**This is not a spoiler-free review of this episode. This review is also from a non-reader, and any comments revealing spoilers from the books will be deleted.**
The tea is hot.
Episode 805: “Send for the Devil”
Written by Luke Schelhaas, directed by Niall MacCormick
Cunningham (Kieran Bew), you scum.
Jamie’s (Sam Heughan) worst tenant ever attempts to capture Jamie in an ill-conceived plot to lay claim to Fraser’s Ridge.
Thankfully, Aaron Whitaker (Tomisin Ajani) warns Jamie of the impending plot, a way of thanking Jamie and Claire (Caitriona Balfe) for saving his wife and children.
Meanwhile, Amaranthus (Carla Woodcock) continues to be sus, as the kids say nowadays (that’s short for suspicious, FYI). Is she treating poor William (Charles Vandervaart) like a colonial rebound, or does she have genuine feelings for him?
How sus that she was willing to ride his horse, if you will, after William said he’d be happy to give their firstborn his title. I LOVED the timing of Ben’s (Alex Bhat) appearance after William’s tryst with Ben’s wife.
If there’s one character who wins the award for the worst luck in colonial dating, it’s JAMIE’S BASTARD SON.
Someone make an 18th-century version of Hinge. William clearly needs some help.
The only man I trusted besides Jamie in this episode.
Once Aaron warns Jamie of the nefarious plot, our favorite Scot springs into action. It sent CHILLS down my spine seeing him don his kilt again. Claire asks him not to go, but it’s clear to her and the audience that there’s no turning back for James Malcolm McKenzie Fraser.
This is his land after all, his life, his reputation. Of course, he has to fight.
I hated that Claire and Brianna (Sophie Skelton) were forced to wait in this episode for their respective husbands not to die. Needless to say, I cheered when Brianna agreed with me later on in the episode. She doesn’t ask William for permission to go and look for Roger (Richard Rankin). She’s going, no matter what.
Like mother, like daughter.
Speaking of Roger, our favorite priest has no business being on a battlefield. I loved how the episode wove in the Fraser motto — Je suis prest — through Christophe, the little drummer boy that Roger encounters before the fight begins. He manages to save Christophe from the battlefield after the boy is severely wounded, saving his life.
I knew Roger wasn’t going to die when he was hit by that blast. There are only a few episodes left. There’s literally no time for Roger to die.
Aye, thank Heaven, I’m not on Game of Thrones.
I WILL give this episode credit for making me genuinely concerned for Jamie’s safety. The problem with our leading man is his honesty. He prefers to fight fair. But his adversary has no qualms with a dirty battle. The Lodge scene was one of the most tense scenes I’ve watched on this show in a while. I loved that Jamie’s men rallied behind him without question (hearing Mac Dubh again was another nice callback.)
Basically, Cunningham planned to capture Jamie and deliver him to his commanding officer to be hanged as a traitor. So Jamie dips out of the Lodge meeting early, grabbing a pistol that Lizzie (Caitlin O’Ryan) quietly left by the hill earlier in the episode.
Cunningham and Jamie inevitably face off. I was wondering what trick he’d pull when he laid his gun down. The scumbag quickly pulls out a knife moments later. I WINCED when Cunningham nearly stabbed Jamie in the heart. I just KNOW Claire would have KICKED HIS ASS if she were there.
Kudos to this scene, which was clutching my PEARLS. There was no way Jamie was going to die before King’s Mountain, right? It was a masterful moment because both men had been prophesied to live past that fight. And yet, I was genuinely wondering who would manage to kill the other by the end of it.
He doesn’t even go here!!
Buck (Diarmaid Murtagh) saves the day with a well-placed bullet to Cunningham’s back. The prophecy said the scumbag would live another five years, but it didn’t say whether he’d be able to walk.
Claire follows her oath to do no harm and manages to keep Cunningham alive. It must’ve been so hard for her, knowing his evil intentions towards Jamie.
Meanwhile, William slaps Ben, when in all actuality, Ben has every right to slap William for sleeping with his wife.
I’m FINALLY interested in that side plot. It’s obvious Ben faked his death in order to switch sides. Does Amaranthus know? Is that why she’s so eager to snap up William, to secure a stable future?
Meanwhile, Brianna continues to be the sanest one of the bunch in this episode. I loved that moment when Roger pleaded with God not to kill him, “or else you’ll have my wife to answer for!”
The episode where Jamie reconsiders being a landlord.
It turns out the devil in the episode wasn’t Cunningham — it was Benjamin Cleveland (Turlough Convery). Eager to get his hands on more Tories, Ben backs Jamie, showing up a day late and asking for whiskey the moment he arrives on the Ridge.
I do kind of miss hearing Frank’s (Tobias Menzies) disembodied voice. However, Frank’s threat appears to be slowly coming to fruition. Since Jamie accepted Ben’s help against Cunningham, Ben will likely want Jamie’s help during the King’s Mountain battle. This season has been a masterclass in the dangers of prophesies, and I’m SO WORRIED FOR EVERYONE.
In other words, kids, don’t read about your future.
Ignorance is bliss.
Speaking of that, can we stop trying to make William and Amaranthus (Willanthus?) the only romance this season? The bench scene just made me cringe. I NEED MORE CLAIRE AND JAMIE IN GENERAL, STAT.
Until next time!
NEXT WEEK ON FRIDAY, APRIL 10TH AT 8 PM ET: EPISODE 806: “BLESSED ARE THE MERCIFUL”
Synopsis: “The Frasers and the MacKenzies recover after their respective battles and consider their next steps; Ian and Rachel meet someone who they hope can help them find Emily.“
