The Review at the End of the Universe
“Better to Marry Than Burn” Outlander celebrates Jocasta’s wedding and Roger has to deal with a crisis at Fraser’s Ridge. One of the main challenges for Roger this season is that his skills don’t naturally translate to living in the past. He’s an academic in a time that calls for people who can work with…
“Perpetual Adoration” Outlander explores the events and decisions that lead people to where they end up as various characters reflect on their lives at the stage they are at. Every now and again the show chooses to overtly remind viewers that time travel is a significant factor. This often takes the form of a flashback…
“Company We Keep” Outlander continues with Jamie’s mission to assemble a militia to fight on behalf of the Crown with complications arising at a trading post. Every season of Outlander has an episode like this; one that focuses on setting things up and outlining the potential complications that surround the major events the episodes are…
“Free Will” Outlander begins the march of Jamie’s militia to confront the Regulators but puts a detour in the path of Claire and Jamie. As I’ve mentioned repeatedly and will continue to state as long as I cover this show; Outlander is at its best when focusing on the core Jamie/Claire relationship. It is at…
“Between Two Fires” Outlander begins Jamie’s difficult quest to hunt down Murtagh as Claire struggles to be an effective Doctor in her current surroundings. There’s a strong possibility that the current Jamie plotline could fail because of how complex it is by its very nature. He’s in a situation where he has been given land…
“The Fiery Cross” Outlander returns for a fifth season with a lavish wedding and the promise of difficult times ahead for the extended Fraser family. Relationships are everything on this show. Even in the tensest of situations time is always taken to celebrate the connections between the people attached to those events. For me, this…
“Wilmington” Outlander continues Roger and Brianna’s journey to find Fraser’s Ridge as they reunite in Wilmington and take their relationship to the next level. Giving Brianna and Roger a narrative this season has widened the scope of Outlander considerably. Instead of having one temporally displaced romance it now has two. This is a welcome addition…
“Savages” Outlander reintroduces an old friend while continuing to explore the tension between the settlers of North Carolina, those who claim to own the land and the indigenous population. I talked at length about the problematic nature of Claire and Jamie’s characterisation in “Do No Harm” during that review and this episode suggests it’s going…
“Common Ground” Outlander starts to look at the reality of Claire and Jamie building a life together in America including the hardships that will challenge them. The early part of this episode has a palpable sense of optimism to it. Claire and Jamie are both excited about building a home together from scratch in a…
“America The Beautiful” Outlander returns for a fourth season with a change in location, different problems and reflections on the consequences of the previous season. This show is always at its best in the quieter character driven moments. The characters are so richly developed that any time they spend being introspective is a joy to…
