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The time-traveling Starz hit Outlander has a lot of plot threads to pick up when Season 6 finally comes around, and fewer episodes to do so in. As with most seasons of the romantic series, they'll probably hit the ground running when it comes to letting us in on how the (mostly) good folks up on Fraser's Ridge are doing, including Caitríona Balfe's Claire after the massive ordeal she went through at the end of Season 5. Now, Balfe is opening up about the new season, and, man, I really wish they'd hurry up with those new episodes!
Outlander is a show that's covered some troubling times in history, and the series has never shied away from delving into the many darker parts of life that have come from that. Claire, Jamie and their assorted friends and family have been through wars, sexual assaults, brutal personal fights, long prison sentences, and much more during their time on our screens, and things aren't going to be much easier for them when the new season begins.
We've already been told that there's going to be some trouble on the Ridge between inhabitants on the land, and some of that will come from new arrivals, Tom, Malva, and Allan Christie. In her chat with Entertainment Weekly about Outlander Season 6, Caitríona Balfe said:
Outlander does baddies and villains quite well. [The Christies] aren't your typical villains, which is great and refreshing. Claire and Malva build a great relationship and bond. It's very destabilizing for Claire. It's a really heartbreaking, but a really twisted narrative that they all get embroiled in.
Twisted? Heartbreaking? Destabilizing?! What the hell is going to happen in Season 6, you guys?!?! Those of you who've read the books will know that the Christie family does, indeed, end up causing quite a bit of trouble on Fraser's Ridge. So far, we only know for sure that the show will follow the novel's plot of Tom having been a former rival of Jamie's while they were each imprisoned at Ardsmuir, with him being a devout Protestant, while Jamie is a staunch Catholic.
While that would be enough for some shenanigans to start once the Christies arrive, it sounds like Claire's relationship with young Malva is also going to be potentially damaging for her already recently wounded soul. Balfe makes it seem as though things will be pretty peachy between Claire and Malva for a time, but then take a turn that becomes part of a "twisted narrative," which, honestly, sounds as though it will be thoroughly enjoyable and maddening to watch.
If you're wondering where this story could go, but don't want to know potential specifics, beware, because I've got some book spoilers ahead!
OK, in A Breath of Snow and Ashes, book six in Diana Gabaldon's series, the Christie clan brings much more trouble with them than just some religious differences. Tom begins to fall in love with Claire, which fans are already theorizing might be a bigger part of the show than it was in the book. Also, Malva will eventually get up to some business during her time on the Ridge, become pregnant, and claim that Jamie is the father! So, yeah. Heaps. Of. Trouble.
END SPOILERS!
Obviously, Outlander has veered from the plot threads of the books a bit in the past, but it would seem that there'd be no reason to bring the Christies in if at least some of these things won't be a factor in Season 6. Plus, Caitríona Balfe did describe them as villains, so it would appear that we'll all be in for some delicious twists and turns when the new season finally arrives, and I can't wait!
Outlander Season 6 doesn't have a set premiere just yet, but it is due on Starz sometime early in 2022, so until then, take a look at the other upcoming romantic TV shows!
