Outlander Season 8 Episode 8 Review: In the Forest

Outlander Season 8 Episode 8, “In the Forest,” is a mixed bag of delights and family time that delivers sentiment above all else.

Outlander has gotten soft in its old age, and as the series penultimate looms, the show rightfully decides to spend as much time with the Frasers as it can away from the action.

We may have no idea what the endgame will look like for a season that is begrudgingly moving the needle towards its demise. What we lack in answers, this episode compensates for with valuable one-on-one time.

Outlander cleverly frames Fraser’s Ridge in this outing as a wayward home for time travelers and wandlust Scots.

It is in this magical farm town that families can come together and live in harmony regardless of their backgrounds or views. Claire and Jamie have grown from two unlikely lovers to the overseers of a multigenerational dynasty.

As if shot like a historical reality show segment, the episode bounces from one room to the next, capturing moments between unlikely acquaintances and long-lost siblings. As the episode picks up momentum, it draws William and the Whitakers into the Frasers’ fold.

For a show that began from the perspective of a “Sassenach” or outsider, it’s quite beautiful to see the story come full circle to a home where anyone can find their place and their people, regardless of what time or place they come from.

For all the good this episode does for the Fraser name, we do have to touch on the good and the bad that accompany the fallout from Fergus’ death.

The good — the episode does away with the flimsy excuse that Fergus would want Marsali to take the legitimacy deal when he explicitly said he never would. Instead, it’s framed as her decision, and that speaks much more to Marsali’s strong-headed nature to do what needs to be done for her family.

Her scene with Jamie is a showcase of the character’s likeability and strength as Marsali reminds viewers that she came to America to be her own person, and she will fight for that with or without her husband.

The bad — Fergus’ death does not move the needle in a significant way. If we were to remove the events of his death, nothing beyond the opening scene would look any different. It’s the truest sign of weak storytelling.

There’s no payoff to the larger plot as Jamie carries on with his war preparation. And the Ridge operates with very little mention of the death, let alone any significant character changes.

It’s a question of why Outlander’s prioritization lies elsewhere in these final days.

Fergus’ death does little to add new layers to Claire and Jamie’s farewell, but the same goes for Fanny’s larger involvement in the plot.

The performance she is giving is on par with this rich ensemble, and her character is lovely to watch interact with characters like Rachel and Roger. Rather, it’s her heavy involvement in a plot that is in the process of wrapping up that has us scratching our heads.

Fanny is a new character, and yet she takes up a great deal of screen time on this outing. Outlander is investing a lot more time developing a newcomer in place of seasoned characters we are preparing to say goodbye to.

It’s an odd choice, and even as we discover Fanny can time travel (although wasn’t that already assumed?), there’s doubt surrounding whether going all in on the Faith/Fanny lore is the best use of this show’s dwindling time.

Possibly the most rewarding moment of this family-centric episode is Jamie and William’s reckoning.

It plays to laughs at times as the household finds less and less subtle ways to force the two together. Brianna and Roger going along with Jamie’s charades is hilarious, but Claire pulling the “he could die” card might be the best part of the bit.

However, this reunion has been building in intensity for several seasons now, and the final blows are worth the wait.

William and Jamie lay it all out on the table, and when his son has said his piece, Jamie finally lays into him with every unsaid feeling and thought he has had since giving up his son.

Sam Heughan gives a remarkable performance in this scene, carefully wielding a fierce agony underneath his brave soldier posture that melts with the heartbreaking dialogue.

William accepting Jamie into his life is the first of many important puzzle pieces that we hope to see fall into place before the final two episodes get underway.

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Outlander airs Fridays at 8/7c on STARZ.

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