‘Outlander’ Season 3, Episode 10 “Heaven and Earth” – 5 Things I *LOVED* About Last Night’s Episode

A few minutes into Outlander, “Heaven and Earth,” and I said to myself, “I like this little guy defending Claire.” And then I immediately gave him the diminutive name of “Groggy McGroghands” because he messed up and licked his booze-flavored fingers.

As you know, his name is not Groggy McGroghands. It’s Mr. Elias Pound. And he was such a lovely addition to the story, wasn’t he? He was sweet and steadfast and in utter awe of Claire. While it was painfully clear that Mr. Pound was doomed — as Outlander rarely ever gives these types of sweet young soldiers this kind of spotlight in the midst of mortal danger without killing them off — I’m glad Claire figured out that he was probably looking for a mother figure in her before it was too late. I’m happy she had a friend to remind her how awesome she is at her job and I’m glad that she had the wherewithal to oblige him in his final moments.

To me, Mr. Elias Pound and his death was a reminder of what really works on Outlander. This show’s true charm isn’t measured by the convoluted plots or the dramatic fights. What makes Outlander compelling is its ability to meditate on how love affects us, whether that’s romantic love, or maternal love. Mr. Elias Pound was a character defined by the latter kind of love and the need for it.

There’s not much to say about this moment, but I made happy note of it. As ever, when confronted with the horrors of misogyny, Claire just leans back and doesn’t look cowed. It’s awesome and I love it.

Confession: I did not remember whatshisface. I know! I know it’s my job to watch Outlander and report on it, and I do feel that I do a pretty good job of keeping the myriad plot lines and hundreds of characters straight, but sometimes details fall through the cracks. So much happens in the span of one episode that a new character or important plot detail just doesn’t stick to the outer skin of my proverbial mind grapes. (Also, I watch these episodes in “screener” form, so sometimes I don’t see the “previously on” intros that air. D’oh!)

So yeah, when this Thompkins guy popped up, and he gave Claire a knowing look, followed by a music cue that suggested, “THIS GUY AGAIN!”, like Claire, I was panicked. I was panicked because this dude didn’t immediately ring a bell. So I did the cowardly thing and googled “Outlander Thompkins.” What I immediately found was the bounty of fandom: an Outlander wiki with an extensive entry on this antagonistic character whom we met on the show three weeks ago. As soon as I realized he was the dude in the print shop fire, I thought, “OH, PRINT SHOP FIRE GUY!” That’s all it took.

So, thanks, fandom. You’re the best. I love you.

I think we can all agree that middle-aged Jamie is kind of full of some small measure of bullshit. Look, I love Jamie. You know I love Jamie! And I understand that Jamie has always had a stubborn streak. However, as he’s gotten older, that streak has calcified into intractable asshattery. You think I’m joking?

Consider what Fergus was up against. He was tasked with pulling off a crazy Oceans Eleven-esque jail break on a ship full of people who hate him all to please his all-time hero and secure the hand of the woman he loves. However, he knew it would fail and would result in his and Jamie’s deaths, and Marsali’s rape. In order to live up to the values Jamie has taught him, he would have to stand up to Jamie. And he does!

You guys, I think Fergus is going to be alright. In fact, I think he’s got the makings of a next gen hero.

Claire has had a lot of great pals and allies over the years, but I often worry that she really hasn’t been given a lot in the way of great female friendship. I mean, I know there was Geillis, but she always was a little too sneaky. And there there’s Jenny, who is great. And there was that one neighbor in Boston who came over for dinner that one time. But by and large, whether by design or not, Claire is surrounded by men. So I was pleased as rum punch to discover that there was not only another woman on The Porpoise, but that she was happy to be Claire’s pal and ally. I liked Annika! I liked her goat and I liked her “goat needs grass” plan.

On a side note, Annika was quite aggressive in her assistance, right? Like it got to a point where when all else failed, she jimmied up a raft and convinced Claire to jump off a moving naval ship in the middle of the sea. I suppose the important thing is that Annika wanted to offer Claire a chance to save Jamie, but it made me wonder if Annika was living vicariously through Claire’s escape…much like we all do…

Stream Outlander, "Heaven and Earth" on Starz