'Orange is the New Black' Season 3 Spoilers: Here's Why the First 6 Episodes are Crucial

A new season of prison drama "Orange is the New Black" will be available for binge-watching on 12 June, and fans will finally get to know the fate of several key characters, as the previous season ended on a cliffhanger.

While the first episode is expected to address most of the cliffhangers, careful attention should be paid to the first six episodes of the season as it will set the tone for things to come, said actress Laverne Cox.

She told TVLine that her character Sophia's storyline will "heat up more in the second part" of the coming season, and "the first six episodes are hints of things to come."

Until now, Sophia, the only transgender at Litchfield who runs a hairdressing salon, has managed to stay away from most prison rivalry wars. But things are going to change in the upcoming season, as she will get into a major confrontation with another inmate.

"It's gonna be intense. [Writer] Jenji Kohan was really interested in faith and what we believe in as a theme for this third season, so there's a lot that permeates... Sophia may or may not get in some major conflict with another prisoner," Cox told E!Online.

It seems like Sophia will butt heads with Gloria, as a teaser for season 3 showed the latter threatening to kill Sophia. "You need to get out of here, before you add another 100 years to my sentence," Gloria says.

As for what else to expect from season 3, here are some things that will be addressed.

Fans will finally see if Vee is gone for good. The previous season ended with the death of the notorious character, but is she gone for good?

If actress Lorraine Toussaint is to be believed, the "devil don't die so fast." "I cannot say. Let's put it this way, at the end of last season I took a very big hit. Is Vee dead? Can she really be dead?" Whatculture quoted the actress as saying.

While Vee's fate is yet unknown, there are rumours that she has departed from the show.

New Lovers - Actress Ruby Rose is all set to complicate things between Piper and Alex, as she will enter the scene as a love interest for both of them. Alex is not going to be happy when she learns that it was Piper's phone call that landed her in prison, causing a rift between them.

Backstories – Fans will finally get to find out more about why Big Boo and Nicky Nichols are in Litchfield.