Outlander: Blood of My Blood

What’s it about?

Outlander: Blood of My Blood introduces two parallel love stories across different centuries. In 1714 Scotland, clan politics and tradition threaten to keep Ellen MacKenzie and Brian Fraser apart, while in World War I–era London, Julia and Henry Beauchamp’s romance is abruptly upended when a mysterious accident sends them through time—each landing in a different clan and fighting to be reunited.

The facts

• Created by Ronald D. Moore
• Starring Harriet Slater, Jamie Roy, Hermione Corfield, Jeremy Irvine, Rory Alexander, Sam Retford, and Séamus McLean Ross
• English language
• 10 episodes, each around 60 minutes long

Why did it get this rating?

This series was self-rated by Neon. You can find out more about self-rating by streaming providers here.

Rape

In episode 6, a female maid is raped by a male character on two occasions - both portrayed as flashbacks. In one scene, the woman is coerced into having sex with the man after he threatens to cast her out onto the street if she doesn't comply. In a later flashback, he corners her against a wall, forces himself on her, and tells her to say she enjoys it. In both scenes, the maid looks and sounds very distressed. While no graphic detail is shown - characters remain clothed and no nudity is shown - these scenes may be upsetting for some viewers. Both scenes are presented in black and white, giving them a stark, emotionally charged atmosphere.

Earlier in the season, a character is told not to be around a certain male character alone, implying sexual violence.

Sex scenes

The show centres around themes of romance and marriage, with frequent sexual content. In one scene, two young boys peer through a hole to watch a man and woman having sex standing up, moaning and thrusting aggressively, with the woman’s bare breasts and the man’s bare buttocks shown.

Another scene involves two characters having sex on a picnic blanket. We see their buttocks and faces as they both climax, but otherwise they are clothed.

Sexual references are made frequently, such as women speaking of how a man died “mounted on a maidservant.” It is unclear as to whether this was a reference to sexual assault or not.

Violence and cruelty

Bloody battle scenes are shown throughout the show, with soldiers bludgeoning, shooting, stabbing, and gassing each other. We see fistfights, dead bodies, and on-screen killings.

In one scene, a man slices off another’s fingers on-screen, with blood and gore shown.

Episode two starts with a WW1 battle scene. Men are seen lying dead on barbed wire fences and one young man is seen crying on the battlefield, bleeding from a bullet wound in his chest. A man saves him and brings him to safety, but when the camera comes back to him, we see his lifeless face after he died from his wounds.

The opening of the show involves a woman crying over her father’s dead body, supposedly during its preparation for burial.

Two characters crash their car into a lake after a deer walks onto the road. This may be a shock to some viewers; however, they make it out unharmed.

A woman is struck across the face by a male.

Two women, one in the present and one in a flashback, are mistreated by others while in labour. They are shouted at, threatened, and accused of being witches, with their unborn children called demons. The women are pressured to repent for their supposed sins. These emotionally intense scenes ultimately serve to connect the two women and bring them closer together.

Content that may disturb

Boys talk about how their father beat one of them to make him strong.

A man is seen wailing and suffering from trauma from his time on the frontline in WW1.

A woman trying to look for her husband is abducted by a Scottish clan and kept as a housemaid, where she is beaten for acting out.

Offensive language

This show contains the use of offensive language, with words like “bastard” and "c*ck.”

Helplines:

Themes such as sexual violence could be upsetting for some viewers, especially for those who have gone through similar experiences. If you are struggling with what you have seen on-screen please reach out for help. If you or someone you know needs to talk:

• 1737
• Safe to talk
• Lifeline
• Youthline

Further information

• Why are ratings and content warnings important for me and my whānau?
• Brain development – how it works, why it matters