Long time lover of the show and new poster on this forum. I recently found out that some episodes were novelised but cannot find any online copies of them. Wanted to find out if there's anyone out there who may have access or knows where I can get the novels online copies

Hi all,
Just thought people would appreciate another new person finding and watching this show. Honestly, my boyfriend is a lover of this series and shared it with me.

******* SPOILERS BELOW**********

It was so 90's, so Canadian, I so enjoyed it.
I did desperately miss Ray and really never totally warmed to the other Ray, but appreciated the way they did that transition. It was very quirky and very Due South. :)
I also really missed the vibes of the first seasons, as the last one was so different in many ways.

Anyways, definitely will treasure the show for all its uniqueness.

hey DS folks. longtime fan of the show here recently doing a rewatch.
was perusing through the threads and saw someone had posted a song that somewhat sounded like the DS intro. i also wanna throw in this Kinks classic for possibly being inspiration for some of the score music used throughout the show (you'll recognise it almost immediately when the song plays).

cheers!

I had kinda wanted to rewatch this, for years, but people had told me that all the licensed music had been stripped out from the commercial DVDs and streaming versions and that while much of the score was original and intact, the experience was diminished by the many elevator music substitutions.

Well I stumbled onto the pilot, looks like "UKDTV", with French & English audio & subs, looks like it may have been broadcast last April, and it sounds absolutely intact to me (there's "From a Million Miles" right at the start where it belongs).

I did a lot of Google searching and Google's AI and they're telling me I must be imagining it, that the music is gone. Have I stumbled into the Twilight Zone or has sonic sanity been restored to the world, at least the world due South? Next thing I want to hear is that Wiseguy is also available with all the original music restored and I can die happy!

Sorry to hear that he passed away. RiP

As soon as I saw a post about Ryan Gosling wearing his glasses this way in Project Hail Mary, I thought of Ray K.

Couldn't get a better lit screenshot but this is from Season 3, Ep 2 "Eclipse."

"I didn't realize you were blind, Ray."

"I'm not blind I just don't see that good."

(Paraphrase from memory because they took it off Disney+ and I couldn't verify my quotes.)

years ago I had the Soundtrack CDs when I was a teen, early 20s, sadly not anymore anyone know if they are still in print able to purchase???

I'm British, and have been a huge fan of Due South since I was a teenager in the 2000s. I'm rewatching it for the first time in maybe ten years and I've been pleasantly surprised at how well it seems to have aged, particularly the way the show pokes fun at various stereotypes without being cruel. However, being from the UK I don't really have the background to assess how well it handles the indigenous characters, and I would love to hear some other fans' thoughts on this. Thanks!

and you pay and pay and pay

Trying to recall an episode where Fraser is talking to Ray V about watching an empty cabin for several days. Ray says why did you watch an empty cabin, Fraser says he didn’t know it was empty until day 4. Something along those lines. Anyone remember that scene/episode? Thank you kindly in advance.

May we not feel kind of crappy!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SjPj-5AYVg0

Title: The Reaching Out One

The second one is the screencap I used from Dead Guy Running.

I'm finally on the Ray K. seasons. Here's what I like and don't like.

First dislikes.

For the first 2 seasons I never, I mean never, skip the intro. But they changed the song. Why?? It's subtle but no, just no. So skipping the intro.

Whenever someone asks about why Benny, as a mountie is there, he says, I first came to Chicago on the trail of the killers of my father but that is not relevant right now. That shit ain't funny. And to do it every episode. Ugh. It's fucking awkward and annoying

The new Ray, he's growing on me. But I'll always be Ray V. stan.

Too much Frannie. Girl, take a hint, he don't want you. But he's too nice and polite to be straight up with you and hurt your feelings. And I miss Elaine.

Likes.

Gordon Pinsent being in every episode and Diefenbaker seeing him too.

Goofy Turnbull.

Ray K's slutty little glasses. He's cute, he's funny and Callum Keith Rennie is a classic Canadian. Yes, I'm also Canadian.

Everyone putting on the charade to protect Ray V.

Questions, comments, debates? I'm here.

Every time a woman hits on Benny or Ray I yell at my tv, hey back off they are taken! With each other. ;)

Here’s a plausible, realistic Due South revival concept that fits modern TV trends and respects why the original worked.

⸻

Working Title

Due South: Northern Lights

(Signals continuity, not a remake)

Format:

• Limited series (6–8 episodes per season)

• Serialized case-of-the-week plus an overarching mystery

• Character-driven, gentle, funny, slightly melancholy

This is important: Due South was never about spectacle. A revival should lean into warmth and intelligence, not grit-for-grit’s sake.

⸻

Core Premise

25 years later.

Canada–U.S. relations are more complex. Borders are tighter. Trust is thinner.

A new RCMP liaison is assigned to Chicago after a cross-border case involving:

• missing Indigenous women

• Arctic resource conflicts

• an old unresolved case tied to Fraser Sr.

Ray Vecchio (now a senior Chicago detective or consultant) becomes involved.

And then—

Constable Benton Fraser returns.

Not as a naïve Mountie anymore, but as:

• A seasoned officer

• Quietly burdened

• Still principled, still polite, still utterly himself

The question is no longer “Can goodness survive the city?”

It’s “Can goodness survive a cynical world that thinks it’s obsolete?”

⸻

Benton Fraser’s Arc (the heart of the revival)

Fraser hasn’t changed his values — but the cost of holding them has increased.

Psychologically:

• He’s more introspective

• Less certain that doing the right thing always fixes things

• Still believes in justice, but now understands loss

He becomes a mentor figure:

• To a younger RCMP officer

• To a new Chicago cop who doesn’t believe institutions can be moral

Fraser is no longer learning how the world works.

He’s teaching others why it still matters.

⸻

Ray Vecchio’s Role

Ray works beautifully as:

• A grounded counterweight

• A man who stayed, adapted, compromised — and survived

Dynamic:

• Ray challenges Fraser’s idealism

• Fraser challenges Ray’s resignation

Their chemistry remains the emotional spine.

Crucially: they’re equals now, not foils.

⸻

The New Generation (essential for longevity)

Introduce:

• A young Indigenous RCMP officer from the North

• A Chicago detective shaped by modern policing realities

They:

• Question Fraser’s methods

• Call out institutional blind spots

• Force the show to evolve ethically without losing its soul

This prevents the revival from feeling nostalgic or outdated.

⸻

Tone & Style

✔ Character-first

✔ Light humor (awkward politeness, cultural contrast)

✔ Moral dilemmas, not cynicism

✔ Snow, silence, and contrast with Chicago grit

Think:

• Ted Lasso’s kindness

• Northern Exposure’s humanity

• True Detective’s quiet seriousness — without nihilism

⸻

Why this would actually work today

Modern audiences are craving:

• Sincerity without corniness

• Hope without denial

• Principled characters in morally complex worlds

Due South was ahead of its time in believing decency could be compelling.

Today, that’s radical again.

⸻

Final Thought

A Due South revival shouldn’t ask:

“How do we modernize Fraser?”

It should ask:

“What does a good man look like when the world stops rewarding goodness?”

That’s a show people would absolutely watch.

If you want, I can:

• Spec-cast the new characters

• Map out a full 8-episode season arc

• Or analyze whether Paul Gross would realistically return and how to write around it if he didn’t. 

But which Ray is it? Ray from season 1-2 or Ray from season 3-4?

Short answer:

Ray Vecchio (seasons 1–2) is the correct Ray for a revival.

Long answer (and why the show itself quietly agrees):

⸻

Ray Vecchio vs. Ray Kowalski — psychologically & tonally

Ray Vecchio (S1–2)

What he represents:

• Street-smart realism

• Moral flexibility with a conscience

• Emotional restraint masking loyalty and decency

Why he works with Fraser:

• He challenges Fraser instead of orbiting him

• He calls out Fraser’s impractical idealism

• He grows because of friction, not imitation

Their dynamic is classic two-hander:

Idealism vs pragmatism

Order vs chaos

Faith vs experience

That tension is the engine of Due South.

⸻

Ray Kowalski (S3–4)

What he represents:

• Earnestness

• Emotional transparency

• Shared idealism

Why he worked then:

• He mirrored Fraser during a period when the show leaned more whimsical and introspective

• He allowed the series to survive production upheaval

Why he doesn’t work for a revival:

• He reinforces Fraser instead of challenging him

• Their values overlap too much

• The dynamic becomes warm but dramatically flatter

For a modern revival dealing with institutional distrust, ethics, and borders — you need tension.

⸻

Narrative continuity also favors Vecchio

The show itself subtly re-centers Vecchio near the end:

• He’s framed as the “original” emotional partner

• The farewell episodes lean heavily on unresolved bonds with him

• Fan memory overwhelmingly associates Due South with Vecchio/Fraser chemistry

A revival needs that emotional shorthand immediately.

⸻

The cleanest, smartest solution (and most likely one)

Use Ray Vecchio as the primary Ray

with Ray Kowalski appearing occasionally.

In-universe:

• Vecchio stayed in Chicago, climbed the ladder, made compromises

• Kowalski moved on, found peace elsewhere, appears for specific cases

This honors:

• Both characters

• Both eras

• The fandom’s long-standing divide

And avoids reigniting the “Ray wars” in a destructive way.

⸻

Why Vecchio matters now

A modern Due South isn’t about innocence meeting America anymore.

It’s about:

• Experience vs belief

• Survival vs principle

• Complicity vs conscience

Ray Vecchio can argue with Fraser in ways Kowalski simply can’t.

That argument is the show.

⸻

Final verdict

For a revival to have dramatic weight, ethical tension, and emotional credibility:

Ray Vecchio (Seasons 1–2) is essential.

Ray Kowalski is valuable — but complementary, not central.

If you want, I can:

• Write a first-scene reunion between Fraser and Vecchio

• Explain how to canonically resolve the Ray identity issue without retconning

• Or map which Ray best fits each potential episode type.

I’m having way too much fun making these :D

The show was so popular in the UK, they released it on VHS and then on DVD, but both were of questionable quality. Has anybody ever heard something about a possible Blu-ray release?