Drama, sci-fi, romance, and history. If a series has all that together, it’s already likely to gain some attention. Hardly any productions manage to mix so many genres, but even rarer are those that actually succeed. Adapted from Diana Gabaldon’s book saga, Outlander is, without a doubt, one of the most underrated shows in recent memory – and I say that because it’s been on the air for over a decade. Since it has exactly everything to catch people’s interest, why is that? The series having a spinoff scheduled for this summer means there’s definitely an audience. Then I remember that it’s simply sold as a historical novel, which, honestly, is a huge reduction of everything the show actually delivers.
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When you search for Outlander on the internet, you’re basically thrown into a sea of info and pictures that take you back to the 18th century, which for many, might seem uninteresting. Who hasn’t hated studying history back in school? But what if they took a historical story and added a pretty important element to really amp it up? Time travel. Sounds good, right? To have the protagonist, with a life already set up, fall in love with someone from centuries ago and create all sorts of time conflicts with that – I think it’s a plot with a lot of potential.
With a rich narrative, the show follows Claire’s (Caitriona Balfe) life. She’s a combat nurse in 1945, who, during a trip with her husband to the Scottish Highlands, is transported back in time to 1743. There, she finds herself in the middle of conflicts between Scottish clans and has to figure out how to survive in an unfamiliar and unsafe world. Along the way, Claire meets Jamie Fraser (Sam Heughan), a Scottish rebel, and the two develop a deep relationship. Too simple a definition? Well, there’s a whole lot of complexity that’s really well done throughout all the seasons. I seriously doubt that at any point you’ll feel lost or bored.
Outlander has an impeccable, high-quality script; just the right amount of plot twists; a true sense of reality; emotion that’ll make you cry or leave you craving more; well-developed characters with flaws and a gradually evolving arc; and a carefully structured plot that unfolds like a puzzle, surprising you by connecting elements in a totally coherent way. With seven seasons, and the eighth one scheduled to be released between 2025 and 2026, it still blows my mind that prestigious awards like the Golden Globe and Emmy haven’t given it much recognition, while The Crown, Bridgerton, and Downton Abbey – all period-themed productions – have been praised by both audiences and critics a million times.
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Of course, taste is subjective, but if we look at these examples, we see that they focus more on family dramas and aristocratic intrigues. Bridgerton, for example, although innovative in bringing a more modern touch to the setting, is still almost purely a romance. Why doesn’t Outlander, which is categorized the same way, enjoy the same popularity? I actually think that the series would sell a lot more because it has a denser tone and could reach a bigger audience that enjoys a bit more emotion, action, and adventure. Yes, Outlander focuses on risky escapes and dangerous battles.
The challenges the characters face go way beyond romance and politics. They have to survive being chased by British soldiers, confront pirates, revolutions, historic wars, and even the weather. And time travel adds another layer to all of it. Claire not only has to adapt to the dangers of the past, but she also has to deal with the consequences of her actions through time. As the show goes on, new time travelers show up. There are betrayals and accusations of witchcraft because of it, the struggles of living in a backward society, as well as the fruits that an intense love between two characters from totally different eras can bring to the situation. Not to mention that from the very first episode, the whole show is designed to make you fall head over heels in love with Scotland.
Some people say the show’s underappreciation might also be due to the graphic violence, and that might be too much for the mainstream. But what about the huge success of Game of Thrones and House of the Dragon? Honestly, it’s hard to tell a story with such a real context in so much depth, leaving aside the impact that abuse and torture had on people back then. After all, all the characters in Outlander are so richly developed that not showing certain details would end up weakening the authenticity of the story. Others are more direct (and they’re not completely wrong) when they say the show’s aimed at a female audience, implying that there’s some bias when it comes to making it relevant to the general public.
I get that these are very plausible reasons for Outlander not getting the recognition it deserves, just like I understand that being produced by Starz – a smaller company in the industry – hurts it too much. This is even an issue within the show’s own fandom. On the other hand, the series is available on another major streaming platform, which puts this argument into question. But whatever the reasons, it’s really hard to change the fact that Outlander keeps being seriously underrated, and proof of that is all the comments online saying that just one shot at the first episode was enough to turn into a full-on binge-watch.
The most important thing to mention is that the show doesn’t just retell known facts either; instead, it proposes alternative scenarios and explores the “what if” possibilities with time travel at every turn. The attention to detail doesn’t just make you love all the elements of Outlander, but it also makes the time travel story even more compelling. It’s natural, it’s easy to follow, and it totally deserves a place in the ranking of the best productions in this category.
Outlander is available to stream on Starz, Hulu, and Netflix.
