"Outlander" in Manhattan – The New York Times



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There are many clears. There is Claire, World War II, bloodied in the apron of her military nurse. There is Claire Scottish, back in 1743, very warm in her woolen and riding clothes. And then, there is the most photogenic of all: French Claire, elegant in a bar suit inspired by Dior and a hat with black tray, with baskets and baskets under the silk skirt to give it that look of Eighteenth century.

Caitriona Balfe, who plays Claire in Starz's "Outlander" time travel drama, can barely contain herself when she meets this dress on Anna Sawyer, the cosplayer of New York's Comic Con wearing it.

"Oh my God!" Lash Balfe stroking Sawyer's sleeves. "C & # 39; unbelievable. Unbelievable. Have you done the hat, too? I am so blown away. "

We are in a back corner of the Jacob Javits Convention Center, where at least 400 enthusiastic fans linger in an area of ​​up to 100 people. Tara Bennett, who directs the interviews for the SYFY Channel Live scene, tells me that she has warned her bosses to expect such participation.

"The four core of" Outlander "are like the New York Beatles Comic Con," she says.

This sounds like a hyperbolic comparison – until you spend an afternoon strolling with Balfe and three cast members, Sam Heughan (Jamie), Sophie Skelton (Brianna) and Richard Rankin (Roger), at a Rare trip to New York to promote Season 4 of "Outlander", which begins Sunday.

[[[[Need a reminder about Season 3 of "Outlander"? Here's what to remember.]

While programs such as The Walking Dead, another Comic Con favorite, inspire many fans, Outlander fans turn the festivities into a mix of Beatlemania and family reunions. Diana Gabaldon, the author of the novels that inspired the show, is the exalted matriarch (called "herself"), but the showrunner, Ronald D. Moore, and his wife, costume designer Terry Dresbach, are the mother and the pop of the world "Outlander".

"I love your wife!" Shouts excited fan to Moore.

On the outside, hundreds of other fans have been waiting for hours under intermittent drizzle for the chance to attend a book signing session. Only 100 people will get there, so everyone has to make a decision: stay and hope for the best, or try to claim a spot for the latest casting cast at the 5,600-seat Madison Square Garden Hulu Theater? "The biggest room I've ever been to," said Moore, amazed.

Why does "Outlander" now attract one of the biggest crowds in its history? Scarcity, on the one hand. Seasons 3 and 4 of this successful Starz series were filmed almost consecutively, leaving actors sequestered in Scotland and South Africa for almost two years. The fans were really starting … getting thirsty. "We are not making it easy for them," said Heughan.

The fan base has also grown and grown steadily, now attracting 5.8 million multiplatform viewers per episode, according to recent figures from Starz. Unlike its reputation as a romantic women's show – it's actually a mishmash of sci-fi, fantasy, adventure and historical fiction – "Outlander" has an audience that now has about 35% of the time. 39; men.

There is also a lot of anticipation for the coming season, which changes another perception – that it is essentially a Scottish show – which turns to the head: Jamie and Claire arrived on the US shores in 1767.

This broadens the principle of the stranger in a strange land of the series and allows to explore what it means to be an American immigrant, while newcomers try to remain rooted in the old world and coexist with their native neighbors. This new goal requires tackling issues such as slavery (which the couple also faced last season in Jamaica) and the Native American genocide, as well as racism and xenophobia of the United States. time.

As "Outlander" is a non-SAG production, he was banned from the series to broadcast American Indians. The producers took a group of First Nations actors from Canada and also consulted a Cherokee leader in North Carolina about tribal culture and concerns about screen performances.

"You have to have this dialogue," said Maril Davis, executive producer. "There are certain things in Diana's books that we felt we should do, because if you do not stay in one story, you get lost. So there are some unilateral representations, but in our own way, we have tried to balance a little more and to show on the other side, hopefully, without really suspending a lantern. "

As a surprise woman, Claire is the surrogate mother of the public and Moore has tried to keep the public's point of view in mind during such upsetting moments as "when Claire and Jamie arrive at the plantation," she said. he declares.

At the same time, the characters learned in previous seasons that they could not change the story, no matter how much they (and we) were outraged about it.

"Claire knows what the basic story is," Moore said. "And she knows it's a useless exercise to try to change something that was such a massive social issue that resulted in a civil war."

Back at the Javits Center, one of the wartime Clairs – a woman named Joan Perrin – manages to sneak her way to Balfe and hands him an assortment of small labeled gift bags for each of the cast members. This is not the first time she has done it.

"[Perrin] gave us a lot of bracelets, "says Rankin. "And I usually wear them!"

Later Rankin saw Perrin outside and delighted her by raising her arm to show him that he was wearing the bracelet. "We have a lot of respect for the time and effort of the fans," he said. "They make us baked goods, books or dolls that are beautifully connected. Have you seen the cross stitch done in fan of Claire's red dress? "

"Outlander" does not hesitate to portray rape – some critics have complained that the series does so too often. But that forces viewers to face the consequences. When a character is assaulted this season – no spoilers, but readers are well aware – the series avoids showing the act itself and focuses instead on the reaction of people outside the room, on "the they did not do anything "Davis said.

That's why "Outlander" remains relevant even though the show takes place (for the most part) in the past, says Balfe. "These are real problems all the time, even if it's a fake fantasy and an epic story. It's a safe place.

For all the Clairs of the world.

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