Outlander

The basic premise is very appealing, but unfortunately, as the episodes roll in, it's just pure fan service. The first three seasons are dedicated to Claire and Jamie, and later a new generation comes on the scene. Then it's up to everyone if they want to follow the original Scottish story in America. (11.12.2014)

The emancipated heroine with Dr. Quinn syndrome is really just a nurse who went through WWII on the French front and is looking forward to seeing her husband, who waited for her in a mannerly way all through the war, and solitarily played the hero too. When they finally get back together to indulge in a second honeymoon, they have some great times traveling and studying his bloodline all the way back to the 18th century. She gets oral sex from him in the least expected places of their adorable reunion... But then poor Claire finds herself in the past! That's when the journey of our modern heroine, who is in many ways braver than the women of the 21st century, begins. She heroically deals with Scotland shortly before the Jacobite rebellion. An unflinching, well-told adventure in the fine tradition of Starz. I have to recommend it. But be warned: if you are of a more delicate nature, the finale will be more challenging for you. (09.01.2019)

Season 2, Dragonfly in Amber provides a very nice change of location, and Claire and Jamie move to Paris, which is played by a very photogenic Prague. Drama follows drama, and intrigue in the royal court is only for the very experienced. Of course, our lovebirds' relationship goes through numerous trials, Claire is expecting a baby and Jamie is battling his demons with the face of Randall... Unfortunately, the second half of the season is just muddy Scotland again and I found my interest waning. I had to take a break from the series at this stage. More and more I'm seeing a mix of Highlander, Angélique and Xena in Outlander, although the author does reference an old Doctor Who episode. There's really no need to add more storylines from the 1960s and develop the pop culture of the time in the style of the Avengers series - there will be time for Dark Shadows later on. (09.01.2019)

Season 3 of Outlander continues to be the most exciting. We follow several storylines in turn, 20 years of Jamie's life after the Battle of Culloden on April 16, 1746, and 20 years of Claire and her daughter Brianna's life up to 1968. They also make room to tell Frank's story. The material is endless, pop culture references follow one after the other, and Diana Gabaldon adds to the number of pages as her saga grows. However, the pace of the plot twists and turns from Scotland to America becomes more and more absurd in its gradation, with Claire and Jamie losing each other, finding each other, dying for each other, and, of course, having very active sex in between. Gone is the magic of the original theme, and with the return of Geillis, they've managed to add horror in a similarly blood-bathing fashion alongside the sci-fi storyline. The next season with the main theme of a family reunion will again be strong stuff. (31.03.2019)

Season 4 is based on "Drums of Autumn" and gives us Claire and Jamie's stories from America. It's not exactly easy to get used to a completely new environment after the hardships of Europe. Not to mention the fact that it used to be all based on the feel of a female Highlander, but now it's a full-on Angelique (in Quebec). Most importantly, this is Brianna’s first role, and her Roger, Claire, and Jamie are already playing the roles of a generation with their best behind them and not many prospects ahead of them. Their strong romance thus can't be the reason to keep coming back to Outlander. That’s too bad. But of course the saga continues. (14.04.2019)

Season 5 The Fiery Cross is a very different series than what Outlander was at the beginning. If you can get through this episode in book form, you can probably handle anything from Gabaldon. Yet the idea that we're only halfway through is truly challenging. While I'm still interested in all the comics and audiobooks in the future, after my experience with this series, the series is becoming the least interesting part of the whole branching world of the Fraser dynasty. The problems of life in North Carolina before 1772 are laced with so many fatal situations that by the end, when it was getting real, I was completely numb. Slowly, every episode sees one of the main characters die, while rape and other extreme violence are the order of the day, and Claire tries to pull off such hijinks as making penicillin or inventing the syringe. Not to mention the completely wrong use of silent film. However, as long as the contracts are signed for Season 7... (10.05.2020)

The 6th series that came out during Covid based on the book "A Breath of Snow and Ashes" needs to be seen as a kind of compromise, i.e., that something could be made, the show could continue and at the same time that we could look forward to next year. It's definitely better to do one shortened uninteresting series than to wrap it all up and write off the whole saga too soon. A few of the episodes are really weak, but the ending gives a hint that next year it will go back to its old ways. Hopefully least in the style of Voyager. (02.05.2022)