After what seems like centuries — but has really only been decades — Diana Gabaldon’s best-selling novel Outlander has finally been adapted for television. Starz will produce a first season of 16 shows, which will cover the entirety of the first book in this now-eight-book series.
Outlander is a time-traveling romance and adventure that throws traditional concepts of a “romance novel” out the window. The first episode, which aired Saturday, introduced viewers to British citizens Claire Beauchamp Randall and her husband Frank, who have just reunited after World War II. Claire had served as a combat nurse and Frank as a spy in the war.
The couple travels to Inverness, Scotland, where they were married seven years before. Frank is researching his family tree and trying to gather information on a specific ancestor, Jonathan “Black Jack” Randall. Claire, bored by hours spent poring over dusty papers, heads to the Scottish countryside to search for medicinal herbs. While searching for a peculiar blue flower, she comes upon a circle of standing stones. She hears a strange sound and approaches the ancient structure to investigate. Reaching out to touch a stone, Claire is knocked unconscious and awakens, confused and disoriented, some time later.
Even though Claire appears to be on the same hill as before, something seems different. She heads down the hill and back to town; however, on the way, she thinks she has stumbled upon the set of an historical drama, as she is in the middle of a firefight between British soldiers and tartan-clad Scotsmen.
Claire runs away and comes to a stream where a soldier is resting. The soldier stands and turns toward her, and Claire believes, for a moment, that she is looking into the face of her own husband, Frank. Frank it is not, and we soon discover that this soldier is none other than “Black Jack” himself, the very ancestor Frank had been researching. As it turns out, “Black Jack” is not the honorable soldier Frank imagined him to be; Jonathan Randall did not get his nickname for nothing, as his character, so unlike Frank’s, is dark and warped.
Claire realizes that she is not on a movie set but cannot believe she has gone back in time. When Randall demands to know who she is, she gives her maiden name, Claire Beauchamp (pronounced “Bee-chem,” in the English fashion). Scantily clad by the standards of the day, unescorted, and alone, Randall presumes Claire is a French spy and a whore. He begins to assault her, both because he wants information and also for his own twisted pleasure.
Just in time, Claire is rescued (albeit roughly) by one of the Scotsmen. The Scotsmen are suspicious of her, as well, and think she could be an English spy. Until their leader discovers her true origin and purpose, though, he will keep her prisoner, although a protected one.
Among the group of Scots, there is a young man with a dislocated shoulder. As such, he cannot manage his horse, and the group must quickly make a getaway. One of the men volunteers to force the lad’s arm back in the socket. Claire, seeing that the wounded man’s arm will be broken, bids them to stop, and she fixes it in short order. This earns her a bit of respect from the group, but does nothing to allay their suspicions.
The group makes their escape with Claire riding with the young man she has just healed. When Claire looks to Inverness, she notices that she doesn’t see any lights. She asks her new companion where Inverness is, and when he tells her she’s looking right at it, she knows she is no longer in the 20th century.
During their ride, the group approaches an outcropping where Frank told Claire the English of the 18th century would hide in ambush. Claire shares this knowledge with the young man and, sure enough, the British soldiers attack minutes later. The group’s leader, Dougal Mackenzie, demands to know how Claire came by this information and becomes more suspicious about her motives.
Later that night, Claire’s guard falls from his horse, having been injured in the ambush. Claire again comes to the young man’s aid, asking for medical supplies of her time (iodine, merthiolate) and speaking of disinfection and germs. Her references have no meaning to them and the men are further mystified by her crude use of language when she becomes frustrated in her attempts to bandage the wound.
The episode ends with the group’s arrival at Castle Leoch, home to the Clan MacKenzie, and Claire can be sure she is not on a second honeymoon any longer.
So far, the series follows the book relatively closely. There were some editorial embellishments in an attempt, it seems, to make the adaptation a bit more “sexy,” though in my opinion, this is totally unnecessary.
The series is filmed entirely in Scotland, lending the scenery a breath-taking quality. If nothing else, viewers will fall in love with the rugged, albeit wet, landscape.
The producers make use of lighting to draw a distinction between the prosaic, 20th-century life of Claire and Frank as compared to the heart-pounding action of the 18th century. In the more modern-set scenes, the lighting is quite dark. Even those scenes inside houses with electric amenities have a muted, dull feel — think The X-Files. However, the scenes are noticeably brighter when Claire goes back in time. In fact, as soon as Claire awakens after her passage through the stones, the sun is shining. Even the night scenes from the 18th century have a shimmering quality.
The characters are well cast, with Catriona Balfe playing a wonderfully complex version of Claire (though without the voluptuous bosom and amber eyes described in the books). Sam Heughan’s Jamie Fraser, the as-yet-nameless young man who is twice healed by Claire, is swoon-worthy (although I thought he’d be taller!) and conveys Jamie’s strong constitution, quick wit, and sensitive nature with a subtle delivery. Playing both Frank and Jonathan “Black Jack” Randall, Tobias Menzies capably handles Frank’s reserved affection and Black Jack’s barely-concealed villainy.
The second episode of the series airs Saturday at 9 p.m. on Starz. Check back next week for a look at the latest twists and turns from Inverness.