Outlander: The Way Out (1x03)

Jamie you are adorable and I love you.

The End.

Okay, no. Here's the plot of this one.

Unless I'm much mistaken, the main plot of this episode is actually not in the book at all. Claire is starting her job as a physician at Castle Leoch, while Dougal's men continue to follow her and watch her. When Claire finds out that a young boy has died, and the villagers suspect demonic possession, she is concerned. When Mrs. Fitz's nephew later falls victim to the same symptoms, she wants to help. However, everyone is convinced that the boy's ailments are spiritual in nature. He went up to the black kirk, which is known among the people as a place haunted with demons.

Claire tries to help Laoghaire flirt with Jamie, but at first it seems Jamie is much more interested in Claire. Later, however, Claire sees the two of them kissing. When she teases Jamie about it at dinner, Murtagh tells Claire to back off of Jamie, because things would go badly wrong if anyone were to find out.

Claire visits Geillis Duncan, and witnesses a young boy being nailed to the pillory by the ear in punishment for stealing. When Jamie comes to get Claire, she pretends to swoon to distract the crowd, so that Jamie can help the young boy pull his ear loose. The two of them go to the black kirk together, where Claire finds a plant that she believes is poisoning these young boys. She makes a remedy and saves the boy. This cure, along with her assistance for Colum's pain, makes her all the more valuable to the people of Leoch. It seems as if her release is further from her than ever.

Claire listens to a Gaelic song, while Jamie translates. It tells the story of a woman coming through a circle of standing stones, and then returning home again. Claire hopes that she will be able to get back home, and plans on escaping from Castle Leoch as soon as she can.

Let's start with the problems...

It might just be me, but the translation of the song at the end felt a little too spot-on to me. The lyrics were describing Claire's situation so perfectly that it made me roll my eyes a bit. I can't remember how it happens in the book, but in any case, I felt it could have been a tad more subtle here.

Same complaint about subtlety for the scene with Laoghaire, Jamie, and Claire. It was like watching a bad teen movie for some parts - Laoghaire pitifully tries to get Jamie's attention, while Jamie stares, love struck, at Claire.

This show is doing a superb job of conveying tone and messages, but sometimes I think they need to put a bit more trust in the viewers. We can grasp these things without their being shoved in our faces quite as much.

But now onto the good stuff.

This new little detour plot was actually quite excellent! It served as a vehicle for Claire to explore her setting, meet new people, and prove her prowess as a physician. More importantly, perhaps, it gave Jamie and Claire some room to spend even more time with one another. Their scenes alone in the kirk and in Claire's surgery were quite lovely, and gave us time to get to know the two of them together. You can already tell that Jamie's beginning to be smitten with Claire, and Claire seems to enjoy his company more than almost anyone else's.

Because of the setting, and the high-born status of some of these characters, everyone is fairly reserved when it comes to expressing romantic interest. More than that, Claire is still trying to get back to Frank, and hasn't let herself truly notice the man in front of her yet. Both of these things mean that Claire and Jamie can get to know each other as people first, before the real possibility of a romantic relationship becomes clear to them. It's endearing to watch their friendship grow, and I'm happy to see that these actors have great onscreen chemistry.

I'm also still greatly enjoying Geillis Duncan's character. The scene where she and Claire talk was one of the most intense of the show, in some ways, as the audience begins to be suspicious of Geillis, and her strange interest in Claire. Jamie's interruption comes at just the right moment to frustrate Geillis, and, in a way, the audience as well.

One more thing to praise - I really enjoyed the fake-out, where Claire tells Mrs. Fitz the truth, and she panics. It was odd, because I didn't really believe they'd change the plot so drastically from the books, but I was genuinely startled all the same. It was a nice look at what people might think of Claire if she were to be honest. Even so, with the truth concealed, people are starting to view her as an oddity, with her miracle cures and sassenach accent.

This is a lot more brief than I was planning on being, but I've said what I wanted to say. Another great episode - the best so far, in my opinion. I'm happy to see how successful this show can be when it deviates slightly from its source.

9/10