Sherlock Holmes and the Valley of Fear

These Four Sherlock Holmes cartoons, as well as the literary adaptations done by Burbank Studios Australia, are fun little pieces. They were made in the 80's, and played on TV, sometimes on Saturday mornings, but mostly on school holidays to give kids an alternative to Soap Operas in the days when there were only three channels from which to choose.

For kids raised on anime, these will seem boring, they also lack all the high pitched screaming and shrieking prevalent in the cartoons on TV today.

The cartoons give a nice representation of Victorian England both in locations and in the characterizations.

Definitely recommended for fans of Sherlock Holmes, Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, and cartoon adaptations of literary classics.

I've been a lifelong fan of mysteries, as was my father before me, and it's a tradition I've tried to pass down to my nieces and nephews. I recently came across these four animated Sherlock Holmes specials from the early 80s with acting legend Peter O'Toole voicing the greatest detective of all time. I'd never heard of these before, and boy was I in for a treat! Peter O'Toole has an amazing vocal quality that brings the right amount of sincerity and wit to the role, and his ability to have fun within character makes him a real treat for children. The animation is on par with any Hannah Barbera production from the era, and it reminded me of one of my other all time favorite animated shows, Scooby Doo, only with the higher quality writing of the Arthur Conan Doyle original stories. I can't wait to see these again, as I've heard a DVD release is pending. Wonderful family entertainment, and a great way to get kids reading. Highly recommended! One of the directors has been the chief layout artist for many Disney films in recent years, too, so it's nice to see that Disney could spot his talent way back then and put him to work on the sequels to Jungle Book, Little Mermaid and Aladdin as well as Clifford's Big Movie. Everyone loves a good mystery!

I like all four of the Burbank Holmes animated adaptations. They are less than perfect, but even with their foibles they are well worth watching. The Valley of Fear has the same general problems as the rest of the adaptations, stiff character designs as well as some awkward camera angles, sluggish pacing and voice acting from the supporting voice actors that is on the monotone side. However, the pros are also similar in the four adaptations. Here like in Sign of Four there are handsome backgrounds, that capture the Victorian mood perfectly. The music has the right hauntingly beautiful edge while not overbearing the dialogue in the way The Baskerville Curse did. The dialogue is intelligent and thought-provoking, remarkably very like Conan Doyle's writing. The source material for The Valley of Fear is not as strong as the other three adaptations, but again the adaptation does a laudable job adapting it, sticking to the details and spirit of the book while not letting the mystery and suspense drop. Peter O'Toole and Earle Cross are splendid as Holmes and Watson respectively. All in all, has a lot to like about it still if imperfect. 7/10 Bethany Cox