Previously on Outlander: Sometimes, people do the wrong thing for the right reasons, like Jamie and Ian selling Roger to the Mohawk because they didn’t realize Stephen Bonnet was the real villain of this story. Roger has had a rough go of it in captivity. Fergus and company blew up a jail to rescue Murtagh from the jail where Bonnet was also being held.
I can’t believe the finale is here! I’ve enjoyed talking Outlander with Rosemary and y’all every week. As always, you can drink along with us, with the new and improved FYA Outlander drinking game!
Somewhere in 20th century America
Two young boys run around a park playing “cowboys and Indians”, while their mother looks on fondly. From a nearby park bench, an indigenous man with long hair is wearing the stone Claire found from the ghost man, the same night she found the skull with fillings in the forest, he looks on angrily.
New York 1770
Roger is still being held in the Mohawk’s prison hut, but Jamie, Claire, and Ian have finally arrived to mount their rescue negotiations. Ian addresses the Mohawk in their language to let them know they’re there to buy the man they sold them a few months ago. They’re brought before the entire tribe and a tribal elder who is told they’ve come for Dogface. As the Mohawk council confers, the Frasers attempt to interest the rest of the tribe in their goods, including the very clothes on their back, but the members recoil when they see the necklace Claire wears, which they refer to as belonging to Otter Tooth. The tribal elder says they will not trade with them and demands they leave at once.
Jamie plans to sneak back to the village that night, against Claire’s wishes. She rightly points out she doesn’t even think it’s safe for them to stay in the woods, and within seconds, they’re attacked by several Mohawk. The woman who’s obviously in charge says they’re there for the stone, nodding at the necklace Claire wears. Claire agrees, but she wants to know why the stone is so important. And we cut to story time! Everyone gathers around the fire, while the Mohawk lady (sorry, as of this post, IMDb has not yet provided her character’s name) tells them about Otter Tooth. When she was a child, a man came to their tribe, who wouldn’t tell them where he came from, only spoke of when he came from, and he spoke of war, insisting they must rise up and kill the white man before he killed them. He went out one day and return with white scalps, which angered the village, they were afraid it would bring soldiers, seeking revenge. Her grandfather was the chief at the time and said Otter Tooth must leave. He hid in the forest and ranted and raved. The tribe began to believe he was possessed by an evil spirit. And since banishment didn’t work, the men of the tribe killed him. But they claimed his voice followed them, warnings that nobody would remember the nations of the Iroquois and their stories would be forgotten. They buried the head and the stone far away, which is of course how Claire found it. The Mohawk woman says that it is said that whoever possesses the stone has the power to see how her people’s story will end and that Otter Tooth’s ghost walks with them. She believes Otter Tooth came to warn her people and the stone will enable them to see what’s coming. Claire offers to trade it for Roger’s freedom. That night, the Frasers and their very small band of Mohawk allies attempt to rescue Roger, but barely get him out of the hut before the rest of the tribe is alerted and a battle commences, with Jamie nearly single-handedly fighting off the tribe before they’re captured. The next morning, they stand before the tribal elder, and he banishes the woman who assisted them. He allows that the Frasers can leave and take the stone with them, but that there has been no fair trade, so Dogface must stay. Jamie offers to trade himself for Roger and he asks Ian to make the trade, against Claire’s protests. As Jamie and Claire share a tearful goodbye, Ian tells them he’ll be the one staying. He’s chosen to take Roger’s place and live among the Mohawk, apologizing to Roger for what they did to him. There are tears all around, especially in my living room.
As Jamie and Claire are packing up their campsite and talking about how Jenny will take the news about Ian, Roger hauls off and punches Jamie. Claire tries to intercede, but Jamie figures Roger owes him, and despite Roger’s injured shoulder, he gets in some good hits. At the same time, Ian runs the violent gauntlet that appears to be the Mohawk way of welcoming new members. Ian makes a better showing than Roger and his induction is celebrated by the tribe. After Roger is done beating Jamie, he wants to know about Brianna. Once they tell him about what happened to her, he wants to take her back to their time, but then they have to tell him about the fact that she can’t leave because of the whole heavily pregnant thing. Jamie demands to know if Roger can go back to Brianna and be with her, knowing he could be raising another man’s child, because if not, he should take his ass back through the stones. Roger says he needs time and Claire tells him take it.
River Run
Murtagh arrives at River Run and is treated to a lovely meal at Jocasta’s table, and a little interrogation over what caused him to be arrested. She doesn’t recommend that Murtagh stay long, but he’s just there to check in on Brianna. He’s appalled to learn that Brianna is planning to marry a Redcoat, but Jocasta pays no attention to his outburst. Phaedre examines Brianna and pronounces everything to be well with the baby, but Brianna obviously remains worried, whether about Roger, or having to give birth in a time that eschewed basic hygiene and anesthesia, it’s unclear. Later, Brianna admits to Murtagh that she and Lord John aren’t going through with the wedding, she’s just buying time until Roger returns. When she tells him that she was able to forgive Bonnet (as much as she was able), Murtagh asks if she can now also forgive her father for his part in this mess. Brianna says she already has.
Jocasta tries to talk Murtagh out of rejoining the Regulators, reminding him that he should already know how this fight ends. He tries to convince her that there are ways she could use her influence to fight against the crown, which makes her decide that he’s scheming to use her. She says some rude and insulting things about how she never liked him. When he tries to keep her from leaving the room, she throws her whiskey in his face. The next morning, we see Murtagh successfully luring her back into bed. Get it, you two!
After some time, and attended by Jocasta and the servants, Brianna gives birth to a son. Jocasta assures her they can assign him a birthday that falls after the wedding. A month or two later (I don’t know? This baby is huge!), Jamie and Claire finally make it home. Brianna is devastated to see they don’t have Roger with them. They tell her Roger is alive and has been told everything, and she surmises this is why he chose not to return to her. We learn this poor baby still doesn’t have a name because Bree was waiting for Roger to be there. The Frasers are packing up to return to the Ridge when Brianna spots a rider coming up the road. She runs out to embrace poor filthy Roger. He confesses that he may be stubborn, but he’s not a fool, and he loves her. He tells her to take him to see his son.
Just then, Redcoats come riding up the drive, and Jocasta tells Ulysses to hide Murtagh in the slave quarters. But apparently, they’ve only arrived to deliver a letter to Jamie from Governor Tryon. He’s ordered Jamie to muster a militia to fight the Regulators, and his first assignment is to hunt down and kill the fugitive, Murtagh FitzGibbons.
Kilt Drops: 1
Who would have predicted it would be Murtagh and Jocasta, tho?
Wit and Wordplay
Jocasta: “I imagine it’s better than whatever they were serving at the jail in Wilmington. Before it was blown to pieces.”
Jocasta misses nothing.
Murtagh: “As I told your nephew, I’m no’ an easy man to kill.”
Lord knows Diana Gabaldon tried.
Young Ian: “I gave them my word. Dinna make me break it.” OH, IAN.
Roger: “Having me beaten nearly to death and then sold into slavery seemed a trifle extreme, even for a women with her temper.”
I’d hope that Brianna and Marsali share similar philosophies on how if they wanted a man killed, they’d do it themselves.
Sasse-WHAT?
- Is Otter Tooth just a slightly less successful Geillis Duncan? Both came through the stones to change their people’s history and failed, though I’d argue Geillie got more done in her longer amount of time. But both basically met the same fate.
- “You ken the bastard?” Dude, who doesn’t know Stephen Bonnet? Murtagh tells Jamie that Bonnet didn’t get out before the jail exploded, but do we believe that?
- Are we just never going to get to see Jamie’s reaction to his daughter being engaged to John Grey? I feel so cheated!
Did this episode feel three hours long? How on earth did they pack so many chapters into this finale? What did you think! Join us in the comments!
