Outlander: Blood Of My Blood Gives Us A Brief (But Heartening!) Reunion — Read Episode 8 Recap
Outlander: Blood of My Blood surprised me this week by reuniting Henry and Julia, however briefly, well before the season finale.
I truly thought that Mr. and Mrs. Beauchamp were going to pass like sad little ships in the night while both were at Castle Leoch for Ellen's purity test. But they find each other! And they kiss and cry and he finds out he had a son! It's not enough, both for them and us, but it's something!
Meanwhile, about that aforementioned virginity exam: GOOD GOD WHY DO WOMEN ALWAYS HAVE TO SUFFER TO MEET BS STANDARDS SET BY MEN? Ahem. I mean, poor Ellen.
Read on for the highlights of "A Virtuous Woman."
WILL SHE PASS? | While Ellen bathes — or rather, is bathed, like a child — an examining table and some seriously hinky-looking instruments are laid out before a fire. Thank goodness Colum has the doctor (I guess?) who'll examine Ellen put away ye olde speculum; he also makes it clear that the exam has to go their way, because "I canna marry off a dead sister." Secretly, Column worries that Ellen has already had her plaid woven, so to speak, so he buzzes about Castle Leoch, discussing his sister's virginity or lack thereof with everyone but his sister. He and Ned talk in depth about who was minding Ellen throughout Beltane, then Colum leaves him with this threat: "If I find out anyone who has pledged an oath of loyalty to me has not honored it, I'll have their head."
Ned, of course, is freaking — because he knows that Ellen was out of his sight for an extended period during the Beltane festival — so he slips off to try to pry some intel out of Mrs. Fitz. She's not having it. "Shame on all of you for putting her through such an ordeal," she says, and her tone is so awesomely dismissive that he scurries away immediately. She, in turn, marches into Ellen's room and announces that she's sure Ellen's "virtue" will be confirmed. Ellen... doesn't look so sure.
IN WHICH SIMON IS FAR TOO HAPPY ABOUT TERRIBLE THINGS | Simon summons Julia to his room to let her know that he's going to Aberdeen for a night or two in order to gather some waters with alleged mystical powers that will "rejuvenate" him and restore his ability to maintain an erection. He's so happy he's nearly dancing as he packs; Julia, meanwhile, looks pensive.
Before he goes, Simon makes sure Brian knows that Ellen's about to be put to the test. "A MacKenzie, deflowered by a Fraser," he says, clapping his upset son on the back. "There's poetry in that." Brian says they were handfast, which means they didn't technically do anything wrong, but his father mocks him. "Father, I care for her," Brian says, earnest and aching, but all his father can do is get so gleeful about the MacKenzies' eventual downfall that it's a good thing he hasn't taken a sip of that magic water yet.
After Lord Lovat leaves, Brian is suddenly on a mission. When Davina asks him where he's going, he answers, "To rescue my wife."
Ellen pales a little when she learns a physician, and not a midwife, will conduct her examination. She admits that she's had sex, but corrects Mrs. Fitz, who assumes Murtagh did the deed. Ellen won't say who it was, though. "I'll take his name to my grave," she vows.
Meanwhile, over at Castle Leathers, Davina employs Julia to try to get Brian to see reason and stop his quest to go save Ellen. He knows Ellen won't pass the test, and she'll likely be killed for it, but Davina cries that he'll be killed just for setting foot in Leoch. Once Julia knows what's up, she says she can help. In the kitchen, she mixes up an elixir that she plans to slip to Ellen via the secet passage she found the last time they were there. He argues that she shouldn't waste her time and should instead leave with the baby while Simon's away. But Julia says she has to help, and she and Mistress Porter have a nice moment where they each promise to look after the other's son for the next little while.
SAGE COUNSEL | On the way to Leoch, Malcolm Grant and Henry discuss the test that's about to happen. Isaac Grant ordered it, but Malcolm says he has no doubts about his betrothed. Henry urges him to make his own judgments and act according to his own beliefs, then pledges to do everything in his power "to help you secure your bride."
Colum, Dougal and Ned greet Malcolm and Henry when they arrive. After the dowry is shown off, Henry informs the brothers that the Grants' physician — and not the MacKenzie's — will perform the exam.
NEAR MISS | Julia and Henry both wind up inside Castle Leoch at the same time, though neither knows the other is there. At one point, she quickly passes by a hall where he's standing; he thinks he sees her, but then his post-traumatic stress disorder starts to kick in and he has to scrunch his eyes shut and lean against the wall as he fights it. Ned approaches because they're supposed to talk about the terms of the test, but in his highly agitated state, Henry winds up telling the lawyer that he's trying to get on Malcolm's good side and also maybe he's going to escape, at some point that day, and could Ned help him? Ned talks him down, assuring him they'll likely have more opportunities to plot his path to freedom.
Julia gets to Ellen's room and she, with the assistance of a surprised Mrs. Fitz, get to applying the elixir, which will "tighten" Ellen's nether regions and eew. Once the goo is on her, ideally, Ellen will just chill until the substance cures or whatever the heck it's supposed to do. (If you'd like to know more, here you go: Educate thyself.) But the ladies are interrupted by a knock: It's Malcolm, who got the OK for a quick conversation with Ellen outside her chambers and wants her to know that it was Isaac, and not him, who called for the examination. She's more interested in finding out who claimed she was anything but virginal; he tells her it was Simon Fraser.
THE MOMENT OF TRUTH | Finally, it's time. Ellen walks into the great hall, Mrs. Fitz at her side, and faces a whole lotta men looking at her sternly. The Grants' doctor announces that she'll have to drink a tonic of boiled sea holly and then hold her pee. I have no idea why strong pelvic floor strength is supposed to indicate virtue, but these guys are giving off big "NASA thinking a female astronaut needs 100 tampons for a few days in space" energy, so let's chalk it up to that. After a while, the physician gestures and a man places a pot at Ellen's feet. She's commanded to pee, so she squats and urinates right there in front of the hearth with everyone watching. The pee is then examined for clarity, which is supposed to indicate purity. The proceedings then move on to the physical exam. Anyone else get super icked out by how much joy the doctor seems to derive from saying the word "intact"?
Ellen is laid out on a table and manually penetrated against her will while she silently cries and all the men look on. It's absolutely awful. Then there's a lot of whispering, and it looks like Julia's concoction held, because a man eventually bellows (in Latin, because why not make this farce even more pompous?) "virgo intacta."
HENRY AND JULIA REUNITE! | Ellen thanks Julia profusely and hustles her out before anyone sees her. In the hallway as she makes her exit, Julia sees Henry from a distance and calls his name. He doesn't really believe what he sees but follows her as she beckons. When they're alone in an empty hallway, he caresses her cheek but still thinks he's losing his mind. "Hope springs eternal," she whispers, and they kiss. He asks about the baby. "I named him William," she says, beaming.
The reunion is interrupted by Brian, who quickly ascertains that the man holding Julia is her husband, which is nice and all but they've gotta gooooo. Henry fights the idea of parting with his wife again so soon, but she says it's the only way to keep everyone safe. She whispers that she's at Castle Leathers but he can't come for her, and they'll find each other again (girl, seriously? shouldn't you be a little more concerned with the details here?) then she leaves while Henry looks simultaneously fulfilled and bereft.
THE GRANT IS DEAD, LONG LIVE THE GRANT | As Henry and Malcolm walk out, the younger man assumes his bladier's evident joy has to do with the outcome of the exam and what it means for Malcolm's future happiness. He remarks on how proud he is to have brought Henry into the fold and how he'd like him around for years to come. (Arch Bug hears all of this and is not amused.) Just then, a rider approaches with a letter: Isaac Grant, who had been in poor health, has died.
Right before Brian and Julia leave the castle, Mrs. Fitz stops them and angrily hands Brian back the swath of Fraser plaid that Ellen had been holding onto. She thanks them both for saving Ellen, but informs Brian that if he truly loves the redhead, "you'll stay away from her."
Now it's your turn. What did you think of the episode? And did you see this week's other Outlanderish news? Hit the comments!