John Grey pays an unexpected visit to Jamie and Claire at Fraser’s Ridge. He brings Willie with him. One of the most fun things about the initial half of the episode was Murtagh’s presence in the mix. The unexpected appearance of the former warden of Ardsmuir is not a pleasant surprise for Murtagh.
He and John are good friends and happy to see each other. Actually, John seems genuinely happy to see Murtagh as well. Murtagh not so much.
As much as I enjoyed the one-on-one character scenes throughout the episode, that dinner scene was my favorite.
Watching Murtagh and John engage in a political debate while remaining civil was just plain fun.
The only thing that kept the “pleasant” dinner discussion from coming to blows is Young Master William’s presence. Although trying to keep the discussion civil Murtagh can’t help but mention having eaten rats.
Needless to say, this is the only part of the dinner discussion that actually interested the boy.
Once we got through the awkward dinner scene, the episode settled into some of my favorite types of scenes, the quiet ones.
This episode, in particular, is filled with lovely scenes between Jamie and Claire, John and Jamie, John and Claire, and William and Jamie.
Poor William is definitely out of his element! There are no servants in the wilderness. Did servants really bring you a chamber pot? For a moment, I thought William expected the chamber pot to be brought to the dinner table.
William’s not rude or ill-mannered. In fact, he is very well mannered. Any acting out, during the episode, is because he’s a young boy who just lost the only mother he ever knew and is terrified that he’s about to lose his father. Actually, the poor kid is certain of it. I’d be acting out too.
Jamie is surprised that William remembers him. William wasn’t at all certain Jamie remembered him. I wonder if part of that uncertainty is because William also remembers that Jamie didn’t look back at him as he rode away from Hellwater.
Claire realizes that John has contracted the measles. She and Jamie believe it’s best to keep William away from John until he’s no longer contagious.
Claire and John get a chance to talk. Claire is not one of those soap opera characters who tap dances around a subject trying to find the delicate way to ask a question.
John points out he’s never encountered in anyone else, regardless of gender, that is so “devastatingly straight forward”. It’s nearly impossible to avoid answering such direct questions.
Claire seems to be looking for reasons to distrust or dislike John. She questions his honor in marrying a woman he describes as ‘like a sister’.
She wants to know the real reason John came to Fraser’s Ridge; to let Jamie see his son, or see Jamie himself.
When it comes down to it, the two of them have a lot in common. They are each envious of the other. Both love Jamie.
In fact, John asks Claire the same thing Jamie asked her last season, after she learned that Jamie had married Laoghaire.
Claire can’t hate John. She ends up offering him comfort and telling he that he deserves someone that makes him as happy as she is.
I did love the brief dietary recommendation.
Jamie takes William on a “tour of Fraser’s Ridge” to keep him away from the cabin while John fights the measles.
Jamie gets a chance to teach his son the things he learned from his father. It’s awesome that Jamie gets to have this time with William.
William ignores the warnings Jamie gave him about staying off Cherokee land. When William steals a fish, the Cherokee inform him that the boy must pay for this transgression with blood.
Jamie claims William as his son and insists that he pay the debt instead of his son. But William refuses to run.
He confesses that he alone committed the transgression. The reward for his bravery is a small cut on the side of his hand.
William is thrilled to find his father alive and well. They continue on their journey, but, as William rides away, he looks back at Jamie presumably offering hope that they will see each other again.
I honestly don’t have much critiquey to say about this episode. The only issue I had is that I don’t like being on the same page as the characters when others are speaking a language I don’t know. I wanted the Cherokee dialog to be subtitled. (I wanted the same thing with the Gaelic during seasons 1 and 2.)
Feel free to use the comment section below to let everyone know what you thought of the episode.
