The adaptation of the story was very well done. I really thought it brought Sir Arthur's story to life. It was unerringly accurate and paid close attention to the details. The adaptators certainly followed Holmes's maxim "pray be precise to the details."

   Mr. Brett was an amazing Holmes as usual. My favorite part had to be when he leapt over the sofa to tell Watson to stay. Talk about agility! LOL! :-P I also loved when he sat in the Paget pose smoking his pipe, staring into space. I swear you could almost see his mind working!

  In my opinion, the most entertaining part of the movie was when Watson, (portrayed by the fabulous Mr. David Burke) was listening to Mr. Wilson's problem and then suddenly burst out laughing, causing Holmes in turn to laugh. I thought in that scene you could really see the closeness of the friendship between the great detective and his 'Boswell.'

   All in all this was a very entertaining Sherlock Holmes episode and to quote Mr. Brett in the show, "I wouldn't miss this case for the world!" So take his advice and watch the Red Headed League. You won't be disappointed!

 

THE SECOND STAIN

The Second Stain has to be, by far, my favorite adaptation that Granada television has made. Mr. Brett was supurb as always and I absolutly loved his injection of humor into the role of Holmes. 

 

To quote Amazon.com: "Arguably the most entertaining and satisfying episode from the entire Granada Television series about Sherlock Holmes, "The Second Stain" finds Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's famous sleuth facing intertwining problems, each with very different consequences. On the one hand, a saber-rattling letter to the British government from a "foreign potentate" has disappeared from the hands of the Rt. Honorable Trelawney Hope (Stuart Wilson), which could incite a major war if it turns up in some visible way. On the other hand, Hope's wife, Lady Hilda (Patricia Hodge), appears to know something about the letter's disposition, but she won't say on pain of some undefined disaster to her marriage. Holmes (Jeremy Brett in his finest hour) and Dr. Watson (a wonderful performance by Edward Hardwicke) can't unravel one mystery without tackling the other, and then there is a murder to boot. The results are well worth the story complications that ensue. The look of epiphany on Brett's face when the ever-clueless Inspector Lestrade (Colin Jeavons) tells Holmes about an odd detail in the murder victim's home--the placement of a certain bloodstained rug doesn't correspond to the location of the soaked-through stain on the floor below--is enormous fun."

 

My favorite part of the mystery has to be the end, when Jeremy Brett jumps in the air and yells: Wha-hey! It was the perfect way to end the moive and it showed that Holmes brought the case to a successful conclusion. To quote Bending the Willow: "...in the closing seconds, Holmes, elated at having solved the case, literally jumps for joy. As he leaps with a typical Brettian 'Wha-hey', the moment is frozen for the credits. Brett told me they had to freeze it there because he landed ackwardly. Again, it was an idea that came from the star. 'It just felt right,' ge told me, unaware then, I think, that he was probing yet deeper into the character of Sherlock Holmes to reveal the more emotional layer beneath." (Davies, 90)

 

This episode should not be missed for the world. It is great fun and has, as always great acting.