Outlander Review: Common Ground (Season 4 Episode 4)

It looks like Outlander has finally found its stride on the frontier!

Outlander Season 4 Episode 4, “Common Ground,” slows down to take in the beauty of Fraser Ridge and in doing so crafts a beautifully paced episode with little else left to desire by the end.

But not all is calm. Conflict — or rather the lack of it — drives this episode as tension escalates and enemies from every corner of this new land appear ready for battle. New threats of every shape and form have the characters and us on edge from start to finish.

With threats surrounding Claire and Jamie’s newly acquired land and impending doom looming over them, this episode’s innocent demeanor does not come off as meek.

Instead, this episode’s slow build allows the tenser meetings between the Cherokee Warriors and the Frasers to come off as much more sinister than they actually are.

For an episode with very little physical conflict, “Common Ground,” manages to keep viewers captivated and hanging onto every word. But not all tension is misplaced as a bear attack turns into something much more terrifying before the episode is finished.

The Native Americans are painted as the bad guys for the majority of the episode with ominous music foreshadowing their arrival onscreen each time.

This is a clever trick on Outlander’s part to give the illusion that a wandering bear is hardly the most dangerous threat in the woods and to get the audience to focus on the wrong enemy — which for the most part works brilliantly.

However, we know these people are not the savages they are described to be by the English and Americans. In fact, Outlander has already made comparisons between the Natives and the Highlanders’ situations earlier this season.

Yet, with Jamie taking a chunk of land from them a seed of doubt is sewn and for that alone, their presence feels sinister and unwelcoming — but that is hardly the case. The introduction of the Cherokee Warriors is by far the most exciting storyline so far this season.

The introduction of the Native Americans brings some much-needed culture to North Carolina and to Outlander.

Don’t get me wrong, Fraser Ridge is a gorgeous place to hunker down but it’s no Scottish castle. One starts to miss all the Scots in tartans playing Shinty simply for the experience those moments created. 

Outlander’s ability to immerse its viewers in authentic culture while telling a fictional story is what I love about this show.

Even if their truce is brief I’m glad we get to see some peace between the Cherokee Warriors and the Frasers. It allows for more of the Native Americans’ customs and beliefs to be integrated into Season 4’s storyline and for these “savages” to become fleshed out characters — much like the Scottish in Season 1.

“Common Ground,” works because instead of focusing on the topics of race and colonialism after just having an entire episode devoted to slavery, the episode looks to focus on Jamie and Claire’s new lives as settlers.

The episode showcases the comforting rhythm that has developed between Claire, Jamie, and Ian during their time on the road. Ian’s cheerful attitude and winning smile compliments Claire’s mature presence well in every scene and Jamie’s optimism as he constructs the foundation of their home is refreshing.

It is a great change of pace to see these characters work themselves into a rhythm as homebodies. We are so used to seeing them on the run, traveling, and never standing still too long to create a routine with one another.

This is the first episode in a long time where it really feels like Claire and Jamie are living together as a married couple and it’s rather nice.

Fraser Ridge can no longer feel like a dream now that Roger has found out Claire and Jamie will perish in a house fire. So thankfully “Common Ground,” wastes no time making the couple’s dream a reality — but doesn’t dare skip over the simplicities of settler life.

Claire and Jamie have hardly led mundane lives, so it is refreshing to see them enjoy several innocent moments together uninterrupted. Yet the underlining tension between them and the previous owners of the land lends enough excitement to the story to make this episode the most enticing yet.

Outlander creates an episode arc that gives the audience a satisfying beginning, middle, and end, while successfully foreshadowing Brianna’s journey through the stones.

One can only hope the next episode has a plot as promising as “Common Ground,” because this is Outlander at its best.

What did you think of this episode of Outlander? Share your thoughts in the comments below!

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Outlander airs Sundays at 8 E/P on STARZ.

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