This is one of my favorite episodes. It is an excellent episode. Ray falls in love at first sight and explains his theory of love. Ray also resolves a dilemma differently than Fraser has as we learn in "Victoria's Secret." We also first learn about Victoria in Fraser's first Fortitude Pass Soliloquy (of which I am the proud Keeper on the Due South Newsgroup message board). This scene where he describes, to a sleeping Ray, his love interest in the blizzard was touching and combined with the ending where he sits looking at a photograph was moving and beautifully acted.
The music is excellent. "Why'd You Lie" by Colin James playing in the background at the farmhouse scene where Ray kisses Suzanne Chapin is so perfect.
Detective Gardino: "Look, I can't see why we
don't play for real money. I mean, we're cops. What are we gonna do, arrest
ourselves?"
Ray Vecchio: "No, but *he* will."
Ben Fraser: "I'm sorry, I would feel
honour-bound."
Fortitude Pass Soliloquy
You know there was a woman once, Ray. We were, uh, I don’t know what we were.
In the end, I tracked her up above the 62nd parallel, into a place called Fortitude Pass. A storm had been blowing for days. The whole world was white. By the time I found her I’d lost everything—my packs, my supplies—everything. And she was huddled in the lee side of a mountain crag. She was almost frozen, very near death. So I staked a lean-to, and draped my coat across it and drew her inside and covered her body with mine and I just held her while the storm closed around us like a blanket until all I could hear was the sound of her heartbeat—weakening. I forced her to speak to me—just talk to me—say anything to keep the cold from taking her. And it snowed for a day and a night and a day. I was delirious—I almost gave up. The only thing I had to hold onto was the sound of her voice, which never wavered. She recited a poem. You know the funny thing, I must have heard that poem a thousand times that night, but I never heard the words. It ended…badly. She had a... she had a darkness inside her. And the most beautiful voice, the most beautiful voice you ever heard.