Cloudberryjam

Hello all! Well, I am one who did not really love last weeks premiere, but I really loved 502. This is one of my least favorite books of the series and so expectations for me are lowered. I really just thought 502 was well paced, well acted and gripping. Couldve done w/o the eye-slashing, and generally the ep a bit too violent for me. But i loved Marsalis reaction to the autopsy, Jamies convos w Knox, Jamie between the fires of Tryon and Murtagh, Claire making penicillin, the candle scene, even Sophies acting is much better. Next week should be good but another gross-out for sure!

MG is def lean n wiry!! But he is 6’2! (Sam 6’3) RR is 6’0. (The fact that I just looked this up means I definitely am work procrastinating too much and need to look at my life choices haha) Oh well it doesnt matter bc we hav RR and SS and unless new exec producers Sam N Cait fire them we better get used to it :) Obvs there r lots o folks who like RR:) Hopefully they will give him some long pants, a bath, and a better attitude next season and he will rock it. I liked him in S3!

I have been watching A Discovery of Witches, with Matthew Goode (late of Downton and The Crown) and I saw someone elsewhere say he was their dream casting for Roger. Now THAT is a Roger that I could understand Brees attraction to, and he would have been a perfect nerdy historian-type. Sorry but I also find Riks Roger so unappealing—I kept yelling at Brianna “Just find another 18th c guy or marry Lord John!” Btw Sam did an interview w Bazaar and he said he and Cait are asking for more creative control over the show and their characters going forward! Heres hoping they get it!! Welp off to finish The Fiery Cross! See you all next year!! Happy Droughtlander!

Ok i have done a medium-deep dive into the camera work on Outlander, for any production nerds like me. The first season was definitely filmed with a different camera, an “Alexa,” known for its filmic look. Season 1 had the same DP for all episodes, Neville Kidd. Then S2 they switched DPs. Its hard to find info on season 4 equipment but it sounds like since 2014 lots of shows that require a period look where DP/camera crew preferred using the Alexa, including The Crown, are being moved to a camera that can handle 4K definition, which the Alexa cannot. Plus the amount of CGI they used in S3 and now S4 bc of Scotland playing USA, they needed a different camera which seems to have a more digital look, plus the higher res is less filmic with less grain, etc. A camera dept fun fact: whenever there are candles lit, especially in castle scenes, the camera guys make sure the art dept lights only some, not all, to give a more authentic period look and less “we are on a set”....

Thank you, “production values” was the term I was searching for. Thats it. The production value seems to have gone down, overall. Its too bad because to me the acting (besides SS) the costumes and the set design have remained great—though I agree about the cabin and Jocastas interiors seem a bit more European than Colonial in design but still high quality work.... I originally began watching the show in S2 with a professional interest, having never heard of the books (have read them now). As a former film costumer (now full time mom) I still try to keep up with who is doing great work in costume/wardrobe and I had read that Outlander S2 costumes and sets were beautiful—they were and still are... Then of course fell irrationally in love with JAMMF like everyone else:) Even though I worked in film, I was so busy in my department that I never got into the technical aspects of cinematography/direction though I admire it. Over Droughtlander Im gonna go back and look at camera angles and shot choices—thank you for mentioning how much of a difference those choices can make. I just turned on “Sassenach” this weekend to get a sense of that old magic, and the difference was so stark it got me wondering... The majestic non green screen opening shot of the highlands—so transporting. The sequence that flashes back to WW2 with Claire in the makeshift hospital and guzzling the celebratory champagne in her exhaustion—the sum total of the choices they made there were so wonderful—i can see now that its mainly the directors choices and maybe the editing that made that scene great. Thanks for a bit of remedial film education! Im off to read about cinematography in my spare time!

He seems to still be Exec Producer but in reality Im not sure he has much involvement anymore, at least thats what it seems to me. Maybe someone else knows for sure...

Sometimes, when I get frustrated with the new season, i go back and watch wonderful season 1 instead. Does anyone know the difference in the way the show is shot season 1 vs now? it seems like they used a different kind of camera or maybe its just the lighting/tone of the cinematography. The shots in Season one seems so cinematic, like a feature film. The look of S3/4 to me is more soap opera. Does anyone know why this might be? Any cinematographers or photographers on here? I wonder if it has to do with Ron leaving—though I didnt like all his choices, he seemed a bit more experienced than MR/TG/MD?

I heard Duncan Lacroix in an interview say

I read somewhere else that the barn was supposed to be a place Roger had rented to stay in Wilmington...guess there was no room for him at the inn :) #Christmasjokes Agree that Roger and Bree have no chemistry. The handfasting part was nice, though. Sophie is doing better, but I have such a hard time getting behind Bree n Roger as a believable couple, and from now on they have a lot of plotlines... Bonnet is so despicable and Ed Speleers is so riveting in this role...

Why is Brianna at Balriggan? Didnt she just go straight to Lallybroch?

The ring😍! Jamie’s fur collar thing😍! Claire and LJGs bitchy fight😱😆! Cant wait for Bree at Lallybroch next week...

Right?! My dream man is back!!! ❤️❤️❤️❤️😍😍😍Murtagh❤️❤️❤️❤️

Hi all! Loved Jamie and Claires “normal” conversation (as normal as it can be when discussing your daughter 200 years in the future) and togetherness in this ep Roger’s song gave me the nerd chills. I liked him last season! Now not so sure. I amone who felt Sophie was much better acting wise in this ep than last season. That odd monotone seems to be mostly gone! Can someone remind me: in the book did Roger sell the rev’s house to Fiona? Are we meant to understand he is moving to the US? I thought he went back to Scotland. Why would he sell his (adoptive) family home? Downsizing :) ? Where was he planning on putting the 4 or 5 bairns he expected Brianna to be ready to bear? Oh Roger, I am so confused!

Haven’t read DOA in a while but this did seem very different from what I recall....Was that convo bw Jocasta and Claire where Jocasta asks Claire which part of RR she admires the most in the book? It seems that the producers are trying to really clarify Jamies decision to take Tryons offer despite Claires warnings that they will be on the wrong side of the coming war, by showing that it would be morally unbearable to J&C to stay at RR. I dont remember it being so clear in the book. I remember wondering why they didnt just stay at RR in the book. This made the decision very easy to understand. It was so unflinching. The actors did a great job. So terrible— I appreciated that they did not gloss over the horror. Lots to think about. Did I miss Jamie with a pitchfork like in S1? On the plus side the wigs and green screen were better this week!! I feel like Jamies pointing out how much alike Ellen & Jocasta are, is setting us up for Murtaghs return and his attraction to Jocasta!!!

I love this recapper too!! one of the funniest!! Another funny one is a New Zealand based site called The Spinoff....