Adventures of Sherlock Holmes

Ladies and gentlemen, meet Sherlock Holmes's older brother, Mycroft. One of the most delightful surprises in the Holmes canon of stories written by Arthur Conan Doyle, the introduction of Mycroft is wonderfully realized in this Granada Television adaptation of "The Greek Interpreter." Charles Gray stars as the larger-than-life yet shadowy Holmes sibling, who rarely leaves his beloved Diogenes Club and, in effect, runs the British government with his long memory for policies and details. The case he brings to Sherlock (Jeremy Brett) and Dr. Watson (David Burke) is unnerving in its suggestion of real brutality, and the subsequent investigation runs afoul of some truly nasty people. But before that happens, we're treated to the memorable moment when Sherlock and Mycroft essentially compete in their analysis of an old soldier seen from a window. Great stuff. In "The Norwood Builder," a young solicitor, McFarlane (Matthew Solon), comes to Holmes begging for help just before being arrested by the sturdy if obtuse Inspector Lestrade (Colin Jeavins) of Scotland Yard. McFarlane is accused of killing a man who not only asked the attorney to draw up his will, but then left all of his possessions to McFarlane. The ingenious solution to the puzzle is only one of the exciting highlights in this episode, featuring the usual sterling work by stars Brett and Burke and a sound character interpretation by Jeavins. --Tom Keogh