As Jamie and Claire arrive and settle into life as Laird and Lady of Lallybroch, Fraser family drama threatens to derail their homecoming. Video clips, new photo stills, and recap of Outlander episode “Lallybroch,” which first aired Saturday, April 25 at 9:00pm ET|PT on STARZ.
***SPOILER ALERT***
“Lallybroch” began with Jamie (Sam Heughan) and Claire (Caitriona Balfe) in the beautiful highlands, reunited, and riding home towards Lallybroch. As they rode, Claire was telling Jamie about her life in the future. In particular they were discussing airplanes and she was trying to describe how they remained aloft like birds. Jamie was quite curious about how a person could fly thousands of feet into the air, practically with God’s eye-view of the world.
Jamie then asked how old Claire was…she ws 27. He expressed always thinking they were the same age or maybe she was younger. But Jamie wasn’t disappointed. When he was 40, she would be 245 (*giggles madly*), but perhaps his calculations were a bit off. As they talked, they saw Lallybroch from a distance. They dismounted and continued their approach on foot. Jamie reflected on the last time he was there, strung up and whipped by Black Jack Randall (Tobias Menzies) …BJR assaulting his sister. Dougal had told him of rumors that BJR had impregnated Jenny, but Claire tried to comfort him. It was all in the past, and likely just gossip.
They continued towards Lallybroch and when they arrived at the gate, Jamie tied up Donas and Claire talked with a young boy sitting outside playing with apples (young Jamie!). Jenny (Laura Donnelly), who was pregnant, came outside and called for her son, but then saw her brother. She dropped her basket and took off running. Jamie and Jenny embraced one another. She chastised him for being away for 4 years without sending any word. But Jamie couldn’t take his eyes off the young boy…BJR’s bastard son? Jenny enthusiastically introduced young Jamie to his uncle and namesake. But Big Jamie wasn’t to happy: why would she name Randall’s bastard son after him? Hadn’t he suffered enough?
And Jamie kept on berating his sister. It wasn’t enough that Jenny had given herself to Randall to protect him, but now she was pregnant with another bastard child. Jamie expressed regret at returning home. Jenny might have been confused, but she was ready to set things straight. Did Jamie really think she’d been BJR’s whore?
When Claire tried to intervene, Jenny told Jamie to tell “that trollop” to mind her own business. He didn’t appreciate the disrespect towards Claire or Jenny shaming him in front of his wife. Jenny responded by threatening to grab him by the bollocks to make Jamie listen, as she’d done when they were kids. “Don’t test me brother.” As they argued, Ian (Steven Cree), Jenny’s husband walked towards them and said that he was father to both children. Jamie was surprised, but pleased to see his old friend. This entire time both Ian and Jenny had thought he was dead until the received his chest from Castle Leoch (which Mrs. Fitzgibbons had sent).
Jamie, properly abashed, hugged Ian and introduced Claire. He tried to apologize to Jenny, but she called him a fool and walked away. (However, Jamie still couldn’t stop flashing back to BJR assaulting her.)
Once inside, the four sat together. Ian offered Claire whisky and after a brief toast, the awkwardness continued, primarily because of Jamie and Jenny. Jamie needed to know what happened between her and BJR all those years ago. She promised to speak of that day only once and never again: after Randall knocked Jamie out, he took Jenny inside of the house. He took her upstairs into the bedroom. She tried to keep her wits about herself as BJR groped her and made her touch him. While he was distracted, Jenny grabbed a candlestick holder, smacked Randall in the head, and tried to run away. Unfortunately he was too fast. BJR threw Jenny onto the bed, slapped her, and began to strip. He tried to rub himself to get…ready…but was having difficulty. As Jenny watched, she laughed at him. Randall slapped her, but she continued to laugh. BJR, perhaps frustrated, pushed Jenny away and she hit her head on the bedpost. When she woke up, Randall and Jamie were both gone. (*SIDENOTE* I think we got a full frontal image of BJR, no?)
When Jenny finished her story, she demanded an apology from Jamie. Claire spoke up in support of the sentiment, but Jenny didn’t appreciate her interfering in something that was between her and her brother. Jamie then asked to speak with Claire in private and excused them both.
In the next room, Jamie told Claire that she must not embarrass him in front of the family and servants. She needed to curb her sharp tongue. This was his family, his land, his TIME, and Claire needed to trust his judgement. Jamie and Claire had to act as laird and lady. However, she had no intention of being meek and obedient. The entire time, Jamie smirked. No one would mistake Claire for being meek in any way, and behind closed doors, she could express herself to him however. But in public, Jamie didn’t want Claire to cross him.
As they returned to the next room, Ian tried to pick up polite conversation. He asked after Claire’s original home. She replied that she was originally from Oxfordshire, but now Lallybroch would be her home. Jenny seemed a bit taken aback that Jamie and Claire planned to stay, but her brother confirmed it. What about the price on his head? Well, they both hoped that with the help of the Duke of Sandringham, they could expect a pardon soon. Jenny didn’t imagine that her brother would ever become so trusting of the English… and at that not so veiled insult, Claire excused herself to wash up and change. Jenny asked for a servant to move her and Ian’s things from the master bedroom since that was the laird’s room. Claire tried to object, but Jamie shut her down. But even though Jenny suggested it, it seemed she wasn’t pleased about the new arrangement.
Upstairs, Jamie brought their chest into the master bedroom. Now alone with Claire, he reminisced about how the room hadn’t changed since it belonged to his father…where his father kept his books, boots, and blade. The Laird’s room was sacred…his father had poured his blood and sweat into building Lallybroch, but now it all belonged to Jamie. “Ours.”
Claire asked Jamie the last time he’d seen his father. It turned out that it was at Fort William, a week after he’d been flogged the first time. Brian Fraser (Andrew Whipp) came to speak to Black Jack Randall about freeing his son. Jamie apologized for what happened to Jenny under his watch, but his father told him that he wasn’t at fault. Brian reminded Jamie to pray, kissed him, and promised to stand by his son no matter what happened. Jamie was then led in to see BJR in his office. Apparently, Brian Fraser had promised to get a clearance from the Duke of Argyle. Randall doubted he could do such a thing and even if he did, Brian wouldn’t make it back in time.
In the “present” as Jamie spoke to Claire, he confessed that BJR had propositioned him. If Jamie gave BJR free use of his body, there wouldn’t be a second flogging. Jamie admitted that he considered BJR’s offer. He was still weak from the first go-round and the thought of being bound, helpless, and whipped again was much less desirable. Black Jack also promised to free Jamie that same day. But he could still feel his father’s kiss on his cheek. Jamie couldn’t bear the thought of his father’s disappointment because he’d given in and let BJR break him. So Jamie said no. And (as we know), the second flogging happened.
Both Dougal (Graham McTavish) and Brian Fraser were there watching and when Jamie fell, his father also dropped like a rock and died. Jamie didn’t see his father die, being taken away, or buried. He hadn’t even seen the grave. Claire tried to comfort Jamie’s distress, saying that even if he had taken the offer, BJR would have probably still had Jamie whipped. Black Jack was just that sick. As they talked, Jenny interrupted to tell them to come to dinner.
While Claire and Jenny sat at the dinner table waiting for their husbands, Jenny was taciturn. She seemed determined to discredit Claire, asking if she’d ever run a house before. Claire would have a lot to learn to keep up Lallybroch, but she was a quick study. When Jamie and Ian walked in, they mentioned that the next day was Quarter Day. The tenants would come to pay them and seek quarter, since the last two years had been poor harvests. Claire was concerned about such a public celebration of Jamie’s return, but Jenny quickly shut her down. The tenants were like family and no one would betray Jamie to the Red Coats for any amount of money.
Jamie planned to look at the ledgers that night, prepare for Quarter Day, and visit their father’s grave the next day. But his sister didn’t approve. If their father were alive, he’d expect a visit that very evening. (In the theme of the night), dinner awkwardly continued.
At Quarter Day, the tenants greeted Jamie and were pleased to have him back. They brought gifts and Jamie introduced Claire. There was a general ambience of happy celebration. As Jamie and Ian collected the rents, Jenny looked on, still not pleased. A slight altercation arose when Duncan (one of the tenants) only brought half of what he owed. Jamie was inclined to show mercy when Duncan said that he’d lost one of his cows. No worries, they could settle up next quarter. Furthermore, being the kind laird that he was, Jamie returned the what Duncan had just paid. Nope, Jenny wasn’t pleased. (*SIDENOTE* Is it just me or was Jamie trying way too hard?!)
Outside, Claire sat with the other ladies, and witnessed a man (Ronald McNab, Richard Jack) beating his son for taking a bannock. She tried to intervene on the boy’s behalf. Claire offered to watch Robbie while the father went back to drinking with his friends. McNab agreed but warned Claire not to fill his son’s head with any English foolishness. Claire took Robbie to Jenny and found that he also had bruises on his back. As they talked, Jamie inquired what happened, but before Claire could ask him to do something about it, Jamie was led away by Duncan to have a drink.
Well, Jamie might have overdone it. By the time he came to bed, he was DRUNK. He couldn’t properly undress and ended up falling and waking Claire up. Jamie was speaking in Gaelic, and when Claire asked him to speak in English, he said that now that she was Scottish, she should work on her Gaelic. Jamie told Claire that he’d confronted Ronald McNab, roughed him up, and warned him against abusing his son. (all the while slapping her bum). Afterall, he was Laird Broch Tuarach. Randomly, Jamie wanted to hear about Claire’s experience riding an elephant…but then he passed out.
The next morning, Jamie had a killer hangover. When he sat down at the breakfast table, Jenny stormed into the room to confront her brother. She was upset that Jamie hadn’t collected any of the rents. His excuse? It had been a tough year and he wanted to give his tenants some ease. But without the rents, the estate would fold because they couldn’t make ends meet. And as a result of Jamie confronting McNab, he threw his son out and sent him to live at Lallybroch. So there was another mouth to feed. Claire tried to defend Jamie’s decision to help the boy, but Jenny was still displeased. She and Robbie’s granny had been working on a plan for the boy to live with McNab’s sister. Why would Jamie act without even thinking to ask Jenny for the details? But Jamie clearly said that he was the laird and didn’t need advice on running the estate from his sister.
Jamie was agitated and took it out on the cook when he found the bread wasn’t to his liking. He left to try and fix the mill, stripping down and entering the pond to see what was obstructing the water wheel (Jamie bum FTW). Jenny came to warm him and Claire about a patrol of Red Coats in the area, and at the same time, that same patrol approached. Jamie remained underwater, trying to hide while Jenny and Claire sat on his plaid and tried to send the soldiers on their way. The senior officer (who happened to know a lot about water wheels) went towards the pond to look at the wheel, but suddenly it started turning. It seemed that the wheel was obstructed by a shirt…
The Red Coats left and naked Jamie emerged from the water. He begged Jenny to turn around so he could climb out of the pond before his man-parts froze off. This, of course, was the first time Jenny had seen Jamie’s back and it affected her so much she ran away.
Later than night, Claire was awake and looking at paintings of the Fraser family. Ian, a fellow night owl, came to keep her company. He told her of how Jenny took care of him when he came back from fighting in France, now without his leg. Even though he tried to push her away, Jenny was insistent that they be together…and then they were married. Frasers were stubborn and mule-headed and Ian warned not to get in between them when they were arguing (a lesson Claire really needed to learn!) How were they to manage? “Kick them harder.”
Claire went upstairs and did just that. She tugged Jamie out of bed and was adamant that he stop trying to be someone he wasn’t. As is, Jamie was wrecking the family he had left.
The next morning, Jenny met Jamie at their father’s grave. They both wanted to apologize—he for not consulting Jenny (not properly collecting the rents and interfering with the McNabs); she for blaming Jamie for their father’s death. Actually, Jenny blamed herself for the scars on Jamie’s back. If she hadn’t laughed at Black Jack, he wouldn’t have taken Jamie away which ultimately caused their father’s death. But they settled that it was neither of their fault. Jack Randall was the person truly responsible for their father’s death. Jamie and Jenny affirmed their love for one another and she properly welcomed her brother home.
That night, Claire shared that she was starting to feel like she belonged. And Jamie said that he knew the moment he’d laid eyes on her that she belonged with him. It was one of the reasons he agreed to marry her—that and because he wanted Claire more than he’d ever wanted anything. Falling off the horse and waking up looking at her face…their long ride together with Claire’s bum in his lap… And it was that first night in Leoch when Claire cried in his arms that Jamie knew he loved Claire. That love had grown every day since. Claire responded by saying she loved him too. (*WEEPING*)
When Claire woke up the next day, Jamie was no longer in bed. She got dressed, left their room, and looked down to seen 3 men holding Jamie at gunpoint (WHAT?!).
If you missed tonight’s episode, you can watch “Lallybroch” on STARZ Play online HERE or via the STARZ Play app.
What did you think of this week’s Outlander? And how about that ending?! Share your thoughts in comments!
