On this day in Outlander history, the Season 1 premiere aired. That’s right; Aug. 9 is the date the first ever episode of the epic love story of Claire and Jamie aired.
Aug. 9 will forever be in the memory of many Outlander fans. It was on this day in Outlander history that the very first ever episode of the series aired. Those who had spent years reading the books and delving into Claire’s story of Jamie Fraser finally got to see what it would be like playing it out on screen.
It’s hard to believe what it was like back then. The fanbase was much smaller than it is now. Those who tuned in were mostly those who had read the novels unless they’d been pulled in by the pilot. Thanks to the likes of Amazon Prime Video, Netflix, and the Starz app, more people are finding out about the story. Many are now only show watchers or they’ve watched the show before reading the books.
Going back to where Outlander began
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Since it’s the anniversary of the premiere, it’s the perfect time to delve back into this first episode. Let’s celebrate Outlander history today by looking at thoughts and opinions of the episode.
On IMDb, it currently holds a rating of 8.6/10 stars. That’s good for a premiere episode.
As Den of Geek pointed out in their review of the very first episode, pilots aren’t made for the viewers. They’re made for the TV executives to sell the whole series. Fortunately, that’s exactly what Outlander Season 1, Episode 1, titled “Sassenach,” did. It sold Claire and Jamie and the start of their love story enough to create a full series.
There were plenty of changes from the books. The pilot gave us flashbacks of Claire’s thoughts about Frank. We got to see some of what was happening in the 1940s, while Claire found herself trapped in the 1740s. Instantly, we got more character development on the side characters than ever in the books, because it wasn’t just told from Claire’s point of view.
Most importantly, we got to see the ghostly Highlander. In the first book, this Highlander is only ever described to Claire by Frank. However, in the series, we get to see just who Frank is looking at–without seeing Jamie yet.
Opinions of the actors
Of course, this was the first glimpse of how the two who would become Claire and Jamie would be around each other. Some of the chemistry was initially lacking, but that may have been the lack of time for them together. A lot of the focus was on the 1940s before Claire went through the stones and found herself at Castle Leoch.
Overall, feedback of Caitriona Balfe and Sam Heughan was positive. And we can’t forget the praise Tobias Menzies got for both Frank and Black Jack Randall. It was clear without the costumes that these were two distinctively different characters.
We Got This Covered also shared praise for Balfe, with little mention of the others. After all, a lot of the episode was about her in particular.
My first opinion of the pilot
I’d never read the books before starting the series. In fact, I only watched the series because I saw it on Netflix Canada and remembered it from friends telling me I’d like it. I thought I’d watch the first episode to see what it was like.
It was enough to draw me in. I didn’t overly love the voice overs of Claire narrating the story, but it wasn’t too distracting to get the story in place. Balfe and Heughan sold me enough on the characters without the vision of the book characters in my head and I adored Menzies’ two roles.
By the way, no matter how many times I watch, I don’t hear this “mine” at the Castle Leoch ruins that everyone keeps banging on about.
What did you think of Outlander Season 1, Episode 1? What are you doing to celebrate this day in Outlander history? Share your thoughts in the comments below.
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