Spoilers below.
Even by Outlander standards, the twists and turns in the second half of season 7 are coming thick and fast across the three different timelines. While it is hardly a bombshell that Jamie Fraser (Sam Heughan) didn’t die in a shipwreck off-screen, the news of his death set off a chain of events with drastic consequences for Lord John Grey (David Berry). By the end of this week’s outing, Lord John finds himself running for his life. No, Jamie isn’t the one trying to kill his BFF for sleeping with his wife, but Jamie’s jealous reaction directly leads Lord John to this precarious fate.
Instead of bouncing between centuries, Roger (Richard Rankin) and Brianna (Sophie Skelton) get the week off as the writers focus entirely on the fallout from Jamie’s return. It is a clever storytelling choice, even though I am eager to rejoin Roger’s quest to find his father and son in 1739 and follow up on Brianna’s discovery that Jemmy is still in the present-day 1980 setting. However, Jamie has much to catch up on in his personal life, leading to fireworks. Despite Jamie’s close call with the British Redcoats and William Ransom (Charles Vandervaart) instantly rejecting his biological father, the Scot is in a buoyant mood. Lord John is technically his hostage, but Jamie only maintains this ruse to protect his friend from being seen as collaborating with a rebel. However, the atmosphere quickly shifts when they leave the city, and Lord John’s guilt bubbles to the surface.
“I’ve had carnal knowledge of your wife,” Lord John confesses. At first, Jamie is all ‘Yeah, yeah. Sure you did.” Jamie only realizes this is not a joke when Lord John repeatedly tells him it is the truth. Lord John even loses his ability to speak like a gentleman when he reasons (in a line straight from Diana Gabaldon’s novel), “We were both fucking you!” Jamie doesn’t take Lord John’s logic as a compliment, responding with his fists. “Go ahead and kill me,” Lord John tells his friend. Perhaps Jamie would’ve obliged, but they are interrupted by a group of rebels. Jamie waves them on, explaining that it is a personal matter, but one of the men recognizes Lord John as an officer, and as such, he is now in their custody. Jamie cannot prove he is on their side; rather than protest, he lets them take Lord John.
David Berry as Lord John Grey and Sam Heughan as Jamie Fraser.
Back in Philadelphia, Claire (Caitriona Balfe) only stops smiling about Jamie when William comes to her with questions about his conception. Regardless of who his dad is, Claire remains his stepmother, and the Outlander family tree continues to sprout in different directions. William fears he is the product of rape, which Claire assures he is not. It is another trip down Outlander memory lane with Claire countering the whispers William heard about his mother Geneva being “reckless.” Another point of contention is that Lord John and his wife Isobel always knew Jamie was his father. “My entire life is a lie,” William yells before smashing every item in his path.
William continues to rage on the streets of Philadelphia, repeating the word “bastard” to himself. Arabella (Silvia Presente), a sex worker, overhears and tells him she’s “partial to a bastard.” William follows Arabella into her chamber, but there is confusion about what he should “wash up.” Rather than laugh off this naked faux pas, William overreacts to her calling him a gentleman. Wine is thrown, and Arabella orders him to leave.
Events quickly worsen for Lord John, who can’t even get the rebels to use his title. Respect is the last of his worries as they have found a letter in his pocket contradicting his claim that he no longer holds an active commission (Lord John argues that he hasn’t accepted the new assignment). The name Grey adds fuel to the fire, as his “cousin of some sort,” General Charles Grey, is behind some sort of atrocity with a “Remember Paoli” rallying cry. Others in the group think his lack of uniform indicates he is a spy and should be hanged, but it should happen with an audience, not in the middle of the woods.
Meanwhile, Jamie reaches Colonel Morgan’s (Barry O’Connor) encampment with a letter from “our friends in France.” Morgan wants to introduce Jamie to General George Washington (Gary Fannin), but Washington remembers meeting Jamie at a play in Willmington (which took place in season 4). The letter’s contents reveal “generous contributions to our cause” from France, and Washington is impressed that Jamie made this trip of his own accord. To commend Jamie for his bravery and cunning, Washington asks him to accept the command of a battalion. While Congress will have to approve, Jamie has now earned the rank of Brigadier General. The tide appears to be turning, and General Clinton is pulling British troops out of Philadelphia.
William aids the evacuation of loyalist citizens when he runs into Ian (John Bell) and Rachel (Izzy Meikle-Small). It turns awkward when William learns the couple is returning from a failed wedding attempt (Quakers in Valley Forge wouldn’t marry them). Not only is William’s crush getting married to someone else, but Ian is William’s cousin. William wishes them happiness, and then sucker punches Ian. When William calls Ian “cousin,” he confirms that Ian is another person who knows about his parentage. Throwing insults about Jamie is not the way into Ian’s heart, and a fight breaks out. William orders Ian’s arrest for assaulting an officer, and Rachel slaps William. As a Quaker, Rachel is a pacifist, but actions speak loudly here. If you didn’t think William could sink lower, kissing Rachel proves otherwise. Of course, Rachel does not suddenly decide she wants to be with William; instead, she spits at him.
Charles Vandervaart as William Ransom and Izzy Meikle-Small as Rachel Hunter.
If William had thought his day was at rock bottom, there is more to come when dear old dad Jamie spots Ian as a prisoner. Rachel tells Jamie that William is the reason for Ian’s arrest, and Jamie leans hard into the patriarchal role, insisting that William fix this mess. Jamie threatens to spill William’s true lineage to his captain, which is enough for his son to agree to free Ian. “God damn you to hell,” William tells Jamie. “No doubt,” Jamie responds. One person thrilled to see Jamie is Ian, who hadn’t been told his uncle was alive.
Ian might be free, but Lord John finds out how serious his predicament is when he learns what “Remember Paoli” stands for—which is based on actual events. General Charles Grey led his troops to massacre 100 sleeping Continental men in their beds using only their bayonets so as not to raise the alarm with gunfire. It is known as the Paoli Massacre after a nearby tavern. Suffice it to say, these men want revenge. Lord John makes his case, saying that his cooperation is more valuable than his death, and he is told that General Washington is to be informed. A friendly face is in the camp as Dr. Denzell Hunter (Joey Phillips) has been summoned to assess Lord John’s swollen eye. Dr. Hunter thinks there might be a fracture and doesn’t think Lord John should be moved.
Back in Philadelphia, a reluctant William returns to the brothel with some of his comrades. Captain Harkness (Adam Jackson-Smith) brags about all the vile things he wants to do to these women and gets into a bidding war with William over Arabella. William stakes the highest amount, and she tells him this will cover whatever takes his fancy. Firstly, William apologizes for the previous visit, insisting he will pay for her wine-stained dress and lost wages. “My father once told me he knew a man who assured him that a good night’s sleep is the best gift you can get a whore,” William insists. But he also wants to know Arabella’s real name, which she tells him is Jane, and the two settle into a comfortable chat.
Charles Vandervaart as William and Silvia Presente as Arabella/ Jane.
Jane tells him to get into bed and begins to touch him. “If you bother me, I will tell you to stop,” Jane says. But for William, it is a matter of honor that he keeps to himself. Regardless of when the series is set, we shouldn’t ignore the lack of consent at the start of this encounter. Williams tells her to unhand him. Instead, Jane climbs on top of him. William repeats that he is a bastard and the only honor he has left is his word. Yes, he actively reciprocates Jane’s kisses and thrusts after saying this, but through teary eyes, he also asks, “Why did you make me break my word?” For Jane, William has paid and should receive a service. “Ever think maybe a whore has a sense of honor too?” Of course, William hasn’t considered a sex worker’s perspective, and yet viewing this scene with a contemporary notion of consent ultimately leaves a bitter taste.
Sex is the main topic of discussion when Jamie returns to Philadelphia, and he wants to know all the details that led to Lord John having “carnal knowledge” of Claire—including where it happened. Claire replays events we have seen, including contemplating suicide and Lord John telling her she wasn’t going to grieve alone. Jamie’s jealousy is impossible to contain, asking, “Did he bugger you?” Claire is appalled by her husband, but Jamie sinks even lower, saying he knows what Claire is like when she is drunk. Comments like that earn him a (deserved) slap. Jamie has sought physical comfort in the past, as when he believed Claire was dead after Culloden in season 3 (she was in Boston in the 1960s), he slept with Mary MacNab in the cave. Claire doesn’t need to know the details of the encounter, highlighting their differences.
Sam Heughan as Jamie.
Claire does as he wishes, explaining what she remembers of an encounter that was a blur. Violence was part of it as she lashed out at Lord John (this is the part we saw), and she compares it to triage with John stopping her metaphorical bleeding by “placing his grief over mine.” When Jamie quotes Lord John’s explanation that they were “fucking me,” Claire concurs. Finally, Jamie understands. “A bloody Englishman bandaged me up with his friendship,” Jamie admits about how Lord John saved him after William’s mother, Geneva, died. Jamie makes it clear that he hit John more than once but didn’t kill him. Little does he know that leaving Lord John with those men is akin to a death sentence. Thankfully, Lord John has one friend looking out for him.
Earlier at the camp, Dr. Hunter gave Lord John a knife to aid his escape. Lord John doesn’t think he needs it, but Dr. Hunter hears talk that Lord John is worth more dead than alive. Lord John refuses to let the doctor put his life on the line for him but listens carefully to his advice. While Jamie and Claire wrap up their conversation with declarations (“Nothing in this world or the next that can take you from me or me from you,” says Jamie) and an emphasis that Claire is Jamie’s wife, Lord John cuts himself free of his binding. Scenes cut between Jamie and Claire getting hot and heavy on the dining table as Lord John flees into the woods. He hasn’t got too far when they realize the prisoner has escaped, and armed men are sent to look for him. Jamie will feel pretty bad if Lord John ends up dead after all.