Outlander season 3 episode 5: Caitriona Balfe’s perfect showcase

If you remember, last week we wrote a piece detailing how Outlander season 3 episode 4 would be a huge benefit to Sam Heughan’s Emmy campaign.

Following Outlander season 3 episode 5 on Sunday, it feels fair to say the same thing in regards to Caitriona Balfe. “Freedom & Whisky” was start to finish the strongest Balfe episode of the season, and maybe the best overall for her as a performer since season 2’s “Faith” — the episode that we believed helped to get her a Golden Globe nomination. She should’ve also gotten some Emmy love for that, but in the major acting categories we’ve seen the show routinely and rather-unfortunately snubbed.

What made “Freedom & Whisky” such an exceptional showcase for Balfe is that you saw just about every different layer she brings to Claire. This wasn’t just a story about sadness, or a celebration of her reunion with Jamie. She experienced everything, and you could both see it in her face and the way that she carried herself within some of her scenes.

Sadness – The best example of this was her Christmas conversation with Claire. She was excited for her future but full of sorrow to lose Brianna potentially forever. There was another sadness in knowing that she could not bring her to travel through the stones with her, but she knew that the sadness in Boston would be far better than down the road in Scotland. That was a sorrow she couldn’t bear to experience then.

Comfort – Her friendship with Joe Abernathy gave us a chance to see Claire with a work partner and confidante — one of the few people who could truly experience much of what she felt. He doesn’t know about her time traveling, but there was an ease that Balfe and Wil Johnson brought to these scenes. Despite only appearing within a few episodes you could buy into the thought of them being close friends in a way that you very rarely can on television.

Pain – The scene at the Harvard dedication with Sandy was gut-wrenching since you were forced to see things from a different side as a viewer — and the same goes for Claire. She hadn’t fully experienced the way Sandy, Frank Randall’s longtime mistress and love, viewed their relationship. We felt for Claire deeply within that moment — you could see in Balfe’s face the memories of Frank rushing back, and they were slightly augmented and twisted by some of what Sandy was facing.

Joy – The closing minutes within the A. Malcolm Print Shop tell you everything that you need to know there. Sure, Jamie fainted, but he’ll be fine!

Insecurity – Perhaps Balfe’s best performance of all came right before she stepped into said Print Shop for the first time, and she didn’t even have to say a word for it to be effective. You could see her anxiety, her trying to prepare herself, and also her excitement and hope within just a few little movements of her face and her hands. Despite in being the 18th century, Caitriona was able to portray some of the most relatable emotions of the entire series to date.

What do you think about Caitriona Balfe’s latest Outlander performance?

Do you think this will be an episode to remember with her? Share now in the attached comments and click here to read all of our other coverage at CarterMatt tonight! That includes both a review for Sunday night’s new episode and also a preview for what is coming up in two weeks.

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