Outlander recap: The meeting we’ve all been waiting for

It was the episode we have all been waiting for. Outlander Season 4, Episode 9 brought us a few meetings, a reunion, and a heartbreaking ending.

Outlander has certainly taken its time getting to this point in the story. I’m not complaining. I’ve enjoyed the buildup to this point and it made Episode 9, titled “The Bird and the Bees,” all the more special. It was the meeting we’d all been waiting for, along with a couple of other meetings, a reunion, and a heartbreaking ending for poor Roger.

It’s time to break down the episode and catch you up on what happened. There are spoilers in this post, as you would expect from any Outlander recap, right?

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Roger goes back on a journey

The episode opens with Brianna heading to her room, waking Lizzie up in the process. Lizzie is shocked to see Brianna in the state she’s in, but Brianna doesn’t want help or to talk. Understandable really, when she’s probably trying to process everything that happened to her.

When it comes to the morning after, Roger returns to the inn looking for Brianna. Of course, he wants to wait for her and it’s clear the night before he left in the heat of the moment. Those who have had passionate arguments like that will have understand Roger’s reason for leaving and Brianna’s reluctance to go after him. In the light of day, Roger wants to make up with his wife.

But back to the inn. Rather than finding Brianna, he runs into Stephen Bonnet. Roger is ordered (and threatened with a loss of a limb) back onto the Gloriana. They have a job up to Philadelphia.

By the time Brianna learns that Roger was there, she’s too late. The ship has left and she believes Roger has actually left her. That’s when Lizzie comes to her with news about the events at the theater. The Frasers are in Wilmington.

The meeting we’ve all been waiting for

And finally, Brianna and Jamie come face to face. Everything is pretty much as the book, even with the line “I’m a marrit man.” The emotions between Jamie and Brianna are raw and beautiful, as they hug tightly.

If that wasn’t enough, it’s quickly followed up with Claire realizing that her daughter is in the past. That reunion is just as awesome, with Claire clearly trying to figure out if Brianna is really here or not. That reunion is cut short when Young Ian shows up and it’s time for the cousins to meet. I love how Young Ian never questions family members showing up.

Now it’s on the way to Fraser’s Ridge, where Brianna has the chance to tell Claire about everything that went down with Roger and then learn all about what happened with Stephen Bonnet the last time the Frasers sailed down this river. This is a moment Brianna decides not to tell anyone about the rape, as she realizes Bonnet was the same guy who raped her.

It doesn’t take long to move on from this, as they all end up at Fraser’s Ridge, giving Murtagh and Brianna a chance to meet. For the rest of the episode, we have a chance to see how Brianna tries to fit into life on the Ridge.

She learns more about Jamie but it’s clear that she feels like she’s betraying Frank. While the two go bee hunting, they have a chance to talk and open up to each other. As Jamie shares his thanks to Frank for everything he did for Claire and Brianna, Brianna finally gets a name for Jamie: “Da.”

All Jamie wants is to give her a home and be part of her life. Yet, both he and Claire know that eventually Brianna will have to go back to her own time. They know there’s more opportunities for Brianna in the 20th century.

The truth comes out…sort of…

Not so fast! After a couple of months on the Ridge, Brianna realizes that she’s pregnant. Claire manages to guess it and, finally, Brianna opens up about the rape. You can see that Claire initially believes that her daughter has been promiscuous and then feels guilty and horrified of the events that happened.

When Claire tells Jamie what happened, he’s understandably angry. If only that could be the end of it for now.

Roger, who had docked in Philadelphia, got his earnings (as a gemstone), and headed back to find Brianna, is now on the road near Fraser’s Ridge. Lizzie and Young Ian see him and Lizzie is immediately horrified and scared. After all, she never knew anything about Stephen Bonnet and had only seen Brianna with Roger.

In this moment, Lizzie jumps to the wrong conclusion, leading to her and Young Ian tell Jamie who they’ve seen. Well, who Lizzie assumes she’s seen. With the information Jamie has just learned, he double checks that Lizzie is sure it’s the right guy and then races off to beat Roger to a pulp.

All the while, Claire finds her old wedding ring in Brianna’s things. She knows exactly who raped Brianna, but Brianna wants to keep this a secret from Jamie, knowing that he would go after Stephen Bonnet. If only they knew exactly what Jamie was doing at that moment in time.

What did you think of the big meeting and the followup reunion? What did you think of the way the pregnancy and rape reveal were handled? Share your thoughts in the comments below.

Outlander continues on Sundays at 8/7c on STARZ.