When the name Jamie Fraser comes to mind, most of us immediately think of the romantic 18th-century Highlander who stole Claire’s heart in Outlander. There is plenty to enjoy about the hero of our favorite time-traveling heroine’s love story. He is fiercely loyal and loving, he is unbelievably romantic, he cares about those he loves more than anything in the world, and on top of all of that, he is quite possibly the most gorgeous Scotsman to ever exist. Plus, he is quite the warrior on the battlefield.
While there are many, many things to love about Jamie Fraser, there are things about his personality and character that is not as perfect as he seems to be. It’s understandable that it would be difficult to spot these flawed traits of his, being that he is the swoon-worthy man of our dreams.
But the flaws are indeed there. Whether it’s his tendency to be hot-headed, or the fact he got involved with Laoghaire after what she did to Claire, there are real problems here that we definitely choose to ignore because we can’t help but see the best in him. It’s understandable, though, when we’re talking about Jamie Fraser.
Buckle your seatbelts Outlander fans, because this is going to be a bumpy ride. Here are the 25 Things Wrong With Jamie We All Choose To Ignore.
Jamie Is Incredibly Stubborn
One of Jamie’s biggest flaws has to be his stubbornness. It tends to get in his way more often than not and actually gets him in trouble on several different occasions, especially with his wife, Claire.
Granted, Claire is just as stubborn which is why they have a tendency to clash over small things. But Jamie’s inability to sway his own thought process in any situation does him, and those around him, more harm than good. It’s a trait that is not easily broken for him.
He Punished Claire After She Ran
After Claire was attacked in the Highlands, she decides to go back to her own time and runs to Craigh Na Dun. Before she gets there, she is taken by Redcoats. Then, Jamie must save her from Blackjack Randall’s clutches. They barely make it out with everyone’s lives intact.
In a questionable move after the fact, Jamie decides to punish Claire for running away and putting the lives of him and his men in danger. He does learn that is not how to treat someone thanks to Claire, but it was not his finest moment.
Jamie Is Jealous Of Frank
Regardless of Claire’s utter love and devotion that was shown to her Jamie time and time again, he always still seemed to feel immense jealousy of Frank that he could not rid himself of, no matter how hard he tried.
Whether it was over Frank getting to raise Jamie’s daughter, Brianna, or over the relationship he shared with Claire, to begin with, his insecurities rose to the surface on more than one occasion. This would only cause further issues with him and Claire.
He Married Laoghaire Even After She Accused Claire Of Witchcraft
In the books, this went down much differently, but on the Starz series, Jamie knew fully well that Laoghaire was behind Claire being accused of witchcraft.
Yet, he still married her when he and Claire were apart for those two decades.
At least in the books, we could say that he was in the dark about Claire and Laoghaire’s past, but on the show, it was harder to ignore this grave mistake he made. Luckily, he and Claire got past it…eventually.
He Believed Claire’s Time-Travel Story Almost Too Quickly
Jamie’s love, loyalty, and trust in Claire were exemplified perfectly when she told him the truth about her falling through time and being from the future. He believed her nearly immediately. And while that definitely helped their love grow stronger, it was an odd occurrence for a man from his time to be so trusting.
This is especially true since the story should have been far-fetched to a logical man like Jamie. This may not be a serious flaw of his, but it was a strange turn of events.
He Had Primitive Views Before Claire
It makes sense that a Highlander from 18th-century Scotland would have differing views about, well, literally everything when up against a modern-era war nurse who turns his world upside down.
But those “traditional” values of Jamie’s made their dynamic off-kilter at the beginning of their marriage. He felt it was his duty to punish Claire, for example, because he’s her husband and his father would do the same thing. It took Claire teaching him that it doesn’t need to be that way for him to change.
He Was Inexperienced Before Claire
From the start of their marriage, Claire knew going into it that she was more experienced than Jamie was. He had, in fact, never been with anyone before her. This wasn’t necessarily a fault of Jamie’s, but it was odd how he went from being inexperienced to rather knowledgeable in that area literally overnight.
Sure, Claire helped him along the way, but it’s hard to ignore that impracticality of him learning so much in such a short amount of time.
Jamie’s Scarred Back
This isn’t something Jamie did wrong, but rather a flaw all who can’t help but love him choose to ignore. He’s undeniably gorgeous, romantic, and an all-around great man, but the large scars marring his back would typically be hard to not notice.
Yet, we all seem to let it go - and some even find it very attractive - because he is our Jamie Fraser, the fictional man everyone wishes were real. It’s really fascinating what you can get past when someone is as swoon-worthy as Jamie Fraser.
His Unenthused Reaction To Seeing Bree’s Photos
In yet another instance where the book was remarkably different than what occurred on the show, a creative choice left fans puzzled during an important moment in season 3.
When Jamie and Claire reunite at his print shop, she shows him photos of their daughter, Brianna. In the books, he weeps as he looks at them due to his overwhelming emotions. But Sam Heughan, who plays Jamie, decided to have a more subtle reaction.
This just seemed like an odd reaction from Jamie, who has always wanted to raise his daughter with Claire and never got the chance. You’d think his emotions would be all over the place upon seeing her face for the first time.
Did He Really Need To Spend So Much Time Away From Claire In Season 2?
In season 2, when Jamie, Claire, and Murtagh were in Paris, Jamie had to frequently meet with Bonnie Prince Charlie at a local grown-up establishment. But on one of these occasions, Jamie fantasized a bit more than he should have. They hadn’t been together since the events at Wentworth Prison with Blackjack Randall. It bothered Claire immensely to learn he needed to be at this establishment to be with her again, though they did makeup shortly after.
Jamie Dueled With Blackjack Randall When Claire Begged Him Not To
While in Paris in season 2 of Outlander, Jamie and Claire came across their nemesis, and the vilest man in the history of Outlander, Blackjack Randall. Jamie and Randall agreed to a duel, but Claire was steadfastly against it.
She didn’t want Randall’s end to ultimately destroy the lineage of Frank’s ancestral roots and inevitably make Frank cease to exist.
He ended up dueling with him, anyway, because of Randall’s attack on Fergus. But this caused Claire to lose their first child, Faith.
His Attitude With Jenny When They First Got Back To Lallybroch
When Jamie brings Claire to his home in Lallybroch, he reunites with his older sister, Jenny, and her husband, Ian. Things quickly get heated between the siblings, and Jamie shows a different pompous side to him that we had yet to see.
Jenny may be just as stubborn as her brother, but Jamie should have realized his sister had been taking care of their home while he was gone for those years, and he should appreciate everything she and her husband had done in his time away.
The Way He Reacted To Bree’s Assault
Initially, when Jamie learned of what happened to his daughter, Bree, which was unbeknownst to him, at the hands of Stephen Bonnet, he was angry and just wanted to help Brianna through this difficult time.
But when miscommunications led to misunderstandings, he thought she had lied about her attack and said some unsavory things to his daughter. She fiercely corrected him, but the damage was done, and he spent the rest of season 4 trying to right his wrong. It is going to be a difficult road to get them back on track.
He Attacked Roger
Roger Wakefield bravely went through the stones to follow his love, Brianna, when she went back to find her mother and biological father, Claire, and Jamie.
But after an argument with Bree, they were separated, until Roger decided to find her again. When he finally reached Fraser’s Ridge, a misunderstanding with Lizzie led to Jamie thinking Roger was the one to assault Bree. He ended up attacking Roger up in a fit of rage. This only made his reunion with Brianna that much more delayed.
Poor Roger hadn’t even done anything wrong.
Staying To Fight In Culloden Instead Of Running Away With Claire
One of the most dramatic and heartbreaking moments was when Jamie sent Claire back through the stones at Craigh Na Dun before the Battle of Culloden. They felt they had no other options but was the really the case?
He stayed to fight with his fellow Highlanders due to loyalty and seeing no way out. But why couldn’t he run away with Claire and their unborn child instead? They had surely been through tougher times, so what’s to say they couldn’t have made it on their own?
Jamie Didn’t Tell Claire He Married Laoghaire Right Away
The way Claire found out that Jamie had married Laoghaire during their time apart was quite possibly the worst way she could have. His two step-children walked in, one calling him their father. It didn’t help that she had red hair.
Then Laoghaire walks in to confront her estranged husband and the woman she despises. It would have saved them a lot of turmoil if Jamie had just been upfront with Claire about what had occurred during their twenty years spent apart from each other.
He Ended Dougal (His Uncle’s) Life
Dougal was one of those characters that was so larger than life that he commanded each scene he was in. He also had moments where you genuinely liked him, but most of the time, he was only focused on his own agenda rather than the greater good.
He was so dedicated to the Jacobite Rebellion, that when he overheard Claire and Jamie plotting to end Prince Charlie to avoid the war, he attacked them both.
The Uncle and Nephew got in a heated fight that was only going to end with one man coming out alive. That man was Jamie. While we understand he had no choice, it was a surprising moment that Jamie actually ended Dougal’s life once and for all.
He Kept The Truth From His Son Willie And Left
In season 3, we saw what Jamie had been up to in his time away from Claire. He was blackmailed by a woman of nobility to have a relationship with him before she entered an arranged marriage.
This resulted in her pregnancy, and they had a son before she passed during childbirth. His name was Willie, but Jamie never told him that he was his father. In fact, he left when Willie was still a young boy, which greatly upset the child. At this point in the story, Willie is still unaware of who his real father is.
He Somehow Always Lives Lavishly No Matter What
For a Scotsman who is nearly always on the run in the Highlands and doesn’t have hardly anything to his name, he sure knows how to find a way to live lavishly everywhere he goes.
It is not necessarily a huge flaw but is rather puzzling seeing as he doesn’t have a lot of money or property himself. Whether it’s in Paris, or Jamaica, or even in Fraser’s Ridge, he and Claire always end up doing quite well for themselves miraculously.
He Became A Criminal In Season 3
Jamie Fraser becomes an actual criminal, Claire finds out, in season 3 of Outlander. It turns out he’s a smuggler and his illegal dealings make him a man wanted by The Crown.
This is a bit of a departure from the honorable man with traditional values that we know Jamie to be. But it does show that he has changed in the twenty years he and Claire were not together, yet he still loves her just as much as the day she went back through the stones.
