Review by Frank Plowright

The Hound of the Baskervilles is the most famous of the Sherlock Holmes mysteries, an evocative and memorable title contributing greatly. This adaptation opens with the death of Sir Charles Baskerville in the presence of a glowing, ghostly dog, the latest of his lineage to die as the result of a curse placed on his ancestor. A friend of the late victim asks for Sherlock Holmes’ help as he’d noticed giant dog footprints near the body, and it’s revealed that Sir Charles’ heir has received a warning to stay away from the family’s Dartmoor estate.

It’s initially only Dr. Watson who accompanies Sir Henry to his inherited home, is mistaken for him and given a warning to stay away from the area, learns of an escaped convict and survives an assassination attempt. With the portents mounting and the howls of a ghastly hound heard in the night, Watson writes to Holmes in London.

Martin Powell’s adaptation is necessarily contracted, but all staging points are included so readers inclined to pit their wits against Doyle and solve the mystery themselves lack nothing essential. However, how inclined they might be to choose this adaptation with several other options available is down to Jamie Chase’s art, and that’s very disappointing. It’s sketchy and dark, with the occasional illustration catching the eye – a nice carriage in silhouette at night – but little effort made to supply background or variation. That’s not helped by almost every page coloured in either a bluish gray wash or a sepia wash. The whole effect is terminally dull, and achieves the impossible by sinking one of the best known mysteries in the English language.