Rating: 
Summary: Simply marvelous
Review: This is the very best of Sherlock Holmes adaptations to date. Every single episode rings true and faithful to the original stories as well as, I might add, absolutely entertaining. Little diversions from the original book here & there were very minor while keeping true to characters of Holmes & Watson and, of course, the main flow of each story. I read the original Sherlock Holmes many times, so I was naturally concerned that this TV adaptation could be corney or just come out awful. However, this is simply excellent! I wish Granada could've kept up with this pace until the last episode in other installments after the Adventures & the Returns of S.H. Nevertheless this series will surprisingly amaze you! True Watson and true Holmes, although Holmes is a tiny bit more emotional than in the book.
Rating:
Summary: The definitive Master Detective - accept no subsititutes
Review: I've been reading the Sherlock Holmes stories since I was a wee lad of 11. The very first story I ever read was `The Greek Interpreter', then `The Speckled Band'. But I didn't really become an admirer until my late teens, when I bought a volume containing Sidney Paget's incomparable and stunning illustrations of the Master Detective.
I was never entirely satisfied with past portrayals with Sherlock Holmes or Dr. Watson. They were either invariably portrayed as overly arrogant (Peter Cushing as Holmes), or as buffoons (Nigel Bruce as Watson). It wasn't until I discovered the work of Jeremy Brett (via an Amazon.com search), that I finally found THE DEFINITIVE portrayal of Sherlock Holmes and Dr. Watson - one that will probably never be surpassed in my lifetime. I was absolutely stunned at every aspect of each and every episode. Their attention to detail - everything from Production Design to the performance of every single actor, is a pitch perfect rendition of Sherlock Holmes adventures, straight from the pages of the Strand Magazine. And Jeremy Brett's very countenance is the exact mirror image of Sidney Paget's drawings - from his distinctive nose to his eloquent and articulate mannerisms.
Every single episode in this collection is an absolute classic. Interestingly enough, although they contain two recurring characters, each story has a different tone and atmosphere. `A Scandal in Bohemia' has a delightfully romantic and baroque feel, while `The Speckled Band' has all the tensions and scares of a horror story. But the crowning glory of each and every episode is Jeremy Brett's performance as Sherlock Holmes, and David Burke's rendition of Watson. Burke brings a positive aggression and proactive stance to Watson, that has never been seen in any rendition of the character before or since (with the exception of the always excellent Edward Hardwicke). And Jeremy Brett's portrayal of Holmes is pitch perfect in every single way imaginable - from the tiniest inflection, to the timbre of his voice.
The only gripe I have is not with the actual episodes, but the way they were presented on DVD. MPI did a straight video transfer, without any attempt at cleaning up the prints or agumenting the sound. As a result, we have a slightly grainy transfer which would make any DVD purist die of apoplexy, and a flat sounding mono soundtrack, which fails to convey the drama of either the music or sound effects. I have heard reports that the last two collections in the series (Memoirs of Sherlock Holmes, Case Book of Sherlock Holmes), have received better treatment. Here's hoping.
Other than that - these volumes are the greatest renditions of Sherlock Holmes ever committed to celluloid. Forget Rathebone - Jeremy Brett is THE Sherlock Holmes, and David Burke (and Edward Hardwicke) will always be his Watson.
Rating: 
Summary: True to the books...
Review: If you like Sherlock Holmes books, you will probably like these films. The stories are right out of the books with very few changes. In fact, many of the dialogs are completely identical. I like that.
Of course, movies are never quite as good as books. "Watson's" unique style is lost a bit as the films can not convey his thoughts the way he can in the books.
My biggest complaint is the sound track. Unfortunately, the quality here is very poor with huge flactuations in volume level. You either need to turn the volume up very high to hear everything, or you will find yourself constantly adjusting the volume.
Overall however, I have to say that this is very good.
Rating:
Summary: A must have for any DVD collection, but . . .
Review: This is an and outstanding collection from the Sherlock Holmes series, and many reviewers have already presented the accolades better than I could hope to do, so I shall not bore you by repeating them again. All I can saw it that it is a must have collection for fans. But . . .
I would point out, a single flaw in this set if I may. That case is so flimsy that I fear it will soon fall apart in my hand. It does not seal shut properly. I have to actually work at closing the case because of its poor design and construction. The distributors should be ashamed of themselves for the horrible boxing of this find set of DVDs.
Rating:
Summary: A Terrific Series - now how about Brett in Rebecca?
Review: How wonderful to know that all the Jeremy Brett Sherlock Holmes episodes are finally coming out on DVD! He was never less than perfect, even when suffering from extremely poor health. Only complaints about this DVD series is that the subtitles are a joke - I sometimes turn them on, as occasionally the English accents are a bit odd or they use words I do not recognize, but only as a last resort because very often they are just plain ridiculously wrong. As an example, Watson says something like "so that's not our man?" and the subtitle reads "so he can't cause us harm?" Also, the sound in general is not great on these in a few spots. One question - when will they release Brett's incredible performance (I believe it was on Masterpiece Theater) as Maxim de Winter in Rebecca? It is the best filmed version of Rebecca and a must for Brett fans!
Rating:
Summary: Superb Holmes and unusually good Watson
Review: These are the first 13 episodes in the justly-famous Jeremy Brett series. To my mind, they're the best of the lot. "The Red-Headed League" and "The Blue Carbuncle" are Doyle at his very best. Jeremy Brett seems about the right age, a fit 40ish (though the actor was probably more like 50ish at the time). Brett's Holmes feels exactly right, complete with memorable mannerisms and Victorian grand gestures. It's hard to imagine a future actor ever trying his hands at it. David Burke is a better Watson than Cedric Hardwicke, who replaced him in the later episodes.Watson is a tough guy to figure out. What kind of man would devote all his free time to following and assisting Sherlock Holmes? It doesn't help that Watson is under-developed in Doyle's stories, a sort of literary device that allows Holmes to verbalize his thoughts in ways comprehensible to us mere mortals, of which Watson is one. There's frequently a condescending tone in Holmes' remarks to Watson, though Holmes is clearly fond of Watson and actually relies on his help. Nigel Bruce made much too much of this condescension in the Rathbone films, in which he played Watson as a buffoon for comic relief. In the 1970s, someone named Rosenberg wrote a book, "Naked is the Best Disguise", in which he looked for signs of latent homosexuality in the Holmes-Watson relationship. I don't think we want to go there, do we? I think that the best way to flesh Watson out in a dramatization is to play him as, among other things, an adventure junkie. He loves the excitement, mental stimulation, and danger. Cedric Hardwicke's pudgy, middle-aged do-gooder doesn't work for me. David Burke's Watson is also a man of decency, a do-gooder (as is Doyle's Watson) who wants to see justice done, but he also seems rugged, physically fit, believeable as a man who saw combat in India and who now thrives on the adventure that his association with Holmes allows him to experience back home in London.
Rating:
Summary: Worth it!
Review: It is very gratifying to see so many younger people carrying on the Sherlock Holmes legacy. These period pieces are quite up to the task. My first viewing of these episodes on PBS were a bit of a disappointment as I thought Jeremy Brett's choices were too feminine too often. After three episodes, my opinion changed quite dramatically. Playing off an intelligent Watson...well, not intelligent so much as not the buffoon, Brett does major justice to the character. For all you "Rathbone is the only Holmes" types: Relax...Brett is a worthy Holmes. Costumes; Locations; and dialogue strictly Victorian. Enjoy
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