The journey away from Fraser’s Ridge gives Outlander an opportunity to expose Jamie and Claire to the political upheaval taking place in the colonies that hasn’t yet reached their home in the North Carolina hills—so while it may not have the same significance as a dramatic event, like the birth of Henri-Christian, it does set up the story to move along. “What episode 5 is doing—in essence—is removing Jamie and Claire from events on the Ridge (which we continue to see, but only the highlights: the finding of the love-charm, Bree’s efforts to build things, her announcement of her pregnancy to Roger, and Malva’s threat to Roger when he discovers her in flagrante with Obadiah Henderson) and putting them into a new storyline that shows the evolution of the Revolution outside the Ridge,” bestselling Outlander author Diana Gabaldon tells Parade.com in this exclusive commentary. “For the first time, they actually see the change of events and realize the magnitude of the disruption that’s underway. We don’t often see the political side of events in action in this season because our main focus is usually the Ridge and what happens there. So, this episode is also providing a step-back, to give us a fresh perspective.” That said, there is one moment when everything changes for Jamie. Up until now, he hasn’t had to come out publicly as a Patriot, but the time is finally at hand. He does so in front of a group of Patriots in a pool hall with a stirring speech about the price of liberty, but he also reveals the truth to Lord John (David Berry) in person, something that didn’t happen in the books (he writes John a letter there), but doing it in this fashion makes it more dramatic. “This is a personal as well as a political disruption: Jamie’s admission to Lord John is—so far as they both think at the moment—the end of their friendship (and for Jamie, the end of his knowledge of his son),” Gabaldon points out. “This realization may be what fuels Jamie’s declaration over the pool table; he’s destroyed his most important link with England, and now the time has come—as he’s known it would—to join the fight openly as a rebel.” Back at Fraser’s Ridge, the truth about Malva (Jessica Reynolds) is also starting to be revealed when she threatens Roger (Richard Rankin) that if he doesn’t keep his silence about catching her in a compromising position with Obadiah Henderson (Euan Bennet) that she will tell everyone on Fraser’s Ridge that she saw him kissing Amy McCallum (Joanne Thomson) even though it is not true! And we thought Tom Christie (Mark Lewis Jones) was going to be the villainous Christie! “As for Malva… we see her in three quick snapshot scenes—and only the book readers will notice that she’s the only person who has no comment on the burnt love-charm by the river,” Gabaldon continues. “All three scenes are necessary, laying the groundwork for what’s to come, but within this episode, they’re merely plot crumbs. There are many of these in the episode: Mary’s talk with Jamie about Jocasta’s bad dreams, Malva’s sinister knifework, the missing emerald in Flora’s necklace, the jar of ointment Bree gives the Beardsleys—and of course, the whistling man in the jail.” Book readers know who the whistling man in jail is, especially as Claire heard him whistle the “Colonel Bogey March” (better known to many as the theme from The Bridge on the River Kwai), but for TV viewers, we won’t spoil it. They will have to wait until episode 6 for his identity to be revealed. Gabaldon sums up this episode “as what I call a ’turnbuckle.’ That’s my own highly technical term for a brief section (of a large story) that instigates a change of some kind in the main storyline. This can be a change in terms of plot (some New Thing being introduced), character (someone new is introduced or does Something Unexpected), location, etc. It’s a good shorthand way to move among multiple storylines while eclipsing time that has to pass, and advancing the plot by means of multiple short clues and foreshadowings.” Outlander airs Sunday nights at 9 p.m. ET/PT on STARZ. Next, Outlander Author Diana Gabaldon Unpacks Young Ian’s Mohawk Love Story From Season 6’s Fourth Episode
