The last time we saw Frasers in 18th-century North Carolina, Claire was on her way to be executed after being falsely accused of murdering a young woman, and Jamie was forcibly pulled from her side. Season 7 begins with Claire in jail, and only the irresistibly religious Tom Christie (Mark Lewis Jones) is there to keep her safe until Jamie returns. Without giving spoilers, the dangling threads from season 6 are tackled and tied relatively quickly, leaving us ready to watch Jamie and Claire face the next challenges and tragedies that fate throws their way. The American Revolution is finally here, although the trials Frasers faced go beyond that. We also spend time with Jamie’s secret son, William Ransom (Charles Vandervaart), who came to the colonies from England to wear a red soldier’s uniform to suppress the rebellion.
After season 6’s stories are tied together, “Outlander”‘s 7th season just becomes … marinated. Things happen and cause important decisions to be made not only for Jamie and Claire, but also for their daughter Brianna (Sophie Skelton), her husband Roger (Richard Rankin) and their children. Young Ian (John Bell) still does the classic Young Ian stuff and if something is just to beYou’ll be waiting longer than you think. However, if you’ve enjoyed “Outlander” up to this point, that’s most likely all well and good. The relationships between these characters are what drives the show, so who cares if Claire’s hair grows an inch or so when certain scenes have to go through in a row? And if you’re really interested in the dynamics of certain relationships, who cares if the bulk of an episode people sometimes (often?) talk to each other in Maudlin style?
If that sounds like a criticism, it mostly isn’t. “Outlander” knows what it is, as I wrote above, and its fans know it too. So while anyone watching “Outlander” for the first time in the season 7 premieres may wonder why it seems like nothing is going on, those of us who have already spent hours and hours with these characters, those long, actionless scenes are part of the recipe that makes the series so delicious to watch.