The time is drawing ever near when fans of a certain time travel romance will return to our screens for the final episodes. That’s right, friends, I’m talking about Outlander Season 8, which will conclude the stories of Claire and Jamie Fraser, and undoubtedly do so with many dramatic, traumatic, and tearful moments. Look, I was already expecting the upcoming season (which hits the 2026 TV schedule on March 6) to make me cry eventually, but I damn sure didn’t think the new version of the opening theme would do it months before the show even premieres!
What’s The Deal With The New Theme For Outlander Season 8?
After Outlander debuted in 2014, it quickly became iconic for a number of things. Not only is it a sweeping love story with some of the sexiest romantic scenes ever on television, but the opening credits have been among the best on TV for over a decade now.
Something that few series do is switch up the opening credits with each new season, but Outlander has always done that, both in the images we see and with varying renditions of its famed theme, “Skye Boat Song.” It was just revealed that the eighth season will feature the tune as performed by the amazing Grammy-winning Scottish singer/songwriter, Annie Lennox. Take a look/listen below, so we can get into how I reacted upon watching the new opening:
Wellllll, shit. Guys? I don’t know about you, but I literally began crying as soon as Lennox’s voice started up. Honestly, I had to work very hard to not sob while watching the new sequence and listening to her powerful voice (which I’ve always loved; if you missed her pop star heyday of the ‘80s through early ‘00s, look her up). Having heard every previous version of this song as performed for Outlander, I can promise you that I’ve never had that happen before, so it was truly a shock.
And, yes, I did also start crying each time I attempted to rewatch the credits. I’m OK. Yeah, totally. Totally, fiiiiine over here…
While there may be others who are as struck emotionally as I was by the new theme, fans know that all available Sassenachs who have adored this drama for years will likely be poised to cry at least once by the time the season ends. Not only have the producers already promised to deliver the “traditional feels” of the show for the final season, but we’ve heard a lot about how hard it was for the cast and crew to wrap on the show in late 2024.
Stars Caitríona Balfe and Sam Heughan talked about “getting choked up” just realizing the end was nigh, and it was just a few months ago that he praised his co-star/friend and it got me emotional about the coming end all over again. Now here comes the Lennox-ified theme song to make my mood all screwy anew.
Look. It’s fine, yeah? It’s a weird holiday season for me, a lot of things in the world seem like trash, and on top of all that one of my favorite shows is nearly over forever. No biggie. I’ll be alright. Now, excuse me while I go and make like a typical person with a Netflix subscription and drown my sorrows in Outlander’s top tier NSFW scenes. It’s for my mental health, OK?!?!
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