'The Grave Mound' was an unfamiliar story to me until relatively recently. It struck me as a quite powerful story and quite a deep one with messaging that is hardly out of date now. While it is not one of the best or most popular stories from Brothers Grimm, along with Hans Christian Andersen the quintessential fairy-tale authors in my mind, it is another one of their most overlooked ones. Am actually quite surprised that it is not better known.
'Grimm Masterpiece Theater's' (known to many too as 'Grimm's Fairy Tale classics') adaptation, named here as 'The Faithful Watchmen', is a very well done one. It does very well adapting the story with the basic core elements intact, and what the story is trying to say is also intact and in a way that's surprisingly relevant yet not too preachy or old fashioned. To me, it is one of the series' better episodes, also one of their deepest and creepiest.
Did feel that the music didn't always fit, though it does have more atmosphere and gels better in the latter stages (especially in the creepier moments).
Have seen more finesse before in the drawing before and since in the series.
Most of it though has a lot of beautiful and atmospheric colour and strong attention to background detail. The writing is neither simplistic or convoluted, managing to be just about accessible for all ages, despite it being a more adult oriented story than most of the episodes, and older viewers are likely to find a lot to admire and understand the content more. From the start, the story has much going on to stop it from having a dull spot while not feeling rushed, a danger with the short length.
One of the definite highlights of 'The Faithful Watchmen' is the climax, which is one of the series' scariest by default and there are quite a few out there. Even as a young adult, it was pretty nightmarish and almost surreal. Of the characters, while the protagonist is a likeable one the one that stuck in my mind the most was the genuinely creepy devil and it is not just his appearance, but how how he moves and that sinister-sounding voice that fits the character perfectly. Along with the narrator he is the character that is the best voiced, for my liking though the landowner's was a little over-the-top.
In summary, very well done. 8/10
'Grimm Masterpiece Theater's' (known to many too as 'Grimm's Fairy Tale classics') adaptation, named here as 'The Faithful Watchmen', is a very well done one. It does very well adapting the story with the basic core elements intact, and what the story is trying to say is also intact and in a way that's surprisingly relevant yet not too preachy or old fashioned. To me, it is one of the series' better episodes, also one of their deepest and creepiest.
Did feel that the music didn't always fit, though it does have more atmosphere and gels better in the latter stages (especially in the creepier moments).
Have seen more finesse before in the drawing before and since in the series.
Most of it though has a lot of beautiful and atmospheric colour and strong attention to background detail. The writing is neither simplistic or convoluted, managing to be just about accessible for all ages, despite it being a more adult oriented story than most of the episodes, and older viewers are likely to find a lot to admire and understand the content more. From the start, the story has much going on to stop it from having a dull spot while not feeling rushed, a danger with the short length.
One of the definite highlights of 'The Faithful Watchmen' is the climax, which is one of the series' scariest by default and there are quite a few out there. Even as a young adult, it was pretty nightmarish and almost surreal. Of the characters, while the protagonist is a likeable one the one that stuck in my mind the most was the genuinely creepy devil and it is not just his appearance, but how how he moves and that sinister-sounding voice that fits the character perfectly. Along with the narrator he is the character that is the best voiced, for my liking though the landowner's was a little over-the-top.
In summary, very well done. 8/10