Monika’s Pensieve

{FILM DIARY}
Note: Please refer to this post for more details and links to other Due South reviews.

"Due South" (Canada/USA, 1994)

Viewed: Late May & Early June 2010
Rating: +3 (All-time favourite)

Video

Episodes:
- 14: The Man Who Knew Too Little
Fraser has to safely escort Ian McDonald, a key murder case witness and a pathological liar, to Canada.
- 15: The Wild Bunch
Diefenbaker is to be exterminated after biting a man.
- 16: The Blue Line
Fraser and Ray try to protect Fraser’s childhood friend, Mark, now a famous hockey player. Fraser finds that fame has changed Mark.
- 17: The Deal
Fraser and Ray investigate the robbery of a church poor-box. During the investigation Ray has to face Frank Zuko, a mobster who Ray first came across when he was still a kid at school.
- 18: An Invitation to Romance
Fraser is forced to follow a woman around town after she mistakenly receives an envelope that was meant for somebody else. Her jealous fiancé intervenes.
- 19: Heaven and Earth
Fraser and Ray try to track down a homeless man with psychic visions. Ray worries that Fraser slept with his sister.
- 20: Victoria’s Secret (1)
Victoria is the only woman Fraser ever loved and he was the one that arrested her. Now Victoria is out of prison and their paths cross again.
- 21: Victoria’s Secret (2)
Continuation of the story from episode 20.
- 22: Letting Go
Fraser recovers emotionally and physically after the events of episode 20 and 21.
- 1: North
The cabin of Fraser’s father burnt down in one of the previous episodes. Fraser and Ray fly to Canada to rebuild it, but an escaped convict crashes their plane in the middle of the forest.
- 2: The Vault
Ray and Fraser get locked into a bank vault during a robbery. Fraser’s new boss, Meg Thatcher, absolutely detests him.
- 3: The Witness
Ray loses his temper with a judge after a key witness in a case he investigated changes her statement in court. The judge has Ray arrested for contempt charges.
- 4: Bird in the Hand
Gerard, the murderer of Fraser’s father escapes prison. Having known Gerard all his life, Fraser is asked for any information that might help recapture the man.
- 5: The Promise
A pickpocket steals a brooch belonging to Fraser’s new boss. Fraser promises to retrieve it.
- 6: The Mask
Fraser tries to recover two Aboriginal masks after they are stolen from a Chicago museum.
- 7: Juliet Is Bleeding
Detective Louey Gardino dies in a car bomb meant for Ray. Frank Zuko is suspected since Ray has been flirting with Zuko’s sister.
- 8: One Good Man
Fraser asks reporter Mackenzie King for help, when his building’s new landlord raises the rent and evicts all the tenants.

Memorable Moments:
- Ray being forced to blow up his car
IMO this was actually a way more personal and difficult thing for him than falling in love in episode 11 ;)
- Fraser having to deal with his wolf being exterminated
I think this is the first time in the series when Fraser gets really emotional (in his own restrained way of course, but still ;-P).
- Ray facing up to Frank Zuko
Ray often appears to be the weaker of the two of them. But this is a scene in which he finally faces up to somebody, man to man, with absolutely no backup from Fraser whatsoever and it’s beautiful *grin*
- Fraser ending up in a honey moon hotel with a woman and then following that with a ride inside the garbage can of a garbage truck (video - the bit with Ray)
That whole sequence is brilliant. But perhaps my favourite is when Ray discusses the matter with Diefenbaker - where would Fraser end up with a beautiful woman?
- Ray confronting Fraser about whether or not he slept with his sister
Ray confronting Fraser about anything is always fun, but this is a particularly involving subject ;)
- The whole relationship between Fraser and Victoria and how Ray fits into it
I find it difficult to pick a particular moment, but I suppose there are two that stand in my mind more than others. The first is when Ray tells Victoria that if she hurts Fraser he’ll kill her. The second is when Victoria manipulates Fraser into playing along with her plan by threatening to hurt Ray. But actually, the whole relationship between Fraser and Victoria is great. She’s a femme fatale and Fraser really works well in that sort of relationship.
- Fraser announcing he’s blind (video)
I find that scene so funny and yet it has an extra edge to it too.
- Ray carrying Fraser (who is blind and paralysed waist down) through the forest while the two of them sing (video)
To me it’s one of the funniest scenes of the series, it’s beautiful *grin*
- Fraser trying to steal candy
Another really hilarious one :)
- The ghost of Fraser’s dad trying to talk him into killing Gerard (video embedded above)
A really funny, but very emotional scene.
- Fraser talking about feelings to unnerve FBI agents
The whole “Bird in the Hand” episode is very extreme on both the funny and emotional side of things. This scene is the epitome of that. Fraser and Ray have been overpowered. Fraser tries to divert everybody’s attention to get the upper hand and so he starts talking about his feelings towards Gerard, his father’s best friend and murderer. It’s completely earnest and yet the whole situation is hilarious - the agents and Gerard really are unnerved and with good reason lol
- The whole police station hating Fraser’s guts for helping Frank Zuko
It’s intense, enough said :] Fraser’s relationship with Ray suffers considerably too.
- Fraser losing his temper with the new landlord’s attempts to get everybody out of the building
Seeing Fraser angry is even weirder than seeing him on the verge of tears. He even picks up an axe in fury (though what ensues is more of a fist fight). But it works and totally makes sense in the context.

General Comments:
At this point Ray and Fraser’s adventures get much more personal. Though the comedy is still very firmly in place, drama and melodrama start getting a lot more prominence. Ray and Fraser’s friendship gets tried and tested. The conflicts between them get more serious, but at the same time the strength of their friendship really starts coming through.
The characters get fleshed out more as well. Fraser was always written as someone who is very restrained about his feelings. So they started playing with that more, putting him into situations where he’s a lot more emotionally vulnerable and where exercising his usual restraint is much more difficult. I also loved that Ray, for all his insensitivity at times, understands this part of Fraser. He knows that just because Fraser isn’t showing his feelings, doesn’t mean he’s not in some sort of emotional turmoil.
We get a slightly different angle on Ray as well. His limits and boundaries are pushed. We see how far he’d go in keeping his friends and family from harm. His vengeful side is explored more too.
The beginning of the second season marks the introduction of a new character - Fraser’s new supervisor, Meg Thatcher, who absolutely hates him and bosses him around in a very domineering kind of fashion (to which Fraser submits without question of course). I absolutely loved the relationship - it’s very spicy and it’s a relationship dynamic that is very rarely represented on film. Usually, a domineering woman is either a villain or a rival to a male character, but what goes on between Thatcher and Fraser is neither.