An ardent Outlander enthusiast has passionately defended Claire Fraser's (played by Caitriona Balfe) original spouse, Frank Randall (Tobias Menzies), from the outset of the acclaimed Starz saga.
Married to the time-displaced WWII nurse, Frank, the descendant of nefarious Black Jack Randall (also Menzies), sees his wife inadvertently travel back to the 18th century, leaving her life with him in turmoil.
Despite eventually falling head over heels for strapping Scot Jamie Fraser (Sam Heughan), Claire returns to her former timeline for two decades till Frank perishes in an auto accident, paving her return to the past.
Frank's discontent had peaked, and a divorce was on the cards before he met with his untimely fate, yet one fan has openly expressed their profound sympathy regarding his tale.
"Does anyone else absolutely ache for Frank?" queried a fan Reddit, adding, "Every time I rewatch seasons 1 and 2, I feel absolutely sick to my stomach for the man."
While Claire's romance with Jamie has captivated audiences globally, this viewer confessed to initially hoping against hope that Claire would find her way back to Frank during their season one journey.
"The first time I watched Outlander in general, it took me essentially until the end of season 1 to get over the fact Claire wasn't going back to him and to ship her with Jaime," they disclosed.
Their remarks ignited a heated discussion in the comments section, with numerous fans expressing astonishment that someone could support Frank while watching Outlander.
One bewildered comment read: "WHAT It took you till the end of season 1 to ship her with Jamie????
"I shipped her with Jamie from episode one [laughing emoji] and from then on I was like, frank who? Lol."
Another fan strongly disagreed: "Absolutely not. He's a passive aggressive, condescending jerk who lied to Claire about Jamie's survival, didn't tell her Bree (Sophie Skelton) was in danger, deliberately embarrassed her in front of her colleagues at her graduation party, did his best to alienate Bree from her, and tried to take her to England, away from her."
Someone else concurred: "Agreed. Hate Frank. He lies, he's racist, he's sexist, he cheats pretty much constantly, and when Claire comes back traumatized and in rough shape, he won't let her leave him even though she wants to go."
Other viewers suggested reading Diana Gabaldon's original book series for more insight into Frank's character, a great way to satisfy your Outlander cravings before the new episodes air.
Outlander season seven part two premieres on Friday, November 22, on MGM+ via Prime Video in the UK and on Starz in the US.
