S CHECK THE GROUNDS SEE IF HE ESCAPED SOMEWHERE BECAUSE THIS IS THE REAL WORLD AND NOT A CARTOON - PEOPLE JUST DON'T DISAPPEAR. CLOUTIER IS A FELON, NOT JESUS CHRIST!!!!" But no, they just let that plot go away like it never happened.
I hated that this show only gave us a ONCE-PER-SEASON kiss between Keller and Beecher. They had such chemistry. They should have shown more romance, love, chemistry and even sex between them. For a prison where a lot of sex and rape goes on, we never saw any love making between Beecher and Keller. I would have loved to have seen more especially in the SEason THREE FINALE where they kiss on New Years Eve - I slo-mo that scene because every frame is white hot and turns me on.
This show jumped the shark when Said wasn't punished for starting the riot and shooting a gun into the air. Said always walked around with a chip on his shoulder, he breathed heavily through his nostrils and spoke through clenched teeth. It's like dude, relax. And when he gave up the pardon, I was like, okay, Said is an idiot. Said thinks he can CHANGE THE WORLD while he is a prisoner inside Oz. Is he insane? Prisoners are criminals and have no rights and can't change the world. He could have been free and done more on the outside with his racist religion than he ever could inside Oz.
How convenient that Keller ended up to be Beecher's cellmate when he arrived in Oz to brutally torture him and do everything but kill him.
How is it that all the inmates can roam the halls and meet up in the storage closet - unit b - without supervision?
How is it that more inmates died in Em City than they did on death row?
How did Ryan O'Reily never get raped? He had no friends. No one to back him up or protect him. He was everyone's enemy and he lied to everyone (yet people kept believing everything he told them - idiots) yet no one ever raped Ryan. How is that possible? Ryan was responsible for most of the problems in Oz yet he is never raped. THAT was unrealistic.
Why did Governer Devlin hold all of his press conferences at the prison? What governer does that? Governers hold their press conferences at the state capital, their offices, a special "press conference room" or at a public event focused on what they are talking about. But Devlin spent more time in Oz that the COs that worked there. I mean, he was assassinated there (almost). What's he doing at Oz so much?
How did Warden Glenn get warden of the year? More inmates died in his watch than in any other prison to date. And no investigations happen when people die. It's like they move on as if nothing happened.
When the rev cloutier disappeared into thin air, Mukada felt the bed like okay, whatever, but then no one ever said anything like "OH MY GOSH. AN INMATE DISAPPEARED INTO THIN AIR!!!! LOCK DOWN!!! LET'S CHECK THE GROUNDS SEE IF HE ESCAPED SOMEWHERE BECAUSE THIS IS THE REAL WORLD AND NOT A CARTOON - PEOPLE JUST DON'T DISAPPEAR. CLOUTIER IS A FELON, NOT JESUS CHRIST!!!!" But no, they just let that plot go away like it never happened.
I hated that this show only gave us a ONCE-PER-SEASON kiss between Keller and Beecher. They had such chemistry. They should have shown more romance, love, chemistry and even sex between them. For a prison where a lot of sex and rape goes on, we never saw any love making between Beecher and Keller. I would have loved to have seen more especially in the SEason THREE FINALE where they kiss on New Years Eve - I slo-mo that scene because every frame is white hot and turns me on.
Dear Lord, the episode called Variety in season 5 where people kept singing and dancing for the camera. So painful.
There were some story lines in the series that just seemed too outrageous to believe it could ever happen in real life. However, it really JTS in Season 5. I watched the series on DVD, so, I continued to the end with season 6. If I had watched it when it originally aired, I may have stopped during season 5.
This show started out great, but around the third season, the stories started getting really stupid. Where do I start? A guy brings a cell phone (and a charger!), undetected, into Oz, and it's eventually discovered because the crafty and resourceful Ryan O'Reilly leaves the ringer on?!? How many inmates are killed in the gym, yet there are no cameras and very few guards there? The O'Reillys' mother teaches music there, and the only protection she has is the guard with the cut hamstring who can barely hobble around (and stands across the room from her). Inmates training dogs? Big surprise that one of them is trained to attack a guard. The old guy TWICE digging tunnels, as though the prison is built on a dirt foundation, and they trust him not to do it again. The other old guy asking for donations for his grandson's operation, and his fellow cons showing up in droves to give him money. Inmates are killed left and right with little if any mention, but much of several shows were devoted to an investigation of who killed scumbag Scott Ross during the riot -- not to mention Leo is given an award for his work. Two sworn enemies (Morales and The Colonel) are left alone to fix the elevator, with the expected results. This is stupid for many, many reasons. The guy on Death Row digs enough out of the wall to (literally) punch a hole through it and strangle his neighbor. Supreme Allah drops dead after having a tiny piece of egg. That was unlikely enough; they couldn't come up with a more interesting way to kill him off? They give the wacko inmate (Michael Wright), who already killed a fellow con, his own unsupervised room to practice his singing, and they're surprised that he's selling drugs out of there? Visitors are left to find their own way out of the prison, among vengeful inmates?
wat did it for me was said being shot by that insignificant nothing! such a stupid death idea for such a great man. after that i just stopped watching. depressing and disappointing beyond belief.
one word:Jericho.Although,it was pretty funny when Peta-Marie asks a question,Jericho looks to Cyril,who nods consent and replies;"F**k.You.You.C**T."
I enjoy watching this show, but I believe that the show went downhill for me in Season 5. The last strong season for me is Season 4, actually it was 16 episodes instead of the usual 8, so it had more variety. But Season 6 (last season) is just painful to watch, with all the suprise deaths and all, it still was dull as hell. It seemed as though they burnt themselves out, and had nothing left.
I stopped watching after they killed off kenny Wangler. i think they could have done a lot more with that character. and im sorry but sex in prison is not allowed and atleast one of the guards would have seen keeny tied to the bed naked and would of had to do something
anyone noticed that almost the whole cast went to have apart on law and order svu?I saw OZ before Law and Order and was astounded to see Vern SChillinger doing a psychological consult,the reverend drawing up a psychological consult,Chris Keler being the ultimate family man and lead detective...then Kathryn Erbe on Criminal Intent...but anyway I think even after tthe agingpill fiasco it was stillgood TV..not the greatest show but it still was good..weven though EVERYBODY GETS KILLED including the warden.
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