Product Details

• Actors: Hamilton Camp, Taichirô Hirokawa, Kousei Tomita, Yôko Asagami, Lewis Arquette
• Directors: Hayao Miyazaki, Heipachio Tanaka, Kyosuke Mikuriya, Seiji Okuda, Takaya Mizutani
• Writers: Arthur Conan Doyle, Gi Pagot, Marco Pagot, Sunao Katabuchi, Tsunehisa Itô
• Producers: Koji Takeuchi, Luciano Scaffa
• Format: Animated, Color, DVD, NTSC
• Language: Japanese (Dolby Digital 2.0), English (Dolby Digital 2.0)
• Subtitles: English
• Region: Region 1 (U.S. and Canada only. Read more about DVD formats.)
  
• Aspect Ratio: 1.33:1
• Number of discs: 1
• Rating: Unrated
• Studio: Geneon [Pioneer]
• DVD Release Date: February 26, 2002
• Run Time: 125 minutes
• Average Customer Review: 3.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (7 customer reviews)
• ASIN: B00005UM2V
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #115,852 in Movies & TV (See Bestsellers in Movies & TV)

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  Movies & TV > Animation > Characters & Series > Sherlock Hound

• For more information about "Sherlock Hound - Case File 1" visit the Internet Movie Database (IMDb)

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com

Meitantei Holmes (literally "Famous Detective Holmes," 1981) was the last TV series Hayao Miyazaki (My Neighbor Totoro) worked on, directing the first six episodes and writing scripts for some of them. Copyright disputes held up the Japanese-Italian coproduction until 1984, when it was continued with different artists. A few episodes relate to the original stories: "The Crown of Mazalin" is based loosely on "The Adventure of the Beryl Coronet." But this canine detective acts more like a standard cartoon Good Guy than a calculating criminologist, and Professor Moriarty resembles Oil Can Harry from Mighty Mouse. The series invites the viewer to play Sherlock Holmes and pick out elements that Miyazaki would develop further as his personal style evolved in his features: the mechanic's daughter in "Small Client" is clearly the ancestor of Mei in Totoro. The English vocal cast turns in such uniformly drab performances (in affected British accents) that it's more entertaining to watch the Japanese version with subtitles. Suggested for ages 7 and up: Minor cartoon violence, tobacco use. --Charles Solomon

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

41 of 41 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Miyazaki comedy-adventure at its best!, February 15, 2002

By	The Mad Editor (Planet Earth) - See all my reviews

I've been a fan of this series for a long time even though I've only seen a few of the episodes, so when I heard it was coming out here in the States, I was very excited. After viewing the first of six DVD releases, I can tell you this is definitely a series to anticipate, and you should buy it as soon as it comes out!

Originally conceived and scripted in part by Hayao Miyazaki, director of such classics as "The Castle of Cagliostro", "My Neighbor Totoro", and "Kiki's Delivery Service", the series follows one Sherlock Hound (Sherlock Holmes in the original Japanese dub) through his many adventures and mysteries. All the characters in the series are anthropomorphic dogs, and the series is full of Miyazaki's influence and style. However, he only worked on of the six episodes, three of which are contained on this DVD: "A Small Client" (Little Martha's Big Mystery), "Mrs. Hudson is Taken Hostage", and "The Adventure of the Blue Carbuncle" (Blue Ruby).

Here are short reviews of the episodes contained on this DVD. "English titles" (followed by Japanese titles):

"The Four Signatures" (He's the Famous Detective)
In this episode, Dr. Watson and Hound/Holmes meet for the first time. They are on a ferry from Currie, and midway through their journey a band of Barbary pirates shows up seeking a traitorous member and the treasure he stole. Dr. Watson helps Hound/Holmes as he does his best to save both the innocent people on the ship as well as the former pirate.

"The Crown of Mazalin" (The Evil Genius, Professor Moriarty)
The son of the protector of the Crown of Mazalin is suspect in its theft, and only his girlfriend and Hound/Holmes can clear his name. Inspector Lestrade, of Scotland Yard, is intent on catching the young suspect, and it takes all of Hound/Holmes' brains, as well as a little luck, to find the real criminals.

"A Small Client" (Little Martha's Big Mystery)
Martha's daddy is missing, and thanks to her neighbor friend, Martha knows just who to ask to find him. Meanwhile, London is being flooded with counterfeit coins, threatening to undermine the economy of the entire empire, and Lestrade is stumped. When an innocent letter from Martha's father turns out to be more than it appears, Hound/Holmes enlist Lestrade's help to save the missing father and the empire.

"Mrs. Hudson is Taken Hostage"
Moriarty become an amateur photographer as he finds a weakness to exploit in Hound/Holmes: Mrs. Hudson. He hatches a plan to kidnap the beautiful widow and get Hound/Holmes to steal a work of art to exchange for her so Moriarty can get him locked away as a criminal. Mrs. Hudson, however, turns out to be more than he expected.

"The Adventure of the Blue Carbuncle" (Blue Ruby)
Moriarty has just stolen a priceless gem, and on his way home he literally runs into Polly, a young pickpocket who relieves him of his new acquisition. Moriarty is furious when he discovers the gem is missing, and so begins a hunt for the elusive young thief. Hound/Holmes and Watson intervene on behalf of Polly, and together they battle to stay one step ahead of the evil genius.

The transfer onto DVD is excellent, and there are only a few spots where artifacting is obvious. It looks like the best source materials were used to create this transfer. Because the English version is about 1 minute longer than the Japanese version, the English and Japanese versions are recorded seperately on opposite sides of the DVD. Pioneer thoughtfully made the labels for each side different colors, though, so it's easy to tell which side is which: blue for English and red for Japanese.

The English voice acting is very good, and the translation for the subtitles is an actual translation instead of "dubtitles". There are some minor continuity problems in the English version (for instance, Professor Moriarty greets Hound/Holmes as if for the first time in the sixth episode, despite them having met in the second). The sound quality, while only Dolby Digital 1.0 (Mono), is clean and clear, and the sound level is just right.

There are no extras included on the DVD, though with the age of this series (almost 20 years old) it's probably hard to find any. The insert, however, opens into a nice mini-poster of Hound/Holmes and Watson.

This series is enjoyable by kids of all ages. It's full of action, a little bit of romance (as Holmes has a thing for Mrs. Hudson), mystery, and slapstick adventure. There's a little bit of something for everyone here, and it's a great introduction to the cases of Sherlock Holmes for those who've never read the originals. I highly recommend it!

14 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Alot of fun, especially the Miyazaki directed episodes!, April 24, 2002

By	H-man - See all my reviews

This is solid entertainment for kids and anime fans alike, especially those interested in the works of master anime director Hayao Miyazaki (Princess Mononoke, My Neighbor Totoro, Castle of Cagliostro). He directed three of the five episodes (A Small Client, Mrs. Hudson is Taken Hostage, and The Blue Carbuncle)and his flair for great action and pacing (see Castle of Cagliostro) is especially evident in these episodes. The other two unfortunately lack that kind of energy and invention but are still fun. Sure the animation is a bit dated but the story, characterizatons and humor are still top quality. I personally prefer the Japanese language with English subtitles(you get the Japanese vocals for the opening and closing themes to boot) but the English dub is certainly decent in of itself.

Overall, a must have for Miyazaki fans and for parents who want their children to watch wholesome yet inventive anime that's not the usual Pokemon-derived dreck.

9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Sherlock Has Gone To The Dogs, February 26, 2002

By	Urban Spaceman (USA) - See all my reviews

I have been a fan of Sherlock Holmes all of my life. I am not locked into tradition as some Sherlockians. I am open to new and different interpretations of the Great Detective. This DVD is a delight. True it takes several big liberties with Holmes, but that's OK. It is not intended to be a straight retelling of the Canon. The stories are well told and the Anime is very good. This disk can serve as an introduction to Sherlock Holmes for young children and as a pleasant variation on a theme for older Sherlock Holmes fans.