‘Outlander’: Diana Gabaldon’s Love Letter to Her Book You May Have Missed

Two things can be true at once. In this case, a gimmicky, cringe-worthy plot point in the series finale of Game of Thrones can send our eyes rolling to the back of our heads, while something similar (though far more poignant) in the penultimate episode of Outlander’s eight-season run can have us reaching for the tissues.

Let us explain: In the ninth episode of Season 8, Outlander author Diana Gabaldon pens her final episode of the series, her fourth in total. The hour, titled “Pharos,” is the show’s 100th episode and largely focuses on the rescue of Lord John Grey (David Berry), who has been kidnapped and threatened with the exposure of his identity as a gay man in Revolutionary War America. Once all of that dust has settled, though, Claire (Caitriona Balfe) and Jamie (Sam Heughan) find themselves with, perhaps, the last moment of peace they will enjoy before the end of the series. Curled up in their bed, Jamie finds Claire writing in a leather journal that she seems shy to share.