How Outlander season 3 episode 7 sets the table for huge Caitriona Balfe episode

Caitriona Balfe episode

Over the past several weeks we’ve introduced our Outlander Emmy watch series, where we’ve done our best to chronicle standout moments for awards-show consideration.

For the sake of this article today we’re doing something a little different. We’re considering tonight’s “Creme de Menthe” as the metaphorical calm before the storm. In this case, the storm is a great performance for Caitriona Balfe on the show next week.

In comparison to “A. Malcolm” or “Freedom & Whisky,” we would say that “Creme de Menthe” was a lighter hour insofar as standout moments go. While Balfe and Sam Heughan were excellent in it — we’re hard-pressed to find an episode in which they are not — this episode isn’t going to surpass the ones before in terms of awards-show consideration. Yet, it is absolutely setting the stage for one of the most emotional, powerful episodes of the entire season next week.

Remember, there are few things that draw eyeballs from awards-show viewers quite like conflict — intense, emotional conflict. Through Jamie Fraser’s lie, Outlander opened the door for there to be power, fury, and heartbreak from Claire. She came back to Scotland unsure of what her future would hold for her (ironically in the past); what she found was a world that, while complicated, still contained a great deal of love and care. She found some immediate acceptance in Edinburgh and passionate love with Jamie.

It’s too bad that next week all of that could change with her return to Lallybroch. While there she will unfortunately have the chance to learn that Jenny is not altogether pleased to see her and that Jamie has a wife he really should have told her back. While we’re sure there will be anger, the emotion stems deeper than that. There is pain, and pain expresses itself in many different ways. It’s not always big and brash; it can often be soft and introspective when you don’t want others to see your suffering. While Claire had emptiness back in Boston, she also had a good life with good friends and a daughter she loved with all her soul. She left that for Jamie, and she is learning that the world she’s arrived into is not the world she envisioned. She will face a decision, and anyone knows that when Claire is in moments of crisis, Caitriona Balfe shines.

While we don’t want the jump the gun at CarterMatt, we’ve got a feeling that 3×08 is going to be a Balfe episode to remember and one to consider for an Emmy reel. Here’s to hoping that some of our initial projections on this subject turn out to be accurate.

For some other Outlander season 3 episode 7 coverage…

One of the things that we suggest you check out is the link here; that’s where you can read our full review. You can also click here to preview more of what is coming up next.

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