How Outlander made the stolen ring storyline change work so well

By Alexandria Ingham | Nov 5, 2018

Photo credit: Outlander/Starz Image acquired via Starz Media Room /

Outlander made a slight change to the ring that was stolen from Claire in the Season 4 premiere. It’s something that has worked extremely well.

Outlander Season 4, Episode 1 immediately brought us a change to the books. Instead of Frank’s ring being stolen by Bonnet, Jamie’s ring was taken. This is something Ron D. Moore had mentioned would happen while at the Savannah Film Festival and the reasoning certainly makes sense.

The series had already changed the rings slightly. Brianna had grown up seeing Claire wear a plain gold band from Frank (there was never a mention of an inscription as there was in the books) and Jamie’s uniquely beautiful ring. Out of the two, Jamie’s is the most significant and easy to spot from a distance, which is important for a future storyline with Brianna.

However, there’s more than that to make this storyline change work as well as it did. Throughout that first episode, the talk of rings and circles was brought up on at least four occasions. One of those occasions was between Claire and Jamie, when Claire makes a point that the ring is all she needs.

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That single ring means the world to her. Think back to Outlander Season 2 when Frank wanted her to remove every single item from the 18th century. He wanted to burn it all to get rid of the memories of the past, of Jamie. Claire couldn’t take the ring off and she never did for those 20 years.

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While she still wears Frank’s ring because it still means something to her — that marriage to Frank is still an important part of her history — it was Jamie’s ring that meant the most. Frank’s ring was bought from a jewelry shop with likely little thought. Jamie’s ring was fashioned from the key to Lallybroch, making it one of the most meaningful pieces of jewelry she would ever have; a priceless item.

Taking Frank’s ring wouldn’t have been as devastating for Claire. Jamie’s talk of something being a dream for one is a nightmare for others comes up in this scene. Bonnet’s dream of having the rings was a nightmare for Claire, as she lost the one item that meant the world to her.

Next. 5 best Jamie moments from Outlander Season 4, Episode 1. dark

What did you think of the change to the stolen ring storyline? What were your thoughts about the Outlander Season 4 premiere as a whole? Share your thoughts in the comments below.

Outlander airs Sundays at 8/7c on STARZ.