Outlander: Prophecies (8x02)

I totally forgot about Amy and the bear... oof.

Cons:

This is maybe a silly complaint but I feel like most of the sex scenes on this show, especially in these later seasons, have been very... same-y? Like it's usually urgent and quick, no foreplay whatsoever, like... Jamie just says "I need ye" and then he's inside her. This is a complaint I have about the books too, honestly, but I don't know. If you're going to do a sex scene between this happily married couple, maybe show some variety?

I'm probably going to add a note in every episode about Fanny being Faith's daughter and just how dumb I find that. It doesn't get brought up or matter at all in this episode, which in fact proof that it's profoundly unnecessary and stupid to have included it.

Pros:

This was overall a really strong second episode, though, we're making some progress on some things and had a few shocking moments.

Starting with the Ridge, Amy's death via bear attack was brutal and sudden and really well acted by all involved. My heart broke for Amy's husband and sons, and the reaction of the other women who had to witness it. I really felt it, that spike of fear when Bree yelled her name, and then Jamie hearing the gun and the screams of the women... incredible tension. And the sight of her family around her, praying for her in her final moments, so tender and lovely. I also loved Mrs. Cunningham coming to help Claire prepare the body for a funeral, and how both seemed to set aside any preconceived notions they might have and come together in camaraderie during this sad moment. Claire telling the bees about Amy was also a tender and lovely touch. 

I really like the relationship that Jamie and Roger have on the show, where they are very different men with different ideas of strength and masculinity, who really respect each other's perspectives. Jamie is the one in charge of the Ridge, but Roger's input is always welcome. I like that Jamie confided in Roger about Frank's book, but withheld the detail about his death. I also liked the two of them at lodge together, reacting to Cunningham's bizarre story about the death and temporary resurrection of his son. They are a team in figuring out the best move, going forward. (Side note, but I really laughed at myself by being sort of taken aback at getting to see a meeting of the Freemasons. Like, I'm not supposed to be seeing that, I'm not allowed! lol)

The way Frank is haunting Jamie is very interesting. I love how Jamie is always trying to understand things from Frank's perspective, even knowing their circumstances are so different and they'll never meet. When he tells Claire that maybe Frank wasn't hunting through history looking for Jamie, but instead looking for Claire, trying to see if she would leave him... oof. There is a real tragedy to Frank, this man haunted by a ghost who loves his wife in ways he can never understand.

While Amy's death marks a sad point in the life of the ridge, the birth of Ian and Rachel's child marks a happy one. I loved how cute and giddy they were about the baby, the Rollo mention, and Fanny's heartbreaking observation that though she's seen childbirth before, in the brothel nobody was ever happy about it. Jamie talking about how he never got to raise a child up from childhood into a man, and how Ian now gets that chance, really puts paid to the tragedy and strength of Jamie as a character. He is a father figure to many, but never got to live a conventional settled life with a wife and kids around him. He would have been good at it. (I love that Fergus gets included in Jamie's list of his children... makes my heart happy every time.)

Then you've got William's story. First, we see him going to Henry's wedding, an event sparsely attended because it is an interracial marriage, which is actually illegal. I loved William's speech to his cousin, and my heart broke for both of them when William reported the news of Ben's death to Henry. We then see William going to see the place where Ben was held prisoner and died, and he discovers that something fishy is going on. Nobody will tell him much, and one man indicates that Ben seemed to be on the mend just before he suddenly died. When William does a bit of grave-digging at the place he's been told Ben is buried, he finds an unfamiliar man's corpse inside the shallow grave. What could it all mean???

Well, I know where we're going with this, but I think the show is doing an admirable job setting up all the pieces to this mystery! William's journey of self-discovery, trying to figure out who he is and who he wants to be, is an interesting one, but I think it's clear he considers himself part of the Grey family, whatever else he might be. Ben and Henry are like brothers to him.

So far, everything that's been happening in this season is stuff that's familiar to me from the books. I'm very curious about how the show is going to choose to end at this point, and if there will be any major surprises before we get there!

8.5/10