Customer Reviews

Sherlock Holmes TV Collection

5 star:		(3)
4 star:		(6)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

When discussing actors who have portrayed the character of Sherlock Holmes, most people will expound upon the merits of Jeremy Brett, Basil Rathbone, Peter Cushing, and Ian Richardson. However, there was another actor who brought Holmes to life in 1954, in a regular Sherlock Holmes television series that few remember and many have not seen. As such, Ronald Howard (son of the famous actor Leslie Howard), is probably the most unsung Holmes of all.

Howard was very competent, if a bit young, as Holmes, and really looked the part when clad in the traditional costume of the character, complete with deerstalker cap and pipe. Howard's Holmes is a bit less cold and freneticly focused than Brett, and therefore less accurate, but that is part and parcel with television adaptations of the time.

Watson is also competently portrayed by a somewhat Victor Buono-ish Howard Marion-Crawford. Crawford's Watson is both just serious enough and just slightly bumbling enough to be perfect. While not as serious as latter-day Watsons, but not quite as buffoonish as the much-loved Nigel Bruce version, Crawford can move freely between both extremes. Crawford went on to appear in such classics as "Charge of the Light Brigade" and "Lawrence of Arabia".

One of the hidden treasures here has to be Archie Duncan as Inspector Lestrade. Duncan plays the long-suffering detective with such deadpan grace and humor that the Lestrade character comes alive as never before. If anything, Duncan's Lestrade tends to remind one of Roland Young's Topper character.

The episodes on this set are not the complete series (which had 39 episodes in all), but there is a fair representation of the work. The stories range from excellent to mildly entertaining. At times, Holmes is less than effective (in one episode, he throws a coin away to keep from criminals from getting it, whereas the "real" Holmes would have palmed the coin and gave the impression he threw it away). Some of the mysteries are well-written, and in one, Holmes deduces a crime by the direction of fibers in a rope. Three of the episodes faithfully use original Holmes stories from the official canon, "The Red Headed League" being the most complete. The initial meeting of Holmes and Watson is also faithfully presented from Doyle's text, and in the third, a puzzle involving a pair of dumbells is inserted into an original story.

Best of all, the characters are more or less "in character". One of the most fun episodes revolves around Watson suspecting Holmes of being a criminal, and in another, Holmes seems to have vanished. In both, Watson and Lestrade try to use Holmes' methods to solve the mysteries.

One of the interesting things about this series is that, despite the obviously limited budget, several scenes were done on location (most notably in and around the Eiffel Tower, and what appears to be the Parliment buildings in London).

Besides being one of the earliest TV versions of Sherlock Holmes, this series has one other tidbit of note; the opening shot is remarkably similar to one later used by Granada for the Jeremy Brett series. A camera starts out high above the street on a sign that clearly reads "Baker Street", and proceeds to pan down to a policeman, carriages, and other activity.

As usual with Madacy, the prints are of questionable quality and sources. These episodes were obviously transferred from an inferior video source, and some of the prints used here are worse than others. That having been said, the episodes included are, for the most part, complete, and unavailable elsewhere. As such, the student of the master detective can't go wrong for the price.

In 1954,writer-producer Sheldon Reynolds brought Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's legendary detective Sherlock Holmes to television screens in a 36-episode series that was one of the first ever television series made for syndication (television was about six years old at the time!!).Ronald Howard,the son of legendary actor Leslie Howard,stars in the title role along with the witty H.Marion Crawford as his partner-in-crime Dr.Watson and Archie Duncan as the hilarious Inspector Lestrade that brings more tongue-in-cheek mystery than serious crime solving! The series' storylines ironically has nothing to do with the original Conan Doyle stories (THE RED-HEADED LEAGUE being the only episode of the series that's based on a Conan Doyle story),but nevertheless doesn't take away the humor,continuity,or style.This Madacy 2-disc TV Favorites edition contains ten out of the thirty-six episodes that includes: THE CASE OF THE EIFFEL TOWER,THE CASE OF THE JOLLY HANGMAN (incorrectly states this as the second episode on disc one,it's actually the LAST episode of disc one!),THE CASE OF THE CUNNINGHAM HERITAGE (the pilot episode),THE CASE OF THE DIAMOND TOOTH,THE CASE OF THE NEUROTIC DETECTIVE,THE RED-HEADED LEAGUE,THE CASE OF THE VANISHED DETECTIVE,THE NIGHT-TRAIN RIDDLE,THE CASE OF THE PENNSYLVANIA GUN,and THE CASE OF THE BAKER STREET BACHELORS.Plus,a videotaped on-screen introduction from Horror master Christopher Lee (who starred as Watson in Hammer Films' version of THE HOUND OF THE BASKERVILLES and as Holmes in several made for television movies) rounds out both discs as well!! Although all of the shows are in glorious black & white and are uncut,there is a catch.Some of the episodes contain video glitches and artifacts as looks from what could be taken from the ten tape box set of the series,also produced by Madacy.Despite these minor problems,the DVD set is a great collection of shows that are fast-paced,humorous,and fun to watch! I recommend this set as well as the Madacy recently-released five volume collection of this series on DVD (which I hope to find soon!!) and enjoy the finest hours of television's first Sherlock Holmes!!!

I have the Sherlock Holmes collection on VHS. This DVD version contains only half the episodes that were in the VHS version. My favorites, "The belligerent ghost" and "haunted gainsborough" were not included in the DVD collection. I hope they will soon be released as a second collection.

All that aside, this is a wonderful portrayal of Sherlock Holmes starring Ronald Howard, son of Leslie Howard. It is lighhearted and witty.

Be aware that the film quality is only fair. It has been restored from damaged film.

Madacy recently released a 5-DVD set of 20 episodes, including the 10 episodes in this set. If you like this TV series, you might consider getting the larger set instead of this one. The ASIN for the larger set is B0001Z3TS4.

I personally like this TV series. Ronald Howard is more personable than most others who have played Sherlock Holmes - more human - but still quirky and particular. In this series, he seems to enjoy being smarter than the other characters, but he does it with more of a sense of humor, rather then being obnoxious about it. Like any TV series, some episodes are better than others, but I found them all enjoyable.

While this series may not be as largely budgeted or as well-known as other depictions of Doyle's series of works, it is nonetheless very enjoyable. While the stories in it are not perfectly in keeping with what Doyle wrote originally [Many are, in fact, original and not of the series at all], the series has the essence of what Doyle intended, something so often lacking in other Holmes films.

If you tire of bad portrayals, horrid 'creative' reworkings of the classics which cease to be about Holmes at all, this series may be a relief to you. And with such a good price, it is well-worth the time spent watching.

Although I must confess that I don't own this particular set (I have the good fortune to own all 39 eps.), I had to put in my two-cents worth. I am baffled as to why this show is not more widely know and discussed by Sherlockians. Although I see it is not a favorite with everyone, it certainly has its merits and strives harder than many other Holmsian adaptations to stay true to the spirit if the Canon.

While I have not yet viewed the Rathbone rendition of THE GREAT DETECTIVE, I must class Ronald Howard's performance among the best. Some may complain about his youth, but we must remember that Holmes and Watson met in their late twenties-Holmes was a young man once :)
Jeremy Brett's performance, though fabulous in intensity and focus, always lacked the dynamic energy that Watson so often describes in Holmes. Brett also lack the charm that Watson so often describes that Holmes could exhibit at will.
Howard also allows the inherent fussiness and impatience that Holmes so often manifests in the Canon to be obvious and correctly, in my opinion, humorous. The only deviations from the Canon in Howard's Holmes are his lack of languor, his horrible, mangled playing on the violin and his lack of physical prowess.

H. Marion Crawford's Watson is very near the dear Doctor we all know and love. He is neither too stupid nor too swift. Because the mysteries in the series are often simple, he at times looks a little more dense then he ought, but that is not Crawford's fault. Altogether, his care and concern for Holmes and his willingness to hazard his own reputation to help Holmes succeed in his cases come straight from the Canon's pages.
I enjoyed the fact that in this series emphasizes Watson's martial prowess. Because they give Holmes no credit as a boxer, Crawford's Watson gains a great deal of importance through this aspect of his character. One other thing: though Watson is charming, in this series he is rather shy around ladies. It makes for a few cute situations, though it is very different from the Canon.

As I watched the series I carefully noted the references to the Canon and actual story reproductions. There were, if my memory serves, four or five reproductions, although only "The Red-Headed League" garners the honor of the short story name. Two episodes not included in this set, "The Case of the Shoeless Engineer" and "The Case of the French Interpreter" will ring bells in the heads of Sherlockians. They are slightly altered renditions of "The Adventure of the Engineer's Thumb" and "The Adventure of the Greek Interpreter."
There are many other references to the original texts, but my favorite reference actually notes a Sherlockian dispute, the location of Watson's wound(s). At their first meeting, Holmes comments on Watson's wounded shoulder. At the end of the episode, Holmes is working away on something at his desk and Watson, newspaper in hand, storms out of the flat. As the door slams behind him, Holmes looks up and comments, "Maybe he was wounded in more than just the shoulder," and then returns to work. :D That one had me rotf, let me tell you.

My final recommendation: get the episodes. It is a very different take on Holmes and one that I think brings out the better elements of his convoluted and irascible nature. Watson is pleasant and gentle, as well as being rather protective of his friend. A charming combination, and one I will be enjoying for years to come!

This two disc set, THE SHERLOCK HOLMES COLLECTION, is by far one of the better adaptions of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's brilliant stories. Ronald Howard and H. Marion Crawford are as close to Holmes and Watson respectively in appearance and portrayal as any pair of actors. The episodes are short, intelligent, and packed with the director's uncanny touches (such as the judge's home and hobby in "The Case of the Vanished Detective") and the writer and producer's (Sheldon Reynolds) subtle and blatant humor. The stories lose nothing of their integrity from episode to episode, nor do they slip from their attention to even the smallest details. I was thoroughly impressed with the collection, and, at the inexpensive price for which the set can be purchased, it is simply a must!

Ronald Howard does a wonderful Sherlock Holmes and H. Marion Crawford playing Watson. These shows were all produced to last under 30 minutes, yet they do a wonderful job of giving an entertaining performance.Sherlock Holmes: The Complete Series

Being rather young I haven't been able to see many classics, and happened to come across Digiview's volume one of this series. Two episodes in their mere 3 episode DVD are not included in the 10 episode set, but from the three I have watched I was astonished. I love old movies, and adore old black and white films, and have always had a love for Sherlock Holmes. So you can imagine how ecstatic I was when I found this. Howard plays the role of Holmes brilliantly. Very naturally and his acting overall is very good-Then again, most old acting is compared to these days-. I also loved the portrayl of Lestade, funny and rather believable. I must agree that many of the actors in this film, especially Ronald Howard are possibly the best suited for the roles out of the many actors who have done Holmes movies. It's definately worth while to watch. If I could get my nine-year-old, black-and-white-show-hating, younger brother to actually enjoy them-without using force-then there's got to be something good about them.

this set may appear to be a good deal-10 stories on two dvd's at a modest price--but in this case you get what you pay for-not much!
A unique thing about this set-Ronald Howard is without a doubt the worst Holmes of all time--and if that's not enough-H. Marion Crawford is the worst Watson of all time--and as a bonus-Archie Duncan appears as the worst Lestrade of all time. Not trying to kick a dead dog--but the acting and portrayals are about as pathetic as you'll find--spend a little more and get some quality versions of Sherlock Holmes!