Well Outlander fans, it’s official. Droughtlander has officially begun as ‘Eye of The Storm’ was the Season 3 finale and it was jam-packed with everything that makes Outlander what it is—drama, death, and danger. This final episode really helped to make the season, which to be frank (not that Frank), really needed it as the series has taken such a big turn with the 20 year time jump, change of location, and new characters, but more of that will be discussed in our Outlander Season 3 Review.
Last week’s episode saw Jamie (Sam Heughan) and Claire (Caitriona Balfe) arrive in Jamaica with some ghosts from their past making a return. Geillis Duncan (Lotte Verbeek) was revealed to be the Bakra and took advantage of young Ian (John Bell), while Lord John Grey (David Berry) turned out to be the newly appointed Governor of Jamaica. But alas, after learning Geillis was lying about young Ian and Jamie being captured, the pair had some serious work cut out for them.
Liars Everywhere—Some Good, Some Bad
The episode kicks off with an ominous narration from Claire as we see her slowly sinking deeper into the ocean, but we’re not there yet, so we cut to Claire racing around in a carriage. She has arrived at the Geillis’ servants quarters and apparently has had time to change, which Fergus (César Domboy) and Marsali (Lauren Lyle) discover when they find she’s left a note at the inn. The series is really trying to make Fersali resonate with fans, especially when Marsali demands she goes with Fergus who is off to go help Claire and Jamie.
Claire then finds a dead body when she’s searching for Ian, but she’s quickly grabbed and taken to the main house where Geillis is interrogating Ian as she believes Claire knew about the sapphires. She sends Ian away just as Claire comes through the door and Gellis begins her interrogation/conversation with Claire. Asking again why Claire is in this time, Geillis raves on about returning her country to its former glory. Geillis still believes Claire is lying about everything, even about being gone for twenty years, until Claire admits she was pregnant and shows Geillis the photos.
Geillis stares and then realises Brianna (Sophie Skelton) looks familiar and recalls meeting her, as well as hearing voices as she travelled through the stones all those years ago. It then clicks that Brianna is the 200-year-old baby, so Geillis pockets one of the photos and says Claire can stay as long as she wants.
Meanwhile, Captain Leonard (Charlie Hiett) is escorting Jamie to the ship when they are stopped by Grey’s men. At the Governor’s house, Leonard explains the situation, but things quickly go south when Grey asks to see the warrant, which he doesn’t have. Grey continues by belittling Leonard’s status and states that Jamie cannot be taken as he doesn’t have authority on Jamaica. Once again, Jamie finds himself indebted to Grey.
Claire then tries to escape from Geillis’ house but finds all the doors locked and sees young Ian being taken away, but Jamie comes to her rescue and luckily misses the candlestick Claire swung towards him.
Looking In Once Again
Jamie and Claire race towards the drumming in search of Ian and come across a ritual in the very same fashion as Frank and Claire did all the way back in Season 1. However, this time the pair are discovered, but Mr Willoughby (Gary Young) comes to their rescue as he is there with Margaret (Alison Pargeter) and they hope to be together. They speak with Margaret about where Geillis and Ian may be, but Margaret grabs Jamie’s hand and sees him lying on the battlefield of Culloden. But when she grabs both of their hands, she takes on an American accent and appears to be channelling Brianna as she recognises her father and calls Claire “Momma”. Margaret is stopped when her brother, Mr Campbell (Mark Hadfield), takes her away, but Jamie demands answers and they learn about the prophecy.
Claire connects the dots and realises one of the photos of Brianna is missing and that she is the baby in the prophecy, or at least according to Geillis. After Mr Willoughby kills Mr Campbell, Claire and Jamie race to the foreboding Abandawe and enter a cave where Claire can hear the humming. She’s concerned she may never be able to return, but Jamie says she must go as they already lost Faith and they can’t lose Brianna too.
In her 1960s attire, Geillis is peforming a ritual with young Ian tied up just as Geillis’ servant aims a gun to Jamie’s head. A brawl ensues and Claire races towards Geillis who claims Claire owes her a life, and that life is Brianna’s. Claire realises the portal is the pool and as Geillis runs towards it, Claire grabs a machete and decapitates Geillis. Claire begins to become drawn to the pool, but Jamie pulls her back and all three of them leave the cave.
Thankful they escaped, Claire still holds the machete and realises the bones she inspected back in Boston with Joe Abernathy just so happen to be from Geillis, which is why she understood them and had such a strange connection to them. Jamie relieves Claire of the blade and holds the pair of them tight.
More Than One Rocky Ride
We return to the Artemis sailing away with a glorious sight of Sam Heughan and like I said already, the season finale had everything that makes Outlander what it is. And yes, they even managed to squeeze in a steamy scene between Jamie and Claire as he talks about what he plans to do with Claire when they reach land, so he gives her a little preview of what’s to come.
They wake up to find the weather has changed significantly, and next thing we know, the Artemis is facing treacherous waters. While many stay below, including Marsali, Fergus and Ian, Claire takes it upon herself to head above deck as she’s still the ship’s surgeon. With men being thrown overboard by the waves, Jamie eventually orders everyone to seek refuge below and makes his way towards Claire who’s having trouble. Unfortunately, the pair spy an incredibly large wave coming towards them and look to each other just before it hits. Jamie recovers, but Claire is nowhere to be seen and then we see the beginning montage of Claire sinking further down into the sea.
Jamie swims towards her, cuts her free and swims to the surface. He then manages to find some debris big enough for the both of them (yes Rose, we’re talking to you), and says he will kill her if she dies. The pair float on as the camera pans out to show they are literally in the eye of the storm right now.
Land Ahoy
A young girl prods Jamie awake with a stick, and he crawls over to Claire and he believes her to be dead until she starts coughing and saying she said she’d never leave him again. A couple approaches them to ask if they are alright and to also inform them that the Artemis washed up with survivors, much to the relief of Jamie and Claire.
Jamie asks where they are while Claire asks what island they are on, only to be told they are in the colony of Georgia, which Jamie is confused by. Claire then clears it up by saying they’re in America and they quickly embrace.
Overall Thoughts?
The episode felt quite full, and it almost seemed like it could have been two episodes with the way it ended after the cave and then cutting to them on the ship. Perhaps one could say it felt a little too full—did we need that scene with Fergus and Marsali? Could that perhaps been swapped with seeing everyone on shore as one big happy family?
Regardless, the series has done very well with bringing Voyager onto the screen, despite many grumblings by fans, but there’s only so much you can have in 13 episodes.
Now, look after yourselves as we enter the Droughtlander as although we don’t know when the series will premiere, we’re hoping for sometime around May as they started filming in October.
Hmmm. Glass half full or half empty? The half full: after chasing up the wrong path of too much Dr. Claire Medicine Woman who dithers about returning to Jamie but not about ministering to her would-be rapist/murderer or boarding a floating plague, the writers FINALLY doubled back to the notion they established so well in Season 1 before undermining it – this pair are epic lovers with a mystical ordained partnership that overcomes distance, obstacles, even time itself. They are truly bone of each other’s bone, like Adam and Eve. And now they’re set to explore a Garden of Eden type America…a unified force to be reckoned with, indivisible (and back to being sexy).
The half empty – a silly forced denouement for the radically rewritten characters of Yi Tien Cho and Margaret Campbell – love at first sight, planning marriage 2 hours later, instant deference from escaped slaves, snapping brother Archie’s neck “accidentally.”..Really? Fersali has zilch appeal, partly because of Marsali’s uncanny resemblance to her horrid mother that calls up reflexive revulsion in the audience and partly because Fergus is a wuss dominated by his teen bride despite being nearly twice her age. Seriously unsexy.
I agree. Why are they ruining outlander? Jamie and Claire are the heart of the story and they’re slowly but surely moving them out. I would hope that Sam and cait would understand their worth and together they could do other movies. They are a magical couple on screen. They’re iconic. They need to look for movies together. They’re fab in playing off of each other in a romantic, comedy series. They’re just naturally funny with each other plus they have fairy dust all over them on the screen. People just fall in love with them.