The first Outlander novel and the first season of Outlander are almost unanimously loved by fans of the series. While there's plenty of romance and drama in the books and seasons that follow, the beginning of it all, when Claire first goes back in time and falls in love with Jamie Fraser, holds a special place in fans' hearts.
Since the beginning of the story is often the most straightforward in of plot, the first season of Outlander has perhaps the least amount of deviation from the text it's based on. Of course, there were a few changes - alterations to the story that helped deepen the characterization and move the plot forward, while staying true to the spirit of the novel.
Claire And Tammas
Episode three, "The Way Out," features a storyline that is original to the show and not featured in the books. In this episode, Claire hears of a young boy who's fallen ill. The villagers and the local priest believe the boy, Tammas Baxter, is possessed by an evil spirit, and bind him to his bed while they wait for the priest to perform an exorcism.
Claire's conscience and modern medical knowledge prevent her from ignoring this situation, and she goes to see the boy, to see if there's anything that might be done. She can see that what he suffers from is poison, not demonic possession, and she is able to cure the boy, who would have died without her interference. This change sets up the enemy Claire makes in Father Bain and helps to illustrate the stubbornness of her character.
Rupert And Angus
Rupert and Angus are much changed from the way they are written in the books. There, they remain mostly in the periphery, only coming forward to deliver a few lines of dialogue here and there. The show develops them as sort of Rosencrantz and Guildenstern duo, providing witty (or rather, dim-witted) remarks and comic relief.
The two share guard duty of Claire when she first comes to Castle Leoch, and later help her free Jamie from Wentworth Prison. Claire forms more of a friendship with the two than she does in the books, which leads to some rather poignant moments in season two.
Laoghaire
The show gives Laoghaire a bit more development than the book did, making her initially more sympathetic and innocent, and later much more overtly vindictive and, frankly, murderous. In both the books and the show, Laoghaire is a young girl of 16, desperately searching for love. She holds a torch for Jamie, and both he and Claire underestimate her obsession with him.
The show Claire in the witch trial. Laoghaire's involvement in the trial is made much more explicit on the show, as she glares evilly at Claire while the latter is arrested and taken away, and she informs Claire that she will dance on her ashes after she's burned for being a witch. Yikes.
Claire's Misunderstanding
In both the book and the show, Claire accompanies Dougal and his men to collect the Mackenzie rents for Colum. The book doesn't make much of this trip aside from Claire realizing that Dougal is a Jacobite, but the show turns this into an entire episode about Claire and the Mackenzie men coming to a place of mutual understanding and comion. The extra money being taken confuses her initially, and she assumes the worst of the men (fair enough, since they've been keeping her prisoner).
Once she discovers that they're rebels, not robbers, she begins to feel sympathy for them, and the gap between her and her captors is further bridged by their sticking up for her when some men in a tavern insult her. This results in a deeper camaraderie between Claire and the men than what we see in the book.
Black Jack's Monologue
In the book, after Dougal rescues Claire from her interrogation at the hands of Black Jack Randall, he tells her about the flogging the man inflicted on Jamie years prior. The show has Claire hear this story from the villain himself, making for a riveting hour of television and a remarkable performance from Tobias Menzies as Black Jack.
Choosing to have Randall deliver the story in the form of a monologue, complete with flashbacks to the event in question, makes for a much tenser experience for both Claire and the audience. It's an insight into Randall's character - what makes him tick and how far his darkness goes.
Claire's Wedding Ring
Claire's wedding ring is described in the book as a beautiful engraved silver ring that Jamie has made for her when they return to Castle Leoch for the first time after being married. It's a sweet moment in the book, but the show forgoes that choice for something entirely original, but equally heartfelt.
Before they're married, Jamie sends Rupert and Angus off with the key to his ancestral home, Lallybroch, to have the handle made into a wedding ring for Claire. He presents it to her during the wedding ceremony and later informs her that he chose it symbolically so that she would know if they ever made it to Lallybroch, his home belonged to her as well.
Frank's Point Of View
Episode eight, "Both Sides Now," opens with Frank's point of view. Since the first Outlander novel, and the show up until this point, was quite firmly told from Claire's point of view, this came as a surprise to fans. However, the choice works, as it comes on the heels of the very romantic wedding episode, where Jamie and Claire repeatedly consummate their relationship as he reveals his feelings to her.
The chemistry between Caitriona Balfe and Sam Heughan is such that it's easy to root for them and to forget about Claire's first husband, Frank. Checking back in with him, and seeing how desolate he has become in the aftermath of his wife's disappearance, is a great way of reminding the audience why Claire would still feel the need to return to her husband in the future.
Jenny
For some reason, the show decided to make Jamie's beloved older sister Jenny be much more overtly hostile towards Claire when she and Jamie first arrive at Lallybroch. In the books, Jenny is wary of Claire and shy towards her at first, but the two quickly warm to each other.
Claire and Jenny's friendship is a bit more hard-won on the show, with Jenny openly disliking Claire from the beginning, and basically not giving her a chance until an episode later. Perhaps this is because it's just so much fun to watch Laura Donnelly sass and yell at people as the stubborn and opinionated Jenny Murray.
Jamie's Arrest
The show plays around a bit with the circumstances that lead up to Jamie's arrest, changing the way that things play out from the book. Originally, Jamie's arrest occurs when Rabbie McNab's vengeful father turns Jamie over to the Watch, who then turns him over to the redcoats.
The show brings back Horrocks, the Irishman who deserted the British army and told Jamie he knew who really killed the man he was wanted for killing. Horrocks is expanded upon a bit in the show, and the leader of the Watch, McQuarrie, is shown to be a bit more sympathetic. He and Jamie actually bond over their Scottish pride and their love of work and fighting spirits. It's Horrocks who betrays Jamie, and the rest of the men, to the Crown.
Jamie's Uncle At The Abbey
This is a minor change, or, rather, an omission of a detail from the book. In the season finale, after Jamie's torture at the hands of Black Jack Randall at Wentworth Prison, Claire, Murtagh, Rupert, Angus, and Willie manage to create a diversion and sneak Jamie out of prison. They first bring him to the house of the man who originally gifted Jamie's mother the pearls he gave to Claire on their wedding night, before moving him to an abbey where his uncle is a monk.
The show omits the return of the man's house and has the group go straight to the abbey, where there is no mention of anyone there being a relation of Jamie's.