[Warning: The below contains MAJOR spoilers for Season 6, Episode 8 of Outlander, “I Am Not Alone.”]
Outlander‘s sixth season is coming to a close with the latest installment “I Am Not Alone,” as revolutionary tensions and a search for justice regarding Malva Christie’s (Jessica Reynolds) death converge on Claire (Caitriona Balfe) and Jamie Fraser (Sam Heughan).
As threats encroach on the dynamic pair, their daughter Brianna (Sophie Skelton) and her family embark on an adventure unaware of the chaos occurring at Fraser’s Ridge. Below, we’re breaking down the pivotal installment that sets up a story that viewers will be eager to see continue in the show’s currently-filming seventh season.
Jamie & Claire’s Scraps of Peace Get Torn Up
The installment picks up where the penultimate episode left off with Richard Brown (Chris Larkin) and his committee of safety calling for the arrest of Claire on the charge of Malva Christie’s murder. To say that Jamie isn’t amenable to the request is an understatement. And so, Richard and his men begin closing in and Lizzie (Caitlin O’Ryan), Kezzie (Paul Gorman), and Mrs. Bug (Sarah Collier) run off to get help as Claire runs for guns inside the main house at Fraser’s Ridge.
(Credit: Starz)
With just her and Jamie against the committee of safety, she must find a distraction to extract Jamie from their hold and together they barricade inside the home as a shoot-out ensues. Jamie tells Claire that Richard Brown’s actions are born purely from revenge as he likely found out that Marsali (Lauren Lyle) was responsible for killing his brother Lionel (Ned Dennehy). From outside, Richard informs the couple that he’s merely there to retrieve Claire so she can stand trial for the crime in Salisbury. If innocent she should face no repercussions.
When the bullets cease in the meantime, Jamie and Claire work on gathering sustenance including water and food and they weigh their options. There’s always a chance that Richard Brown would try to smoke them out, leading to a house fire not dissimilar to the one described in the paper that forced Brianna to seek her parents out in the past from the 1960s. As the concern weighs on Claire, she asks Jamie if waiting out is worth the risk or not, and he tries reassuring her that help should be on the way.
As the night moves in, the couple cuddles up by the fire with guns by their sides as they nibble on some food they found in the kitchen. Claire brings up the concept of a prisoner’s final meal, telling Jamie about how in the future prisoners are given one last meal of their choosing. She tells him if she could pick it would be a cheeseburger, fries, and a Coke from Carmi’s, a diner she used to visit with Brianna in the future.
(Credit: Starz)
Always having a way with words, Jamie tells Claire he wouldn’t pick any other meal than the one they’re having now. Claire then asks about Ian (John Bell), worrying aloud that he’s remained absent despite their hopes for help in this standoff with the committee of safety. Jamie says somberly that if Ian hadn’t shown up yet, it’s because there’s no one out there to help in their fight.
Claire can’t understand why no one would defend them unless they really believe she’s guilty of Malva’s death. With nothing left to do but sit and wait, Jamie suggests an act of contrition before he asks Claire how many near-death experiences he’s had. Claire says he’s a hard man to kill and he seems to confirm her theory by sharing a story of an encounter with a French fortune-teller who hinted he had nine lives like a cat.
But what about Claire? When the Fisherfolk arrive to join the committee safety in their efforts to retrieve Claire, particularly Hiram Crombie (Antony Byrne), who convinces the couple to leave the confines of their home for a conversation. Richard Brown is still there and still wants to take Claire away as the Fisherfolk call her a witch and things begin to escalate.
(Credit: Starz)
Jamie tells the crowd that Richard seeks revenge, but when accusations towards Claire begin shifting to include him, it’s Allan Christie (Alexander Vlahos) who tells the people that Jamie’s responsible for Malva’s death. It’s at this time that Lizzie, Kezzie, and the Ardsmuir men arrive to help Jamie and Claire, but the troop is too small. As Jamie realizes if he agrees to go that he can protect Claire on the road, he concedes to Richard’s demands and hands over his guns as does Claire. Tom Christie (Mark Lewis Jones) then steps in to inform the crowd that he’ll accompany the Frasers on the road to see that they’re properly punished, but there’s an undertone to the sentiment.
Turning to Richard, Tom also suggests that they leave in the morning, allowing the Frasers one last night in their bed before hitting the road. Agreeing to this suggestion, Richard posts guards around the house so Jamie and Claire can’t escape, but allow them to spend a few peaceful hours together. Unfortunately, for the Frasers, it’s a time filled with fear as Claire turns to Jamie in bed and says, “I’m so scared.” The verbalized feeling then turns into a potentially final night of passion for the pair as they make the most of their last hours together before traveling to Salisbury.
The next morning, Jamie and Claire are loaded into the back of a carriage and Richard informs him that a man named Oakes is being posted outside the back of the cart to keep watch. Richard threatens if they try escaping there will be hell to pay. Sitting back and leaning on each other, Jamie and Claire hold hands and settle in for the long journey ahead.
(Credit: Starz)
When they do stop, a man that Claire shot during the standoff at their house is clearly suffering and she questions if she should tend to his wounds, but Jamie advises against it. When Tom offers Claire some food, Jamie gives her an approving look, promising her that it’s safe to take. Between bites, Richard Brown informs the traveling committee of safety and the Frasers that the cour in Salisbury is closed and so they’ll have to continue onto Wilmington for a “fair” trial and not the nearby Cross Creek where Jamie’s Aunt Jocasta (Maria Doyle Kennedy) is located.
Despite the delay, Richard made time to tell the town of Salisbury that Claire is guilty of murder, spreading vicious falsehoods about her and Jamie. Tom appears to look guilty for the turmoil that the Frasers are going through as he repeatedly locks eyes with Claire or looks in her direction.
On the road again, morale is low as Richard’s men didn’t expect they’d have to travel several miles to Wilmington. As they pass through a stretch of road lined with settlers, Oakes announces that they have the murderers in custody which leads to a brutal attack from onlookers who begin stoning the carriage Jamie and Claire are inside of, forcing Jamie to shield Claire with his body.
(Credit: Starz)
Tom shoots into the air to break up the chaos, saying that this isn’t justice, and asks Richard to calm the crowd. Following the scary situation, traveling continues until they set up camp for the night where Jamie goes to relieve himself in the woods as a guise to connect with Ian who reveals he’s been following his uncle for some time. While Ian suggests they make a run for it, Jamie doesn’t want to because running is an admission of being guilty, something that they aren’t. Ian promises to follow his uncle and intercede if need be.
The next morning, Richard returns to camp with a new friend who the Frasers have never seen before and something feels off about the situation. As they ride off, the man named Ezra who Claire shot at Fraser’s Ridge succumbs to his wounds, toppling off of his horse and dying. When they eventually stop for a break, the Frasers are told they’ll be permitted to get a drink, but Claire is held back in the carriage as Jamie is led away from his wife. Suddenly, Jamie is surrounded and restrained as Claire is sent ahead in the carriage and he’s knocked out.
Richard tells Claire that she might think his actions are because of Lionel’s death, but he says that as a murderer she should stand trial. Claire is more concerned about her husband though and begs Tom to turn back and help Jamie, but he argues that he is there to make sure she arrives safely and that Jamie is capable of handling himself. As she awaits her fate, Claire hopes that Brianna and Roger (Richard Rankin) might hear of her ordeal as rumors of her role in Malva’s death circulate.
(Credit: Starz)
When Claire arrives in what appears to be Wilmington, she’s put in a jail cell and Tom leaves her some money and promises to stay in town assuring Claire that Jamie will be okay. Richard Brown, on the other hand, taunts Claire, saying he’ll see her at the gallows.
Meanwhile, Jamie awakes on a beach where he’s tied up to a pole and informed that he’ll be put on a ship back to Scotland. Thankfully, Ian has followed his uncle and with the help of the Cherokee, they eliminate the men on the beach who are threatening Jamie, leaving Oakes for last. As he tries evading bullets, Jamie explains to Ian and the Cherokee that Oakes knows where Claire is. Ian informs Jamie that they know as well, leading to Oakes’s death and Jamie being freed. While this is the point at which the episode ends, it’s clear that Jamie, Ian, and the Cherokee will seek out Claire and attempt to free her from imprisonment.
Brianna & Roger’s Ignorant Bliss
On the road to Edenton where Roger plans to become ordained, he and Bree talk about the revolutionary tensions and their role in the future. They question when the right time to tell Jemmy about their time-traveling ways is, and they decide it will be when he’s old enough to keep secrets but young enough that he won’t feel betrayed.
That evening as Jemmy is tucked into his sleeping bag, Bree finds Roger playing with their son’s toy car and they reminisce about times when they were behind the wheel together. The nostalgia leads to a passionate moment between the couple. The next day on the road again, Bree says she’s bored and Roger directs her attention to a paper in their carriage from Fergus’ (César Domboy) printing shop. The page has the title The New Bern Onion.
When Jemmy interrupts their conversation, Bree notices him scratching his head and discovers the boy has lice. And so the family stops to give the child a haircut and they find a birthmark on his scalp. At first Bree is worried, but Roger reassures her it isn’t harmful because he has one just like it, noting that they’re hereditary. The simple remark leads to a heartwarming revelation that Jemmy is in fact Roger’s biological son after there was uncertainty about paternity due to Stephen Bonnet (Ed Speleers) raping Bree.
So, while Jamie and Claire have been torn apart by chaotic circumstances once again, Bree and Roger have been brought closer together in Outlander‘s finale installment. Stay tuned to see what’s ahead for the Frasers when Outlander returns for Season 7.
Outlander, Season 7, TBA, Starz
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