User Reviews

It was interesting to see how much they kept from the book, including dialogue and actions.

The main difference is that it's supposed to be a rattle snake they find in their cabin and they toss it into the toilet. There is a humourous bit of Ian accidentally knocking William face first into the pit that is not in the show.

They removed a lot of the grisly measles description of LJG and Ian who both have it.

William never recognizes Jamie in the book (at least so far that I read) and there isn't any confrontation between the Cherokee and William over the fish.

Jamie and William go fishing and not hunting.

Jamie loves chess and it's one of the first things he makes after constructing the house.

Anything with Mutragh is made up for the show and sometimes he has Ian's dialogue.

John does not reveal that he almost had Jamie to Claire, but they do try to one up each other before making peace.

Overall, it was fun to watch the adaption.

I haven't read anything regarding Jamie and Claire's bath moments yet.

Wow what a marvelous scene between Lord John Gray and Claire. And indeed,altough he could never have his love answered bij Jamie he does have his son.... What a great "gift" of love. powerfull and made me cry

To anyone commenting on the age of young Willie aka William Clarence Henry George Ransom Ninth Earl of Ellesmere Viscount Ashness Master of Helwater Baron Derwent...don't forget that Jamie came home from Culloden healed for an undetermined amount of time, went to live in a cave as The Dun Bonnet for seven years Approximately 1753. Ardsmuir was in use as a prison until 1756. If they sent the prisoners away to the colonies after they finished turning into a garrison Jamie would have landed in Helwater somewhere around 1756-57. If Claire found Jamie in 1968 and went back as they say "It was 200 or so years ago" or 202 as in the first book/season she have landed back in 1766 making young Lord William less than 10 years old.

I'll admit that I am a sucker for any part of the story that has Lord John and Claire interacting from the outset. David Berry and Caitriona Balfe completely take over the episode even though they only have a few scenes together. There's just something about the complexity of that relationship, the jealousy, the mutual resentment, and the tension that is so entertaining to watch. And what makes Outlander so great is that you never feel that one or the other is without cause to feel the way that they do, that one's pain is somehow less than the other. John loves Jaime, and is crushed by the fact that he and Claire share a bond that he and Jaime never will. But the show does so well to take it a step further, because it is not just the bond, it's the satisfaction, the idea that Claire can make Jaime happy in a way that Lord John never could. It's sad because he feels that he was born to be the "right person" for Jaime, but knows that his heart belongs to another, knows that he cannot give Jaime that thing which Claire gives him. The best way to illustrate the difference between simple jealously and the feeling Lord John is struggling with is by way of example. It is like when Jaime takes Claire to the stones after Cranesmuir. He loves Claire, wants nothing more than to be with her, but accepts the fact that he may not be the "right person" for her, and is willing to let her go back to her own time and Frank. In the same way, Lord John is forced to live with this pain, forced to accept the fact that the person he loves will be happier with another person.

Claire's pain is no less significant, because while Lord John does not have the connection that Claire shares with Jaime, he has had time with him. Claire is jealous of that time, of the friendship and the intimacy they shared, even though they were only friends. It's so hard for her to come to grips with the time she lost with Jaime, with the fact that she was not able to raise her child with him. Lord John is a reminder of that, a reminder of the time that was lost and a reminder of intimacy that she was unable to share. It's just such a complex relationship that Claire and Lord John have (and trust me, if you've read the books you know it only grows more complex) and it really carries the episode.

Which is not to say that the other half of the episode is any less significant. Drawing on source material that was all about fatherhood, this is actually the first episode where you really see the theme come into focus, where Jaime is forced to reconcile himself to the fact his son is being raised by another man. It's so hard because while he is appreciative of what Lord John has done for his son, his son views him a stranger. This is why Jaime's adventures with Willie are so heartwarming and heartbreaking. Jaime essentially only has a few days to make up for a lifetime without his son, with constant small reminders that his son has changed and grown up since he last saw him (when Willie says he is too old for toys, that hits particularly hard). I think its important to understand a key difference between his relationship with Willie compared to Brianna. Brianna is fully raised by another man. The ghost of Frank Randall haunts Jaime in a way that Lord John doesn't because Jaime actually spends time with Willie in his youth. In some ways it might be harder for Jaime because he remembers his son as a small child, and then is shocked when they are reunited years later and he has changed and grown up without Jaime.

All in all, Blood of My Blood ends the First and Much Better Half of Season 4 on an incredibly high note!

So sorry but I thought that William totally was miscast. He totally wasn't likeable. I don't want to hurt the actor, but I was totally distracted by his 'angry' face. Horrible. I love this show somehow (how does Claire has such a wonderful wardrobe in that wilderness and the house/cabin was decorated over one episode?) Anyway, it's fun. But no more ugly William for me, please!

Is Jamie so incredibly attractive that every women and men are in love with him or want to have s ex? What's up with that??!!

The gay agenda.. I don't know if it comes from the book, or it is added to accompany these stup1d times. Maybe in season 6 most of the cast is black so we have all the agendas included.

And what about the son?? Las time he saw him was what? 6? 7? And now is 10 or 12 at MOST.. nobody notice that?? At least 10 years passed since he left. Ridiculous.

This whole episode was an excuse for gaylove. Don't like it.

This will likely go down as my favourite episode, with 3 seasons left to watch to be caught up. Jamie and Claire at their best, the wonderful David Berry doing his thing as Lord John, and of course Murtagh. I like the actor that plays William at this age, slightly snarky but endearing, and more perceptive than Jamie initially counted on. "Mac?" Augh. The scene with him taking responsibility with the Cherokee for his mistake (and their subsequent acknowledgment of it), was a great bit.

I could honestly feel the chill in the weather!

I expect this is the last episode without the angst of Brianna and Roger, and so I'll hold on to this one more dearly for that. I don't dislike the actors themselves, but their characters are frustrating at best. I'm not interested in the books so I don't know if that's how they're written, but they already annoy me.

While I talked about perhaps too much action in the last episode in this one we needed a whole bunch more.

This show sure knows how to write compelling dialogue, but in all honesty the scene with the "savages" and Jamie at the creek was the only noteworthy moment.