Outlander has some of the most complex characters on TV. From episode one, it’s uncertain who will turn on who at any given moment. Who will change alliances or make deals for their own benefit? Clans are the building blocks of society in the Highlands or wherever Scottish people call home, but family sometimes means very little.
Despite all the backstabbing (sometimes literally), some of our beloved characters have great moral compasses most of the time. They love fiercely and fight for what they believe in even more. Nothing is impossible for them, especially in a world with time travel. Outlander‘s story would be nothing without its intricate multi-layered characters.
10.Fergus Fraser
While living in Paris, Jamie and Claire meet Fergus (then Claudel), an orphan who grew up in a brothel. Jamie takes him under his wing and hires him as a pickpocket. Fergus was a mischievous kid, but he becomes fiercely loyal to Jamie. Eventually, Jamie gives him the Fraser name, and he marries Marsali.
Fergus isn’t too complex, but he is tragic. He lost a hand in a scuffle with a redcoat and has trouble finding work and providing for his family. Shame nearly eats him alive, and he constantly feels worthless. Thankfully, Jamie helps him before it’s too late. He’s not worthless; he’s truehearted.
9.Black Jack Randall
Jack Randall, a.k.a. Black Jack Randall, is one of the most vicious villains in Outlander. We know what he’s about after he attacks Claire in her first moments in 1743. He’s the reason why Claire has to marry Jamie and why Jamie has those horrible scars on his back.
It’s chilling when he tells Claire how he feels about flogging Jamie. He called it a masterpiece. For a minute, he seems to want to repent, but he’s lying. As the show progresses, he becomes more of a soulless monster. Jamie puts it perfectly; Randall likes to play with his toys. Thankfully, Jamie kills him at the Battle of Culloden.
8.Murtagh Fitzgibbons Fraser
Murtagh is one of the most loyal characters in Outlander. He’s Jamie’s godfather and companion, but he’s more like Jamie’s father and right-hand man. He always seems to be in the right place at the right time and is instrumental in getting Jamie back in Season 1. Murtagh is there at every turn, especially when Claire and Jamie forge a life on the American frontier.
There are many layers to Murtagh. He doesn’t show his softer side very often, but it’s reflected in his loyalty. He’s a fierce protector and dies like a warrior on the battlefield at the Battle of Alamance.
7.Dougal MacKenzie
Dougal MacKenzie gave fans whiplash with how quickly he could switch his humanity on and off. One minute he’s making honorable decisions for the well-being of the clan. In the next, he’s brutal or acting in his own interests or the interests of his many hidden agendas. He always seems to have an ulterior motive in every instance.
Dougal was also a tragic character. He wants to be his brother, a laird in a castle but loves living on the road. He wants a romantic relationship, but things never work out. Dougal loves Scotland more than anything else and is willing to restore it to its original glory no matter what. He dies trying.
6.Frank Randall
At Outlander‘s beginning, everything is taken from Frank. He spends months looking for Claire, who seemingly vanished into thin air. After some robbers hoodwink him, he decides to leave Scotland and give up his search. When Claire returns, Frank tries to give her and Brianna a happy life, but Claire never gets over Jamie.
Frank isn’t a Highland warrior, but he is fiercely loyal to Claire and his family. Sadly, Frank dies in a car crash shortly after a bad fight with Brianna. Frank’s love wasn’t enough to make Claire return, but the skills and knowledge he taught her were useful in her first months in 1743.
5.Brianna Randall Fraser
Thanks to Claire and Frank, Brianna has a stable upbringing. Eventually, things get complicated when her mother tells her that her father is an 18th-century Highland warrior. She encourages her mother to return to Jamie, but after seeing a news clipping about their death, Brianna decides to go through the stones at Craigh na Dun with Roger right behind her.
Life is rough for Brianna in her first moments in the 1700s. She has a temper, like her parents, but she has a caring streak, just like her mother. Many fans think she’s annoying, but she’s gutsy, confident, and headstrong, some of her father’s strongest traits. She continues to prove herself.
4.Ian Fraser Murray
Ian is Jamie’s nephew and is just as loyal as Fergus and Murtagh. He’s an eager adventurer ready to take on anything, even if it often lands him in trouble. Craving adventure, Ian follows Jamie to Edinburgh, and his personality morphs with every new experience. Eventually, he finds himself in the wrong place at the wrong time and is abducted and taken to Jamaica.
The stubborn Fraser trait lives in young Ian as he haggles with Jamie to take him to the New World. He has one of the greatest character arcs in Outlander. He started as a floundering boy and has turned into a responsible and loyal man.
3.Roger Wakefield
Roger is one of the most honorable characters in Outlander. His life changes forever when Claire and Brianna arrive at his doorstep, asking about the Jacobite Rising of 1745. He eventually realizes he’s a time traveler like them and falls in love with Brianna. However, his first months in the 1700s could be better. He’s sold to Ian and Jamie, who think he assaulted Brianna.
Roger has many layers to him, and that could be because he’s a direct descendant of Dougal. In the beginning, he’s good-natured and sweet but soon turns erratic and is hesitant to return to Brianna after learning about her assault. Sometimes, he’s as unpredictable as Dougal and has the same internal battles with morality. However, he’s a family man more than anything else.
2.Jamie Fraser
Jamie Fraser isn’t like his fellow Highlander warriors. In the beginning, he’s sweet and protective toward Claire, but there’s a rougher side to him. He’s been through a lot, being flogged twice by Black Jack. However, Jamie grows as a man when he marries Claire and becomes a laird, even if he’s still a fugitive. Jamie also grows to be a great problem solver and negotiator, which helps when he and Claire found Fraser’s Ridge.
Jamie has a stable moral compass but will do anything to protect Claire and his family. Like Murtagh and Roger, he’s honorable and fair. It’s safe to say that he is the only reason Claire stayed in the 1700s. His temperament had to have helped.
1.Claire Fraser
Claire is more than just Outlander‘s protagonist. She’s the series’ guiding light. The maternal, caring figure everyone craves to be around. She’s clever, cunning, and smart, even if some of her plans don’t always work. Even in another time, she’s strong and confident. Her experiences as a wartime nurse gave her the skills to survive the rough Highlands.
If Claire had been weak and spiritless, she wouldn’t have survived her first moments in 1743. Nor would she have been able to ingratiate with Charles Stuart and his Jacobite allies, survive decades without Jamie, or found Fraser’s Ridge. She’s one of TV’s strongest characters.