Outlander: Blood of my Blood Season 1 Episode 10 Review: Something Borrowed

Outlander: Blood of my Blood Season 1 Episode 10, “Something Borrowed,” is certainly a wedding to remember.

Most imperatively, it is a solid ending to this whirlwind season, assuring that all the hardships Julia and Ellen’s love stories endured were for a worthy cause.

The spin-off struggled to find its footing at times. Thankfully, the show lands on two feet when it counts most with this farewell.

So we asked for more Murtagh when it became clear Mr. Bug was getting more screen-time than the beloved Scot — and we finally got it under the most lovely of circumstances.

Putting Murtagh’s schoolboy crush on Ellen to bed with a heartfelt scene between them, after a season of almost no interactions, is such an elegant way to set up their future together as best friends and as an unbreakable trio.

Murtagh’s separate confessions to Brian and Ellen of his perspective on their once-in-a-lifetime romance are an excellent use of the vulnerable warrior’s softer side.

And for a brief moment, you can hear the ghost of Murtagh and Claire’s bickering echo in the potential of this new partnership.

Perhaps the most significant moment comes when he hands Ellen the pair of tusk bracelets as a sign of his loyalty to the couple.

They take her breath away. Of course, they also elicit a gasp from viewers who recognize the mysterious jewelry, once gifted to Claire by Jenny in the first season, upon revealing that Murtagh was the suitor who crafted them.

Having that reveal come full circle to its origins means more than verbal gestures ever could.

For the couple’s always and forever pledge to include Murtagh, knowing he becomes the future godfather of their children, is such a sweet palate cleanser after everything the group has endured.

Generally, Blood of my Blood has thrived in the grand, crowded event spaces this season, and that has to do largely with the excuse to explore the gaggle of VIP supporting characters milling about.

This wedding gives Jocasta and Glenna the proper bridesmaid treatment, allowing them to thrive alongside Ellen with their own moments of heroism.

The women of Outlander are some of the most fascinating characters, and it’s great to see this episode find a moment for each of them — even the polarizing Maura Grant — to dazzle us.

Jocasta meeting Brian, giving him a piece of her mind, and then promptly orchestrating the downfall of a historic wedding is such iconic behavior. No one has been more in character and lovable for it this season than Sadhbh Mailn’s Jocasta.

The women tasked with upholding the traditions of the Scottish wedding festivities provide us with the opportunity to explore how they carve out sisterhood in this restrictive culture.

We can also appreciate Ellen’s spectacular gown properly in the embrace of these crafty women.

For all its strengths, Blood of my Blood has had its fair share of struggles, too. Those cracks are still present in this super-sized finale..

The Outlander spin-off doesn’t do enough to make these younger versions feel like their own entities and rushes through their most important life lessons. That is blaringly obvious in the conclusion to the Malcolm Grant storyline.

While his death is a shocker and quite heartbreaking to watch unfold, none of those emotions touch the premise itself. The show keeps moving right along, the characters quickly justifying their actions in the name of love.

And unfortunately, love doesn’t cut it — not even a love like Brian and Ellen’s.

While killing Malcolm and running off certainly ensures the couple’s legacy together, this escalation of the plot feels cheap.

There’s no build-up to Malcolm’s sudden turn, and with his fate unknown in the books, it feels like the easy way out rather than having Ellen and Brian face the long-term consequences of their decisions.

Ultimately, what dilutes the entire reunion is the lack of remorse. Ellen doesn’t acknowledge her role in pushing the plot to its boiling point. She and Brian are quick to kill the man in their way and justify it as necessary, which cuts off any opportunities for later acquaintability.

We thankfully have spent enough time with Ellen to see her as more than her flaws, but she comes dangerously close to being unredeemable in times like this because the dialogue fails her.

Additionally, it doesn’t help that Ellen and Brian’s development revolves around their romance, which isn’t true character development. It’s part of it, but beyond that passion, they risk coming off as plot tools.

It’s not that Malcolm deserves better, per se. The plot should have done a better job of justifying that he was worth more dead than alive.

While romance cannot be the sum of all parts, it is the sum of this show’s best parts — especially during this finale.

Ellen and Brian, who triumphantly earn the freedom they fought for all season, are a breath of relief. Now that they are one unit, you can feel the momentum of their powerful chemistry picking up steam just in time for the Jacobite cause to call them home.

And it is delicious to see Ellen force her fate on the brothers who so eagerly used her as a chess piece. Dougal’s frustration with being married off, coupled with his quirky new dynamic with Maura, has the potential to expand and implode in incredibly entertaining ways.

Finally, Julia and Henry valiantly take a backseat to show us a rare glimpse of the bond between Claire and her uncle. They do not throw away that emotionally-charged storyline and leave us on one hell of a cliffhanger as Henry attempts to force Julia through the stones without him.

It’s a cliffhanger worthy of the Draughtlander legacy and a reminder that Blood of my Blood has Outlander’s knack for taking our breath away.

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What did you think of the Season 1 finale of Outlander: Blood of my Blood? Share your thoughts in the comments below, and don’t forget to leave your own rating!

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Season 1 of Outlander: Blood of My Blood is available to watch on Starz streaming platforms.

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