Outlander recap: Claire is a prisoner of war
- Oops!Something went wrong.Please try again later.
- Oops!Something went wrong.Please try again later.
It's been five whole episodes since Jamie (Sam Heughan) and Claire (Caitriona Balfe) were separated by an outside force. It should surprise no one when our favorite healer wanders alone into the forest searching for one of her patients, only to be abducted by a red coat soldier and drug back to Fort Ticonderoga against her will.
When we last saw Jamie and Claire, they were ushering women, children, and sick people onto boats to sail across the river as the British attacked the fort. Unfortunately, the dry land across the waters is also crawling with soldiers, and it's up to Jamie and Young Ian (John Bell) to lure the bad guys away so Claire can help the small band of misfits set up camp for the night.
This is the moment when Miss Raven slips away, fearful that Indians are going to attack and skin her alive in the woods. Claire finds Miss Raven just as she puts a bullet in her head. Where did she get the gun? Claire doesn't have enough time to process the thought before she's grabbed from behind.
Jamie and Ian later find Denzell (Joey Phillips) wandering the forest, desperately trying to find Claire. Once they discover Miss Raven's dead body and several boot marks on the ground, Ian witnesses his uncle transition into Red Jamie. Claire's been taken to Fort Ticonderoga as a prisoner! Heads will roll!
Starz Entertainment, LLC Caitriona Balfe as Claire, Sam Heughan as Jamie
Ian calmly reminds Jamie that the best course of action is for Ian to walk into the fort as a scout. He can locate his aunt and smuggle her to freedom. It's way better than Jamie jumping a wall and getting himself killed. Reluctantly, Jamie concedes. He also promises Ian he will provide one hell of a distraction to ease the rescue mission.
We find Claire in a pig pen, ordering a lowly red coat to go and fetch her some water. Her voice takes on a certain authority when he doesn't, especially when she finds her amputated friend Walter among the other prisoners in the pen. Walter isn't looking so good, and Claire quickly diagnoses him with a pulmonary embolism. She needs water, herbs, and food — NOW.
Meanwhile, in a building across the way, William (Charles Vandervaart) apologizes to Captain Richardson for failing to deliver the three letters. Although William kept his word and did not read what was inside, he did learn a few things about the recipients of each letter. They are rebels.
Richardson briefs William in a little study I like to call War:101 and schools the young man on how battles are really won. It's not weapons. It's not brute strength. It's intelligence. These three men are the eyes and ears of the British cause, and their work is vital.
William apologizes profusely for disrespecting the men. Richardson promises that William will have a chance to redeem himself and dismisses the soldier. William leaves, rushes to the barracks to find his uniform, and runs straight into a woman who demands he provide basic necessities for his prisoners.
Starz Entertainment, LLC Sam Heughan as Jamie, John Bell as Young Ian
William is shocked to see Claire and quickly introduces himself as William Ransom. At first, he is thrilled to reacquaint himself with the woman who saved his father's life. Seconds later, it occurs to William that Claire is in the pig pen, which means she is a rebel.
Claire gently asks him for provisions for the starving baby and other sick prisoners. It will take some work, but William promises to see what he can do to help, even though he's slightly disappointed that Claire and Jamie are fighting on the wrong side of the line.
Because William is a gentleman and honorable, he does manage to scrape together some botanicals, bandages, and even a flask of alcohol. Claire tries to save Walter with the medicine but ends up easing him into death with sips of brandy.
Claire pushes on, gathering the healthy women to help her fetch water. This is when she runs into Ian, who William then spots. Abort the mission!
Ian tries to play it off as being a scout, but William is too clever and quickly puts two and two together. Ian finally admits that he's come to save his aunt, and all William has to do is look away for two seconds while they sneak off in the opposite direction.
William is willing to let Ian go since he saved his life in the woods, but he feels Claire is a prisoner of the king. Suddenly, a horse cart blows up, and the flaming arrows indicate Uncle Jamie is providing the distraction he promised. They have moments to spare.
William turns his back. They are even. He looks away because Claire saved his father and Ian saved him.
Claire and Jamie find each other in the woods and make out like high school kids under the bleachers. Jamie pulls away, grinning at the taste of the brandy on Claire's lips. She solemnly tells her husband that his son gave it to her. Jamie pulls a Scarlet O'Hara and promises to think about that another day. They meet up with the others and return to the Continental Army.
Hooray! Jamie and Ian saved Claire, and now they can all go to Scotland as we planned months ago! Will Rachel (Izzy Meikle Small) go with them on the boat? She is totally crushing on Ian and even dog-sits Rollo while he's gone. They are clearly made for each other.
Not so fast. After shooting a turkey through the eye, as one does not to spoil the meat, Jamie is recruited by Colonel Daniel Morgan, who is the leader of a bunch of snipers. And even though his enlistment is almost finished, Jamie tells Claire that night that he joined Morgan's regimen. Scotland will have to wait until they finish things up in Saratoga.
Of course, anyone on this side of the timeline knows the Battle of Saratoga was a turning point for the Revolutionary War. I don't think Jamie is going anywhere.
Claire and Jamie snuggle onto their cot and quickly discuss women in war and how it's hard for a woman to separate the emotions of creating a life and ending a life. Then Jamie asks about his son, and Claire gives him all the details, including the fact that he's handsome (amen) and has the fierceness of a highlander but with courtly manners.
Jamie is not afraid of dying. He's got Claire by his side, grown kids, and thriving grandkids. He's ready.
Speaking of kiddos, when Roger (Richard Rankin) has a conversation with Jem's headmaster, he learns that his son called his teacher a haggard old goat and the daughter of a witch in Gaelic. Whoops. Roger understands better why the teacher smacked Jemmy in the ears but is still annoyed that he got in trouble for speaking Gaelic in the first place. The headmaster somewhat agrees and asks Roger if he would like to come and teach a class on Gaelic traditions.
Starz Entertainment, LLC
Later, we find Bree (Sophie Skelton) animatedly describing her time deep in the tunnel, and she admits that the "waves" she walked through had an energy that resembled the stones. Could there be a portal under the dam as well? There's no time to check it out. Roger is late for his Gaelic class. Bree shoves all of his materials in his bag and kisses him goodbye.
Looking dapper in his kilt, Roger passes out some old songbooks and teaches the class a few Gaelic melodies. After their time is over, annoying Rob Cameron, who was in the class, introduces himself to Roger. Roger immediately recognizes him as the man who makes his wife's working environment miserable. Cameron praises Bree for not backing down from their hazing, and Roger softens.
Cameron tells Roger he is looking forward to reading the hymnal, which confuses Roger. Didn't he get a chance to read it during the class? Cameron smirks in a very sketchy way and holds up Roger's journal. He read something with a little more action.
Roger blanches, knowing that everything involving time travel, including the weird buzzing sound below the dam, is detailed in that book. Cameron quickly asks Roger if he's writing a science fiction book and then demands to read it once it's finished. Then he invites himself over to dinner, which means Cameron is up to something no good. What did he read in the journal that made him want to visit Lallybroch?
That night, we see Roger dancing in the kitchen (so cute), and as he's putting away canned goods in the cupboard, he sees a ragged-looking man peeping through the window. He rushes out the door, runs the man down, turns him around, and comes face-to-face with someone from the past.
When I say the past, I mean the past. What do you do when you find William Buccleigh McKenzie, who beat you up and had you hung back in season five, snooping around your house? You punch him in the face, of course.
Ladies and gentlemen, I believe we've found Jem and Mandy's fairy.
Sign up for Entertainment Weekly's free daily newsletter to get breaking TV news, exclusive first looks, recaps, reviews, interviews with your favorite stars, and more.
Related content:
