Scott Sam Heughan looks about four times as hot on TV than he does in photographs —and thank God, for Claire’s sake.Credit: Starz, Likes: Whiskey, Grunting in a manly fashion through excruciating pain, being objectified by the Internet. (Was that a flash of Jamie’s thigh under his kilt? Status. Though hardly gratuitous (or lingering), this isn’t the kind of sex scene you see on most networks (or even in R-rated movies if the MPAA has anything to say about it). Moments later we hear—though not see—their re-consummation. Obviously, there’s no topping Litchfield literary critic Tasha “Taystee” Jefferson’s synopsis of Diana Gabaldon’s best-selling book series–upon which Starz’s new drama is based–so I’m not even going to try. But fate has other things in store – and the next day we learn that Frank has an ancestor from 200 years before who became infamous as a captain of the British Dragoons, Jonathan “Black Jack” Randall. It’s just one of the charms and heartbreaks of this show: While there are truly bad characters and villains, Frank and Claire are not two of them. More: This Is Us pilot recap is a tear-jerker. Sundays 8:00 PM on Facebook Watch. So there’s a lot of sex. Claire once again tends to him (this will continue to be a recurring theme, so get used to it).
I can only speculate as to why Moore decided to add it here. I know I am. Lady travels back in time to Scotland… Hooks up with this big sexy outlaw type, and they be gettin’ it day in and day out. When Claire wakes, she’s still at the stones, but her car is gone. ‘Outlander’ Season 1, Episode 1 Pilot Recap: Sassenach, Meet Highlander and Go Back in Time. Helmed by “Battlestar Galactica” genius Ron Moore, fans of the books have very little to worry about, as the pilot is as every bit as sumptuous, visceral and delightful as a bottle of well-aged whiskey. Claire obviously finds all of this really boring (I would too) and agrees to have her future read by the Reverend’s housekeeper, Mrs. Graham, while she waits. For those already entranced, read Outlander Season 5 Episode 7 recap on our sister site, SheKnows which is being touted as one of the best episodes this season. Flustered and scared, Claire bolts through the woods until she comes face to face with Frank. What was your favorite part? By Maureen Lee Lenker Rating: A-A-S5 E8 Recap … She braces against one of the majestic stones and the screen goes black. (Try saying that three times fast.) “I had no idea Inverness was such a hot bed of contemporary paganism,” Claire jokes good-naturedly.
It brought us love, sex, death, and Jamie & Claire.
So there’s that. “Sassenach” (a not-very-nice way of saying “English person” in Scots) opens with a slow panning shot of an unmistakably moody Scottish heath, and Claire foreshadowing her own mysterious disappearance from 1945 Inverness via voice-over. Soaps.com has recapped the pilot episode for those who have perhaps heard about the show and need more information to decide if they want to watch. As they ramble through the Highlands they spy Cocknammon Rock, which Frank explains used to serve as a hiding spot for British soldiers ambushing the Scots in the 17th and 18th century. It’s executive produced by Ronald D. Moore of Star Trek and Battlestar Galactica fame and boasts a hauntingly beautiful score by his BSG collaborator Bear McCreary. ), her interest is piqued, but they are forced to make a dash when one of the Druids returns because she forgot her magical cape or something.
As it turns out, the couple have arrived on the eve of a Halloween-like holiday. Claire spots Cocknammon Rock on the way and, recalling Frank’s history lesson, warns the men of potential ambush. She still has flashbacks to the challenges of trying to repair wounded men on the fly, and he’s looking forward to a posting teaching history at Oxford. Outlander recap: For who could ever learn to love a beast... By Maureen Lee Lenker S5 E9 Recap Outlander recap: Snakes. She becomes involved in the War of the British Succession, which was a series of rebellions and uprisings. Finally (FINALLY) we get our first real glimpse of Jamie Fraser. She’s on her second honeymoon after having been separated from her husband Frank Randall (Tobias Menzies, most recently seen in “Game of Thrones”) during the war and this trip to Inverness is their way of attempting to get their relationship back on track. Now that we're all caught up on Outlander , who's ready for Season 2? Share This Article Reddit LinkedIn WhatsApp Email Print Talk Image: Starz. Outlander Season 1 Recaps: Episodes 1-4 Sing me a song of a lass that is gone; Say, could that lass be I? Because there’s nothing better to do in 1940s Scotland when your husband spends all his time researching (I mean, COME ON Frank, IT’S YOUR HONEYMOON! She’s the kind of character you want to root for — the kind who chugs champagne straight from the bottle and who doesn’t wear any underwear during a tour through historical ruins. Later on in the evening, as Frank is returning after what we’re sure was a THRILLING night of genealogy research, he comes across a young man decked head to toe in Scottish Highlander gear, standing outside of Claire’s window and watching her inside. It’s his nearly identical ancestor Black Jack, at her service. Timidity melts into playfulness as Franks tests out the squeaky bedsprings. The premiere opens on a grisly scene only alluded to in the book series—a flashback to our protagonist, English army nurse Claire Randall, furiously tending to a soldier’s mangled leg while a femoral artery spurts red droplets onto her pretty porcelain face. The buzz around Starz’s “Outlander” series, based on Diana Gabaldon’s books of the same name, has been considerable, so the first episode (“Sassenach”) feels like it’s been a long time coming for the more hard-core fans, and boy was it worth the wait! With the business of suturing and surveillance behind them, they arrive in Inverness for a sort of second honeymoon, to reacquaint themselves with each other after five years apart. (Geeze, the guy can’t catch a break.) Entertainment Weekly is a registered trademark of Meredith Corporation All Rights Reserved. Outlander series premiere recap: Sassenach. (Claire doesn’t know it yet, but she’s been sent back over 200 years). Claire works her first aid magic, and the episode closes out with the warrior band and a reluctant Claire arriving at Castle Leoch, which is no longer the dilapidated ruin where she and Frank did the nasty, but a prosperous Scottish establishment. DID. It’s VE-Day. The next day the couple rises early to watch druids (or witches) hold a ritual around the standing stones of Craigh na Dun. The couple haven’t come to Scotland to simply stare at the ceiling of their B&B, though. Oh, and they just happen to have been born about 200 years apart, but dinnae fash (that’s “don’t worry,” in Scottish)— we’ll get to that in a moment. Claire seems to have a bit of a restless spark in her, while Frank seems to be ready to head down a path of academic boredom, but at this exact moment they feel like a pair of intimate strangers. “So far I had been assaulted, threatened, kidnapped, and nearly raped, and somehow, I knew that my journey had only just begun.”. The wind picks up.
I got a little distracted. Did #Outlander just give us the best episode of Season 5?
Frank sets their alarm clock extra early so he and Claire can watch witches (really, druids) perform a ritual in the wee morning hours around the standing stones of Craigh na Dun.
As the couple explore the castle and descend deeper into its depths, Claire positions herself atop one of the scattered tables and not-so-subtly hitches her skirt to reveal a garter. The story follows nurse Claire Randall (Caitriona Balfe), who is a married woman during the second world war. © A dozen or so women draped in billowing white robes and holding torches aloft chant and dance around the outcropping until the sun peaks through the trees. Mrs. Graham is confused by what she finds in Claire’s future (two marriages, but at the same time, WHAT COULD IT MEAN?! They can’t depart, however, until injured clansman Jamie is tended to—his shoulder is painfully dislocated. Jamie pushes her off the horse and charges into danger. Outlander can be found for binge-watching on Hulu, Netflix, and Starz, or the recaps can be found on SheKnows, each Sunday. Stones, presumably, are not supposed to hum, so Claire does the obvious: places her hands on them. When Frank and Claire linger to investigate their surroundings, Claire spots an interesting flower, perhaps a forget-me-not. He and Claire (and by extension, the audience) are also treated to an etymology lesson: The episode’s title “Sassenach” is Scottish for “Englishman” or “at worst, outlander,” the reverend explains. She gives him her maiden name, Beauchamp, to avoid suspicion, but when she lets an expletive fly, he takes her for a whore and tries to rape her. Chivalry isn’t an entirely foreign concept to this ragtag group, at least. Yo, it’s hot!”. Former WWII combat nurse Claire Randall is transported back in time to 18th-century Scotland. Confused, she asks to examine Claire’s hand, which also proves puzzling. She sees a journey. Except the lines aren’t broken–they fork. [spoilers for episodes 1-4 of Outlander season 1, and tw for discussions of rape, torture, and general violence] Thankfully, a marauding clansman knocks Randall out before he gets too far, fleeing with Claire in tow. Through voiceover and accompanying flashback, Claire likens the sensation to that of being in a car accident (an interesting visual to eschew the typical swirling time-travel vortex), and she awakens at the stones.
As they arrive at the castle—the same now-ruined outpost Claire and Frank visited just two days before—Claire realizes just how far from home she truly is. Finally, they arrive at Castle Leoch – no longer the ruin Claire and Frank fooled around in, but intact and populated.
Perhaps he wanted to be as explicit as possible about his heroine’s sexual agency to further contrast the cruel and misogynistic world she’s later thrown into. And apparently the “Black” in Black Jack doesn’t mean he’s really great at cards. After a quick round on the squeaky mattress in their B&B suite, the pair head out to the countryside.
Black Jack then tries to violate Claire, but gets knocked out by a clansman before he can do the deed; the clansman brings Claire to his leader, Dougal (Graham McTavish). Claire is progressive even in her own era, and we learn as much in the first half of the first episode. (In just one episode, TV Series Frank already seems preferable to Book Series Frank, right?). The fact that her little white dress of the future kind of now looks like a disheveled nightgown, the warrior band’s suspicions are, well, aroused, and they swiftly assume that Claire’s a Sassenach spy. ), Claire and Frank (Tobias Menzies) are on honeymoon in Scotland to rekindle their love. You could easily imagine them going on to be a long-married couple.