Romance, action, tragedy: Outlander is back on track.
CONTAINS SPOILERS.
This week’s episode kicks off with Roger (Richard Rankin) saying his fond farewells to Brianna (Sophie Skelton) as he heads off to the battlefront. Now that Rankin has been freed from the shackles of Season 4 where his alter ego often ended up acting like a dick, the romance between these two is most touching.
Moreover, Rankin subtly impresses on the viewer the inner struggle of a man out of sync with the era he’s chosen to live in for the sake of the woman he loves, but who is determined to do his bit nonetheless. Roger, a 20th century Oxford don, is more than ready to play his role as an 18th century militiaman. That’s quite a steep learning curve. The scene becomes all the more poignant when Roger reminds you that here is a man who himself was orphaned as a young child due to the death of both his parents during wartime.
Meanwhile Claire (Caitriona Balfe) and Jamie (Sam Heughan) are loved up in bed, as Jamie checks to see if he is still in working order now that it’s his 50th birthday. (Believe me, he is). Given that he has a body which the average 23 year old would be proud of, he has no worries on that score. It reminds me of the time in season 3 when Claire asked Joe Abernathy (Wil Johnson) if she was still attractive – one of the most redundant questions ever asked in a drama series.
However, Jamie, like Roger, is in reflective mood, given that his own father never reached his 50th birthday. But he also has Claire beside him in bed so it doesn’t take long before our two lovebirds get down to business.
Unfortunately, it doesn’t take Governor Tryon (Tim Downie) long to get down to his particular line of business either, determined to show the Regulators who’s in charge. Torn between both camps, Jamie tries to caution a more circumspect approach but the Governor’s dander is up and he’s not having any of it. There is also dissention in the ranks when Isaiah Morton (Jon Tracy) turns up to fight with the militia, much to the displeasure of the Brown brothers (Chris Larkin & Ned Dennehy).
Arriving unexpectedly in camp is Brianna, armed with the knowledge that the oncoming battle will be the spark that lights the American Revolution. Having informed her family that the Regulators will definitely lose, Jamie decides to hatch a plan to warn Murtagh (Duncan Lacroix) in the hope he’ll get the Regulators to retreat. Brianna is worried that if this happens the whole course of American history might change. Jamie’s priority is his men and to avoid at all costs any possibility of him and Murtagh fighting on opposing sides.
At this point, Roger steps up to the plate and offers to be the messenger despite the obvious dangers. It’s true he’s the best man for the job but, all things considered, it’s a brave thing for him to do.
One of the underlying themes of this particular episode seems to be father figures: Jamie’s relationship with Murtagh; Roger lamenting the loss of his father and his possible future role (or not) in Jemmy’s life; Jamie calling on the spirit of Dougal in the river and lamenting the loss of his father. You get the sense that by volunteering to be the messenger, Roger is seeking the approval of Jamie, i.e. a more traditionally male father figure that has been lacking for most of his adult life.
Needless to say Roger’s mission proves unsuccessful and he heads back to re-join the militia, but as bad luck would have it he bumps into Morag MacKenzie (Elysia Welch). She and her child were the very people that Roger saved on the ship over to the Americas. She’s also an ancestor of his which is presumably why he stops to have a chat with her while on his way back to join the right army before battle commences. For an orphan such as Roger, family, even that as tenuous as Morag MacKenzie, seems to be of the utmost importance.
Unfortunately while hugging her good-bye after having warned her that she and her husband should leave, he’s spotted in flagrante so to speak by said husband, played in an unexpected bit of casting by Graham McTavish, he of Dougal fame. At first, I didn’t recognise him but I have to say he looked rather dashing with a full set of hair. It’s the best example of looking ’10 Years Younger’ I’ve ever seen.
For those of you who are wondering if there’s a shortage of actors in Scotland, fear not. The husband, Buck, is the son of Dougal and Geillis and presumably the producers thought they would ‘do another Tobias Menzies’. It would seem that Buck has not only inherited his father’s looks but also his personality which doesn’t bode well for Roger who, sure enough, is soon beaten up and knocked out.
Meanwhile, as if Jamie’s day couldn’t get any worse, Tryon gets Jamie to don a redcoat – the symbol of his historic enemy. Tryon implies he’s bestowing an honour on Jamie, but you can’t help feel Tryon knows only too well how uncomfortable it is for Jamie to wear such a uniform, and that it is his way of putting Jamie well and truly in his place. Jamie is fuming and at one point looks as if he is about to punch the Governor’s lights out.
Even on the battlefield Jamie is determined to save lives, advising his men to put the fear of god into their opponents so that they run away and to take prisoners rather than kill them. What follows is a brilliantly shot, directed and choreographed fight scene in which Isaiah Morton is shot in the back. Given that he was last seen heading off into the heat of battle followed by the Brown brothers, this may be a case of not so ‘friendly fire’.
Then, in an ironic twist, Murtagh is fatally wounded while saving Jamie’s life. Like many an Outlander fan, I was elated that Murtagh wasn’t killed off in season 2. Sadly, Murtagh’s continued presence hasn’t really worked. It might have, had the series not been adapted from a book. As it was, it proved difficult to allow Murtagh’s character to breathe in the subsequent seasons. At times, he even came across as a bit of a twerp. Fortunately, the writers allowed Murtagh to die a hero, saving his godson to the bitter end, and giving Jamie yet another emotional cross to bear. As a piece of drama it’s an outstanding moment.
That Jamie is traumatised by Murtagh’s death is evident by the way this hardened soldier and most practical of men insists on taking Murtagh’s corpse to Claire’s surgery and demands that she heal him. By the way, if this scene doesn’t make you shed the odd tear then you are emotionally as dead as Murtagh is.
Reeling from Murtagh’s death, Jamie bumps into a gloating Tryon. The look of fury that Jamie gives him is spectacular as is his behaviour. Jamie is normally a master strategist who keeps his cards close to his chest. Not here. Here he makes it abundantly clear what he thinks of the governor and the way he has acted. You can understand the passion behind Jamie’s behaviour but you can’t help feel it might not be the wisest of moves.
But more drama is to follow. While out looking for Roger, the Frasers discover a hooded body which seems to be that of Roger hanging from a tree, presumably dead.
All in all, this was a fantastic episode. It had the romance that we all enjoy watching; it had action; the fight scenes were particularly well executed; and it had tragedy. Leaving aside the possible demise of Roger, the scene between Murtagh and Jamie was utterly heart-rending. Heughan was outstanding in this episode and reminded me of the acting tour de force he gave in the first five episodes of season 3. Hopefully, this is just a taste of things to come.
