Outlander season 4 character questions: Charting the future for Ulysses
This character has the potential going in to be somewhat of a fan favorite, similar in some ways to what we had a chance to see from Gary Young as Willoughby during season 3. He’s someone who brings a very different background and perspective to the show and he is also so much more than one fundamental element of his past as a slave.
Before we go into exploring what could be highlighted for the character on the show itself, let’s kick things off here first and foremost by describing who the character really is. This is a man forced to endure a great deal of tragedy for most of his childhood and that ended up greatly shaping him. Yet, so did the people he ended up being with as a slave. He was luckier than most in that he developed the ability to read and write. Following that, though, his life changed yet again when Hector Cameron bought him. Hector in turn taught Ulysses further to do a wide array of different things and recognized his value.
This brings us to one of the biggest aspects of the story we want to see explored with this character: The issue of slavery versus authority. While Ulysses may be educated and talented, he is at the same time still a man brought up and purchased through slavery. He was still viewed as property and would be if he ever left Hector and Jocasta in River Run.
Of course, this then brings us into the second thing that is important to learn about: The relationship that formed over time between Jocasta and Ulysses. If the series follows the events of the books, Hector will have died the winter before Jamie’s arrival to River Run and Ulysses is one of the few people who can help to care for her. The two also have a romantic history that should be explored, as should be the option that Ulysses had to leave at any point if he wanted to. He never did, though, realizing that he cared about Jocasta and that the odds were high he would be enslaved somewhere else if he departed.
In summation, Ulysses is a complicated character with a very deep history that should be presented in some form on the series. He represents everything from a rare example of relative sovereignty to also being a key component in Jocasta’s survival. Given that season 4 is only 13 episodes, we recognize that there is only so much that can be said about this character and his journey; yet, there is enough backstory here to easily fill a couple of episodes if producers so choose. The biggest thing production can do to make this character effective is flesh him out, show his relationship with Jocasta, and then share in turn the relationship that Jamie and Claire Fraser could have with him. They did know grow up in this particular climate when it comes to slavery and with that, may view Ulysses in a way in which he appreciates. It’s also lovely to have Colin McFarlane playing this character, as he is a stellar actor who really should be able to find his inner depth and humanity in fine fashion.
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