This is an Arc from netgalley.

It’s been forever since I read this but I got so busy during the start of the year that I haven’t had time to review any of the arcs I’ve read so far.

I basically don’t remember anything anymore and have no idea why I gave it two stars but I can make an educated guess. It honestly feels like it’s been years even though it’s only been a month. I swear I have been so busy.

Anyway, back to this manga. It was basic Sherlock Holmes but somehow more boring than the actual novels. I think this is an issue with every manga retelling because it’s a visual medium where you lose a lot of depth since pictures take up a lot more space than words on a page. Especially because I already know the story from multiple different adaptations and also the source, this one is just not the best one I have seen.

Yeah that’s all I can remember from this manga. As you can see I no longer read manga that much.

I always adore Sherlock Holmes retellings and adaptations. If there is one out or coming out, I already have my eye on it and am ready to read or watch it!

I’ve read several Manga Classics, and the quality varies. Sometimes I love the story, other times the art style doesn’t appeal to me, and I stop reading.

However, I really enjoyed the artwork and how “A Study in Scarlet” played out in the Manga Classics universe. The artwork was enjoyable, especially since I knew the story. However, I also compared it to other versions I had seen.

I have already purchased a copy of this for our system. The Manga Classics are a fun way to introduce classic literature to a different generation of readers.

Thank you to NetGalley and the Publishers for the chance to read this!

I am someone who loves to read about Sherlock's adventures, weather they are the classics or a new story that an author has developed. I liked the art in the book; the colors were very fitting to the story. I liked that the author started with how Watson ends up living with Sherlock and helping him with cases. The story did have the mystery aspect; I did not have it figured out who had done it. When we do find out, Sherlock explains things, then hands over the ring, allowing the suspect to die happy. I do wish that we could see Watson act more in the doctor role and challenge Sherlock more; maybe that will come with the other stories.

I love manga classics. I think they might be one of The best ideas to date. How to learn more literature but make it accessible and very fun.
This was another great hit.
I have now all books in my collection with the exception of Emma which can’t find anywhere and this one will be added to it shortly

This is a solid adaptation of Sherlock for YA readers, and this series is relatively popular in our library.
Recommended readers: sherlock fans, ya mystery fans, ya cozy readers, fans of the ace attorney series.

If I were to make a themed display of with book: sherlock adaptations, graphic novel\manga adaptations of classics, fan-favorite detectives, manga mystery books.

Did you watch/read Sherlock Holmes and wish he and Watson were younger and hotter? Experience this classic tale in manga format and now in full color!

"There's the scarlet thread of murder running the through the colorless skein of life, and our duty is to unravel it, and isolate it, and expose every inch of it."

If you were a fan of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's debut novel and a manga reader, you will definitely not be disappointed in this as it thoroughly followed the original story's plot, writing, the traits of the dynamic duo, overall thematic depth, and now with a beautiful artistic style. However, due to it following the historical context and being mixed in a strict manga format, I couldn't help but feel disconnected with the characters since it was too flat.

Overall, as a visual person, I enjoyed this a lot more than the original. I just will not be continuing on with either series. Although, if you are a student and have been assigned to the 1887 novel, I would recommend picking this up instead since the dialogue writing and plot were similar.

Thank you to NetGalley and Udon Entertainment for the auto-approved ARC.

Publishing date: 21.01.2025 (DD/MM/YYYY)
Thank you to NetGalley and Udon Entertainment for the ARC. My opinions are my own.

TLDR: A Sherlock Holmes mystery, but cartoonified. Artstyle was too cartoony, 2 stars.

In this cartoonification we see Sherlock and Watson meet up for the first time, and also get into their first murder mystery. Any longer summary would be spoilers.

The characters here were boiled down versions of their book-counterparts. Sherlock had his ego boosted, and anything else that made him compelling and "real" srtipped away. Watson has the sidekick role and "boost Sherlock's ego" role. Anyone else isn't worth talking about, they are all background characters. Well except the killer, but that would be a spoiler to talk about.

The relationship between Sherlock and Watson had no drive behind it. No chemistry, no proper bond. They were roommates ... That don't talk to each other except for complaining. That's the vibe I found here.

Story is all over the place. It felt so jumbled and directionless. Just my opinion. Pacing was fine though, pretty straightforward.

The art ... Not a fan. It was too cartoony. I expected something else from the cover. It felt a little soulless and flat. The art does carry weight in my ratings when it is a manga, so this docks a few points.

I am a little unsure about the audience .Young adults, maybe middle grade. More mature readers will find more joy from the original books.

Sadly giving this 2 stars. It fell flat for me. I wasn't much interested in finishing, and I was disappointed in the art.

I’ll be honest: I wasn’t as interested in this initially because the art seemed extremely cartoonist. I’m just not used to seeing this art style. It was a little hard to take it seriously because it seemed exaggerated. The story is typical for Sherlock and Watson; I could see that they were trying to develop their friendship, build on their relationship, and get to know each other’s strengths and weaknesses. However, it didn’t seem like there was any real depth going on between the two of them. The mystery was okay; I felt some of Sherlock’s typical cleverness and smarts were made almost comical by the exaggerated nature of his ego. But overall it was good retelling of a classic story and characters.

The art in this adaptation is wonderful! Fans of the Sherlock Holmes franchise will be delighted! This could be a really fun way to introduce these classics to a new generation of teens!

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

3.5 Stars.
A Study in Scarlet in a manga style. It was pretty entertaining. I love Sherlock Holmes and I'm open to read or watch any new version of his adventures.

This one was more a request for the manga-loving teenager than myself, but I must say I quite enjoyed this take on Sherlock Holmes. This version of the story does the original material credit. The drawings are excellent, the teenager especially liked the man-bun on Sherlock.

The story of Sherlock Holmes is one that will never grow old. This retelling is a great edition and introduction for this just starting out.

My only qualm is the art style. I enjoy the full color, but it was as if everything felt a bit too….flat; as if something was just missing to make it really pop. Another qualm with the art is it is almost as if some of the characters looked older while other adult characters looked like children; it felt like there wasn’t a consistency between characters who are supposedly around the same age.

The idea for this was great, and it's all in color, but while I appreciate the effort, I didn't enjoy the result.
I don't know if this would work better as an animation with voice over, but, sadly, it didn't hit the mark for me.

I'm usually very fond of Holmes' idiosyncratic behaviors in various retellings, but I can't bring myself to like this one or find anything endearing about him. In general, I had no emotional response of any kind while reading. Not to the characters, nor to the mystery. Both lacked depth and relied too much on platitudes, in my opinion.

There is a lot that feels "more telling than showing", which is odd as it's an illustrated story, and I can't feel any tension build-up. The narration falls very flat too, while also being all over the place trying to do too much.
Also the art inside is not the same quality as the cover, I don't know if this was due to the very ambitious decision to making it in full color.

I think writing successfully retellings of Sherlock Holmes are hardest than one think, cause the humor, cleverness, pacing, complex mystery, and depth must all be carefully calibrated and compared to some very very successful other versions, so I'm gonna give 2⭐. Unfortunately, I can't honestly give any higher rating.

Thank you to NetGalley, the Author and the Publisher for this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Thank you to NetGalley for the chance to read this. I love Manga its been a new favorite of mine and i have loved reading anything that is anything that has a storyline and the art is worth it. I love it and i would gladly read again and recommend.

Wonderful rendition of A Study in Scarlet!

I struggle reading Manga because it takes me a moment to adjust to reading the opposite direction of what I'm used to but I enjoyed this rendition of Sherlock Holmes' book, "A Study in Scarlet". The art is done well and the story is true Sherlock Holmes! A delightful mystery and it was fun to tag along with Sherlock and Watson as they solved the case. The suspense was perfect. The illustrations were eye-catching and pulled me into the story.

Likes/dislikes: I love the artwork! This is a manga that I thoroughly enjoyed. I'm impressed with this rendition of "A Study in Scarlet"!
Mature content: PG-13 for smoking.
Language: PG for 2 swears, no f-words.
Violence: PG for off page death.
Ethnicity: White.

Ehh... I really wanted to like it. I love Sherlock Holmes after all. However, while it wasn't that bad, I mean, the pace was fine, the story... it is Sherlock Holmes... but the artstyle... it was just bad. It looks fine on the cover but on the inside it looks like a fan-made comic. And not a good one.

I would have given a higher rating but since it is a comic book the artstyle is a big thing for me and it just wasn't it.

I'd like to send my thanks to Netgalley, the publisher, and the author for providing a free pdf version of this comic book in exchange for an honest review.

I love this adaption of Sherlock Holmes. This manga edition of Sherlock gives a full color adventure of A Study in Scarlet. It is a lovely adaption and the fashions are dynamic and the characters are quite playfully rendered.

This manga is so cool! It is very true to the Sherlock Holmes books, with a fun twist. It is really neat to see old tales re-imagined with art like this. The art style really adds to the mysteries.

I have been a Sherlock fan since I was a little girl. My grandma encouraged me to read and I just adored the stories of Sherlock Holmes and Mrs. Hudson, John Watson, and many more. 221B Baker Street will forever feel like home to me. This manga retelling brought me back to those days as a kid and I was drawn back in to a story I’ve read and watched dozens of times. It never fails to amaze me how timeless Sherlock is, no matter the format. I would highly recommend this version because the art is incredible. Sherlock gets a Howl makeover and it suits him well. I loved the young, vibrant, and slightly naive Watson here as well. I can’t wait to read more in this collection. Thank you NetGalley and Udon Entertainment for this ARC. [journaled version of this review @thecraftedarchives]

First a big thank you to NetGalley, the Author and the Publisher for this ARC.

Let me just say that I never read the Original "A Study in Scarlet" simply because it's not my thing.
Now, I do want to read classics like "A Study in Scarlet" and found that the manga adaptions are an easy way into classical literature.
‘A Study in Scarlet’ is the first of the Sherlock Holmes novels, I like this book for the way it introduced the characters of Holmes and Watson to its readers. Without feeling too much like an ‘origin story’, it still offered us a well-rounded insight of the two characters such that we get a handle of their personalities before the actual case begins.
The illustrations serve the story well. The actions and the emotions are spot on. Manga Sherlock certainly looks hot, but he doesn’t look “Sherlock-y’. Sherlock is supposed to be about 26-27 in the first book, so he does look his age. But John Watson looks way too young and not like an experienced army doctor straight out from Afghanistan.
For some reason, I got this feeling that Sherlock and John were being set up as a potential romantic pair in the artwork. Which I would totally "ship", but I don't think that that would be true to the original.
This was an overall enjoyable read.