Sassenachs, welcome back to your weeklyOutlanderrecap and the official end of the Droughtlander.
I prefer the latter personally).
Oxford professorsdashing and hot in the 1970s, not so great in the Carolina wilderness a few centuries earlier.
Mark Mainz/Starz
Claire’s voiceover fills in some gaps for us.
They’re now living on Fraser’s Ridge among a much larger community of settlers.
Now, it’s time to celebrate the harvest and the wedding day.
Aimee Spinks/Starz
Claire (Caitriona Balfe) has fashioned Bree’s homespun dress, complete with some appropriate thistle embroidery.
Time for a wedding.
With a Protestant minister, much to Jamie’s chagrin.
Aimee Spinks/Starz
Mostly, the wedding is a joy.
It’s a lot of cake cutting and joy.
Then, we get a L-O-V-E making montage.
It’s not pure bliss, though, as Bree lies awake afterward haunted by the news of Bonnet.
The next morning, Jocasta confesses to Murtagh that Duncan Innes has proposed marriage.
Back at the Ridge, we meet Josiah Beardsley for the first time.
He’s a local lad with a talent for hunting, and Lizzie quickly takes a shine to him.
Jamie invites Josiah to join them and settle on the Ridge.
But first, Josiah wants Claire to look at his throathis tonsils are abscessed and she can remove them.
Meanwhile, it’s time for Roger to honor Jocasta’s request to meet with him.
She informs him she’s decided not to make Bree her heir, but instead leave everything to Jeremiah.
This way maybe he’ll treat Jem well for the sake of his prospects.
But apparently, something of this nature is exactly what Jocasta wanted.
Finally, Jamie has to learn that making a deal with the devil means he will always collect.
He orders Jamie to gather his men and bring Murtagh to justice.
Tryon wants Murtagh hanging in Newburn as a warning.
Jamie goes to Claire with his news, deliberating his impossible choice.
If he refuses to hunt Murtagh, he’ll lose his land.
It wasn’t lifted until 1782, over two decades after the ban was first passed.
For Claire too, it’s a reappearance of the young Scottish highlander she first fell in love with.
And let’s be honest, it’s a gift to viewers too.
Clad in his Scottish garb, Jamie strides into his yard and sets a Celtic cross on fire.
As part of that, there’s no denying its origins in this Scottish tradition.
One whose descendants could be terrorized by this very act and iconography.
Instead, it’s a reminder of the virulent racism and hate still coursing through our country.
Even if it is true to the original book.
The final moment of the episode bookends the opening, with Jamie and Murtagh sharing a quiet moment together.
But as Murtagh astutely notes, there’s always a war coming.
What did you think, Sassenachs?
Was the burning cross moment as upsetting and tone-deaf to you?
Did you enjoy Roger and Bree’s wedding?
Are we worried about what’s in store for Jamie and Murtagh?
And you don’t have to tune in live to catch it!Outlander…On Demand!
can be found on the website or the app every Monday morning starting Feb. 17.
Just search the name of the show.
