If you’re looking for a crime-fighting duo with experience, Hudson & Rex are the team for you. And not just because this is Detective Charlie Hudson (John Reardon) and his German Shepherd partner Rex’s seventh season taking down criminals in the Canadian seaside town of St John’s: this particular pairing can trace their lineage battling bad guys all the way back to the classic 1990s SBS fan-favourite series Inspector Rex.
There’s been a number of international versions of Inspector Rex over the years (and the original series is set to be revived in 2026), but Hudson & Rex has a more direct connection than most: Hudson & Rex’s Rex has been played by Diesel vom Burgimwald, with some help from his relatives, and they’re all distant descendants of the original Rex’s family. Maybe that’s why, with over a hundred episodes across seven seasons, this Hudson & Rex has also been the most successful version since the original.
With decades of experience behind the series, it’s no surprise that Hudson & Rex is a reliably rock solid crime procedural whether the duo are solving murders, tackling a Russian spy ring, starring in a TV commercial (that’s more Rex’s thing) or going undercover at the local prison. Yes, the cases can be quirky; in between last season’s kidnapping and murders they dealt with a warning about a bomb threat that came via a self-proclaimed time traveller. But whatever the cause, the effect is always the same – Hudson and Rex leave no crime unsolved.
Charlie (John Reardon) and Rex on the job in season 7. Credit: Derm Carberry / Shaftesbury / Pope Productions
Even though Hudson’s detective instincts and Rex heightened canine senses make them a powerful team, they can’t do it alone. While Superintendent Joe Donovan (Kevin Hanchard) runs the show, it’s tech expert Jesse Mills (Justin Kelly) and forensics chief Sarah Truong (Mayko Nguyen) who are increasingly a hands-on part of the team as they step out from Major Crimes HQ to work cases as detectives themselves.
Speaking of hands on, season seven opens with Hudson and Sarah wrapping up a romantic island weekend, as their now-public relationship continues to progress under the watchful eye of Rex – who isn’t afraid to let out a bark or two when he feels things are getting out of hand. Jesse’s convinced Sarah will return with a ring, Donovan has better things to worry about, and Hudson and Rex’s return to duty soon has them heading to a different island for a very different reason: the murder of a bodybuilder.
By episode two, it’s clear this season is going to shake things up a little. Hudson’s relationship with Sarah progresses to the next level; we also get to see Rex in a Home Alone style battle with a garden-shears-wielding home invading neighbour where Rex hides amongst a collection of stuffed animals and at one stage fights back with a meat tenderiser. All part of the job.
Rex, Sarah (Makyo Nguyen) and Donovan (Kevin Hanchard) on scene. Credit: Derm Carberry / Shaftesbury / Pope Productions
But the real change comes when Hudson’s brother vanishes in Mexico and Hudson heads down south to search for him. With his partner no longer on the scene, it’s up to Rex and the rest of the team to step up; Sarah and Rex are hardly a new duo, but they find a new focus as they’re increasingly working together.
It’s a plot development forced on the show by external factors. Reardon was diagnosed with tonsil cancer and spent most of the season recuperating; he’s now reporting he’s been given the all-clear. But it’s a sign of the strength of the ensemble cast – and the power of a crime-fighting dog – that the show barely skips a beat in the following six episodes.
It’s definitely doesn’t hurt that those episodes include one where Jesse and Sarah form a band (of course there’s a mass poisoning at the gig), a mystery where the head of a beekeeping association is found stung to death (it’s worth it just for the chance to see Rex in a beekeeping outfit), and a look at the next generation of canine crime-fighters, as an officer and her K9 partner-in-training use her personal connections to get a leg up in the search for a missing witness.
For a season that had a few big shake-ups behind the scenes, the end result is close to the best of both worlds. The shift in the status quo gives the ensemble time to step into the spotlight, and no matter what there’s always a dog with a badge handy to put the bite on crime. Who’s a good boy?
All 7 seasons of Hudson & Rex are streaming at SBS On Demand. The season will also air from 28 September on SBS VICELAND, Sundays at 10.30pm.
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Hudson & Rex
