Recap / Outlander S 3 E 4 Of Lost Things

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Recap of Outlander
Season 3, Episode 4:

Of Lost Things

While serving as groomsman at the aristocratic estate of Helwater, Jamie is reluctantly pulled into the social politics of a noble British family. In 1968 Scotland, Claire, Brianna, and Roger struggle to trace Jamie's whereabouts in history, leaving Claire to wonder if she will ever find him again.

Tropes:

• Adaptational Consent: In the show, Jamie is depicted as angry about Geneva's demand, but ultimately sympathetic to her desire to have a nice experience for her first time. In the book, Jamie is so angry over her blackmail that he ignores her when she gets scared at the last moment and asks him to stop. He continues on with the act as she cries that he's hurting her and that she doesn't want to do it anymore.
• Affair? Blame the Bastard: Lord Ellesmere threatens to kill Geneva's newborn baby because he knows that the child is not his and that Geneva had to have been sleeping around. He very explicitly threatens to kill the baby rather than let it be known he was played for a fool.
• Affectionate Nickname: Joe refers to Claire as "Lady Jane."
• Arranged Marriage: Geneva's parents arrange for her to marry the much older Duke of Ellesmere.
• Asshole Victim: Although, he was the victim of adultery, killed by his wife's lover, it's hard to feel sorry for Lord Ellesmere when he died screaming about how he deserved a pure virgin, not soiled goods, and threatening to murder a newborn baby just hours after its birth.
• Bastard Angst: Keeping Willie's parentage a secrets requires a lot of people to lie and look the other way on a great number of things including murder in self-defense. Still, Willie gets extremely upset when Jamie uses the word bastard, implying that he's likely heard rumors about his legitimacy.
• Big Damn Heroes: Jamie shoots Lord Ellesmere to keep him from killing baby William.
• Big Damn Kiss: Roger and Bree, when they kiss for the first time.
• Blaming the Victim: Isobel slaps Jamie, blaming him for Geneva's death. In reality, Geneva raped Jamie and then died as a consequence of the resulting pregnancy.
• Big Fancy House: The Helwater and Ellesmere estates. Ellesmere's estate is even bigger than Helwater.
• Child by Rape: William is the result of Geneva blackmailing Jamie into an unwanted sexual encounter.
• Conveniently Interrupted Document: The expansive National Archives of Scotland houses manifests of every ship to go in and out of Scottish ports going back half a millenia, except for the century during which Jamie Fraser lived.
• Death by Childbirth: Geneva's fate.
• Deadpan Snarker: John when Jamie asks if he intends to marry a woman.
  Lord John: I am to be married.
  Jamie: Married? To a woman?
  Lord John: I think there are not many alternatives. But yes, since you ask, to Lady Isobel.
• Double Standard Rape: Female on Male: Geneva's sexual extortion of Jamie. He emphatically verbalizes that he does not wish to have sex with her, but once they're having sex, it's framed as sweet and sensual, a kindness Jamie performed for a foolish but desperate girl. In reality, it's rape. Jamie has alway been characterized as monogamous, faithful to Claire in the extreme, going six years after she left before he finally has sex with another woman, and even then he cries over the thought of breaking his vows. Additionally, Jamie has been very violently raped in the past. Black Jack manipulating Jamie into sex was shown as extremely mentally distressing, while Geneva's manipulation are treated as merely irritating and don't appear to trigger Jamie's rape Trauma Button in any way.
• Drawing Straws: Lady Geneva is so unlikeable, the grooms draw straw to determine who will have to put up with her during her daily ride.
• Entitled to Have You: Geneva's attitude towards Jamie. She's his boss' daughter and a member of the aristocracy, so she's entitled to have whatever she wants, including his body. Jamie points out that this is crass and below her, but she's determined. When he arrives at her chambers, he again reminds her that she's forcing him, but she haughtily replies "You may undress now."
• Foreshadowing: Played with. When Lord Ellesmere sees Jamie's red hair, he remarks that if he had a child with hair that color, he would've killed it before it drew its second breath. Flash forward to mere moments after Willie's birth and Lord Ellesmere is threatening to kill the boy.
• Friendly Address Privileges: Invoked. After blackmailing Jamie into sleeping with her, Geneva tries to call him "Jamie." He tells her he will not tolerate her calling him the name used by his friends and family. She is to call him Alex instead, the name he uses for people he can't trust with his real identity.
• Friendship Moment: Lord John agreeing to care for Willie while refusing Jamie's offer of a sexual favor in return. Jamie has always been somewhat suspicious of John's motives for continually doing nice things for him, suspecting it to be a slow burning attempt at seduction. But this confirms that John is simply a good man who wants to be a good friend. Jamie wholeheartedly tells John that he will always have Jamie's friendship.
  Jamie: I'm grateful to you. And you shall always have my friendship, if that has any value to ye.
  Lord John: A very great value indeed.
• Gilded Cage: Despite the beautiful scenery, Helwater is still a prison for Jamie. Also, invoked by Lady Isobel, bemoaning the fact that her father keeps horses captive, even in a stable as nice as Helwater's.
• Heroic Sacrifice: Averted. Jamie loves Willie enough that he is willing to sleep with Lord John to ensure the boy's well-being, in spite of Jamie's traumatic past with sex with men. Fortunately, John is honorable enough to turn down the offer and promise to take care of Willie without requiring a quid pro quo payment.
• Incompatible Orientation: Averted. Lady Isobel has a crush on Lord John. Jamie, knowing the truth of Lord John's sexuality, tries to let her down easy, advising her that Lord John is dedicated to his military career and will likely never marry. In the end, Lady Isobel and Lord John agree to marry, with Lord John assuring Jamie that he tested his capacity in London and he's sure he can fulfill his "husbandly duties" to Isobel.
• Indentured Servitude: Jamie is now serving his parole as a groom at Helwater.
• Innocently Insensitive: Willie repeats the bigoted things his grandmother says about Catholics, the faith that Jamie practices. But he says it in such a way that it's clear that he doesn't understand that a person might be offended by such words.
• Internal Reveal: Lord Melton learns that his brother, Lord John, has arranged parole for Red Jamie at Helwater instead of allowing Jamie to be shipped to another prison.
• Karmic Death: Geneva blackmails Jamie into sleeping with her. In doing so, he impregnated her. She seems pleased to be carrying his child, possibly because it will strengthen her leverage over Jamie. She then dies giving birth to the child.
• Maternity Crisis: Isobel comes to fetch Jamie, asking him to prepare the carriages. They need to go to Ellesmere post-haste as Geneva has gone into labor and it is not going well.
• Nature Adores a Virgin: Lord Ellesmere takes this to the extreme, threatening to kill a newborn baby because the mother obviously wasn't a virgin.
• Old Money: Both the Dunsany and Ransom families are families several generations strong in the British peerage. Ludovic is the eighth Earl and William will be the ninth to hold the title. Both families are very wealthy with historic estates.
• Outliving One's Offspring: Jamie and Lord Dunsany briefly discuss the children they've lost. Additionally, Geneva dies, meaning Lord and Lady Dunsany have outlived two of their three children. In a season 4 episode, Lord John will reveal that Lady Isobel died of dysentery while making her way to the Americas. In a season 5 episode, he says he'll be returning to England, as William will need assistance managing his estates following the death of Lord Dunsany.
• Reasonable Authority Figure: Despite having lost a son at Prestonpans, Lord Dunsany doesn't hold it against Jamie as a Highlander. He even seems to feel a small measure of kinship when he learns that Jamie has also lost children. He agrees to keep Jamie's past a secret from his more vindictive wife and offers to pay him a small stipend for his work.
• Rich Bitch: Geneva loves reminding Jamie that her higher social status gives her power over him. Through the episode, she calls him a "useless Scotchman", calls Lallybroch "quaint", and tells him that crass language suits him. When Jamie inevitably lashes back at her, she's genuinely shocked that he would dare speak to her in such a manner and reminds him that she can destroy his life with a word to either of her parents.
• Right Behind Me: Played with. Jamie, irritated with the way Geneva spoke with him, comments to another groom that the girl could use a swift kick in the behind, only to have Isobel ask from behind "Are you talking about my sister?" Jamie begins verbally backpedaling only for Isobel to laugh and admit it's true but that it probably wouldn't help.
• Scarpia Ultimatum: Geneva demands Jamie sleep with her or she will reveal his Jacobite status to her mother who will in turn have his parole revoked, sending him back to prison, and additionally she can convince the Redcoats to resume their harassment of Jamie's family at Lallybroch.
• Sentimental Homemade Toy: Jamie carves a snake for Willie, just like the one Jamie's older brother made for him that Jamie carried for decades after his brother's death.
• Sex Equals Love: Averted. In the immediate aftermath of having sex, Geneva declares her love for Jamie. He corrects her, telling her that what she's feeling is not love. It's merely the chemicals released during sex which can make feelings very confusing. He tells her that love is an exchange of hearts and souls, not just a coming together of bodies.
• Sex for Services: Averted. Jamie, unfortunately conditioned to having to have sex in order to keep his family safe, offers to let Lord John Grey have him if Lord John will agree to look after Jamie's son William and act as William's father, despite the fact that sex with men is a major Trauma Button for Jamie. Thankfully, Lord John is too honorable to take advantage of Jamie in this way, despite his major crush on the man, and simply agrees to care for William without requiring payment.
• Sexless Marriage: The reason Geneva's husband knows the baby is a bastard.
• Sexual Extortion: Geneva Dunsany forces Jamie into sleeping with her, by threatening Lallybroch.
• She Is Not My Girlfriend: Roger's response to Brianna teasing him about Fiona's obvious crush.
• Shout-Out: Lord Dunsany refers to Jamie as the Scottish Prisoner. This is the name of one of the Lord John Grey novels that features Jamie and John working to uncover and stop a looming attempt at a Jacobite Rebellion, this time by the Irish.
• Standing Between the Enemies: Jamie physically steps in between the Duke of Ellesmere and Lord Dunsany, despite the fact that he's unarmed and the men are armed with a knife and a gun respectively.
• Strong Family Resemblance: Willie looks so much like his father, Jamie eventually has to leave Helwater to keep Willie's bastard status from being revealed.
• Stunned Silence: Lord John is so shocked by Jamie's offer of sex in exchange for caring for Willie that it takes him several moments to form a response.
• Title Drop: Jamie explains to Willie that he prays to his saint figurine to honor all the things and all the people he's lost.
• Wounded Gazelle Gambit: Invoked and subverted. Geneva pretends to be unconscious after being thrown by her horse in order to get Jamie to pick her up and hold her. Once he does, intending to carry her back to medical care, she giggle and tries to hug him, saying that she knew he would do what she wanted. Irritated, Jamie immediately lets go, dropping her into a mud puddle.