Netflix Releases New Season of Orange is the New Black 6 Hours Early

Fans of Netflix's comedy/drama Orange is the New Black were treated to a welcome surprise yesterday night when the streaming giant released the latest season of show six hours ahead of schedule. The new batch of episodes were slated to debut on the site's servers at 3 AM Eastern time on Friday, but they instead went live at 9 PM ET on Thursday, giving viewers a spontaneous Thursday night marathon session.

The news was announced at OrangeCon, an invite only fan event that was held in New York City. A simple message on the website heralded the news: 'Season 3 is out on early release.' No doubt referencing the show's women's prison backdrop.

Cast members of the show were quick to jump into the action, using their twitter accounts to urge viewers to check out the new season.

"The wait is over. Get some," tweeted Lolita Foster, who plays a corrections officer named Maxwell in the show's fictional Lichtfield Penitentiary.

Kate Mulgrew, who plays the Russian inmate Red said: "It's true! Season 3 is available NOW! Go! Watch! Enjoy!"

The twitter brigade proved effective as the show's abbreviated titled "OINTB" quickly started trending.

Critics however have not been as enthusiastic about the new season. The main point of criticism being the presence of Piper Chapman, the shows lead character played by actress Taylor Schilling.

The Verge's Kwame Opam says that the show may be better off jettisoning Piper and love interest Alex Vause (Laura Prepon) in favour of the prison's more interesting inhabitants:

"If I had my druthers, I'd have Piper written out altogether. The show left her behind years ago in favor of more interesting prisoners with stories that feel more vital. Even if she still has a long sentence ahead of her, there isn't much stopping the writers from wrapping up her story by shunting her off to another facility or having her escape and going on the lam with Alex.