Apologies for the late post again! I’m on spring break with my kids and the internet is less than stellar. Onwards!
Warning-Contains spoilers from Outlander Episode 803: Abies Fraseri
Funny thing about those Hercules beetles…if you’re not looking close enough you might miss them. They’ll camouflage themselves in soil or rotting wood by absorbing moisture and turning dark brown. Amid dry leaves they’ll be lighter and spotted. So, although they’re some of the largest insects in North America, they’re often hiding in plain sight.
And there’s our theme for this hour. Soldiers, loyalists, secret messages, tin soldiers…it’s all there, right under our characters’ noses, hiding in plain sight. Even the recurrence of Percy Wainwright clues us into this motif— a man able to slip in and out of different circles, like a beetle changing its shell.
There is a focus on the natural world in this hour, from Amaranthus rattling off the taxonomy of North American flora and fauna, to the mention of the Fraser Fir (Abies fraseri, which may or may not have been named already at the time of this episode…perhaps a small anachronism).
But there’s a contrasting element of the supernatural in this episode as well, with the introduction of the blue healing light that (minor spoiler) seems to exist among certain time travelers. And this is keeping thematically as well—the extraordinary things of this world hide within the ordinary. We choose to rationalize that which we don’t understand by “hiding” it within a context that we do understand. Even Jamie, a man who should be used to the unbelievable, tries to rationalize the stillborn baby’s survival. The magic is all around, invisible but omnipresent.
The episode opens with Brianna and Fanny shopping at the trading post, when two mouth-breathers decide to harass poor Fanny. She immediately clocks them as soldiers, astutely picking up on their attitude and swagger. They are officers wearing civilian clothes, hiding in plain sight.
Lord John has written to Claire, meanwhile, asking if Brianna is available to paint a portrait of Amaranthus in Savannah. He might have written to Brianna directly (do we know how he knew the MacKenzies had returned?), but again there is a motive there that is obvious but hidden—a letter to Claire is that much a degree closer ti Jamie than a letter to Brianna.
This sets off a subplot of the episode, in which we learn Jamie is still grappling with the fallout of Claire and Lord John’s brief but consummated marriage…things are perhaps forgiven but not forgotten. Poor Fanny fears this ripple of conflict means she may be sent away, until Claire assures her that their home and love are not conditional.
In Savannah, meanwhile, William tries to convince Lord John that Ben may actually still be alive. Although Lord John views this theory with a bit of skepticism, he persuades William to explore it further at a luncheon held in General Alexander Leslie’s honor. This is also, as William notes, a means by which to get William out into society and stop being a grave-digging weirdo (I added that last part). Amaranthus later gifts William a hand-embroidered waistcoat adorned with beetles of the colonies.
And while William tries to piece together the details of a death that doesn’t quite make sense, Jamie tries to sort the story offered by Captain Cunningham about why two officers were on the Ridge. Like father like son…they know something is amiss, even if they can’t quite connect the puzzle.
But maybe connecting that puzzle means uncovering a truth that neither is ready to face. For Jamie, at least, soldiers on the Ridge may be an early sign that Frank’s book (and the facts held within it) holds water. When Roger and Brianna try to convince him to let them smuggle guns out of Savannah he is steadfastly against the idea, not only for its inherent danger but likely because it also is another step toward the ever-encroaching Battle of King Mountain.
After Jamie and Claire make-up (*ahem*), they ponder the reasons of why Frank wrote his book and whether he had ulterior motives for doing so. Was the book a clue, and if it was for whom was it intended? Was it meant to be a message to Claire, hidden in the plain sight of its pages?
At the luncheon, General Leslie is genial but perhaps taken slightly aback by William, who appears to be a polite but intense young man in a fanciful waistcoat. Leslie offers little in the way of additional information regarding Ben, but he does impart a piece of William’s own history when he casually mentions Lord John’s time at Ardsmuir.
As mentioned, Perceval Wainwright also happens to be at this soirée and beseeches Lord John to arrange an introduction to one Claude’s Fraser…aka Fergus. Lord John agrees to consider it in return for Percy’s help in tracking down Captain Richardson, who appears to have vanished into thin air. Or, perhaps, he may be hiding in plain sight? No spoilers, please, for the non-book readers!
On the Ridge Claire’s help is sought for helping with the labor of a woman named Susannah. The presence of twins is found to be the reason for Susanna’s labor complications, and although the father of the family (Aaron) is initially reluctant to enlist the help of a white family, Jamie convinces the man to allow Claire to help.
And while this story more or less exists in the novel, it has been changed fairly significantly and overall I think it works well within the context of this episode. Being a free Black family in the colonies usually meant keeping a very low profile due to the potential risk of kidnapping and enslavement or re-enslavement. In an episode centered around that which is hidden, the Whitaker family represents a group of people whose survival meant staying undetected.
The episode culminates in three instances of uncovering that which is hidden: William discovering that Amaranthus is in possession of Ben’s tin soldier, Claire eliciting life out of Susannah’s stillborn daughter, and Jamie uncovering the truth of Cunningham’s motives in the back country. And yet, although hidden forces are revealed, further questions are brought forth.
Why does Amaranthus have the toy soldier? If Ben promised to keep it as long as he wore his uniform, then it stands to reason that I’m giving the soldier to Amaranthus he planned to take his uniform off.
How was Claire able to revive a lifeless child? What is this blue light that seems to flow from her, and also seemed to flow from Master Raymond? And what does that mean for Faith?
What are Captain Cunningham’s intentions? A militia cannot possibly be planned on another man’s land without the eventual goal of taking that land. His brief efforts to sway Jamie to the British side are laughably unsuccessful, so conflict is the only end-result here.
It’s obvious to state that things stay hidden until they are found, or until they want to be found. So, with seven episodes remaining, what is left to be found? Where is Ben? What does Percy want with Fergus? What is the full extent of Claire’s healing? Which tenants might turn on the Frasers? Look closely, the naturalists tell us…that which is concealed is often right in front of us, hiding in plain sight.
Slàinte
Outcandour 