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When an author writes prequels and sequels and additional short stories to expand a literary world, those stories are usually met with delight by fans. This is especially true when the author in question is none other than Diana Gabaldon. But when other people create fan fiction around the original story, these stories are invariably problematic. While some fans lap up every additional word and plot implication, others are irritated by the departure from the original author’s intention. So has been the experience of season 1 of Blood of my Blood. Premiering with great fanfare, its episodes have been dramatic, tender and sometimes baffling, as the younger versions of established characters, along with newly created ones, have had their time in the spotlight to tell a new tale. The finale of any season aims to bring together a lot of threads, while simultaneously presenting a cliffhanger and the finale of this first season is no exception.
The episode opens not in the eighteenth century, but in 1920s London, where Henry and Julia are celebrating little Claire’s second birthday with Uncle Lamb. The scene is full of not-so-subtle hints at what lies ahead for Claire: the cake’s strawberries are shaped in the pattern of the standing stones at Craig Na Dun, Uncle Lamb brands her an adventurer and then gives a heartfelt toast hoping that wherever she travels in the world, she will always be able to find a way home. It’s definitely a case of “be careful what you wish for”, but it’s a relief to see people happy, even if only for a short while - and little Claire is certainly precious as she gets stuck into the cake!
Back in the eighteenth century, the wedding crowd is assembled and a piper begins to play. A heavily veiled bride begins a solo journey down the aisle, but we don’t see her face. The action then moves back in time 24 hours, where Brian and Murtagh are resting by a campfire, having temporarily escaped the assassins who were intent on killing Brian in the previous episode.
Not that Brian is resting. He is pacing, agitated by Ellen’s rejection of him. Murtagh tries to stop his obsessing, pointing out that they have bigger problems to deal with and reminding him that the Gallowglass men, and whoever had paid them, would be all too keen to put an end to his misery by killing and burying him. When that doesn’t work, Murtagh makes a more direct appeal: if Brian doesn’t care about his own life, perhaps he can care for Murtagh’s. Finally, he takes pity on his friend’s emotional state, asking Brian to concentrate on what Ellen’s eyes and his own heart tells him. It is all bittersweet for Murtagh, who still carries a torch for Ellen himself, and Brian has the good grace to apologise. But Murtagh already knows his cause is hopeless. “She’s meant for you, and you for her,” he says. Quickly, he pivots to the role of best friend and protector, agreeing to go to Leoch and help Brian get to Ellen before she marries Malcolm Grant.
It is a plan thwarted by the untimely arrival of the Gallowglass’, with a brief and bloody battle ensuing. Murtagh and Brian emerge victorious, but not without injury - Murtagh is felled by an arrow to his leg. Brian takes revenge by putting a fatal arrow into the man responsible. One man remains alive, and after a bit of persuasion, gives up the name of the person who had paid them to kill Brian. It is none other than Colum MacKenzie, which comes as a shock to Murtagh who wonders why Colum would wish Brian dead. But Brian knows why: to keep him from Ellen for good and to assure the alliance with the Grants. Rewarding the informer by slitting the man’s throat - albeit with an apology beforehand - Brian is determined to get to Ellen as soon as possible. Murtagh can no longer accompany him, but assures Brian his injury isn’t serious. Brian leaves, promising to return as soon as he can.
Ellen and Glenna Fitzgibbons are watching the preparations in the wedding hall. It all looks very grand, with Mrs Fitz commenting that it will be a wedding fit for royalty. But Ellen wonders if she will be queen or captive. The older woman comments that it will likely be a bit of both, but at least Ellen will have an opulent cage. They are interrupted by Marcus McRannoch, another would-be suitor of Ellen’s who has been forced to accept his cause is hopeless. Nevertheless, he has bought Ellen a wedding gift and insists that she accept.
On the floor above the two women, Dougal is busy making his own pre-wedding preparations, by having his way with a servant up against a stone wall. The act is interrupted by the woman’s mistress, Maura Grant, who isn’t remotely embarrassed by what she has witnessed. Matter of factly, she tells the woman that when she has finished with her business, she is needed in the chamber. Dougal finds himself intrigued and unnerved by her forthrightness.
In Ellen’s bedchamber, the Mackenzie sisters, accompanied by Glenna, are packing up Ellen’s belongings. Jocasta comments on the number of books and muses that Ellen will not have time to read them. Ellen is subdued and obviously nervous, asking if Jocasta will guide her, as she has much to learn. She admits to not having paid attention to things that her mother used to manage in the household. Going further, Ellen offers an apology to Jocasta for not considering her sister’s wishes before their father had arranged Jocasta’s marriage. Had she known then what she knew now, Ellen tells her sister, she would have sought Jocasta’s counsel. It is an apology that catches Jocasta off guard and we can see that she is moved by Ellen’s sincerity. Ellen tries to apologise to Janet too, but Janet waves it away. She, by contrast, is perfectly content in her marriage. Besides, she says, they have work to do, given that the chickens for Ellen’s wedding feast will not pluck themselves. It is a statement that gives new meaning to the idea of a hens’ do!
At Castle Leathers, Lovat is still brooding at being publicly shamed by Malcolm Grant. Julia manages to calm his temper by suggesting that their son will one day be King and that Malcolm Grant and all the others will be forced to bow before them. She suggests that Lovat should rest, saying that a clear head will help with his planning, adding that his wisdom will see them all through the challenges. But Julia has done too good a job of stroking Lovat’s ego. As he leaves the room, he informs her that she will attend his bedchamber that night.
At the hens’ do, the women are drinking and telling bawdy stories. Rather than share one of her own, Ellen recites a verse that mentions an unsightly simple spouse. Maura Grant takes offence at this language and leaps to her brother’s defence. Malcolm has idolised Ellen for years and Maura is concerned that the forthcoming wedding is not as eagerly anticipated by Ellen as it is by her future husband. Jocasta, in turn, comes to Ellen’s defence. Maura leaves shortly afterwards and Ellen expresses her surprise that Jocasta would stand up for her. Similarly to Murtagh’s comment to Brian, Jocasta responds that if anyone is going to give Ellen grief, it will be her, rather than a “hoity-toity Grant”.
It is time for Julia to make her escape. While Lovat rests, she and Davina hatch a plan. Knowing that Henry will be waiting for her and Baby William, Julia instructs Davina to inform the servant Balloch that she has been kidnapped. That way, Davina will not incur Lovat’s wrath, or be suspected of helping Julia escape.
This plan seems to work way too easily for an Outlander plot line. Julia takes William and runs to the meeting point, where Henry is indeed waiting. She tells him to hide himself as Balloch appears, and Julia pretends to be relieved to see the servant, saying that a man had been after her. Henry then hits Balloch over the head with a conveniently large rock and they run for his horse, also conveniently tethered nearby. Henry is about to kill Balloch, but Julia stops him, so that he can bare witness to the story and therefore secure Davina’s safety.
Brian arrives at Leoch and acquires a set of Grant tartan, by knocking out an unsuspecting clansman who has been relieving himself in the bushes. Suitably disguised as one of Malcolm’s clansmen and clutching a fake gift, Brian tries to find Ellen’s chambers. He stops a woman and tells her his cover story, but the woman he has asked is none other than Jocasta, who recognises Brian from Beltane, when she had seen him in Murtagh’s company, dressed in his own Fraser tartan. She wants to know why Brian wants to see Ellen and he promises to tell her, as long as she will take him to the chamber.
Inside, Ellen is getting ready, but there is no joy in her preparations. Glenna answers a knock at the door, admitting not only Jocasta, but Brian too. Jocasta has been won over to Brian’s side, quickly informing her sister that it was Colum who had arranged to have the Gallowglass’ kill Brian, an attack that had nearly worked, and also injured Murtagh in the process. News of her nephew’s injury is enough to win Glenna over to team Brian as well, although she dreads to think what will happen if Ellen breaks her word and refuses to marry Malcolm.
But Ellen has no such qualms. Colum has broken his word, she says, and that frees her of her own promise. It is Brian who has her heart, but she nevertheless gives Colum one last chance to admit what he has done. She enters his room and asks if there is anything he needs to share with her, adding that once she is married, opportunities for a brotherly and sisterly chat will be limited. But Colum condemns himself by insisting that all is well. He plans to lay their father’s sword at Malcolm’s feet, as a final show of allegiance to the Grants and as a reminder of Malcolm’s duty to protect Ellen. “We lay down our sword at their feet for love of you,” Colum says. Ellen fixes him with a steely look and replies, “Then let this be the last thing you do in my name, or for love of me. If you’ll excuse me, I need to prepare for my future.”
As Henry and Julia race away, we return briefly to the 20th century, where we witness little Claire’s growing bond with Henry’s brother Quentin, aka Uncle Lamb. The scene serves as a way of providing the details of Henry and Julia’s reason for being in Scotland in the first place: a planned romantic getaway after Henry takes care of some business for his firm, with Claire being left in the care of Uncle Lamb ( a detail that links to original Outlander canon, with Claire being raised by her uncle). Julia announces her second pregnancy and they embrace joyfully, as they look forward to their perfect holiday - described by Henry, with rather too much foreshadowing, as “like stepping backwards in time.”
At Leoch, all hell has broken loose, with the news that Ellen has disappeared. Young Malcolm Grant is ranting about being betrayed, while Colum and Ned are trying to calm him down, promising to find Ellen and cement the alliance. The older Malcolm Grant is calmer, issuing a simple threat. The day will end with either a hand or head. It is a situation that calls for the skills of the war chief of Clan MacKenzie.
The next scene returns to the veiled bride, revealed at last to be Maura Grant, with the groom none other than Dougal MacKenzie, who has been commanded by Colum to be “the hand” and cement the alliance between the two clans. The camera pans around the congregation: Jocasta and Glenna look nervous; young Malcolm Grant depressed. It is a brief, strange ceremony.
We are now taken back in time a few hours earlier. Ellen and Brian are hiding, Ellen now dressed as a servant. Ellen explains to Brian that she had only rejected him because Colum had promised that he wouldn’t be harmed if she did so. News is brought to them by their new supporters, Jocasta and Glenna, who tell them of the replacement wedding that has been hastily arranged, and of Dougal’s reaction to it. Once the festivities are in full swing, they say, the two women will give the signal so that the happy couple can slip away unnoticed.
At the wedding feast, Colum is trying desperately to act as if nothing has gone wrong, and that Dougal and Maura are a happy couple. No one is buying the act, but toasts are made regardless. Maura is pragmatic about the arrangements and decides it is time to consummate the union, so the couple leave the hall to knowing cheers and the dancing begins.
The consummation scene itself is cleverly done, and we see how the marriage between the two characters could have played out in the original Outlander storyline. Maura obviously intrigues Dougal: she is nothing like the young women he usually beds. There is no physical attraction on either side, and Maura approaches the act in a purely mechanical way, asking which position Dougal wants to adopt, so that they can get the expected formalities over and done with and return to the dancing. Then, once her own pleasure has been achieved, much to Dougal’s bafflement, Maura declares the business “not concluded” until he is similarly satisfied. For the first time, we see Dougal smile at her. They are the perfect example of a “marriage of convenience” and both actors do a great job of portraying this unlikely pairing. It is easy to believe that as the years went on, Maura would be unconcerned at Dougal’s womanising, as long as she had the protection of being the wife of the war chief.
The time has come for Ellen and Brian to make their escape. Both are grateful to Jocasta and Glenna, with Ellen bidding them both tearful farewells. Meanwhile young Malcolm is getting drunk, and rejecting the counsel of his uncle. One message does get through though: the possibility of revenge. The older Malcolm advises his nephew to find out what Ellen prizes most in all the world and take it from her, in order to rid himself of the emotional torment he is now experiencing.
At this point, we see the second all too brief cameo appearance of young Rupert and young Angus, who once again provide the comic relief by drinking, burping and farting as the wedding feast continues. If these two young actors had been given a few more scenes, we might have enjoyed some much needed humorous moments throughout the season! The two boys are just as entertaining as their fathers were in the older roles and hopefully there will be more of them in season two!
Ellen and Brian’s escape is thwarted when they run into a drunken Malcolm in a hallway. At first believing Ellen to have returned to him, things quickly turn sour. Realising that he has been jilted for Brian, Malcolm doesn’t react well to Ellen’s apology, nor her explanation that while she had been fond of him, their marriage had been arranged by others and her heart had always belonged to Brian. Malcolm is angry and hurt, and hurls insults at both of them. When Brian asks for him to let them pass, Malcolm responds by drawing a blade and a fight ensues. Brian is a reluctant participant and Malcolm manages to slash him across the arm, but when forced to defend both himself and Ellen, Brian takes no time to turn the blade in Malcolm’s hand, and the laird of Clan Grant finds himself impaled upon it. Shocked and sorrowful, Brian hides the body and leads Ellen away.
As book readers know, this is a huge departure from Outlander canon. In Diana Gabaldon’s novels, Malcolm Grant is a main player in the Jacobite gold storyline. The writers seem to have dealt with this by providing a conveniently named older uncle to fill the void. They also seem to have ignored the part of the Ellen and Brian storyline that has been mentioned in the original show, as Jamie’s description of his parents’ elopement and marriage certainly doesn’t include manslaughter - mainly because it didn’t happen!
Away from the castle at last, Ellen and Brian make their way back to Murtagh, who has been waiting, presumably rather uncomfortably, for their return. They assure him that they haven’t been followed, present him with both food and whisky, and tell him what has happened. Ellen is quick to say that Brian was forced to kill Malcolm and Brian responds by declaring he would do it all over again in order to protect her. Murtagh, finding himself the third wheel in this emotionally charged conversation, responds by handing over the bottle of whisky.
Back at Castle Leathers, Lovat is the latest male to be aggrieved. Julia and Davina’s plan to stage a kidnapping and call for Balloch was a good one, as it has indeed protected Davina from Lovat’s wrath. Enter Arch Bug, who is looking for Henry, and it doesn’t take Lovat long to put two and two together and realise that it is Henry who has taken Julia. As Arch and the other men ride away from the castle, Lovat mutters curses to Henry under his breath.
A night time montage advances three parts of the story: Ellen and Brian once again declare their devotion to each other, with Ellen saying that although she has given up everything to be with Brian, it is with him that her life lies. She will, she says, remember the good about her family and close the door on the bad, as the two of them continue to fight for their love. Henry and Julia, with their baby son, have stopped to rest and are sitting beside a poorly concealed fire, while Arch Bug and his men continue their search via torchlight, fortunately a long way from where the Beauchamp family are currently sheltering.
Possibly the most touching scene of the episode is the one between Murtagh and Ellen, where Murtagh presents her with the boar tusk bracelets that are recognisable from the original Outlander story. This scene is beautifully acted, and we really feel for Murtagh, particularly when he tells Ellen that he will never ask anything of her, except to let him find his happiness in her and Brian, for that is where he finds his peace. (This is the most eloquent way of saying, “I love you, but I know you love my friend instead” that this reviewer has even seen!) Ellen knows precisely how Murtagh feels and lets him down equally beautifully, by promising to cherish both his gift and their friendship.
The Murtagh character is probably the most consistent between both iterations of the Outlander world: we can easily see how Murtagh would later transfer his love for Ellen into the fierce protection of her son. And if he hadn’t already earned the Best Friend award, Murtagh’s next selfless act is to declare his leg healed enough to go on an overnight hunting expedition, leaving Ellen and Brian free to enjoy a night alone in the bothy. They waste no time in getting reacquainted, with their slow undressing of each other somewhat reminiscent of Jamie and Claire’s wedding night. Afterwards, wrapped in the Fraser tartan, they cut each other’s hands and make the “blood of my blood” pact.
But in true Outlander spirit, drama has to interrupt Fraser family happiness. Suddenly Brian notices smoke in the distance. The fiery crosses have been lit, a call to the men of the clans and a signal of the Jacobite rebellion. Brian has no choice but to go, and predictably, Ellen vows to stand by his side. “I am your wife,” she says, “And we are one.”
Julia and Henry have finally arrived at Craig Na Dun. Both of them can hear the buzzing, but although Henry moves towards the stones, Julia stops him. The unknown factor in their escape plan back to the 20th century is whether or not their son can travel with them. They don’t know whether the ability is genetic, Julia reasons, and she won’t risk their baby being left behind on the grass. And so they make a new plan: one of them will attempt to take the child through the stones. If it doesn’t work, then the one staying behind will wait with the baby until the other returns. But their planning is cut short by the arrival of Arch Bug and the other men. Julia hands baby William to Henry, saying that he needs to go through the stones in order to escape, and reasoning that she will still be protected as the wife of a laird, whereas he will not. But Henry will not agree. As Arch and the others approach, he puts William back into Julia’s arms and places her hand onto the stone.
Outstretched hands morph back into the 20th century, with Julia and Henry farewelling Claire at the railway station. They promise to return with stories of Scotland, while Quentin promises Claire a grand adventure of their own. The train pulls out of the station, and the episode - and season - comes to an end.
Throughout the season, fan reactions to the story as a whole have been mixed. Comments seem to have divided largely along two predictable lines: those from the die hard fans who love any extension of the Outlander universe and are perfectly willing to entertain new theories about how the two storylines could intersect. and those from book/original series fans who are often frustrated by theories that can’t be true because Julia and Henry Beuachamp did not time travel in the original canon. This particular reviewer finds herself in the latter category. The problem inherent with taking a partially written story (the Ellen and Brian prequel that Diana Gabaldon has begun) and adding a new plot line (the Henry and Julia story, that is the invention of Matt Roberts) is that the storytelling becomes patchy. While there is much to admire in Blood of my Blood: the matching of the casting to original characters’ personalities; the beautiful locations and soundtrack; and, for the most part, the acting of the main characters, there are other problems. Diana Gabaldon is a master storyteller and the Julia and Henry plot line seems too improbable by comparison. There is also a decided lack of humour in this prequel, unlike the original, where there were many moments of levity amongst all the drama. Most frustrating of all - in this reviewer’s opinion - is Matt Roberts’ insistence that he has not messed with Outlander canon. Giving Claire time travelling parents and a brother makes things exceedingly messy and it remains to be seen what will happen in season 2!
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This recap was written by Susie Brown, a writer and teacher-librarian who lives in Australia. She really wanted to like ‘Blood of my Blood’, but for her, the jury is still out!
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