Meet Gerrard Lobo, the Only Good Guy on Orange Is the New Black

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Warning: spoilers ahead.

Even the good guys on Orange Is the New Black are bad. There's Healy, whose brief moments of compassion are overshadowed by his chauvinistic behavior toward women; Bayley, whose naïve and inexperienced nature leads him to suffocate a prisoner; Caputo, who fails to address Poussey's death to the public; Bennett, who abandons Daya and his daughter; and Coates, whose once charming friendship with Doggett spirals into an abusive relationship. So when we first meet Adarsh (played by Gerrard Lobo), the kind-hearted nurse at Litchfield, our expectations are understandably low. But, as those who have already binge-watched season 5 will attest, he proves his worth and value to the prison, without any lapses of character, at least so far. Ahead of the episode drop date, Lobo stopped by the InStyle offices to discuss his new role, working with Laverne Cox, and Indian stereotypes.

Tell us about your new role.

I play a nurse named Adarsh. Basically, everyone has fled the scene of the crime because they heard there was a riot going on, and Adarsh decides to stay—he's new to the job, his Nightingale Pledge [Ed note: an oath of ethics and principles used by nurses] kicks in, and he starts saving people left and right. Then he teams up with a couple of the inmates to get the work done. Once they hear that they can get drugs in medical, he gets visited frequently. [Laughs]

So you're a good guy.

Yeah. While I'm trying to save people that are in critical condition, it's not my job to judge what people have done. Certain people are in there that other people don't like and they're trying to get at them. My job is to take care of that sanctum of the medical area.

Who's in your corner?

I team up with Bursett [Laverne Cox] first. She helps me because she has the firefighter background, so she knows First Aid and how to deal with stressful situations.

What's it like working with an all-female cast?

I was just focused on the task at hand. I'm such a big fan of Kate Mulgrew and Laverne Cox and all these people that I see on TV. I'd just click into actor mode. I got to sit back and see everyone be in their element. Some people are close to who they are as their characters; other people are completely different. It was cool to see. Kate Mulgrew keeps that accent, even when she's reading the newspaper.

http://www.instyle.com/reviews-coverage/tv-shows/gerrard-lobo-orange-new-black-interview

This season of the Orange is the New Black has gotten some critical reviews from folks who didn't like it. I like it because it explores different issues with role reversal/power exchange and going into backstories of other characters. It's good to see a male nurse. And on a show with plenty of villains and people who struggle with having to do bad things given their circumstances, it's amazing to see a dude who is just plain good. Especially during times when some elements of the news media and our own idiot president want us to believe brown men are coming to rape and murder you.