What a way to end Outlander: Blood of My Blood season 1. Ellen and Brian finally made their escape together, but now they find that they may not get the quiet life that they would like.
A lot happened in Outlander: Blood of My Blood season 1, episode 10, and Harriet Slater and Jamie Roy took the time to break down the events. From killing Malcolm Grant to hiding away with Murtagh as the third wheel, this was an episode that packed a punch from start to finish.
Then there’s that ending, with the fiery crosses all lit. There’s only one option for Brian moving forward, but what does all this mean for Outlander: Blood of My Blood season 2?
ClaireandJamie.com: I have to start with questions about Outlander: Blood of My Blood season 1, episode 9. What was that breakup scene like to film?
Jamie Roy: I thought it was a comedy scene.
Harriet Slater: He just said this a few minutes ago.
JR: Is it not funny? I thought [Ellen] was just joking. Like, “Oh, you b*****d. You have no money.”
HS: Wow! It actually just hit me really hard, so I’m glad one of us was invested in the storyline. It was a lot of fun to shoot. I think we shot it in a couple of different ways, so there was a version where Ellen was genuinely upset and showed that she was upset, because she is heartbroken, deep down. She doesn’t want to be saying these things, and we shot it in a way that made that obvious.
Then we shot it in a way where she was very cut-throat and very matter-of-fact. She played the part of someone who was not in love with someone and that they were beneath her, so I’m glad that that’s the version that was used. I think it’s even more heartbreaking.
And we know that she doesn’t believe any of the things that she’s saying, and we see that in the moment following, where she’s on her own and she’s broken and devastated. I think she needs to convince Brian that she means all these things in order to protect him. So year, it was fun to shoot, but it was also kind of sad.
JR: Brian didn’t think any of this was coming, and he just gets insult after insult from people who he’s been nothing but honest with. All of a sudden, she’s saying these things about him being penniless and a b*****d. I think, at the time he hears those words, they hurt. Brian wasn’t necessarily thinking logically. We see that later in episode 10, when he’s trying to work out when the emotions have died down. But at that point in time, those are the worst things; they’re Brian’s worst fears coming to light, and she says it to his face. It’s scary for him, and he takes them as truth.
HS: She needs to ensure that he takes them as true and that he is a bad guy. She’s doing it to save his life. Luckily, we know how it ends. We know that they end up together at some point. We just don’t know how and when.
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C&J: I think you’re so right in them choosing that way of doing the scene. And now, I love that Brian is trying to work out why Ellen would say this while he has people trying to kill him!
JR: Yeah, Murtagh is like “Um, hi, we’re being killed here!”
C&J: There’s actual assassins after you, and you’re more concerned about your relationship.
JR: Brian doesn’t necessarily have each priority straight. Love is gonna make you do crazy things.
C&J: Let’s talk the assassins and how it changes things for Ellen. Colum broke his word.
HS: He said, “you have my word.” He said that to her face, and I think that’s the final straw for Ellen. I think in a way it almost makes it easier for her to break ties with him and leave forever, but she does give him the opportunity to confess. She goes down to the study and says, “Is there anything you want to tell me?”
He’s acting so weird. He’s so weirdly upbeat in a really un-Colum way, and it’s actually so funny to watch. He’s clearly compensating for the guilt that he feels.
It’s almost a relief, I think, when she finds out that he’s broken his word. It frees her of hers. She promised that she would end things with [Brian] if Colum promised not to have him killed, but then he went to have him killed anyway. She doesn’t have to marry Malcolm, because Colum broke his promise, so it frees her of hers. That’s the moment she decides that she is willing to leave everything behind in order to be with this guy.
C&J: Poor Brian finding out his future in-laws want him dead.
JR: There’s a few people who want Brian dead at this point. They’re just stacking up. Just add them to the line.
HS: He’s too good. They’re jealous of him. He does have a bit of an edge to him. We see that in episode 10.
JR: He goes on a bit of a killing spree. He has a third for blood, and all of a sudden, he’s killed everyone.
C&J: Brian is so protective of Davina. What’s it like showing a son’s love for his mother in a healthy way?
JR: It’s one of those things that a lot of people forget about. I’ve seen people say, “Why doesn’t Brian just do this?” But he’s got his mom at Leathers who he has to protect. We’ve seen in Episode 6 that Lovat is quite happy to smack Davina around without any repercussions, and if Brian wasn’t there, who knows what would happen to Davina?
Between wanting to go to Ellen and do what he has to do to be with her, he also has to protect what he has at home with Davina. Ultimately, he decides that he’s going to leave home, because his mom can deal with herself. She’ll be okay, but it was a difficult decision for him.
He’s also protective of Julia. He feels protective over both of these women, but ultimately, it’s the protectiveness of Ellen, because that’s where his heart’s drawn most.
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C&J: I’m going to end where Outlander: Blood of My Blood season 1 ends, with the fiery crosses. What’s going on in both Brian’s and Ellen’s minds?
HS: Oh man, they just found each other! They just escaped everything, and they were together for half an hour.
JR: I think two days.
C&J: That one night.
HS: It was such a good night!
JR: Great music!
HS: [The show has] to tear them apart, because otherwise, there would be no story. I think the way we see them at the end of season 1, they’re very much united and determined to make this work and act as a team. Ellen says, “I’m your wife and we are one,” and she’ll support him in whatever decision he chooses to make.
You’ll have to watch the show to see what happens in season 2, but I think we know they end up married and having babies, and there’s a nice comfort in that. We just don’t know how long it takes to get there. The great thing about not having to follow the books like Outlander did is that we have the freedom to…[stops to think]
JR: Go from place to place.
HS: Yeah.
JR: People don’t necessarily know what’s going to happen, including us. We have no idea until we get the scripts and we shoot. I still don’t know how it ends.
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Outlander: Blood of My Blood is available to stream on STARZ.