Outlander Season 5: How could Claire ‘play God’ during the season?

During the Outlander Season 5 trailer, Brianna questions if Claire is “playing God.” What could Claire do to play God and what does it mean for the future?

We know that Claire’s surgery is going to be a major part of Outlander Season 5. It becomes an essential part of the books as Fraser’s Ridge grows. At one point in the trailer, Brianna accuses Claire of “playing God.” Just how could Claire do that and what could it mean for the future?

Claire isn’t one to sit back and watch people suffer. She’s used her 20th-century knowledge in the past to help heal people, although she’s been limited to the 18th-century technologies and medicines around. Despite that, she’s been able to save a young boy from poison and heal Jamie (and later herself) from an infection that needed penicillin.

But Season 5 will see her take a step further in medicine. According to Parade (and if you’ve read the novels, you’ll know!), Claire is going to bring some of the 20th century to her 18th-century surgery. She’s going to look at making medicines that would only be available in the future, specifically penicillin.

Of course, that has its risks. She’ll need patients that she can test on, and that could lead to some tricky, deadly situations. With the people of the time already viewing her with suspicion because of her knowledge and ability to heal, she’s going to want to tread carefully.

And then there’s the knock-on effect of what this could mean for future medicine. If she develops penicillin in the 18th century, what does that mean for modern medicine? It’s something she’ll need to keep locked down, only mentioned to people she can trust.

For those who have read “The Fiery Cross,” you’ll know there’s also a journal. We’ve seen her writing in it in some of the promotional material, and it’s a way to help spread some of the tips she knows to save people around. However, that has its own repercussions, especially when something is published in a newspaper!

And we can’t forget Claire’s oath to save lives. We’ve seen her need to stick to that oath in the past, and it’s going to come up at other times. While it may be “playing God” by saving people who would have usually died, it is also part of Claire’s personality not to let people die if she has a potential way of saving them. She’ll bring more modern-day surgeries into the 18th-century, and it’s going to lead to some dangerous situations.

What are you excited to see for Claire and her surgery in Outlander Season 5? Which moments do you hope the show keeps from the books? Share your thoughts in the comments below.

Outlander Season 5 premieres on Feb. 16 on STARZ.