While many of us are getting ready for Droughtlander, we’re looking for ways to ease the wait. Looking back at Claire’s moments throughout Outlander in 2018 is my way.
Droughtlander is almost here. At the end of this month, we’re officially at the end of Outlander Season 4 and the wait begins. So, it’s time to find ways to ease that wait and looking back at Claire’s greatest moments last year is one of them.
2018 saw the airing of nine episodes in Outlander Season 4. We got all the way up to Claire being reunited with her daughter, which certainly brought some fan-favorite moments.
There have been some excellent moments throughout the episodes. Here are Claire’s top 15 moments throughout 2018.
15. The compassion she showed Rufus
While I didn’t like the way that this all happened or the reasons it happened, I did love seeing Claire’s compassion for Rufus in the end. As she realized that she had saved him in vain, she couldn’t just hand him over to people who would hang and torture him. She needed to be able to save him in some way.
The best way was to euthanize him. This isn’t the first time we’ve seen her help someone die with compassion. She did the same in the second season for Colum. This was an extension of that part of her character and a beautiful reminder of 20 years earlier.
14. Knitting with Young Ian
One thing I love is seeing how Claire doesn’t quite fit into the 18th century; those subtle moments that remind us she’s a 20th-century woman (not the constant push for 20th-century values in an 18th-century world. This was one of those cases.
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Claire and Young Ian are discussing knitting at Fraser’s Ridge. As she guts a fish, she learns that even Jamie has the ability to show. This shouldn’t be too surprising since Jamie was going to sew his own shirts when they were with the rent party in the first season, but we get to see her reaction. After 20 years, it’s not surprising that this would be something she’d forget.
13. The talk of home and Jamie’s wants
As the two try to settle down and talk of staying in America, Claire and Jamie discuss home. One of my favorite Claire moments from Outlander in 2018 is this discussion. More importantly, I love that she wants to hear about Jamie’s wants.
Some of this conversation was taken directly from the book. It happened at a different point, but it was a beautiful discussion about how Jamie would be willing to live if he was alone but how he wouldn’t because of Claire, Fergus and Marsali, and Young Ian. Claire is understanding instead of how Jamie would live.
12. Seeing Murtagh again
While his reunion with Jamie was emotional, I loved the connection back to Outlander Season 1 when it came to Claire and Murtagh’s reunion. She would have already known he was in Wilmington at this point, so having him appear whistling the “Boogie Woogie Bugle Boy” was just perfect.
The emotions from Claire fit the situation. At first confusion, then shock, then happiness. We got it all, showing the connection and bond the two gained during the search for Jamie.
11. Fangirling over Washington
Of course, there is nothing like meeting the people you look up to. After previously making it clear she viewed herself as American, Claire gets to meet Washington and that brings some awkward fangirling.
Wouldn’t many react to seeing Washington in the past like this? Maybe, but how many would bring up the cherry tree chopping without realizing the mistake? I had to giggle, especially at her needing to backtrack.
10. All the medical saves
Outlander in 2018 has certainly shown plenty of moments of Claire saving people. While I wasn’t a fan of saving Rufus too much, especially now the more I think of it, I am glad we got to see a couple of other saves. We got the emergency surgery in the woods on John Quincy Myers and then saving the man at the theater.
Both had their places in the episodes. More importantly, they continued to show Claire has a successful doctor, managing to use items from the time period with knowledge from the future.
9. Military experience showing through
Then there was the moment in the thunderstorm. Claire and Jamie had been separated when the thunderstorm hit. After being knocked out, she woke up drenched. Her military experience immediately kicked in.
Claire made her way to shelter. Rather than just stick in her wet clothes, she helped her feet dry off. One of the worst things outside is wet feet and Claire knows this. She didn’t want to get trench foot with not knowing how long she’d be in the woods for, so she removed her boots. I’ve always loved seeing her put her military experience to use and 25 years later, she was still able to use it.
8. Immediately agreeing to a diversion
We’ve seen Claire on the opposite side of an argument to Jamie before. Outlander Season 4 brought them back together and they support each other. That was immediately clear at the theater. One of the saves was to help create a diversion.
She didn’t argue with why the diversion was needed. While she was worried about Jamie, she knew that he needed to get to Murtagh to warn him. So, she just asked him to be as quick as possible. I loved that they were on the same page.
7. Comforting Marsali on two occasions
There were two occasions where Claire comforted Marsali. I couldn’t choose between them, because they were both somewhat connected. Both involved the raising of children.
I just adored that Claire has become a motherly figure to Marsali. While Marsali doesn’t believe Claire will understand (one of those conversations was foreshadowing for what would happen to Brianna), Marsali still opens up to her and leans on Claire.
Yet, my favorite part is how Claire can put aside her dislike for Laoghaire and treat Marsali with such kindness. Hey, she even had some good words to say about her possible ancestor.
6. Time spent with Adawehi
There’s a bittersweet moment now. At the start of Episode 5, Claire and Adawehi have some time to bond. We know how it all ends for Adawehi, but in this moment, Claire has a chance to learn more from another culture.
She has always been kind to other cultures. We can see with the way she reacts to slavery and how she had sympathy for the Highlanders despite being English. Claire’s knowledge of the future helps with that, but she also has a big heart for differences and I love seeing her bond with others.
5. “Hold me”
That same episode led to an emotional moment. Claire learned that Adawehi had been killed. It was awful and Caitriona Balfe delivered an excellent performance, but it leads to one of my favorite Claire moments of Outlander in 2018.
We got to see her need Jamie. She didn’t need him sexually but needed him physically. All she wanted was for him to hold her, showing that there is that bond still between them. After being able to protect herself, she was able to relax and just trust her husband to protect her.
4. Reuniting with Bree
The last episode of the year delivered the meeting we’d been waiting for. That also led to a reunion we needed. Claire was shocked to see her daughter, but also happy and relieved. You could see every single emotion on Claire’s face.
At one point she didn’t know if she should be angry or happy. She didn’t want Brianna to come to the past, but at the same time, she’d missed her daughter so much that she did want her there. This was a tearful reunion.
More from All-Time Lists
- 25 best Claire and Jamie moments in Outlander: Confession to the ether
- 25 best Claire and Jamie moments in Outlander: Jamie must have Claire
- 25 TV shows like Outlander to watch on Netflix: Ratched enters the list
- 25 TV shows to watch on Netflix: Stateless is a must-watch
- 25 best TV shows on Netflix: The Woods joins the list
3. Honesty with Lord John Grey
Breaking the top three is that moment between Claire and Lord John Grey. While she’s putting her personal feelings aside to be a doctor, Lord John Grey starts talking about the past and what he could have had. That could have led to Claire walking away, but it eventually led to some honesty.
As Lord John explained more about why he was jealous, Claire saw some similarities between them. She could use her experience with Frank to related to John and that offered them a chance to bond. While many dislike Frank, this moment was important and I love that she can look back on her life and see what she couldn’t give Frank.
2. Consoling Brianna after learning of the rape
Claire is able to figure out that Brianna is pregnant, but then she learns the baby may not be Roger’s. We get this emotional moment as Claire realizes what happened to her daughter. The mixture of emotions are there, as she’s scared and upset for Brianna, but at the same time, just wants to hold her.
We get this moment of consoling Brianna. There’s a chance for her to be a mother, which continues with the first episode of the new year. It’s not often that Claire has been able to be a mother on screen, so this was a necessary moment.
1. The reaction to the stolen rings
Finally, it’s going back to the Outlander Season 4 premiere. We got that moment when Jamie’s ring was stolen instead of Frank’s. While it’s not a happy moment for Claire, it’s a top moment in the series. It’s an outstanding moment from Caitriona Balfe.
There’s this despair, as she realizes which ring was taken after all. That physical element that connects her and Jamie is now gone. It’s worth remembering how she refused to take the ring off all those years, so to see her lose it in this way was heartbreaking.
What were your favorite Claire moments in Outlander in 2018? What do you hope to see moving forward? Share in the comments below.
Outlander Season 4 continues on Sundays at 8/7c on STARZ.