Fans of the Netflix original “Orange is the New Black” will want to check out the Australian prison drama “Wentworth.” The first three seasons are streaming on Netflix now and the fourth season is set to premier on Australian television sometime in April 2016.

The show, which is a revamp of the 80’s Australian show “Prisoner,” focuses on the life of Bea Smith (Danielle Cormack, “Rake”) after she is arrested for the attempted murder of her abusive husband, Harry Smith (Jake Ryan, “The Great Gatsby”). In prison, Bea ends up in the middle of a turf war between Franky Doyle (Nicole da Silva, “Rush”) and Jacs Holt (Kris McQuade, “A Place to Call Home”) the two opposing leaders of the prison.

As Bea settles into life in prison, she joins Franky’s crew and makes an enemy in Jacs. Bea’s life gets turned upside down when her daughter, Debbi (Georgia Flood, “House Husbands”) dies from a drug overdose. Bea suspects that Jacs is behind Debbi’s death, since Jacs had threatened Debbi’s life before. Bea makes it her mission to avenge her daughter’s death, no matter what it takes.

While all this is going on, Wentworth gets a new governor, Joan Ferguson (Pamela Rabe, “For Those Who Can Tell No Tales”). Governor Ferguson is dark, cold, manipulating and mentally unstable. Ferguson makes it her mission to take complete control of the prison and carry out her personal vendetta against one of the guards, Will Jackson (Robbie Magasiva, “The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers”), using whatever means necessary.

While “Orange is the New Black” can be categorized as a comedy series, “Wentworth” is definitely not.

Sure, the show has its funny moments, but “Wentworth” is dark and dramatic. It doesn’t portray its characters in a positive light as “Orange” typically does.

The women in “Wentworth” are ruthless. They have no qualms when it comes to beating the crap out of one another and planting drugs or other contraband in each other’s cells. Many don’t even hesitate when it comes to taking a human life.

One thing that “Wentworth” does incredibly well is dig into the characters’ backstories. That is one of the aspects of the show that keeps the audience on the edge of their seats. The writers reveal a little at a time, enticing viewers to keep watching, and throwing twists and turns in just when viewers think they know what is going on.

If you’re looking for an intense drama with gripping plot lines to binge watch over spring break, definitely check out “Wentworth.”

Rating: 4.5 out of 5