Spoilers ahead for Episode 2 of Outlander Season 7, called "The Happiest Place on Earth."
Outlander tied off some dangling plot threads that had been hanging for quite some time with "The Happiest Place on Earth," with the fateful fire starting in The Big House and the reveal that Allan Christie had murdered his sister. Between crises, however, the Frasers and MacKenzies headed to Wilmington on a mission for gemstones, leading to an emotional reunion between Jamie and Lord John. The two men are poised to fight on opposite sides of a war, and actor David Berry spoke with CinemaBlend about the stakes for Jamie and John after Episode 2.
Jamie and John reunited after Brianna was able to meet her half brother, although William had no idea that they shared a biological father. Bree encouraged Lord John to tell William the full truth about his paternity, but John and Jamie were on the same page about keeping him fully in the dark. That was just about all that the two old friends were on the same page about, however, thanks to Jamie siding with the Sons of Liberty and John unable to imagine a reality in which a band of rebels defeated the British crown.
When I spoke with David Berry and more of the Outlander cast for Season 7, he weighed in on how high the stakes are for John and Jamie after their reunion in a powerful scene with Sam Heughan:
Stakes are always high with that relationship! I think the stakes are always high on this show. That's what we love to play. The great thing about this show is the stakes are always heightened. Not quite a melodrama, but we have wars and passionate romances and stuff, and things are always on the line. In the context of this season, we have the war for independence, and that kind of underscores the relationship between Jamie and Lord John, so they find themselves on opposite sides. And of course their son in the middle, so who could have higher stakes than that?
David Berry, who was one of the stars who discussed their characters' priorities in Season 7, named William as the source of the immensely high stakes. Jamie did swear that he wouldn't face off against his son in battle, and John tried to use that to convince Jamie to fight for the crown. Instead, the reunion ended with Jamie deciding that it would be best for them not to see each other anymore, although he'd still consider John a friend.
As any fan who has watched on Starz over the years or streamed earlier seasons with a Netflix subscription knows, friendship is not what Lord John has only ever felt for Jamie. Berry continued to share what Jamie's decisions mean for his own character, saying:
I think Lord John really senses a huge sense of betrayal from Jamie and he's had his heart broken time and time again by Jamie, but I think he's kind of reached the limit of that. Maybe! Who knows? Love knows no boundaries. [laughs] Certainly at the end of that scene, I think there's a difference in their relationship and it's going to take a diversion for better or worse. I think in Lord John's case, probably worse, which we'll see. [laughs]
I can't be the only one who wonders just how different their situation might be if Lord John knew the course of the future like Jamie does! It's hard to blame John for being frustrated with Jamie for not siding with the crown; if Jamie didn't know for a fact that the Brits were going to lose the war courtesy of the time travelers in his family, John might have been able to sway him.
As it stands, executive producer Maril Davis previewed Jamie's thoughts on the revolution, and it certainly seems unlikely that he'll be donning a redcoat again or even sitting out the conflict. High stakes between old friends indeed! When I noted to David Berry that Lord John has been quite unlucky in love due to falling for Jamie and never getting over him, the actor made a very good point about his character:
Unlucky in a lot of things, actually!
At this point, there's no guarantee of when exactly fans will get to see David Berry as Lord John again, let alone when (or if) he'll reunite with Jamie again. He doesn't appear in the promo for Episode 3, although it seems safe to say that Jamie will have plenty to deal with at Fraser's Ridge in the aftermath of the fire. Still, war is certainly coming on Outlander, which could mean that Lord John and Jamie meet again as enemies. For now, take a look at the promo:
Lord John and Jamie certainly aren't the only characters facing high stakes in Season 7, as Episode 2 also saw Brianna and Roger take their children and travel through time back to the 20th century for the sake of their newborn daughter. It was a tear-jerking goodbye scene, but it also had actors Sophie Skelton and Richard Rankin trying not to giggle for a funny reason.
To find out what's next for the full Fraser family across time, tune in to Starz on Fridays at 8 p.m. ET for new episodes of Outlander. You can also find new episodes streaming on the Starz app at midnight E.T. on Fridays if you prefer streaming, or are just busy with other shows in the 2023 TV premiere schedule!
