Who are the Bugs in the Outlander books?

The Bugs have been introduced in Outlander Season 5. It’s left show-first or Showlanders confused. Who are the Buggs in The Fiery Cross?

In Outlander Season 5, Episode 2, Murdina and Arch Bug were introduced by name. However, if you look carefully at the premiere, you’ll see them at the wedding. While book fans were expecting to see them, Showlanders or show-first fans are a little confused.

The Bugs show up in “The Fiery Cross,” and they are close to the Frasers. They are mentioned a little more in the books than they’ve been mentioned in the show once the Frasers get back to the Ridge from the Gathering, but that doesn’t mean they’re not going to be important in the fifth season.

Meeting at the Gathering

Everything starts at the Gathering in “The Fiery Cross.” Jamie meets the couple and asks them to return to Fraser’s Ridge. He knows that while he is away with the militia, the homestead needs protecting. That means he needs people who wouldn’t be able to join the militia.

Murdina and Arch Bug are elderly. There’s no way that Arch would be expected to join the militia, making him perfect for protecting the homestead while he is away.

And they certainly do. Mrs. Bug immediately gets to work within the house. She’s the one mentioned the most, as she and Claire had a few run-ins. In fact, there are times that Mrs. Bug does things that affect Claire’s research, like tidying up the moldy pieces of bread.

Plenty of future storylines

While the two seem like kind people, there are bigger storylines that are linked to future books. I won’t go into the details, but they are linked to the gold that Jocasta Cameron and her husband had collected for the Stuart rebellion. That gold was stolen and Arch was involved in that.

Will this storyline be included in the show in Season 5? It could be, especially if storylines like the Christies’ are cut from the season. However, we could have to wait until Season 6 and beyond for more.

The two also have a connection to Lionel Brown. Depending on how the fifth season ends, that storyline could certainly be used sometime in Season 6.