'Outlander' season 4: New York Comic Con panel highlights and more

The “Outlander” fans who attended the New York Comic Con recently were in for a double surprise. First, the author of the book series Diana Gabaldon made a surprise appearance and took part in the panel discussion, and secondly the premiere episode of season 4 was shown at the event to everyone’s excitement.

A huge crowd gathered in New York to meet the cast and producers of the show. Richard Rankin (Roger) shared a video of the fans online [see below].

During the panel discussion [see video below] Gabaldon was asked why she took Jamie (Sam Heughan) and Claire (Caitriona Balfe) to the American colonies instead of keeping them in Scotland. The author pointed out that after the Battle of Culloden many Scots went to different places, and many of them reached the New World; so this was a logical progression of the events in the books as well.

The setting in the colonies was also exciting because this is the time just before the American Revolution. However, Gabaldon pointed out that the heart of the story has always been the relationship between Claire and Jamie, and the setting is not that as important as this relationship.

Roger (Richard Rankin) and Brianna (Sophie Skelton) will be getting more screen time in season 4. When asked about the inevitable changes in the show from the books, Rankin said that there are changes due to logistical reasons, but added that the writers have been able to capture the essence of their scenes. Skelton echoed her co-star’s comments and said that the show follows the source material quite closely in terms of the dynamics of the two characters.

Answering a question during a game they played, Ronald D. Moore confirmed that the fans will get to meet the time –traveller in this season whose bones with silver fillings Claire was seen holding in the trailers.

Meanwhile, John Bell (Young Ian) shared a new picture online [see below] that appears to be a still from one of the episodes. The actor said that he wanted to keep the dog that plays Rollo.

Credit: Starz/ YouTube

Credit: Richard Rankin/ Instagram

Credit: John Bell/ Twitter