Written by Diana Gabaldon, Ira Steven Behr, and Anne Kenney
Directed by Philip John

The penultimate episode of season two actually follows events in the book fairly closely, setting the stage for the inevitable battle at Culloden Moor. Many of the characters we know from the series are present in northern Scotland for various reasons, giving this episode a weight of knowing many won’t survive.

Just outside of Inverness, Jamie (Sam Heughan) and Claire (Caitriona Balfe) join up with the rest of the Highland army. Jamie asks Dougal McKenzie (Graham McTavish) to take out a patrol to find out where the British Army is. When Jamie asks Murtagh (Duncan Lacroix) to go find Prince Charles Stuart (Andrew Gower) in Inverness, he wants them to know how close they are to Culloden Moor now that the date Claire knows the battle was fought is approaching. It would seem that everything they tried to do was for nothing.

In Inverness, Claire is trying to get more medical supplies when she runs into Mary Hawkins (Rosie Day) again. She tells Claire that she is there with Alex Randall (Laurence Dobiesz) and they are planning to be married. Claire goes to visit them and learns just how sick Alex is. Claire says there is nothing she can do except make him comfortable. Claire learns that Mary is pregnant. Jack Randall (Tobias Menzies) begs Claire to cure him, but she tells him the same thing. He then begs her to ease his pain. Claire agrees, in exchange for information about the British troops, which she passes on to Jamie.

Colum McKenzie (Gary Lewis) arrives where the men are camped. He is not doing very well. He asks to meet with Dougal and Jamie. He asks Claire to help him die quickly and with as little pain as possible. He tells her that Geillis’ baby was saved and sent to live with relatives. Claire gives him yellow jasmine to use when he is ready.

Claire treats Alex with a mixture to help him breathe, and his distress eases. Both Mary and Jack are there. Alex asks Jack to marry Mary, so their child will be a Randall. Jack refuses, but Claire tracks him down at a tavern and talks him into it. They are married with Claire and Murdoch as witnesses, and Alex dies not long after.

Colum tells Dougal that Hamish will be the next leader of Clan McKenzie and that Jamie will be his guardian until he comes of age. Dougal is furious. Colum counsels Jamie about sacrificing men needlessly. Dougal is with Colum when he dies.

In many ways, this episode is more about Claire the healer than anything else. There are two men she has grown to know who are dying, and she’s powerless to do anything to stop it. It’s understandable that in the future she will become a surgeon. Even then, she has to face the fact that she’s not a miracle worker, but she is better trained to save lives. You can see the roots of that decision in The Hail Mary.

We finally learn how Frank Randall believes Jack Randall is his ancestor. It’s actually Alex’s blood that runs through Frank’s veins, not Jack’s, even though Frank is the spitting image of Jack. They are played by the same actor, but even in the book, Claire mistakes Jack for Frank when she first meets him, not realizing she has gone back in time. Claire has no qualms about Jack marrying Mary since she knows he is about to die at Culloden. Jack even tries to get out of it by asking Claire if she really wants to subject Mary to his bed, and she reminds him that she told him when he was going to die. Mary will be taken care of this way; she will have Frank’s pension and family lineage to fall back on while she’s raising the child.

Prince Charles’ choices here are wrong. That much is obvious from the beginning. Jamie is trying to think of a way to have the battle turn out differently, but it seems history cannot be changed. The clans’ army is worn down and hungry, while the British army is well-provisioned. In addition, the British have more advanced weaponry.

The acting is outstanding. I loved Graham McTavish throughout the series, but here he really gets to the heart of Dougal. He’s angry at his brother’s assessment of him, but there is still such affection for Colum that he can’t stay angry for long. Dougal might be an impulsive hot-head, but he was the second in command that Colum needed. Colum is more worried about what will happen to the people of Clan McKenzie than he is about who sits on the British throne, but Dougal doesn’t seem to entertain a question of failure. That is the main difference. Colum would send men to battle if he thought the outcome Dougal desires is possible, but between what Claire and Jamie have told him and his own suspicions, he doesn’t believe there is a chance of victory.

The Hail Mary solidly sets up the finale for Season 2. That episode will be much longer and will tread two different timelines as it tells the story of the Battle of Culloden and how Claire went back to her own time. The doubts about the future are sown here for the Scottish people, even if they don’t realize it yet.

Previous episode of the series: