Outlander Season 7 Review: The Series Still Understands The Assignment
The "Outlander" television series, like the books by Diana Gabaldon it's based on, knows its audience. The soap operatic show is loved by so many because of Claire (Caitríona Balfe) and Jamie (Sam Heughan) — a couple whose love and devotion to each other cannot break, not even when they are separated by centuries or subjected to every other horrible thing that could ever happen to a person.
The series' machinations provide a television viewing experience full of slowly gestating plot points buttressed by melodramatic moments. One could even say the events as they unfold are, in a word, ridiculous. And one who would say that isn't necessarily wrong, but would be missing the show's point.
"Outlander" isn't meant to be believable or fast-paced (or even medium-paced, for that matter). It is a slow burn, one that viewers eagerly watch because they want to see Jamie and Claire go through every tragedy imaginable and remain strong and unwavering in their love. Who wouldn't want to be loved like that? And — when one is inevitably pummeled by unimaginable hardships — who wouldn't want to come out the other side still strong and resilient? And there's also, of course, the sexy times.
The show's seventh season is set to premiere in mere days and based on the first four episodes I was sent beforehand, "Outlander" continues to properly serve its audience. The upcoming episodes make up for season 6's unsatisfying finale (which likely had such an abrupt ending because the season was truncated due to the pandemic) and provide a resolution for the series' extremely unresolved mysteries.
A good bad show
When we last saw the Frasers in 18th century North Carolina, Claire was off to be executed after being wrongly accused of murdering a young woman, with Jamie forcefully pulled away from her side. Season 7 starts out with Claire in jail, with only the insufferably pious Tom Christie (Mark Lewis Jones) there to make sure she stays safe until Jamie returns. Without getting into spoilers, the dangling threads from season 6 are addressed and tied up relatively promptly, leaving us ready to watch Jamie and Claire face the next set of hardships and tragedies that fate will throw at them. The American Revolution is finally here, after all, though the trials that the Frasers face go beyond just that. We also spend time with Jamie's secret son, William Ransom (Charles Vandervaart), who has come from England to the colonies to don a red soldier uniform to help quash the rebellion.
Once the season 6 storylines are tied up, season 7 of "Outlander" just ... marinates. Certain things happen, causing major decisions not only for Jamie and Claire, but for their daughter Brianna (Sophie Skelton), her husband Roger (Richard Rankin), and their children. Young Ian (John Bell) is also still around doing classic Young Ian things, and if you're waiting for something to just happen, you're going to be waiting longer than you might think. That, however, is most likely all well and good if you've enjoyed "Outlander" to this point. The relationships between these characters are what makes the series tick, so who cares if certain scenes meant to take place back-to-back have Claire's hair grow six inches in length? And if you're really into the dynamics of certain relationships, who cares that the bulk of an episode is people just talking to each other, sometimes (often?) in maudlin fashion?
If this sounds like a critique, it's mostly not. "Outlander," as I wrote above, knows what it is and its fans do too. So even though someone tuning in "Outlander" for the first time when season 7 premieres might wonder why the f*** nothing seems to be happening, those of us who've already spent hours and hours with these characters know that those long, action-less scenes are part of the recipe that makes the show so delicious to watch.
A series that understands the assignment
There are some great aspects of season 7 as well, things that even newcomers to the series will appreciate. There are the vivid landscapes of a colonial America, including vistas of a land yet to succumb to the concrete and cars that come in later centuries; there's the show's much-loved theme song, which this season features none other than Sinéad O'Connor(!) belting the lyrics; and there's some great acting peppered within the season as well, particularly from Caitríona Balfe's portrayal of Claire.
And while season 7 starts off slow, all signs point to things heating up after the first four episodes — the American Revolution now appears to be taking center stage in the life of the Frasers, and there are also some time travel exploits that bring a fresh perspective to the show.
At its core, however, "Outlander" remains a solid historical soap opera with characters — if you've watched the series for this long — you truly care about. It's a television experience you can escape in, and there's no better praise than that.
Season 7 of "Outlander" premieres on Friday, June 16 at 12:00 a.m. ET on the STARZ app, and all STARZ streaming and on-demand platforms, with the show airing at 8:00 p.m. ET/PT the same day on the Starz network. The first eight episodes of the season will drop on subsequent Fridays. The season's remaining eight episodes will air sometime in 2024.