When the 7th episode of Wentworth Prison’s 4th season begins, Vera Bennett (Kate Atkinson) pays a visit to Ferguson (Pamela Rabe) and lets her know her lawyer is at the prison. Ferguson meets with her lawyer, who admits she believes the prosecution is attempting to bring in a surprise witness. Although the lawyer insists she has no idea who the individual could be, Ferguson immediately suspects Bea (Danielle Cormack). Bea meets with a prosecutor, who attempts to persuade her into testifying against Ferguson. Although Bea is skeptical and fearful, she agrees to do so, if it means Ferguson will get sent back into protective custody. Allie (Kate Jenkinson) stops Bea in the hallway and gives her some Vitamin E for her cuts. Next, Karen (Tammy Macintosh) joins the women in the yard and tells them she believes she will only receive an 18 months sentence.

She notices Ferguson, who is sitting off to the side alone. Kaz confronts her and learns about Ferguson’s suspicions about Bea. Next, Vera pulls Jake (Bernard Curry) aside and punishes him for his actions in the elevator. Doreen Anderson (Shareena Clanton) tries to convince Linda Miles (Jacqueline Brennan) to allow her to see Tasha, but is turned down. Sonia Stevens (Sigrid Thronton) ridicules the women for their negative energy and is immediately countered by Boomer (Katrina Milosevic), who questions where the body is hidden. Liz (Celia Ireland) attempts to convince Sonia to lighten up and try to fit in, but she refuses. Liz then meets up with the detective and admits it is going to hard to convince Sonia to give up evidence. Nonetheless, the detective seems confident that Liz will be able to pull it off with time.

Doreen attempts to meet up with Kaz, but only finds Joan in the cell block. She speaks with Joan about the panic button rule and is prompted to take a stand for the women. In the cafeteria, Sonia asks Liz where she has been and Liz gives her an excuse. Boomer belittles Doreen for changing tables and sitting with the Freak. Boomer and Sonia spar back and forth with a few childish insults, before Bea joints the group and Doreen interrupts their meal. Doreen insists the panic rule needs to change and others begin standing with her. Bea refuses. Back in the cellblock, Bea confronts Doreen and asks her what her problem is. Doreen insists she is only trying to help the women and continues disobeying Bea’s orders. She approaches the panic button and prepares to push it. Despite Bea’s commands, Doreen pushes the button and women throughout the prison do the same.

The guards lockdown the prison and question the inmates. Bea plays it off and admits it was nothing more than an accident. After everything calms down, Bea returns to her cell and reflects, while Liz attempts to talk some sense into Doreen. Doreen insists the women no longer want a top dog. The next day, Vera speaks with Bea and tells her she needs to get things under control. She insists Ferguson and the others are beginning to see the cracks and will likely make their move soon enough. Bea heads to the cafeteria and is immediately confronted by Kaz, who asks about the panic button rule. Bea insists it remains, before lashing out and calling for a vote. She tells the girls to vote whether or not they want a top dog. Three women are put in charge of collecting the votes and things get underway.

Sonia and Liz are two of the women put in control. In the staff room, Jake offers Will (Robbie Magasiva) some protein powder, but it refused. Afterwards, Liz and the others give the women instructions for casting their votes. Boomer pays a visit to Maxine (Socratis Otto), who admits she is just tired and will vote later. Boomer also discover that Max doesn’t have a date for her operation and becomes worried. Boomer immediately speaks with Bea and asks her to speak with Vera about the operation. Bea agrees to do so. Bea puts Doreen in charge of the press and speaks with Maxine. Bea admits she doesn’t want to win the vote and would rather live the quiet life. Maxine also insists she doesn’t want the operation and would rather die with her breasts than live without them. Juice (Sally-Anne Upton) harasses Sonia in the hallway, while the voting casting continues.

Vera begins to worry about the outcome of the vote. She tells Will to put the women in their cells earlier tonight to make up for the previous night’s fiasco. The guards confront the women in the cafeteria and tell them to return to their cells for the night. Confusion ensues and the girls don’t want to leave the votes with one another, since they believe they’ll rig them. Jake takes the votes and locks them away. During the night, Vera sneaks into the cafeteria and checks the votes. She is caught by Jake, who tells her she isn’t such a good girl after all. In the morning, the vote is counted and Bea wins by a large margin. Kaz, Ferguson and many others don’t like the outcome. Kaz and Ferguson return to work in the kitchen, where they contemplate an attack on Bea. However, Kaz refuses, since she is on the verge of getting her sentence and expects the minimum. Allie overhears the conversation.

Vera brings Jake into her cell and gives him a warning. She threatens that he will be out, if he collects two more. Jake flirts with Vera and admits he’ll take anything she can dish out, before making his exit. Next, Allie catches Bea putting the Vitamin E on her legs. Allie learns that Bea didn’t want to remain as top dog, before helping her put on the cream. Bea insists she isn’t gay, but Allie admits she doesn’t care what she is. Boomer speaks with the nurse and asks her about Max’s operation date. Boomer learns that it was Max’s decision to refuse the operation. Boomer immediately confronts Max and learns the truth. Boomer goes off and calls Maxine selfish for her decision. Maxine attempts to comfort Boomer. Kaz returns after her hearing with bad news.

Kaz is searched by Vera, while explaining she receives 12 years. She returns to her cell and wrecks it. Bea heads to the cafeteria and collects milk from Allie. They flirt a little, before Allie admits she is going to tell Kaz the truth and switch sides. She also insists the judge will throw the book at her too, so she’ll likely stick around for a little while. Maxine reflects on his decision and contemplates his future. He speaks with Boomer and confirms he is going to go through with the operation. Kaz meets with Bridget Westfall (Libby Tanner) and complains about her sentence. She also confirms she is angry at the individual, who is responsible for her being behind bars. Bea returns to her cell and draws a picture of Allie. She looks at the picture of her daughter on the wall and rushes towards Kaz’s cell. She manages to prevent Allie from switching sides, but flares things up with Kaz.

Next, Liz speaks with Doreen and tells her she needs to make contact with Nash. Doreen whines a little about her situations and admits she misses Joshua. Vera and Jake meet in the elevator. Jake ignores Vera and smiles all the way out. Bea speaks with Allie and insists she wanted to keep her safety, while admitting everyone she cares about winds up dead. They share a kiss, while Ferguson listens in on their conversation. Ferguson returns to Kaz and strikes up a deal. She agrees to kill Bea, if Kaz can take out Niles Jesper.

 

Wentworth Review

The 7th episode of Wentworth wasn’t the most explosive in terms of action, but it delivered the drama. Boomer finally managed to talk Maxine into getting the operation, regardless of the consequences and the potential outcome. Allie and Bea finally moved their relationship one step further and Bea solidified her status as top dog, despite not wanting it. Jake continues wiggling his way into Vera’s business and seems to be up to something.

Finally, Ferguson and Kaz formed a deal to eliminate their biggest enemies. The episode was effective and set up an 8th episode, which I cannot wait to watch. An 8.5 out of 10 is deserved. Get rid of Doreen and the score would go higher. Catch up with previous recaps of Wentworth right now.