Outlander Review: Blood of My Blood (Season 4 Episode 6)
Outlander Season 4 Episode 6, “Blood of My Blood,” separates itself from the building arc of this season to spend time with some old friends.
And with little interruption from the new world because when Lord John Grey shows up on your doorstep you drop everything to make him feel welcome — and that is exactly what Claire and Jamie do.
Oddly enough this episode plays out much like an episode of a family reality show would in the best of ways.
As we continue to keep up with the Frasers we are treated to an odd reunion, a satisfying conclusion to an interesting love triangle, and some father and son bonding time between Jamie and Willie. All with enjoyable amounts of drama and confrontation from everyone involved.
Once again David Berry is absolutely fabulous as Lord John Grey. He brings such a tortured depth and sincerity to the character that makes me think a spin-off with the character might not be such a bad idea down the road.
“Blood of My Blood,” briefly reunites the Ardsmuir Prison gang despite Murtagh’s obvious disdain towards seeing Lord Grey again. In case it hasn’t been said enough, it is so good to have Murtagh back at Jamie and Claire’s side even when he is being a bit of a pill.
The brief moments spent with Jamie and John alone are appreciated despite the lack of important conversations that take place between the two men. In these scenes what is not spoken is what you come to appreciate the most.
It’s clear in the way these two interact that they will always respect the history they share and the barriers they’ve learned not to cross when it comes to family and love. It is in the simplest gestures that Jamie and John’s unique friendship and chemistry works the best and this episode gets that.
Besides the complications and conflicts of their relationship have already happened. We don’t need a rehash of those events.
As for Claire and John — well that’s a different story.
Outlander utilizes Lord Grey’s presence the best when he is alone in the Fraser’s cabin with a scornful Claire.
Claire is well aware of Lord John’s intentions when he arrives on their land and wants to make it clear to him that Jamie is hers. But in between Claire’s bluntness and John’s coyness, we get a discussion that puts everything on the table.
Hearing John talk of Isobel’s death is rather sad. However, hearing him be candid with Claire about wanting to give her everything but not being able to because they were simply not the right person for each other is heartwrenching.
Not only does this strike a chord with Claire considering her feelings towards Frank, but it is also a powerful confession given that John may never get to love who he wants to in his time as a gay man.
Outlander has already shed light on slavery and the treatment of the Native Americans this season with Claire acting as the progressive voice for each topical issue. So it is refreshing to see someone else be that voice for once.
Given that in Claire’s time being gay is still not deemed accepted by society, it’s appropriate for Claire to show some distaste towards John for speaking so openly about being different when it comes to love.
I especially enjoy the part in their conversation where Claire implies that she was born the way she was but Lord Grey was not. This is something Lord Grey denounces to himself more for reassurance than to correct Claire’s beliefs. These words are meant for the audience to hear as well.
It’s good to see Claire have different views from what we as present day people should have. She is not a modern woman and to continue to give her the higher moral ground in every situation would just not be historically accurate for the character.
None the less it is comforting to see John get some closure with Claire as he works out his feelings. Both Claire and John could use a feel-good therapy session — so to have one together is just icing on the cake.
While Lord John Grey and William’s visit to Fraser’s Ridge lives up to every expectation one could have, their visit is also the only event this episode focuses on.
“Blood of My Blood,” acts as a one-off episode centered around Lord Grey’s visit and because of that it can feel closed off at times like many one-off episodes usually tend to be. It’s as if the episode’s storyline has to be confined to the boundaries of Jamie’s land and in a show where the joy is in the journey that can make the story stuffy.
A quick update on Brianna’s journey through the stones or Roger’s search for her would have helped to break up the episode more. It’s likely this episode focused solely on Lord John Grey’s visit because Outlander wants to drag out Brianna’s arrival in Scotland for as long as possible.
But that, unfortunately, doesn’t help this newest installment from feeling like a filler episode at points when John and Willie are not central to the scene.
All in all the amount of content “Blood of My Blood,” delivers in one episode is rather impressive and a real treat for fans of the book who have been eagerly awaiting John and Willie’s arrival to the new world.
Thankfully the episode manages to pack years of missed moments between Jamie and Lord Grey — and more importantly between Jamie and Willie — into such a small timeframe.
It is particularly great to see Jamie teach his son the way of the lands and create a bond with William once again. It is even more adorable to find out Wilie remembers Jamie as a child and hear him confess he was upset the day Jamie left him without looking back.
Despite all the drama that goes down, instead of setting up for another storyline at the end of the episode Outlander chooses to go out quietly with a gorgeous new ring for Claire (that is much more accurate to the book) and a heated exchange of kisses between her and Jamie as the screen fades to black.
Can every episode of Outlander go out like this because wow that is quite an ending!
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 NBC.
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Alicia Gilstorf
Alicia is a Rotten Tomatoes Certified Critic and a Critics Choice Association member. She credits her passion for TV to workplace sitcoms, paranormal dramedies, and coming-of-age stories. In her free time, Alicia loves to curl up with a good book and lose herself in a cozy game. Keep a lookout for her coverage of Ghosts. You can also find her work on Eulalie Magazine and Cool Girl Critiques. Follow Alicia on social media: @aliciagilstorf