What in the name of all things tartan is going on HERE!? Lallybroch, Home Sweet Home. Uh, not so fast. Not only is the situation awkward in Starz’s Outlander season three episode eight, but charged with anger. Enter that stubborn household and see how well received you are by the Murrays.
From the strained first meeting on the Lallybroch front steps we head right into the living room to get into the facts of the matter. To kick things off in fine yelling fashion, young Ian (John Bell) starts bragging about things he did with and for Jamie (Sam Heughan). That accomplishes two things: to inflame his parents that he was in any dangerous situations at all, and to prove to them that Jamie lied to them about young Ian’s whereabouts. Yep, as a mom I would certainly be on Jenny (Laura Donnelly) and Ian’s (Steven Cree) side on this one. Not to leave out the fact that young Ian snuck out in the first place.
Young Ian tells them Claire (Caitriona Balfe) had to kill a man. (He could have kept that bit to himself, sigh.) That freezes the entire room. Jenny sends him out and Ian warns him to be ready for his thrashing when they’re done with Jamie and Claire.
As Claire tries to defend her need to kill the man who attacked her, Jenny gives a rather sarcastic head nod and suggests they all gather around the fire to hear her tall tale. Jenny is none too pleased that Claire is back, in case you didn’t get that hint by Jenny calling Claire a ‘stray’ who Jamie brought back home. Jamie says he protected young Ian like he was his own son, so Ian pulls off his belt and hands it to Jamie to take care of the fatherly duty of thrashing the boy.
In the book, Jamie does just that – reluctantly, to say the least – and then has young Ian do it to him in return since they both were in trouble and deserved it. I hate they didn’t take that same path in the show; I was looking forward to a bare bottom on Jamie being spanked. (Okay, didn’t mean to say that part out loud.) They have young Ian do the most hated tasks around the farm as punishment.
Inside, Claire and Jenny get caught up with some of the kids and grandkids who’ve been born since she was last at Lallybroch 20 years ago. After Jenny stops bragging on her kids and grandkids, with the occasional jab at Claire at the available opportunity, the cold chip returns to her shoulder. Jenny goes outside to do the wash after changing the grandbaby in her arms.
Jamie approaches her to advise that young Ian has handled enough manure to provide fuel for a month, punishment done. Jenny throws into his face that he knows what it’s like to punish his own children then, so he should be telling her what to do with hers. Jamie is still raw from the fact he cannot raise either of his blood children so this is no small insult, though Jenny doesn’t know of either her niece or nephew. Jamie says he does know what it was like to be a teenage boy on a farm, just like young Ian.
Jenny’s full of barbs right now and she brings up the main point of this episode, the fact that Jamie has two wives now. Jamie admits he wouldn’t have taken the second wife if he knew Claire was still alive. Jenny says she must know what happened, so Jamie makes up some parts of a story to explain about Claire. He makes up that she hid after Culloden and went to the colonies. Jenny doesn’t accept it completely. She knew the strength of Claire’s love for Jamie and even mentions how fiercely Claire looked for Jamie during “The Search” in season one. Jenny has the smarts to match her brother. It’s not so easy to pull something over on her.
Later that night, Jamie and Claire are upstairs settling in and trying to talk about what they’ll do to build a life together. Claire’s upset that Jenny is so upset with her. Jamie’s still hiding something but deflects into the story about what he did when he escaped for those three days from Ardsmuir Prison. Jamie tells Claire the story from the old dying man, that he mentioned the White Witch, and Jamie left to go see if she was there on the Silkies’ Isle. He did end up finding the treasure the old man was rambling about and admits he then lied to Major Grey (David Berry) about it.
Jamie reveals he put it back in the place he found it because he knew he couldn’t take it with him. Claire confesses she was on an emotional island during all that time. Claire would admit to hearing a bird song and thinking of Jamie each time.
Claire reaches over and kisses Jamie, and Jamie freezes. He knows he needs to tell Claire about his second wife. He starts to tell her when the door springs open and two girls burst in asking who that woman is with their daddy. Then Laoghaire (Nell Hudson) comes up right behind her daughters and starts raising the dead with her cursing. Claire is vapor-locked at the entire scene before her. The younger of the two girls has red hair and begs Jamie and Laoghaire to stop fighting. Claire can only repeat, “Daddy,” like the little girl said. Jamie forces Laoghaire out of the room and the girls go downstairs behind them, leaving Claire alone in the room.
Jamie stops to talk to the younger of the two girls to explain the woman upstairs is his first wife. Jamie explains he did not have a bond with Laoghaire like he had with Claire. Joan (Layla Burns) is worried she will lose Jamie as her Da. Jamie assures her he will not stop taking care of her and her sister, Marsali (Lauren Lyle).
Jamie heads upstairs and finds Claire gathering her things to leave. He starts trying to explain the situation, saying that they have been wed less than two years so neither of the girls are his by blood, only by marriage. Claire is still attempting to leave when Jamie grabs her to keep from going. Jamie confesses he never fell in love with Laoghaire. Claire says he told her about his son so why couldn’t he tell her about this? The fight escalates from there rather quickly. Jamie has the nerve to say that Claire left him… Seriously!? He forced her through the stones and has the nerve to say that to her.
Jamie realizes how foolish the statement was and backtracks. Next, they get off into the topic of how jealous Jamie was that Frank was with Claire and raising his daughter. They start physical fighting and it quickly turns into angry sex, almost. Jenny comes in with a bucket of water to throw on them both. Claire gets up and leaves the room in a huff.
Don’t stab me with your Sgian Dubh book fans, but I felt like the show did this one topic a bit better than the book. That’s mainly due to the fact we get Jamie’s side more in the show, and Claire does react more in the episode than in the book. I kind of felt she sort of let Jamie skate on this one in the book. Claire did get upset but didn’t hang on to it as long as she does in the show. But, of course, in the book Jamie did NOT know by this point that Laoghaire had been the one who tried to have Claire killed in the Witch Trial in season one. The point Jamie made about mainly trying to help her kids was true for both the book and show. And, in the book Mrs. Fitz had begged it of him for the sake of her granddaughter and great-granddaughters.
Downstairs, Claire is looking into the fire when young Janet (Corsa Tsang) comes up and offers Claire a whisky. Janet admits to being the one to tell Laoghaire, but adds that her mother sent her to inform Laoghaire that Jamie was home. Jenny comes in at that moment, heading upstairs to clean up the mess Claire and Jamie made in the room by fighting. Claire asks why she did it. Jenny responds by asking why she thinks she’s Jamie’s wife when she has been gone for 20 years and never tried to find Jamie or send the family any letters that she was alive.
Claire has to tell her side of the half-truth story. She admits she traveled to America and was married to another man because she thought Jamie was dead. Claire explains that after her other husband’s death, she returned to Scotland to find Jamie’s grave. Instead, she found him alive. Not untrue exactly, just missing the 200 years part and a bit more. Jenny admits she hears some truth in what Claire said but knows she’s hiding something too.
The next morning, Claire storms out the front door and encounters Jamie in the courtyard. Jamie had slept in the stables. (I guess he felt manure was fitting punishment for him too…giggle snort.) Claire admits her return was a risk, but she reminds Jamie of their pact of truth after they got married. Jamie confesses he only knew one love in his life and it was Claire.
Laoghaire walks up behind Claire and after overhearing Jamie say that, she points a pistol at Claire. Jamie tries to talk the gun away from her but she accidentally pulls the trigger. Jamie’s shot in the upper chest and shoulder.
Claire pushes Laoghaire away and has young Ian help her get Jamie into the house, placing him on the dining room table. The doctor’s in and starts barking orders for what she needs. Young Ian watches as Claire does her second surgery while being back. (Young Ian is the only one of the Murray family who’s been happy with Claire’s return.) Claire gets all the shrapnel out of Jamie and stitches him up. Young Ian says Jamie was lucky Claire was there to tend to him.
Jamie’s recovering in a chair by the fire when Claire comes to check his bandages. Claire’s still being the doctor, barking orders for him to drink water or broth. Claire sits down to give Jamie a chance to explain himself about Laoghaire. Jamie reveals he was all but a ghost for most of the past 20 years. It was his first Hogmanay at Lallybroch after he got home from Hellwater. Joan and Marsali were there and enticed Jamie to join the celebration by dancing with them. After the dance, he found out they were Laoghaire’s daughters.
He thought that maybe he could be a father to the girls and make a home. Laoghaire’s second husband had died, so he thought it would fill the hole inside. He didn’t get to raise Brianna or Willie, but he thought the girls would help. Claire asks why Jamie ended up in Edinburgh and Jamie explains Laogharie was afraid of him. He wasn’t sure if it was one of her previous husbands who caused the fear, and he wasn’t going to live in a house full of fear.
Claire reaches out to touch his hand and realizes he’s burning with fever. Claire pulls out the antibiotics and syringe she brought with her. Jamie’s concerned about her using the fierce-looking thing on him. She rather enjoys jabbing him in the arse with it while explaining it will kill the germs and keep him alive.
Claire heads outside and takes a seat with Jenny on the front steps. Jenny admits she had a vision of Claire standing between Jamie and Laoghaire when they married. In the book, Jenny saw their mother, Ellen, standing in the middle of the pair, not Claire. Jenny reminds Claire they didn’t question all the unknowns about her before. Now Jenny knows there’s something that will never be revealed to her. Jenny declares Claire was a sister to her. Claire says she loved her too and is only asking for a second chance to be part of the family.
While Jamie is recovering, guess who comes to call? None other than Ned Gowen (Bill Paterson). He gets a glimpse of Claire and is overcome with emotion. They’re both so happy to see each other again. Ned says Laoghaire has filed a charge of bigamy against Jamie with the church. Ned counter-argues that Laoghaire’s girls would lose a mother if he files charges on Jamie being shot since weapons had been outlawed in Scotland.
Jamie’s not in favor of the girls losing both parents. Ned suggests alimony to be paid to Laoghaire as a way to appease the church and her as a path to buy his way out of the second marriage. When Jamie, Claire, Jenny, and Ian discuss the issue, Jamie reveals the treasure he found on Silkies’ Island. Claire tells Jamie he can’t swim out to that island in his condition. Ian and Jenny agree to allow them to take young Ian with them to retrieve the money. Jamie promises to use the time to teach Ian about the world he and older Ian learned of in France.
As Jamie and Claire watch from a cliff, young Ian swims out to the island. Jamie starts into ‘the talk’ again by asking why Claire will not meet his eye. She admits the decision to come back might have been a mistake. For the first time, she reveals all of what she left behind: friends, family, and a career. Jamie says being a printer was nothing to him compared to being her husband.
Claire reminds him how hard things have been since she came back, and Jamie retorts that it has never been easy for them to make a life together. Jamie believes they’re mated for life and asks if she would risk the man she once knew for who he is now. Before Claire can answer, she notices a ship anchored off the island and a rowboat of men making their way to the shore. The men encounter young Ian as he’s coming down with the chest. Jamie and Claire run down the cliff to the shore but there’s nothing they can do. The men gather up Ian and take him away to their ship.
The next dangerous journey will now begin for our favorite couple: the task of retrieving Ian from the pirates. As you might expect, several challenges pop up along the way.
More on Outlander:
– Outlander Season 3 Episode 1 “The Battle Joined” Recap
– Outlander Season 3 Episode 2 “Surrender” Recap
– Outlander Season 3 Episode 3 “All Debts Paid” Recap
– Outlander Season 3 Episode 4 “Of Lost Things” Recap
– Outlander Season 3 Episode 5 “Freedom & Whisky” Recap
– Outlander Season 3 Episode 6 “A. Malcolm” Recap
– Outlander Season 3 Episode 7 “Crème De Menthe” Recap
– Outlander Season 3 Episode 9 “The Doldrums” Recap
– Outlander Season 3 Episode 10 “Heaven and Earth” Recap
– Exclusive Interview on Season 3 with Executive Producer Ronald D. Moore
– One-on-One with Sophie Skelton
– Richard Rankin Interview on Outlander Season 3 and Playing Roger
– Caitriona Balfe, Sam Heughan and Tobias Menzies Q&A
