One of the most hilarious moments of Outlander was Tom suddenly kissing Claire. Did that happen in the Outlander books? It seemed so out of character.
We know there are times that the Outlander writers add something creatively to the story. They take a detour from the books to suit the need for social topics now, or because there is a need to combine multiple storylines in the books in one scene. Then there are times that actors aren’t available, so they need to change the story slightly.
So, when people saw Tom Christie kiss Claire in Outlander Season 7, Episode 4, there were questions about whether this happened in the books. It seemed so out of character for Tom considering what we know of him. Was this a show invention?
Tom does kiss Claire in Outlander
Well, it turns out that this is straight from the Outlander books. Tom believes that Claire and Jamie died in the fire at the Ridge. He had no way of finding out the truth, and he found himself at peace that Claire is no longer out there and not with him.
Tom was so certain that he was the one to put the obituary in the paper. He did that as a mark of respect for Claire (and Jamie, I guess).
Then he bumped into her in Wilmington. He was shocked to see her and so grabbed her and kissed her, almost as if to make sure that she was real. It made for a perfect hilarious moment, and the look on Claire’s face was priceless.
Would Tom have done it had he known Claire had survived the fire? Probably not. This was one of those spur of the moment things as he realized that she was still alive. And now he will not be able to live in peace knowing that she is out there and not his.
But while it seems out of character, it isn’t a show invention. Diana Gabaldon wrote the scene pretty much as it happened in the series.