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Outlander: Allegiance

An occasionally amusing episode about not typically funny topics: sex, guns, childbirth and death.

This episode was effectively framed by Jamie's indecision about "asking the King" for guns to arm the Cherokee. Jamie knows that the American Revolution is right around the corner and he will eventually have to change sides, making it possible that he'd be arming an enemy. Time travel complicates everything.

The visit to the Cherokee had its amusing side – or at least Ian thought it was pretty darned funny – when Jamie turned down Chief Bird's gift of a menage a trois, but made up for it when he came home to Claire extremely turned on and ready to go. I thought Mrs. Bug looking up at the ceiling as Jamie and Claire were making love was a lovely callback to a similar scene with Claire and Frank at Mrs. Baird's bed and breakfast in the pilot episode.

Just as we were aghast that Fergus could be hitting Marsali, she assured Claire that no, he'd grabbed her arm while she was attacking him in a temper a la Laoghaire, a name I'd hoped never to type again. Turns out Fergus has been depressed and drinking because he wasn't there when Marsali were attacked by Lionel Brown and his minions. What a relief.

"Not quite the conventional method," indeed. That intimate scene where Fergus sexually stimulated Marsali to encourage contractions was something I hadn't seen on television before, and honestly, I was kind of impressed. It was touching, pun intended, and showed how close they are, how deep their connection is, something we needed to see after their recent problems implied they were heading for splitsville. Sadly, Fergus was distraught and took off after Marsali gave birth to Henri-Christian, who has dwarfism. I hope this doesn't mean he'll reject the baby.

Malva Christie, who assisted with the baby's birth, thinks it is remarkable that Claire is a physician. She also loved what Claire said about St. Paul being out-argued by a woman; the snide way Malva smiled at Tom gave me a bad feeling. It's so obvious that Malva is unhappy with an eighteenth century woman's lot in life and desperately needs someone like Claire who can at the very least tell her that enjoying sex doesn't make you a whore, and that female healers aren't witches.

Unfortunately, Tom Christie seems to want Claire to fix his hand because he can't use it to beat Malva any more. And super-pious Tom was also outmaneuvered by Jamie into making the new church a multi-purpose meeting house. Tom isn't the sort of person that deals well with being outmaneuvered. Which is, come to think of it, what happened at Ardsmuir, too.


Meanwhile, Brianna and Roger are discovering new roles for themselves. I thought the dinner scene where everyone assumed the only exciting thing Bree could possibly announce was that she was pregnant was really funny, but so sad from a feminist perspective. Creating matches that the family could use was helpful and brilliant and Bree got very little credit for her hard work.

Oddly, Roger might be finding his calling because of Tom Christie. The funeral service Roger gave for Granny Wilson went well, except for the corpse waking up in the middle and staying alive long enough to criticize her own funeral arrangements. Gotta love it.

Actually, I did love that Granny's brief reprieve allowed her to forgive her son-in-law, say goodbye, and express her acceptance of death. Not a bad way to go at all.


Bits:

— The post credits bit showed Adso sitting on Major MacDonald's red coat. I wonder if that's a book tribute? In the book, Adso was obsessed with Major MacDonald's wig. It was hilarious.

— I loved the puzzled sin eater. Guess he'd never gotten back talk from one of his clients before.

— Roger read Fergus the riot act. Roger regrets not being with Brianna when she gave birth. Maybe he'll be there for the next one, since they're now trying for a second child.

— Ian confided in Marsali that he'd had a child. I'm sure we'll be hearing more about that.

— No 'Book versus Series' section for me this time, since the episode was nearly all book material. Although Granny Wilson's funeral took place in a crowded cabin in the dead of night, not in bright daylight.

— In the end, Jamie decided to ask the Governor for the guns because of Ian's child. The Cherokee are Ian's family, or at least distant cousins, and Jamie's allegiance (see episode title) is to his family.


Quotes:

Jamie: (to Ian) "You'd be advised to stifle your glee."

MacDonald: (sneezing) "Wretched creatures! I always seem to suffer in their presence."
Jamie: "Indians?"
MacDonald: "Cats. Although some Indians as well."

Roger: "Mrs. Wilson, do you not know that you stand before God?"
Granny Wilson: "As do you."
Roger: "Aye, but I'm afraid you're closer."

Sin Eater: "You're not dead."
Granny Wilson: "What of it?"

Jamie: "You sure the lass is safe in there with him?"
Claire: "Quite sure."
Jamie: "I dinna ken a man could have so much to do at this part."

Sex during childbirth. A corpse waking during her funeral. Outlander just isn't your typical show, is it? Three out of four handmade matches,

Billie
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Billie Doux loves good television and spends way too much time writing about it.

5 comments:

  1. My apologies that this one was posted so late. I'm moving! Hopefully will do better with tomorrow's episode.

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  2. So, I love this show. Definitely not denying that!

    But I get so, so, so tense whenever it looks like some misogynist is going to accuse Claire of witchcraft (or any variation thereof). I actually think I might enjoy the show more if I spoil myself on the books so I don't have spend the whole season biting my fingernails.

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  3. Josie, I've often wondered if I would enjoy the show more if I didn't know what was coming. But... I avoided the show completely until 2019 because I knew what happened to Jamie at the end of season one, and didn't think I could handle watching it. When I did finally start watching, I was kicking myself for not trying it sooner. It's a quandary.

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  4. Josie, I'm leery of the "Claire suspect of witchcraft" storyline being trotted out again. But this was a charming episode. Allergies are a common feature of real life that rarely appears in TV shows.The funeral scene made me think of the Monty Python & the Holy Grail scene "I'm not dead yet!"

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  5. I'd forgotten about the cat allergy subplot!

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