sara217

Follow-up question: what is a lardy cake?

This time it looked like a reaction after the bread was sliced open and presented. That the judges already saw what was wrong, and she was just saying it out loud. I was annoyed by her in previous episodes, but this didn't bother me. If I ever get a stand mixer, it'll have a metal bowl. Kimberley's cake was cute, like a smurf house.

Haven't read that particular book, but was it "a" or "the" Hindu Kush, which is a specific mountain range in Afghanistan/Pakistan. I think that was considered one of the most difficult to cross ranges historically.

Curious to see whether the knitting patterns will be for items actually seen on the show, or more of an "inspired by" type.

I wonder if that scene of Claire killing the soldier was originally in the plan, but then cut. They did show Jenny giving her the knife. (She stabbed the soldier in the book, because the gunshot would have attracted attention.) But a confrontation scene during the escape would have required a fair chunk of time.

Wasn't his hand still bandaged up on the boat? His appreciation of the hand repair would fit right in to season two, when it's usable again.

I really liked the episode, it hit almost all of the emotional points that I was hoping for. I've always felt that the best adaptations don't try to keep all the details of a story and instead focus on the characters emotions, relationships, and major events. This had Jamie getting rescued, although wishing for death, and Claire getting him to choose life instead. Reducing Jamie's physical injuries helped focus on that too. And I like the boat at a visual for moving forward at the end. Willie is such a good friend to Claire, thanks for telling her what Jamie said. The look on Rupert's face when they find Jamie in the cell is heartbreaking. Everything in the flashbacks was very well done, and very hard to watch. All the actors are so good in this.

Agreed. This is contrary to most tv shows also, so it's not surprising that people expect Jamie will bounce back the same as before. I think knowing that the brutality of the attack has such deep and permanent affect on Jamie makes it more acceptable within the story. That something less wouldn't have broken him, and wouldn't have changed him.

Wasn't that the reason Claire tried to make Frank leave her, that she couldn't stand to look at him? I don't remember if it was explicit in the text though. So I guess Frank won't be finding the petition of complaint signed by Claire.

I started getting teary right from the start, since I liked McQuarry and hoped he would help with the escape somehow. So glad the wolf bit was cut, that section slowed down the action in the book unneccesarily. I'm not an authority since I mostly avoid really violent tv shows, but maybe the depiction of more psychological torture, not just physical, is what is new? I spent most of the episode hugging a pillow, but the last scene in the dungeon where Randall says something like 'let's begin,' after everything that came before. I think for those who haven't read the books that must be the scariest line. All the acting was so perfect throughout.

The dual time period structure was one of my favorite things about book two. I think 60s Claire would show up early, at the end of the first episode. But they could hold off on revealing Bree for a while since she doesn't really have much to do in the story anyway.

Re: the CGI snow, I thought the snow looked real in some shots and fake in others. I'd assume the CGI was used to even out continuity issues from the actual weather. I really liked the stronger bond between Colum and Jamie, it tracks with the second book where they meet to get Jamie's recommendation.

Itunes has both the music and the episodes available now, at least in the US.