WiC Watches: Outlander season 5

Outlander — Courtesy of STARZ

Episode 501: “The Fiery Cross”

Ahh, the Outlander gathering that we’ve been waiting for. It was such a pleasure to see Brianna and Roger marry alongside the community Jamie and Claire have worked so hard to built.

The wedding is the central focus of the season 5 premiere (thank you for releasing it early, STARZ!), but I absolutely loved that we started with a flashback to Jamie as a child with a young Murtagh comforting him. You see, Jamie’s mother had just passed away, and Murtagh gave a vow to protect Jamie for the rest of his days. How sweet is that?!

This flashback ties into one of this season’s biggest issues. At the end of last season, Jamie got the order to find and kill Murtagh for working with the Regulators. Of course, Jamie won’t take any such action, which is why Murtagh is tucked away in the woods in a cabin during the wedding. I’m so sad he had to miss it, but it is what it is.

So how was the wedding to end all weddings? Absolutely perfect. It was everything we could have imagined for Brianna, and it’s a wonderful way to bless the start of this new journey.

What made me smile and fill my heart with joy was how excited Jamie and Claire were. Of course, Jamie is still a bit reluctant to trust Roger, but he’s still happy for his daughter. He even prepared a bouquet of something old, new, borrowed and blue.

I’m not sure we’ve ever seen Jamie this adorable and cute before. I loved the moment where he handed over the bouquet.

The wedding festivities were spectacular as promised, as were the love-making scenes between married couples Jamie and Claire, and Murtagh and Jocasta. But we were also reminded of dangers lurking ahead, in many forms. To start, Lord John has heard rumors of Stephen Bonnet, alive and well, in the area. And to make it worse, Brianna heard him tell Jamie! WHY, WHY, WHY! We don’t want Bonnet to come back — please. The look on Brianna’s face is still haunting me.

Outlander doesn’t waste much time getting to the stressful part of the season. The day after the wedding, Jamie is reminded of the oath he made to the Crown about killing Murtagh. Fraser’s Ridge and its tenants’ livelihood depends on him satisfying this oath, and it’s put him in the worst position possible.

I don’t know how he’s going to take this on, truly. And given that Murtagh is no longer alive in the books, anything could happen. I’m super stressed about it, and I just don’t know how he can pull this one off while preserving the happy life he has with his family.

But hey, the call to arms inspired Jamie to put his kilt back on, and I’m still trying to catch my breath. It was yet another thing we’ve waited a long time to see. This leads to Jamie lighting a cross-shaped bushel on fire, which gives the episode its title.

Men pledge their allegiance to Jamie, including Fergus and Roger. It’s a powerful moment that shifts the mood dramatically. I think we can expect it to be like this for the rest of the season, so I hope you guys enjoyed the wedding. Playtime is (already) over!

I can’t imagine how Roger is faring with all this change — the baby that might not be his, a different time period, and now, potentially fighting in a war?! And leave it to Jocasta to test his love for Brianna by giving him a monetary incentive to stick around.

Don’t worry, guys, Roger gallantly won that battle and rejected Jocasta’s money, saying he would take care of his family. Looks like Jocasta’s plan to test Roger worked — oh, you sneaky lady! But we love her for it!

And speaking of Roger and Brianna, I’m looking forward to watching their relationship evolve over this season. How well do they actually know one another? They’ve fought hard to keep each other around, but they haven’t actually spent much time together.

The episode closes on a very sad and somber note: Jamie has to ask Murtagh to run and run fast. Saying goodbye to the man who has been a father to him was so incredibly hard for Jamie, and Sam Heughan plays the emotion perfectly.

It looks like Outlander season 5 is off to a running start. Three cheers for the end of the Droughtlander!