Outlander review, Episode 607: “Sticks and Stones”

Outlander season 6 is living up to all the hype the cast and crew were spreading before the premiere. They said it would be dark, gritty, and more emotional than any season before it, and they weren’t lying.

The season’s penultimate episode finds Claire (Caitriona Balfe) trying to make sense of what has just happened. Before I talk about that incident, know that if you’re not caught up on Outlander, then do not read any further than this. There are some MAJOR SPOILERS ahead, and I don’t want to ruin it for any of you.

Okay, so last week’s episode ended on a wild cliffhanger, and while book-readers knew it was coming, everyone else was completely caught off guard.

What exactly happened? Claire found Malva’s dead body with her throat slit. It was a gruesome sight made even bloodier when Claire attempted to save Malva’s unborn baby. Sadly, it was too late.

This is where we pick up in “Sticks and Stones.” It was an emotional rollercoaster, folks, so buckle up.

Yet another Outlander funeral

This week’s episode kicks off with a jarring flashback to Malva’s confession in church. Well, it’s not so much a confession as it is blatant lying about Jamie being the father of her child. The trippy montage leads right into the opening before we pick up with Claire.

And she’s not alone. Jamie (Sam Heughan), Allan (Alexander Vlahos), and Tom (Mark Lewis Jones) are with her. While Tom seems oddly composed, Allan is immediately suspicious of Claire. He can’t understand how she didn’t see anything or anyone, and it doesn’t help that she cut into Malva’s belly and is covered in her blood. Of course, Claire’s intentions were noble, but I’m not sure how you explain that to a man from the 18th century who already thinks you’re a witch.

It’s obvious that the blame is going to be put on Claire, and for most of this episode, it’s hard not to be suspicious. After all, she does have a fuzzy memory of holding a pruning knife and screaming at Malva. That could have been an ether-induced dream, but maybe not…

In any case, there is a murderer on the loose in Fraser’s Ridge. While everyone is keen to find them, Tom seems more concerned with how Malva and the unborn baby boy will be buried.

Given his daughter was pregnant out of wedlock (he still thinks it’s Jamie’s, by the way), Tom has deemed her a whore and believes that she cannot be buried in holy ground. Instead, he suggests that they bury the bodies in the woods and be done with it.

Unsurprisingly, Jamie and Claire are against this and believe that there should be a proper religious ceremony and burial. They’re sticking up for Malva despite her accusing Jamie of adultery and all.

Claire faces her inner demons

We’ve watched Claire descend into a dark place this season. She hasn’t been okay since the assault, and after Malva’s murder things are coming to a boiling point. Up until now, she hadn’t shared with anyone else what has been going on.

But now those inner demons are leading her to believe that perhaps she did kill Malva. She knows there is a darkness within her, and it’s something she can no longer ignore. I was relieved to see her finally lean on Jamie and open up about everything that has happened, including the fact that she is hallucinating visions of Lionel Brown (Ned Dennehy). This week’s episode was uber-creepy, with Brown showing up at unexpected moments. I felt like we really got to understand what Claire is experiencing, and I did not like it.

There is a tender and beautiful moment between Claire and Jamie as she breaks down about the problems she’s been trying to avoid by sniffing ether and passing out. It’s a moment of intense reflection for her and she’s almost certain thats all this is happening because of her selfish behavior. And she’s talking everything: accidentally traveling to the past, falling in love with Jamie, finding her way back to him, and unintentionally bringing Brianna (Sophie Skelton) and Roger (Richard Rankin) along the way.

But perhaps things were always meant to play out this way. As Jamie reminds her, what she views as selfish changed many lives for the better. Even she can see the upside to everything that happened, and ultimately says she would do it all over again if it meant she could be with Jamie.

Sigh, I love these Jamie and Claire moments, and we haven’t had one like this for a very long time. I couldn’t help but tear up when Jamie reminded Claire how she was there for him after he was assaulted by Black Jack Randall (Tobias Menzies). Now that she is struggling, he wants to help her through it.

Drama on Fraser’s Ridge and two Outlander “weddings”

Throughout the episode, the residents of Fraser’s Ridge can’t help but cast a suspicious eye at Claire. Everyone is convinced she had something to do with Malva’s murder, and while I can absolutely see why, their behavior is brutal. They didn’t cut any slack to the couple who welcomed them to Fraser’s Ridge.

In order to clear Claire’s name, the murder must be solved, and so it’s all hands on deck. Jamie has Ian (John Bell) gather Josiah and Keziah Beardsley (Paul Gorman) so they can make their rounds about town. Things get interesting when Ian can’t seem to find the twins. Of course, there isn’t really any reason why the twins would have killed Malva, but their being MIA is curious.

As it turns out, their absence has nothing to do with Malva and everything to do with Lizzie (Caitlin O’ Ryan). As Lizzie eventually reveals, she has been sleeping with both Josiah and Kezzie and is now pregnant with one of their kids. It’s unclear which brother is the father, but they’ve had a throuple situation going on for some time.

Jamie may be lenient in some ways, but when it comes to owning up to your responsibilities and doing what’s right, he never wavers. This is why he’s quick to have Lizzie get married to one of the brothers (they pick straws). Kezzie picks the short straw, so Jamie asks Josiah to leave until the baby is born to avoid any drama. Fraser’s Ridge has had enough of that.

Jamie holds a handfast ceremony between Kezzie and Lizzie and says they will be officially married once they find a priest. Unbeknownst to Jamie, however, Lizzie, Josiah, and Kezzie sneak off in the night and ask Roger to perform a handfast ceremony between Lizzie and Josiah. They have no idea that Jamie has already done the same thing for Lizzie and Kezzie, so these guys are trying to work the system to keep the throuple situation going.

Also, Roger in the midst of all of this decides to embrace the minister life fully, which is exciting!

Outlander is about to get darker

At the very end of the episode, Claire and Jamie’s conversation is interrupted by the sound of horses and wagons making their way toward the house. At first, I thought it might be war-related, but instead it’s the cavalry showing up to arrest Claire for Malva’s murder.

It’s clearly the Christies behind this. Allan has been incredibly sketchy, and I’m nervous to see what he might have done to finally get Claire arrested.

I’m not ready for next week, guys!

Verdict

Next week is the Outlander season 6 finale, and I’m not entirely sure how we are already here. I was just ranting and raving about the end of the Droughtlander, and now we are at the cusp of yet another one. The good news is that the cast and crew have been busy filming Season 7 so hopefully the hiatus won’t be as long.

There’s a lot to think about as we approach the finale. In fact, there are so many loose ends I’m not sure how they’re going to tie them up in one episode. They’re going to leave us with a cliffhanger, aren’t they?

This season of Outlander has been phenomenal and I’m just so happy that everything the cast and crew said about it has been true. They didn’t oversell it, and honestly I think it might be one of the strongest seasons yet.

With war on the horizon, I don’t think Fraser’s Ridge is prepared for what’s headed its way.

Grade: A

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