Lara Radulovich and David Hannam created an Australian drama series based on Reg Watson’s original 1979 series ‘Prisoner.’ The Foxtel original series, set in modern Australia, opens with Bea Smith. Smith is condemned to incarceration after trying to assassinate her violent hubby. The ensuing seasons follow Bea as she learns how jailhouses work and makes her way to the top of the prison hierarchy. In season nine, everything seems to come to a conclusion, leaving us wondering if Wentworth season 10 is a possibility.
For Lou, the time to go with a bang came forth in season 9 ending. Firstly, that war of attrition between inmates and prison staff turned out sour. In consequence, the H-Block team is in trouble. Secondly, Wentworth is one prison drama with many overlapping plots. Consequently, it could be cumbersome to keep up with the plotlines if the viewers don’t pay attention —Remember HBO’s “Oz”?— Still, things move along swimmingly until a central character gets the chop. That’s what makes Wentworth such a good series. Now without any further ado, let’s begin reviewing the renewal status for this Aussie jailhouse show.
Wentworth Renewal Status
Regrettably, Wentworth won’t return for a tenth season. Consequently, Season nine is the final installment of this riveting Australian prison drama. It’s not disheartening, though, good crime prison shows like this one are hard to come by. Wentworth died in a way that was, in as much as it, good. Nobody could argue that the series’ last episode, in which comeuppances were meted out, redemptions were attained, and a massive bloody bomb went off, was out of character.
It’s a risky decision to murder off your main character, but Wentworth went for it, with the Wentworth Detention Facility itself collapsing around the cast’s ears as Lou Kelly’s nefarious scheme came to reality. Wentworth sharpened itself as it approached its final destination: characters had lost their lives throughout its eight seasons, and as the big day approached, more deaths meant the show was left with just the essentials: the good guys versus the bad guys, with every fallen comrade on either side acting as fuel to the fire. Lastly, while many writers out there compare this female show to Orange is The New Black by Jenji Kohan —also Weeds creator—, it’s fair to affirm that this show holds more in comparison to HBO’s Oz with its conclusion than to OITNB.
Wentworth Season 9 Trailer
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UCtRUo_HSTU
Wentworth Finale Recap
Rita survives the attack with just minor wounds and bruises. Will offers to relocate her into protective custody, but she rejects, knowing that the only way she and Ruby can prove their innocence is to return to the apartment and recover the phone, which has Marie’s recording of her discussion with Jonesy. Will agrees but tells Rita that the jail has tried and failed before. When Rita returns to the unit, Boomer, Marie, Allie, and Ruby all reject her in favor of Lou’s protection.
Unbeknownst to Lou, they are all covertly doing this to assist Rita in finding the phone. Rita begs Marie to safeguard Ruby because, with Boomer pregnant and Allie in a wheelchair, she is her last chance. Marie concurs. Judy’s father visits her. He informs her that fresh evidence has emerged establishing her innocence. As a result, Judy cancels her escape attempt with Lou. Lou, on the other hand, remains privately dedicated to the escape.
A complicated guilty plea
When Ann learns this, she brutally assaults Judy. Vera and Will step in and demand that Ann quit. Dr. Miller testifies under oath that her amnesia is real during Joan Ferguson’s murder trial for Kath Maxwell’s murder. Vera threatens Ferguson outside the court that she is still prepared to disclose the truth. Ferguson declares during cross-examination that her memory came back and that she desires to modify her plea to guilty.
Vera confronts her upon her arrival at Wentworth, asking why she would do this when the trial was obviously in her favor. Ferguson merely grins in answer. Ruby has been warned off that Lou is going to use the phone. Ruby follows, but it’s a trap, and she’s ambushed by Lou’s henchwomen. She is rescued by Marie, who knocks them all off but is viciously stabbed to death by Lou in the process. Will bemoans the loss of her body.
Impending bomb plot
Ann is alerted about the impending bomb assault on the jail as she departs, but she is ordered to remain quiet in order to capture the terrorists in the act. Ann is hesitant at first but accepts after learning that these same terrorists are to blame for her daughter’s death. Rita, Ruby, Allie, and Boomer all lament Marie’s death while the rest of the jail hurls murder and brutality at them. Judy discovers Lou’s plan to blast her way out of jail hasn’t changed. She makes an attempt – and fails – to stop her.
Ferguson overhears them and notifies Rita. Rita approaches Lou, which swiftly turns into a vicious brawl. During the scuffle, Lou’s phone slips out of his pocket, revealing the recordings. They are both assigned a space. Rita attempts to convince Lou out planting the explosives in the slot, but Lou is adamant. Ann arranges a phony transfer to the courthouse for Judy, knowing that if she is near where the bomb is detonated, she would perish.
Dropping like flies
Unable to persuade Lou to abandon the plot, Judy reluctantly informs Ann about the assault. Ann brags about how she already knows. Judy is unable to provide this information to anybody else. The bomb explodes in the jail parking lot, killing the prison personnel and damaging the majority of the facility. Rita, Lou, Ruby, and Boomer all make it out alive. Allie, on the other hand, is still buried under the debris. She attempts to get her phone back.
The Finale
Vera regains consciousness and discovers Judy’s impaled body amid the ruins. Vera learns Ann was aware of the assault and purposefully planned Judy’s murder. Ann suffocates Vera. Ferguson saves Vera just before she passes out by yanking Ann off her and snapping her neck, killing her immediately. Ferguson transports Vera from the jail to safety. Once outside, she tells Vera that she saved her so Grace wouldn’t be without a mother. Vera feels very thankful after these events.
Ferguson then walks away, vanishing into the darkness. When Linda declares her missing, Will and Jake feel relief since they believe she is dead, but Vera remains silent. Rita apprehends Lou as he attempts to flee the outer walls. She has been arrested and charged with her crimes. Allie is transported to safety. As Rita, Ruby, and Boomer welcome her, Allie says that she was able to recover the phone for Ruby and Rita, establishing their innocence. In the last frame that concludes the Australian series Wentworth, they are all overjoyed.
The problem with the finale
One of the problems with prison dramas is that all characters are written up to a logical conclusion. In some ways, the prison itself, coupled with its harsh realities, is the main protagonist rather than the characters. Earlier in this text, we mentioned HBO’s “Oz”. In that drama, by the end, when a complex bioterrorist attack ensues, every inmate has to relocate elsewhere as the prison goes into a cleanup crew. While in conclusion to its course, lots of dead bodies ensued. Just like in Wentworth. Prison life goes on forever. Inmates die, they come, and they go. We see this with the many cliffhangers that Wentworth left with its finale.
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The description of the finale reads, “In the ruins, one final battle rears its head”. While that could refer to the feud between Rita Connors and Lou Kelly, the conclusion to this wonderful Australian production by Foxtel failed to give us that battle besides that fight in a cell. Moreover, that was no conclusion either. While most of us knew the result of Connor beating up Lou in that prison cell, is it fair to assume that the writers would let that main character live until the end? Or is that just lazy writing after a series of characters dying? Still, the finale isn’t disappointing, nor terrible, just a little rushed because they had to cram everything inside a 45-minute timeframe that could’ve seen better extension across the season without stretching other plotlines. With this, we wrap up our scoop of this topic here at Otakukart. Thanks for reading our article, and please keep coming back for more daily updates.