Outlander
Season 1 Episode 12: “Lallybroch”
Directed by Mike Barker
Written by Anne Kenney
Created by Ronald D. Moore
Based on the books by Diana Galbadon
Starring Caitriona Balfe, Sam Heughan, Duncan Lacroix, Graham McTavish, Tobias Menzies, Grant O’Rourke, Gary Lewis, Stephen Walters, Gary Lewis
Starz
Air Date: Saturday, April 25th, 2015, 9:00pm

Let’s recap last week’s Outlander, before we get to this week’s review.

Claire (Caitriona Balfe) and Geillis (Lotte Verbeek) were defendants at a witch trial, but were really not allowed to present a defense, to no one’s surprise. Ned Gowan (Bill Paterson) did try though. It got to a point where he told the women he could really only save Claire if she renounces Geillis. She refuses of course. Geillis says 1968 to Claire, reveals her smallpox vaccine scar to the crowd, and shouts to the mob that she is the witch. Claire was whipped until my hero, I mean her hero, Jaime (Sam Heughan) comes and saves her. I really hope Laoghaire (Nell Hudson) gets hers for arranging this in order to get Jaime for herself.

Claire tells Jaime everything about her future and time-traveling. He does what every hero would do, sacrifices his happiness in order to let his love go back to where she belongs.

What we know and what she knows… is that she will always belong to him.

Outlander 1.12 “Lallybroch” review: Claire and Jaime arrive at his home, Lallybroch, but Jaime puts his foot in it with his pregnant sister Jenny (Laura Donnelly). He thinks her son, also named Jaime, is Jack Randall’s (Tobias Menzies) bastard, as well as the “bairn” in her belly. Ian (Steven Cree), diabuses him of that notion as he limps in on his wooden leg. Jenny is real bitchy to Claire too. There are many flashbacks to when Randall almost rapes Jenny (male full frontal alert!), and the flogging Jaime received because he would not allow himself to be “buggered” by Randall. No wonder he couldn’t get it up for Jenny.

I remember reading this part and thinking how smart Jenny was during that moment with her and Randall.

Kudos to the special effects makeup people who did up the lash wounds on Jaime’s back. It looked so raw and real, I winced with every contact.

Jaime is struggling with being laird and making poor decisions. Jenny is struggling with handing over the reins. What the audience does not struggle with, is how much these siblings love each other and are willing to sacrifice for the other, even when they are at each other’s throats.

It’s nice to have an episode with no war or battle, to have an almost mundane family episode. We know it’s a prelude to the violence and humiliation to come, but it will make it feel all the more precious when it is lost. Which judging from the last couple of minutes, will be sooner than later.

Oh. And thank you Outlander for that shirtless (and almost pantless) image of Jaime in the mill pond. He looks like he does the Stephen Amell workout.

Outlander airs Saturday nights at 9pm on Starz.

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Video

Outlander 1×12 Promo – Lallybroch – HD Season 1 Episode 12