The Outlander Season 4 finale and Young Ian’s big moment

Young Ian’s character growth led to the moment in the Outlander Season 4 finale

When Young Ian was initially introduced in Outlander Season 3, there’s no way you would have expected him to end up the way he did in the Outlander Season 4 finale. And there’s certainly no way you would have expected his character development in Outlander Season 5.

Okay, so book readers would. But when you first met Young Ian in Voyager, there’s no way you would have expected the journey he would go on throughout Drums of Autumn and beyond.

We had this wide-eyed young boy who just wanted to see the world. He looked up to his Uncle Jamie, and just wanted to forge his own path in life. Who would have thought being kidnapped by pirates, almost sacrificed for time travel, and getting washed up in the colonies would have given him the opportunity to do just that?

Throughout Outlander Season 4, we saw the character development that would lead to the big moment on the Outlander Season 4 finale. It was one of the most organic parts of the entire season, easy to understand when you consider Young Ian’s experiences up to this point.

He wanted to learn more about a new culture

While many people turned their noses up to the Native American ways, Young Ian wasn’t like that. He didn’t find the culture barbaric. He found it fascinating, just like many teenage boys would. Throughout the fourth season, we watched him learn as much as he could about the Native Americans, especially his eventual Cherokee neighbors.

Young Ian started to become friends with the Cherokee neighbors. He learned some of the language, showing willingness to adapt to the locals instead of forcing the locals to become like him.

All this arguably helped him understand the gauntlet when it came to doing it. It helped him understand the Mohawk way of life and know that he would want to be part of that family.

Young Ian stepped away from some of his Scottish heritage throughout Outlander Season 4. He didn’t completely breakaway, but he didn’t have the same connection that Jamie did. Instead, his loyalty was to those he viewed as family.

While yes, his decision to trade himself for Roger was a sacrifice, it wasn’t quite viewed as a sacrifice to Young Ian. It was his new path in life, allowing him to become a “man of worth.” He was ready for it.

And you can’t deny that when you see the big smile on his face when he makes it through the gauntlet on the Outlander Season 4 finale.

What did you think of Young Ian’s journey throughout Outlander Season 4? Share your thoughts in the comments below.

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