with diamonds and pearls at your head and your feet

[lotesse]

In honor of the first close-to-wintry day we've seen this year in Indiana, I'm watching the pilot of Due South. I know almost nothing about this show. Mounties, Chicago, there was some thing with two dudes named Ray that apparently almost brought down the fanpocalypse? I'm not sure if it's realist or fantastic - although for some reason I'm expecting something more than just a realist procedural. But Maude knows I love SG1 and The Sentinel pretty hard, and it seems like the three fandoms tend to present together in fen.

What should I know about this show/the fandom? Come, regale me with tales of media fandoms of yore!

Comments

[theprimrosepath]

I have long been tempted by this show, if only to learn the mythical beginnings of the famed Canadian Shack fanfic meme. :)

[princessofgeeks]

I can't say enough about this fandom. I fell in love with it a couple of years ago.

The fic is totally fantastic and the show itself is gorgeous.

Yes, there are two Rays. Back in the day, there was a rift. Today we all try our best not to revive the rift.

I will gladly follow along as you post episode comments. I have recs under a tag, as does green_grrl.

It's a terrific fandom and a terrific canon and I'll be very interested to see what you make of it.

:D

[malnpudl]

My heart fandom! I've loved more than a few shows, but none more than this one.

It's sometimes called a dramedy, but I'd say whimsical rather than comic. Magical realism is the other common description, though it's occasional and generally done with a light touch. It's mostly pretty good, sometimes outstanding, only occasionally mediocre. The tone changed somewhat when Paul Gross took over as showrunner for the final seasons (the RayK years). He was influenced by British comedy, so the humor gets a bit more absurd at times, but he also gave the show a bit more edge now and then. I tend to see the first two seasons as about Fraser with Ray as sidekick, and the rest as more about RayK, but that's just my take on it.

You get one Ray for the first couple of seasons and another one for the rest of the show's run. Both are marvelous, each in his own very different way. The fandom only used to let you pair Fraser with one or the other, and the one you didn't choose was wrong, but that rift was very deliberately and (mostly) thoroughly mended over the last eight years, give or take. Aside from the occasional, inevitable holdout, who rarely even pop up publicly any more, the fandom now welcomes all pairings/moresomes, take your pick. dS fandom as a whole has strong Cult of Nice tendencies, which some find a bit wearing but many others find refreshingly safe and welcoming.

A lot of good writers have paddled in the pond. You won't run out of fic quickly. :-)

[princessofgeeks]

Get hold of the vid Pavlov's Bell by Butterfly. For me it's definitive.

[china_shop]

But so spoilery!

[princessofgeeks]

Well, yes. There is that. You're right.

[spuffyduds]

It's a delightful show and a wonderful fandom, in which you are most welcome!!! (princessofgeeks sent me!)

[spuffyduds]

Oh, and for me at least, the first season fell off a bit after the pilot. If you're not in love with the first few episodes, hang in there for a bit and it gets quite wonderful after another character gets introduced. Well, reintroduced.

[copracat]

Ha ha ha! You don't need to know anything because you will love it.

Okay, some things.

1. You will spend a lot of time recognising music you first heard watching fan vids or downloading fan mixes. I used to write down the songs in the credits and buy the CDs the next day. Yeah, this was before the internet got even more awesome. Due South has a great soundtrack. Those Canadians know music.

2. There is a boat load of fanfiction. Yay! Always wonderful to pick up an old prolific fandom. This show went through some troubled times (Ray Wars) but had a glorious second wind when the DS flash fiction community got started.

3. Paul Gross Arms. The Voodoo music video is way, way, way funnier once you've got some episodes and a good sense of Fraser under your belt.

4. Happy watching!

[anthimeria]

Oh, man. This was one of my family's staple shows when I was a kid, so obviously I was not in fandom proper, but I loved it as a kid and I loved the show even more when I finally tracked down the DVDs and re-watched as a grownup. The characters are great, the writing is solid, it deals with issues of poverty, class, and identity--not always well, but definitely meaningfully. It's one of the few crime dramas that deals with the working class--I always contrast it to Castle, which I love, but which mostly deals with high-society homicide. dS deals with all kinds of crime, and all sorts of people. Relationships are important, and they change naturally. Whimsy and magical realism--which I think others already mentioned--apply in a big way.

Also, once you've finished, let me know, for I have fic recs. ;)

[peoriapeoriawhereart]

There is a lot of great fic, in all sorts of styles, all sorts of genres. RayV is fun to watch (peaches) and RayK has his own charms (and there is xover fun with Wilby Wonderful) and you will want to watch Benton carefully, he's got layers that would make a geologist giddy.

[anthimeria]

So much yes--apparently mounties are like onions. Or at least that mountie.

[sophia_sol]

THIS SHOW. And also THIS FANDOM. BOTH ARE SO GOOOOOOOD. I, um, would say more useful things, but really the important bits are: the show is great, the fic is great, the fans are great, and the show has the most perfect ending of any tv show I've ever seen.

[boxofdelights]

I started watching Due South after having fallen in love with Slings & Arrows. I liked the pilot, but thought the episodes I saw after that (Free Willie and They Eat Horses) were just dumb. Too silly and too sentimental. Then I read Sarah Monette's episode reviews and realized that yes, there is dumb, but not just dumb; there's a lot of intelligent and interesting in there too, and the whole is well worth watching.