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OUTLANDER 4.05 Recap – “Untimely Resurrection”

Claire and Jamie’s lives were rocked by an “Untimely Resurrection” last week!

A major Outlander return had Jamie and Claire turning heads at the French court in “Untimely Resurrection”!

This episode picks up right where the last one left off– After the dinner party brawl, Jamie has made his way home from a night in French prison. The Bastille, to be exact. Claire and the Frasers’ newest charge, Fergus, have waited up for him all night, knowing that a new plan of action is needed.

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Once she knows Jamie is safe, Claire is off to see Mary Hawkins, who is struggling with her emotions and her family’s brutish reactions after her rape.

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Mary is especially mortified that Alex has been implicated in the whole ordeal and lost his job with the Duke of Sandringham because of it. She begs Claire to bring her letter exonerating Alex to the Bastille and that he can be released and they can get married.

Right there, Claire hits the breaks. She knows Mary marries Alex’s brother, Black Jack Randall, so she can’t let the two of them marry. She does the next best thing, in her opinion– and an utterly stupid thing, in our opinion. After releasing Alex, she sits him down and tells him that he can’t marry Mary being jobless, without prospects, and chronically ill. In the nicest way she can muster, she tells the young dreamer that he’s a useless loser and her friend deserves better.

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Typically, we’re on Claire’s side. But this time? Urgh, what a tool!

Elsewhere, Jamie has a scheme of his own. Prince Charles has received a sizable donation offer from Le Comte St. Germain, contingent of a massive shipment of Portuguese wine coming into port. He asks Jamie to work with St. Germain on the deal, which he not okay with our favorite Scot. But alas, he needs to stay in the prince’s good graces.

So Jamie simply hints to Le Comte that he knows he was behind Claire’s attack and poisoning, and let’s know know he’s got plans for the perpetrator once he has proof!

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There’s one thing that’s clear: The Frasers need to sabotage St. Germain’s profitable shipment. Claire has an idea, but it’s not coming to fruition quite yet.

Instead, the scene transforms into a sweet, vulnerable moment between the couple as Jamie presents Claire with a family heirloom and the two talk about their hopes and fears as parents.

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Finally, we’re seeing them as a united, loving couple again… for a few more minutes at least.

Because just then, Claire’s silly plan for earlier backfires spectacularly.

Jamie tries to get some answers out of Sandringham at Versailles while helping the old Duke pick out a fleet of horses. Claire is there, but leaves the stables behind because pregnancy doesn’t mix well with horse stench– or Sandringham stench. It’s hard to tell which affects her more, really.

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Jamie’s ex, Annalise de Marillac, is also there and offers to walk through the garden with Claire. Initially, it’s just awkward– an awk walk, if you will.

But things go from awkward to horrific in about two seconds flat when Black Jack freakin’ Randall stumbles across them!

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Sensing that this is a bit of a scene, Annalise runs off to get Jamie. Black Jack is delighted by the possibility of seeing Jamie again, which only serves to infuriate Claire.

Oh! Why is he there, you ask? Someone told Alexander Randall that he was a prospectless loser, so he begged his honorable big brother to come to France and help him get his job and good standing back!

Jamie approaches and this situation is about to get really rough when another guest arrives: KING LOUIS.

In front of the king, the three have the most awkward, forced conversation ever. The king is confused AF and really, we don’t blame him. Then of course, Black Jack admits that he’s come to France to advocate for his brother’s return to work. He hoped to ask the king, but the king has different ideas.

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For a brief moment, Jamie is able to feel a little better as he watches Black Jack forced to submit to someone else, shamed a bit in the public eye by the most powerful man in France.

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Still, it’s not enough to satisfying Jamie’s thirst for revenge. As the group breaks apart, Jamie rushes back to meet with Black Jack again. The two seem cordial, almost friendly, and when Jamie returns, he’s thrilled. Claire is utterly confused.

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THEY AGREED TO A DUEL TO THE DEATH, IS WHAT JUST HAPPENED!

Jamie is thrilled to get his chance to kill her torturer, but Claire drops a huge bomb on him as he prepares. She needs Jamie to not kill Jack for about another year because Jack and Mary need to conceive Frank’s ancestor first. Otherwise, Frank won’t exists.

We can practically hear some fans whining because Claire seemingly still cares for Frank, but that’s just silly. Frank did her no harm, they were happy, but she moved on and found true love under the circumstances. She doesn’t have ill will toward Frank. Also, nobody ever mentions the extreme TIME PARADOX that won’t be caused if Frank were never born. Do you think Claire would have gone through the stones in Scotland without him?!

Jamie sees it differently. If he can’t kill Black Jack, Claire better kill him. Neither can live while the other survives and all the jazz.

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But Claire ain’t backing down!

She points out all the times she’s saved Jamie’s life. She says he owes her… which is definitely debatable, given all he’s done for her too. Still, the tactic works and Jamie very angrily, very begrudgingly agrees to hold off on killing Jack Randall for one more year.

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Jamie and Claire are raging against each other once again, just when we were able to enjoy a moment of happiness with them!

Hopefully, things will get a little better for the Frasers next week, but we doubt it!