this was a very good entry into Sheldon Reynolds' series of half-hour original Sherlock Holmes stories. The mystery here is a very unusual and engrossing one. The solution turns out to be unguessable in some of its particulars, but the situation of the boy in the provincial Belgian school who seems to predict murder victims is striking and memorable enough that it doesn't really matter.
Especially in the early scenes, the direction makes this episode rather tense and even spooky, and the in media res start is very effective. Setting an episode of this Paris-filmed series in an actual French-speaking country lends a nice atmosphere to the proceedings. Ronald Howard, as usual, is good as Holmes without making a huge impression. He is a more relaxed and fallible version of the detective, and this quality leads to a nice early scene with Watson on Baker Street, and a funny wrap-up gag.
Especially in the early scenes, the direction makes this episode rather tense and even spooky, and the in media res start is very effective. Setting an episode of this Paris-filmed series in an actual French-speaking country lends a nice atmosphere to the proceedings. Ronald Howard, as usual, is good as Holmes without making a huge impression. He is a more relaxed and fallible version of the detective, and this quality leads to a nice early scene with Watson on Baker Street, and a funny wrap-up gag.
