Cliomuse

I have a lot of faith in the production team and in the incredible cast to pull off this event, which I always saw as a major demonstration of culture clash and how they work to get beyond it. This may be part of the reason we are going to see JAMMF POV and voice overs in the second half. (DG approves :) Hearing what is going on in Jamie's head or seeing things Claire does not see will help from a gap filling perspective. We also have two skilled and talented actors who can convey paragraphs of information and emotion with their faces in the space of a moment. I could, of course, be wrong in my assumptions, but I hope not.

As I get father into the books (I am on Fiery Cross now) I go back and read what other people say about each book on various forums and I have to say, this a one of those series where your mileage really varies depending on your personal experience. (As in, where we reading the same book?) So many series have a devoted, but perhaps more limited, following because the story is more or less homogenous across many books. Praise to Diana for creating a world in which lots of different people can become invested for a myriad of reasons. And angry for just as many reasons. I got a coworker young enough to be my daughter hooked and discovered a coworker my age has been hooked for years. The discussion was amazing, and not just fangirling, but deep discussions about character, morality, and history. I think the way Ron and Co. have approached the series it has the possibility of doing the same thing. The DH, who generally despises all things that could possibly be labeled "romance" (I blame my MIL ), is loving the show and we have lively discussions about it. For example, he thinks Dougal wasn't simply propositioning Claire on her wedding night, but testing her loyalty as well. He would have been happy to grind her corn, but would also know she was not to be trusted. Of course we already know from the Gathering that he does not trust Jamie. But does he realize he just created powerful duo? Thoughts to ponder.

Yes, we need Webisodes featuring the secondary characters to tide us over. Definitely need more Murtagh.

Attended a wedding this weekend and several of us muttered to one another about needing a sharp knife and a strip of linen so we could make it official. The bride had even joked at her bachelorette party that she was hoping for more Outlander and less Game of Thrones on her special day.

A friend and I were joking that this scene was meant to be played as it was in the book, but the actors couldn't keep straight faces so the director went with it. In all seriousness, I agree that some of the dialog seems more realistic in the TV series. There were times in the book where Jamie was a little too "wise and perceptive" and I like how they have dialed that back just a bit to make him more believably human. Of course the show has the luxury of being able to convey pages of description with just a look or a gesture. They certainly chose the right cast for that!

I know this is not a book talk thread, so no actual book talk. But I will say that I, personally, think I like show Jamie a little better than book Jamie at this point. (Disclaimer: I have only ready up though the first 1/4 of Voyager, . And I do like book Jamie. I am pacing myself.) Part of this is down to the way they are adapting him (what the writers choose to have him say and not say). But a lot of it is down to Mr. Heughan, who is a darn fine actor and makes Jamie more believable to me. YMMV.

Yup! My DH sighed audibly at that moment. He thought the whole episode was wildly sexy and romantic with its attention to those little details. The presentation of the pearls and the way Claire wraps the plaid up around Jamie really got him too. He said he felt like he had accidentally walked into someone's bedroom and was seeing something real. Cait and Sam play nuance verra verra weel.

Yes, I wholeheartedly agree. Death is essential to the historical accuracy of Outlander, but a less effective storyteller would have killed off "redshirts" and we might not have felt it as much. The Red Wedding was a huge shock, but at that point I had a feeling those characters were not long for this world. But again, a different author would have had Robb die doing something brave and it would have been less impactful than the sheer shock and waste of it all. It is one of my selling points when I am trying to "convert" folks who don't think they will like these series. At the heart, the stories are about people and what happens to them. The fact Claire and Jamie know Culloden is coming (unless they can prevent it and WE know they can't) is nauseating. It makes DiA feel a bit like a train headed for a cliff. Very effective.

Yes, and I deeply appreciate Diana's ability to make the deaths count. (GRRM too, for that matter.) Character death and genuine peril help make the books more real and more relatable. Losing the characters we care about keeps me reading to find out what happens to everyone else. There is no "happily ever after", there is just more life. (That thing that happens while we are making other plans.)

Gah.... I just read Rupert's death and I can very clearly see and hear the actors playing that scene. Who knows how it will play out in the show, but I am gutted. I read it out loud to my DH and he had to stop and absorb it for a bit too. He hasn't touched the books, but really enjoys the show.

I too see this version of Murtagh as a little more worldly and in tune with women. I wonder if he said this at a point when all the other men were offering lewd "advice" because he knew Claire was not happy about the marriage and he didn't want to set Jamie up for an experience he may not get. I really thought we might see the show version of Murtagh telling Jamie not to be too rough and hurt her, as she might not be very "receptive", so to speak.

Murtagh is the ideal secondary character to give bits of exposition dialog to and Duncan Lacroix is brilliant. He is giving Jamie and Dougal a run for their money in the "interesting-and-more-than-meets-the-eye male Highlander" category. Loved these wedding preview clips.