Outlander Season 7, Episode 4 recap: William and Young Ian meet (again)
We get storylines told in two timelines in Outlander Season 7, Episode 4. As Bree and Roger renovate Lallybroch, Willam and Ian meet again.
Caution: This post contains spoilers from Outlander Season 7, Episode 4.
At the end of Episode 3, we saw Jamie, Claire, and Ian leave the Ridge. The plan is to get Young Ian back to Scotland, but we all know how those plans can go. Meanwhile, in the 20th century, Bree and Roger headed to Lallybroch where they found out that it was for sale.
In the 20th-century storyline, we jump ahead slightly. Yes, this is the end of the adorable twins playing Jemmy and now we have an older actor in their place. The 18th-century storyline follows the timeline that we were already on, but we get to see more of other characters, especially William Ransom.
Claire and Jamie won’t get to Scotland
Let’s start with Claire and Jamie’s storyline, as they are on the smaller side compared to everyone else. They have made it to Wilmington with Young Ian, and that’s about as far as they’ll go on their planned journey to Scotland.
Jamie runs into one of the men from the Sons of Liberty, who makes it clear that they need men to head to Fort Ticonderoga to fight for the American militia. Jamie doesn’t want to do that, but the Sons of Liberty will give him no choice. He is being conscripted into the fight. At the very end of the episode, he and Claire get to the fort along with the others who have been pulled into the war.
As for Claire, she gets a shock to find out that Tom Christie is still alive. It turns out that his ability to read and write saved his life. He became a temporary secretary for Governor Martin. By the time a proper secretary arrived, Martin’s influence had waned enough that Tom was free to go. He doesn’t know what happened to his son—believing Allan to have just left the Ridge—and he decides that he is going to not return to the Ridge either. This part was just for closure on Tom’s character.
Bree and Roger buy and renovate Lallybroch
We have a two-year time jump in the 20th century. Bree and Roger have bought Lallybroch, but it requires a lot of work. The costs are going up, and they are running out of savings. THey’re also running out of patience after living in a caravan on site for the last two years.
They decide enough has been renovated to move in, but they need to find a way to bring money in. So, Bree heads out to a job interview at the local hydrodam. Of course, the man believes she’s there for the role of a secretary, but she points out that she has some great qualifications and she wants to work as a plant inspector.
We get to see the fiery Bree that we’ve been waiting for since initially seeing her. She holds her own in the interview, making it very clear that she is the perfect person for the job. When she gets back to Lallybroch with the good news, Roger is less than thrilled. He’s struggling with a few crises of faith and adequacy. The things Claire and Jamie said to him are playing on his mind as he’s not the breadwinner right now.
He also feels like God doesn’t actually have a plan, leading to a crisis of faith. He doesn’t know what to do with himself in the 20th century. And just two seasons ago, he didn’t know what to do with himself in the 18th century.
The children are up to something, though. Jemmy clearly has a mind like his mother, breaking the clock radio apart to see how it works, but it’s the missing snacks that are a concern. Jemmy is blaming it on a nuckelavee, some sort of legend from the Scottish Isles. What is going on around Lallybroch?
William heads to the Dismal Swamp in Outlander Season 7, Episode 3
The other big storyline involved William, who started off the episode showing how he stands out against the other soldiers. When some of the men burn a prostitute alive, William steps in to put out the flames. It’s just too late.
This has put him on the radar of Captain Richardson, who sends William through the backcountry to Dismal Town. It means going through the Dismal Swamp. William’s task is to deliver three letters to names he can only remember and not write down. You see, this is some sort of spy work.
While in the Dismal Swamp, his horse is scared by a snake and William is thrown from it, injuring his arm. Fortunately, Ian comes across him and helps him. He immediately recognizes William—and he’s already told Jamie that he realizes who William is to Jamie—and shares that they have met before at the Ridge. Ian does what he can for William in the swamp before coming across Dismal Town.
Ian learns of the Hunters and takes William to see Denzell Hunter. Denny is about to cut off William’s arm, believing it to be too infected to save, when suddenly pus comes out. William’s arm can be saved after all.
There is certainly some flirting between Ian and Rachel. Rachel explains that she and Denny are going to join the American cause. William also learns that one of the names he was to remember is linked to the Patriot side of the American Revolutionary War. What errand did Richardson actually send William on?
Whatever it is, Ian gives Rachel some money for William and then takes off with Rollo. They are all sure to meet again.
Next. 5 best moments from Outlander Season 7, Episode 2. dark