Outlander Season 7 Episode 10 “Brotherly Love” finally reunites Young Ian (John Bell) with his beloved Rachel (Izzy Meikle-Small)…only for Arch Bug (Hugh Ross) to finally take his long-awaited revenge! Yes, after ages of lurking in the shadows, stalking Rachel, and waiting for the perfect moment to kill her, Arch Bug makes his move. It’s an explosive moment full of danger and romance, the very qualities the Starz hit is known for.
**Spoilers for Outlander Season 7 Episode 10 “Brotherly Love,” now streaming on Starz**
About halfway through Outlander Season 7 Episode 10 “Brotherly Love,” Arch Bug captures Rachel while she’s looking for Rollo in some Philadelphia stables. He explains to her that he plans to kill her in front of Young Ian because Ian murdered his wife. Rachel refuses to believe this, but it happened. (Albeit Young Ian was hoping to kill Arch Bug instead.)
Young Ian shortly arrives at the stables, tipped off by Rachel’s brother Denzel (Joey Phillips) as to her whereabouts, and finds Arch Bug holding his lady love hostage with an axe poised to strike. Intriguingly, the first thing Rachel does is beg Ian to not kill Arch. As a Quaker, she does not believe in violence.
“It was an interesting one to film because obviously Rachel is a pacifist, so when she’s faced with violence, she doesn’t react like the normal person would where they would fight back,” Outlander star Izzy Meikle-Small told Decider. “Even just doing the blocking, like figuring out a way to make it feel like it was scary and it was life-threatening, but also that Rachel was not fighting back.”
“And Hugh, who plays Arch Bug, is such a lovely man. So it was hard to find him threatening. He’s just such a sweetheart,” she added.
Ian manages to wrestle Rachel out of the old man’s arms, but Arch strikes his arm with his axe. While Young Ian continues to battle Arch Bug, Rachel continues to beg him not to hurt her assailant. Soon, Arch has the upper hand. He pulls back his axe, about to strike, when a gunshot is heard. William Ransome (Charles Vandervaart) has arrived in the nick of time to save the day.
Decider asked Outlander star John Bell if any part of Ian was jealous that it was William who got to kill Arch Bug after all he’d done to Rachel.
“I think Ian’s just glad that Rachel’s safe. Honestly, it was a bit touch and go there for a second. So I think he is just relieved and happy to have her safe and in his arms once again,” Bell said. “So all I can say is thank god William was there.”
“It’s not exactly the most romantic reunion, but I think it’s it’s a very dramatic, very scary, very Outlander moment.”
Izzy Meikle-Small
Meanwhile, Meikle-Small and Bell’s costar, Charles Vandervaart, found the situation ironically quite funny.
“I do think it’s quite hilarious that William is pining over this girl that’s all about anti-violence, and Young Ian is trying to make an effort not to be a violent person, and William just doesn’t care at all,” Vandervaart said, laughing. “He just comes in, guns blazing. He’s like, ‘Yeah, I’ll kill that guy.’”
“Which I mean, maybe it goes to show that they might not be a match, Ms. Rachel Hunter and William Ransom.”
Bell said, “I actually think it’s a lovely moment between Ian and William, where there’s almost a kind of forgiveness that happens between them for their misunderstanding.”
After all, the two cousins — albeit William doesn’t know he and Young Ian are secretly cousins — have been head over heels for Rachel since meeting her. It’s only sad for William that Rachel seems to favor Young Ian.
“It’s not exactly the most romantic reunion, but I think it’s it’s a very dramatic, very scary, very Outlander moment,” Meikle-Small said, summing up the whole scene.
