Outlander – Season 7 Episode 5 “Singapore” Recap & Review

Singapore

Episode 5 of Outlander season 7 titled ‘Singapore’ begins with Brianna finding her kids playing in the graveyard. Jem says he speaks to Jamie and has built a cairn for him. Bree breaks down as they all wonder if Jamie and Claire are buried there. Unable to take it anymore, she opens the next letter and finds that the Frasers are stuck in Fort Ticonderoga. 

In the letter, Claire reveals that it is June 1777 and Jamie can leave after a month of service. Young Ian has rejoined them while Jamie has trouble warning the general of their weak spot on Sugarloaf Hill across the river.

Meanwhile, William is bantering with the Hunters on the views of death when they come across the Johnsons who claim they are on the wrong path. Since it is late, the trio agree to stay with them. The old couple complain about both armies looting them every time they pass through and William is troubled. They can barely make do as they eat rats for their dinner and the Hunters are disgusted as they don’t touch the food. 

Trouble is afoot at the dam as the men give their new female boss the cold shoulder. Brianna asks for a tour and Rob Cameron is suddenly polite and also tells her about the drinks at a bar every night.

He and his crew, Craig Dowd and Andy Pfeiffer trick her into going into a tunnel and lock her in. She is furious but having memorised the route, she finds the exit. Suddenly, there is some screeching and a blue-lit glowing barrier between her and the exit appears. She runs past it and she is in the clear again.

Elsewhere, Young Ian is tasked with taking a letter to a Joseph Brant in Shadow Lake. It happens to be the village of his ex-wife, Emily and he is hesitant. He asks Claire if there is something wrong with him since Emily had a miscarriage when she was with him but now has a son with her new husband.

With Emily’s mother stating that his spirit is weak, Ian declares not to take a wife if he cannot give her children. Claire comforts him and says it has nothing to do with his spirit and scientifically, unless proven otherwise he has a chance to have children which makes him happy.

Back at the Johnsons, William wakes up to immense stomachache due to the stew that only he ate. He sees the old couple attacking them and the trio try to fend them off. He ends up killing Mr Johnson which shakes him while they knock out the old lady.  

While William is trying to come to terms with his first kill, Rachel comforts him. She and Denzell find out that the couple were luring passersby and killing and looting them. They soon part ways as they reach near the Fort and William gives them Ian’s money.

Jamie has bigger troubles as Fort Ticonderoga has a glaring weak spot. With his cousin, Simon Fraser leading the British contingent, Jamie is confident that he can predict the attack. Claire recalls the Battle of Singapore when the British claimed that the Japanese would not attack from the jungle. They were proven wrong only after seeing their worst fears come true. Jamie gets an idea as he understands ‘seeing is believing’.

At Shadow Lake, Ian and Emily have an awkward but sweet reunion as she reveals she now has a second child. He asks to meet the eldest and a small boy resembling him pops up. He is shocked and the boy whispers that his grandmother told him he is Ian’s son. Emily corroborates the fact and asks him to give their son an English name. Young Ian names the kid Ian James and the boy likes it.

Another father-son bonding takes place in Lallybroch as Jem returns from school in a bad mood. Roger presses on till he learns that a classmate insulted Jem and in return, the kid cursed back in Gaelic. The teachers were more upset by the use of the language and punished him. Roger assures his son that there is nothing wrong with talking in Gaelic. As they head in, he notices trash near the dovecote which Jem claims isn’t his.

Claire has trouble getting through the head surgeon who is incompetent but won’t let her help only because she is a woman. Denzell who has made himself at home, sides with her and with the only one with a degree in medicine (we doubt Claire’s 20th-century certificate would help), he pulls the seniority card. They successfully amputate Walter’s leg with Denzell following all of Claire’s modern medicine rules. 

Outside, Jamie isn’t having much luck with General Fermoy. He gets his men to hoist a cannon up the steep Sugarloaf Hill and has them shoot to prove his point. The fort is within range, yet Fermoy refuses to take any action, instead reprimanding Jamie for insubordination.

Ian returns and is surprised to see Rachel. As they catch up, there is a spark between them and he offers his protection after she tells him about William chaperoning them. Claire too is busy chatting with Walter as he fondly recalls falling in love with his wife while dancing. They parted on unseemly terms and Claire assures him that he will meet her again soon.

Brianna returns home, portraying her harrowing incident as a fun adventure. However, Roger sees through her. He comforts her by showing her a secret drawer in their desk and gifting her a pen for her job. He also says he is proud of her and apologises for not showing it in the beginning. At that moment, the kids come running in scared as Mandy saw the Nuckelavee. Roger goes out and doesn’t see anyone, but someone is watching him.

That night, back in the 18th century, Simon proves Jamie right and takes over Sugarloaf Hill. Fermoy is upset but tells their superior, Major General St. Clair that no one could have known. A disgruntled Jamie simply reveals that his men are prepared for evacuation via the river and St. Clair approves.

However, they have to leave behind some of the injured such as Walter. As an African-descent, he knows his days are numbered while Claire hopes the British will show him mercy. She gives him a bottle of laudanum for the pain and leaves. 

Brianna is still troubled by the hazing prank and decides not to cow down. She heads to the bar where the workers drink every night. One walks off in disgust while the rest joke. She puts them in their place and while Rob is not too happy, he gives in and orders her a drink. Later, she hangs out at the cairn and tells Jamie about her day.

The Episode Review

We are halfway into part 1 of Outlander season 7 and the action in present-day Scotland is picking up as well. What are the chances that the Nuckelavee is just a time traveller just squatting in Lallybroch? And what was that blue, glowing barrier in the tunnel? Hope the writers address that sooner rather than later as it is their habit.

Poor Bree seems to be having more trouble fitting in than she lets on. Having studied American history, she also must be worried for her parents as the fort had fallen into the hands of the British right till the last war of independence. And that Rob Cameron definitely seems like bad news. It doesn’t look like he is too happy that his prank failed or that Brianna didn’t quit.

As for the main couple, episode 5 didn’t give them much together, but it doesn’t really feel empty as we have more than our fair share of favourite secondary characters vying for our attention.

Why didn’t William head to the fort if one of his correspondents was there? Does he join Simon Fraser’s squad? And we are right about a brewing love triangle between him, Rachel and Young Ian, aren’t we? But again, somehow, it feels more natural between her and William rather than her interactions with Ian. In fact, Ian seems to have more of a spark with his ex.