But to achieve that, Roberts had to ignore the typical time constraints of episodic television.
I always thought this episode was about letting it breathe, Roberts tells EW.
Sometimes, when letting things play out in a normal episode you would say, pace this up.
Credit: Aimee Spinks/Starz
This was all about letting it play naturally so if it took 15 minutes to do something?
Let it take 15 minutes and well cut that accordingly.
If it goes over the 59 minutes, so be it.
Starz
Lucky for us, it took a whole 74 minutes!
Here, Roberts, Heughan, and Caitriona break down the key moments of the reunion.
That was all Roberts idea.
We switch up our title cards all the time.
Over the course of the three seasons, coming up with new ideas is getting tougher and tougher.
I thought this would be a neat way to incorporate the print shop and how it really works.
I wanted to do three to four cards, but I just didnt have enough time to do it.
So, I was the lucky one.
I got my card peeled off the presses.
Look whos feeling faint!
Hes getting dressed, hes getting to work, hes working the press.
Hes just a guy at work.
Then all of a sudden, his life has completely changed.
For Roberts, it was important to play out how gobsmacked Jamie was in the moment.
In the book, we see it from Claires point of view, says Roberts.
He didnt have any of that.
She says, Its me, Claire, and he faints.
He didnt have any time to even imagine this.
I think he has somehow put her in the back of his mind.
Why the sudden dash of modesty when Jamie has to take off his pants?
Easy, explains Roberts.
When he is being formal, I think hes still checking to see if shes real.
Jamie is playing catch-up.
A simple kiss becomes an iconic moment for the series.
Over the past three years there will always bethatepisode, says Roberts.
In season 1, it was the wedding.
We knew with getting them back together, we had to take a step back from just telling plot.
Normal scripts will have plot points that you have to get through.
This is not that episode.
See those bookcases in the background?
Theres an easter egg, planted by production designer Jon Gary Steele.
Good luck trying to screen grab it, though.
Sassenach, Jamie asks, why have you come back?
For Claire, this moment is as much about anticipation as it is a feeling of extreme vulnerability.
For Claire, shes left everything, explains Balfe.
This is the biggest sacrifice that anyones ever made for love.
But thats a huge risk.
The fireside meal served a very specific purpose, explains Heughan.
So its about them rediscovering each other.
Has time really passed for Claire?
She doesnt look much different than when she passed through those stones 20 years ago.
I think they really wanted not to have us change too much, explains Balfe.
The aging has been really subtle.
Theres a bit of weathering and stuff that weve done, but its been very subtle.
Claire, shes just turning 50.
Weve people on the crew who are that age and they all look pretty good.
And hey, its TV.
Whats this newfangled thing that keeps her bodice together?
Jamie learned a few 20th century terms in this episode, including the word Jell-O.
Jamies well aware that Claire says things that hes not going to understand, explains Roberts.
He lets them go every now and then and hell question it later.
It started in season 1 when he says, Whats a sadist?
Yep, we know what you are thinking: those scars look way different from season 1.
Right before Jamie and Claire are about to get busy, he inadvertently smacks her in the nose.
Like,really.I think he probably hit me at one point, if I remember, Balfe told EW.
I loved that Matt Roberts wanted it to be like that.
There is always that time when you are not in sync with each other.
Its almost like were teenagers again.
I thought it was a really sweet way to reintroduce this couple.
Neither of them have been intimate in quite a few years.
Its that shyness but also that clumsiness that comes with not being fully confident and open.
It was really fun to shoot.
The girls were so great and it was really funny, recalls Balfe.
Its nice to give them a voice and not just be a backdrop.
Its nice to hear them have their chat.
Want to keep diving?
Join me and Amy Wilkinson at noon ET Monday onOutlander Live!, Sirius XM 105.
Well gladly take your calls (observations?
