By the end of Outlander: Blood of My Blood ’s third episode, one thing is abundantly clear: It’s the women in this story who are the bravest among them. In “School of the Moon,” both Ellen and Julia put into motion plans that come with great risk in order to both protect themselves and their families.

Ellen MacKenzie proves herself to be every bit the leader her father believed she could be, by which I mean, oh baby, does she know exactly how to manipulate her idiot, arrogant brothers. It is a pleasure to watch her work. While Colum and Dougal are battling each other to be the new laird of Clan MacKenzie, Ellen sees that by dividing the clan vote between them, they’ve only made it easier for MacKinney to swoop in, win the vote, and steal the clan from their family. Her anger here is two

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