Outlander: The Fiery Cross (5x01)

I know the episode is called "The Fiery Cross" because the book is called The Fiery Cross. I know it's a bit moment and everything. But honestly... yikes? A little bit?

Cons:

I did really like this episode over-all, but I do want to start with the big, obvious problem with having our white hero burn an actual cross on-screen. I know it's a symbol that has been tainted by later association. I know there's a rich cultural history there. But you could say the same damn thing about a swastika, and if you want to evoke that image, you can't avoid the obvious connotations. You just can't. This is a group of white men making a pledge while a giant cross burns in the center of a clearing. It evokes the KKK. It just does.

And also lest we forget, Jocasta is a slave owner, Ulysses is a slave. These things are there, and they're brushed over and accepted by our supposed heroes far too quickly. Bree and Roger's qualms about baby Jemmy inheriting River Run are not enough for them to cut an actual slave owner out of their lives, which is what they really should be doing. It's a lot. And I don't want to be a downer, I don't want to make this review just about that, but I'd be remiss if I didn't say it early and say it often.

Pros:

The beginning of the book version starts at the Gathering, and it's a couple hundred pages covering the events of just one day. I like the changes that were made to streamline things here. Setting it at the Ridge made the gathering smaller, and allowed the focus to be on Bree and Roger's wedding, which makes sense. It also gives a chance to focus on the gorgeous setting, in particular the new "Big House" that has been built for Claire and Jamie, with Roger and Bree having moved in to the original cottage.

I also like how this episode manages to "catch up" with all of the characters without it feeling too much like exposition. We last left these characters at a moment of transition. Bree and Roger had just reunited. Roger's relationship with Jamie was still very much in flux, with Jamie's accidental betrayal of Roger, and Roger's hesitance to return to Bree with the knowledge that she might be carrying another man's child. Murtagh is forced to go on the run from the Brits. So many things uncertain.

Here, some time has passed - a new house has been (mostly) built. Roger and Bree have settled into their relationship again. And Jamie and Roger's relationship... well, that looks like it's going to be quite interesting. I haven't been Roger and Brianna's biggest fan, in terms of my investment in their romance. But Roger as a character I do enjoy, and his bond with Jamie is something I really liked seeing develop in the books. We are off to a good start with it here. The scene where Jamie helps Roger to shave with a straight-razor is so charged, with all of the things said and unsaid between them.

Roger is insecure and also genuinely worried about his lack of practical skills when it comes to living in the back country, knowing he needs to provide for his family. Jamie is put off by his status as a Presbyterian, and hesitant to entirely trust him given his doubts about returning to Brianna. And yet in the moment of truth, he walks his daughter down the aisle, he says he will give her away, and he stands and applauds when the ceremony has concluded. Later, we see Roger kneel and pledge his loyalty to Jamie. There is a lot of weight behind this oath, and I'm excited to see their relationship develop over the course of the season.

I'm still ultimately on the fence about Murtagh being here, in many ways. There are a lot of pros and cons to his inclusion. The biggest "con" currently is his relationship with Jocasta. Duncan is still going to swoop in and marry her, like in the books, but... yeah, Murtagh doesn't really fit into Jocasta's story as I remember it. I guess I'm interested to see where they take it?

Where Murtagh does work is as a personal stake for Jamie to balk at, as he contemplates his involvement in the War of Regulation. He's been tasked by Governor Tryon to track Murtagh down, and to call on his men to form a regiment. Jamie is forced to say goodbye to his godfather, in what is probably a final goodbye. Murtagh, even knowing what he does about the future as Claire explains it, cannot step away from the Regulators. This puts him and Jamie on opposite sides. Jamie telling Murtagh to leave, and to make himself hard to find, and then crying and dropping to his knees... that had me feeling my feelings in a big way.

Despite my ambivalence about the Murtagh/Jocasta situation, I really liked the sex montage, where we see Bree and Roger consummate their marriage, Jamie and Claire try to have sex without waking baby Jemmy, and Murtagh and Jocasta reunite in a private hideaway. This is all happening while Sinatra's "Love" plays in the background. It was sweet to see Roger serenade Bree - their memories of 20th century life are a big part of what ties them to each other here in the 18th century.

This episode had a lot of happiness for the newlywed couple. I loved the cake eating part, and the way they looked at each other during the vows. But at the same time, there were lingering hints that things might not all be dandy. I loved that Roger claimed Jemmy as his blood, with a little goading from Jocasta. But the specter of Stephen Bonnet lingers, as Bree overhears Lord John telling Jamie that the smuggler has been spotted alive. There's also the fact that Brianna seems to have embraced her life here on the Ridge, while Roger is making off-hand comments about returning to their own time. That's going to be a conversation they have to have.

We meet Josiah Beardsley for the first time, and Jamie invites him to live on the Ridge. Lizzie seems interested. I'm really curious how they do this story-line too, given that apparently the same actor is going to be playing Jo and Kezzie!

So, my two favorite characters in Outlander have always been and always will be, Lord John Grey and Fergus Fraser. The show has thus far done be the insane honor of expanding their roles from the books, and I could not be happier about it. Fergus and Marsali are at the wedding being adorable, and we see that Marsali is pregnant again. Since they are already set up living the urban life in Wilmington, I wonder if Fergus' story will by-pass the depression he undergoes in the books, because he is unable to care for his growing family one-handed. I'm excited to see how that story is changed here. Fergus and Marsali are honestly an adorable couple and I love them a lot. Also, Jamie calling Fergus "son of my name and my heart" and ushering him forward to give an oath? I exploded into a million happy pieces.

And Lord John! He doesn't appear in The Fiery Cross AT ALL, except for through letters, which might be one factor for why it's my least favorite of the books. So I was not expecting to see him here. It's so wonderful to think that he'd come so far to attend Roger and Brianna's wedding. He became such a good friend to Brianna in season four, and of course his ties to Jamie are numerous. He was so cute, trying to quote Shakespeare in the limerick competition, and then gamely taking a drink as instructed. He is the cutest and I will love him for always.

I think we'll stop there for now. This was a strong opening to the season. I'll admit I'm not thrilled with the burning cross thing, although I can see why they felt like they kind of had to include it. As I mentioned, the fifth book is my least favorite of the series, and I think is mostly widely regarded as the weakest of the lot. We're already seeing how a lot of things have been condensed for the show, and I'll be curious to see how they shape the story moving forward!

8/10