Blood of My Blood (S1E4): “A Soldier’s Heart” (Review)

Image courtesy of Starz.

Blood of My Blood, already renewed for a second season, is four episodes into a successful premier season, and episode four, “A Soldier’s Heart”, stylistically fits into the filmed Outlander universe. 

Outlander author Diana Gabaldon has been clear that the show Blood of My Blood should not be considered as fully “hers”, as Henry and Julia’s storyline is more that of the show creator, Matthew B. Roberts.Though some book readers may spend hours pontificating the differences between the show and the many anecdotes from the written series by Gabaldon, they can–and perhaps, should–be treated as separate works, in keeping with film and literary adaptation studies (for armchair film and pop culture scholars, please see Julie Sanders’ work, Adaptation and Appropriation). 

Faeries and Nettle

The episode opens with Julia (Hermione Corfield), who has “angered the faerie folk” for spilling milk and must atone by making an offering to the faerie folk. Julia picks a few sprigs of nettle and quotes J.M. Barrie’s Peter Pan: “When the first baby laughed for the first time, its laugh broke into a thousand pieces, and they all went skipping about, and that was the beginning of fairies”. Julia is full of quotable goodies in general, but in this episode, in particular. 

She connects a baby in a womb with faeries, and viewers of Outlander will remember that Claire is frequently rumoured to be of the faerie folk. In this scene, a quick shot of Julia’s hand touching wisps of grass is reminiscent of similar shots of Claire. But the Peter Pan references aren’t finished there: in a flashback to the 1920s, Julia holds her favourite childhood book, Peter Pan, when she feels the movement of the baby (who we know will be Claire) in her womb. 

Back in Scotland, Julia continues to write to Henry (which serves a nice purpose of giving the voiceover a reason to exist) then brushes the nettle on her skin to create a rash (Outlander viewers: remember the scene with Jamie and Claire and the nettle? Claire sleeps with King Louis in France to save Jamie but feels guilt; he brushes her skin with the nettle to help her expunge some of this guilt–and here we have Julia self-inducing the same punishment in another act of having coerced sex in order to save a life). 

And with That, It’s Time for a Brothel Scene

Would it really be in the Outlander universe if we didn’t have regular scenes in brothels? Enter Henry (Jeremy Irvine)  with his own form of infidelity-in-order-to-survive. The brothel’s madame presents him with an “English” woman, Seema, who has the “brown hair and kind eyes” Henry has described (really, Henry? That’s the description you’ve provided in searching for your missing wife? No wonder you can’t find Julia…). Seema (Lauren McQueen) tells him the madame doesn’t want to lose his business, so he feels pity for her and stays.

Castle Leathers

Back at Castle Leathers, Brian (Jamie Roy) hands Lovat (Tony Curran) a letter from the Grants, “written by their bladier” (who we know to be Henry!). Lovat is determined to prove that Ellen is “tarnished” so he can weaken Clan MacKenzie. Julia enters, Lovat starts touching her and sees her “rash”, and then backs off as it might be contagious. He immediately approves her request to go to the apothecary, to whom Brian agrees to take her. 

The set design for Castle Leathers is cleverly done in vertical bars to symbolize prison bars, since Julia is being kept prisoner. The rest of the castle is very dark, with hardly any light at all, and what appears to be a threadbare potato sack curtain marks off the privy, where we frequently find Lovat. Poverty and darkness are clearly the theme here. 

Those MacKenzie Siblings

Cut to Ellen (Harriet Slater) and Colum (Seamus McLean Ross) discussing upcoming Beltane and her reluctance to marry Malcolm Grant. Column tells Ellen that the MacKenzies are essentially broke, but when Ellen points out they’ll need a dowry, Column counters with “Kine rather than coin”–meaning a bartered deal. 

But when Colum says Ellen will be their spy in Clan Grant, she counters by pointing out that by selling a woman to a clan, she is sold entirely–her body, her soul, and her loyalty. 

Castle Leoch is a little worn down, though nowhere near as rough as Castle Leathers. Its cobblestone walls and wood panelling have some heavier tapestries on the walls, though they are looking a bit faded. There is still very little light–even the fires in the hearths and lanterns are quite small and few and far between. 

As Ellen storms away, she crosses Dougal (Sam Retford) who immediately continues the argument of her betrothal.

Flashbacks and Falconry 

Henry stands outside of Castle Grant, which is wealthy bright yellow with clean lines, a great deal more light, and green grass with trimmed topiaries through the garden. 

Isaac Grant (Brian McCardie, who passed away this past April, hence why the episode is dedicated to him) holds a falcon (symbolizing sending Henry to collect and bring Grant the rent money). Mr. Bug (Terence Rae) spends the entire scene (and episode, really) smirking and side-eyeing Henry. 

Meanwhile, Julia and Brian ride along in a cart together en-route to the apothecary. He asks about her “condition” (the rash), but mostly the wagon scenes serve to show their growing friendship. 

When Henry collects the rents for Grant, the people are angered about the price hike, and others are too poor to pay anything at all, offering to barter with farm goods like honey. Mr. Bug encourages “being firm” while continuing to give Henry side eye. Henry gets attacked by a man, fights back, and slides into a bit of a fugue PTSD state. A necklace with a charm drops from him to the mud, snapping him out of his fight. 

That night, a sleeping Henry is trapped in a night terror where he is in the trenches of WWI.

A soldier lights a cigarette, and Henry screams. He is curled up on the bedroom floor of the 1920s flat, and Julia has turned on the light, making Henry think they are about to be blown up. He has a full blown panic attack, but Julia calms him by singing to him and holding him (“Hurry Me Back to Blighty”, a song that connects to homesickness). Julia removes her necklace and puts it in Henry’s hand–a charm of Saint Anthony (Patron Saint of Lost Items), to watch over Henry. This is the charm he has in Scotland.

Henry wakes back in Scotland. He has been screaming in his sleep, and Mr. Bug has woken him–though he seems confused and almost disgusted by Henry.

Back in the wagon with Brian and Julia, she asks Brian why he stays at Castle Leathers if he is clearly unhappy there. He explains that he did leave but missed his mother’s haggis. She says his mother would want better for him. She tells him, “Mother is the name for God in the lips and hearts of little children” (a quote from William Thackeray in Vanity Fair). 

Back to the 1920s’ flat, where Julia and Henry discuss lotteries and contests. Henry is against the very concept of a lottery, but Julia tells him that “People can’t survive on bread alone” (referencing the Bible, Matthew 4:4).

We flit back to Henry in Scotland, where he introduces a lottery. For more money paid, tickets are given. The winner will live rent free for a year. 

Returning to Brian and Julia, we learn that he has taken her to Castle Leoch. He notices her rash is gone. He sends a message to Ellen through Julia. He swears friendship to Julia, who agrees to take the message. She walks right up to the castle in the dark, where one guard only sees her as reaches the door (Perhaps Castle Leoch needs better guard training?).

She asks to see Mrs. Fitzgibbons (Murtagh’s aunt), as Brian instructed her to do. Mrs. Fitz immediately takes to Julia, bonding as servants, and Julia finds out Ellen is about to be married. She feigns faintness, and Mrs. Fitz leaves her to rest. Instead, Julia follows Mrs. Fitz to find out where Ellen’s room is. When Mrs. Fitz leaves, Julia knocks and seeks entrance, and Ellen begrudgingly lets her in (Julia tells Ellen, “I’m the bridge” referring to the bridge where Ellen and Brian met before, but this could also refer to Julia, like Henry, being used as a falcon to retrieve something of value).

Ellen tells Julia she is a prisoner until Beltane, which will happen on “the faerie hill” (Craigh na Dun) and relates the stories of faeries playing tricks with time. Julia convinces Ellen to go to Brian, so they steal out of the castle and find him. Ellen and Brian confirm their love just as Dougal arrives, so Julia and Brian steal away into the night. Ellen tells Dougal that she is out for a walk and a prayer and is “not a caged bird” (another reference to cages and imprisonment). Dougal threatens to beat her, so she returns to the castle. 

Brian and Julia are back on the wagon (ahem…) when Julia tells him Malcolm Grant will be at Beltane, too, but that she will help Brian. She asks for Brian’s help finding Henry, and he agrees. Back at Castle Leoch: Ellen hands Colum a list of wedding guests. She pretends to go along with the marriage. 

Henry returns to Castle Grant with a heavy coin bag, though Grant is still displeased with the idea of a lottery. He tells Henry that Scots can only respect strength and see kindness as weakness (though we could do a lot with this line alongside those from Julia this episode, couldn’t we?). 

Back in the 1920s, Henry apologizes for scaring Julia with his flashbacks, telling her that “There’s something broken in me.” Julia’s words comfort him in a way that connects to her words comforting her while in Scotland when she writes to Henry. Words are clearly her comfort; she finds solace in them, peace with them, and heals and comforts with them. Viewers have to wonder what will happen if and when those words fail her.

Henry tells her if the baby is a girl, they will name her Claire, French for clear and bright.

In Scotland, Henry returns to Seema and pays her to lie down near him for comfort. The scene is rendered all the sadder for the comfort and peace we saw in the previous one with Julia, discussing their hopes for baby Claire. 

The episode’s final scene sees Julia back at Leathers, summoned by Lovat, who waves her forward with clearly sexual intentions. Julia tells him she is pregnant with “his” child. There are no words offered from anyone to comfort her, and her situation is just as bleak as it was at the beginning of the episode. 

This episode is titled “A Soldier’s Heart”, but something along the lines of “The Falcon and the Bridge” might have been more apt. Episode 5, “Needfire”, will be released on Friday, August 29 on the Starz network/app.

Link to original article on Nerd Daily: https://thenerddaily.com/blood-of-my-blood-season-1-episode-4-a-soldiers-heart/