The Hands of Mr. Ottermole

A solid, rather modest Hitchcock entry, The Hands Of Mr. Ottermole delivers the goods in its own solid way, rises to the occasion, of being an engrossing "Ripper tale" thanks to its slow, steady presentation and some first rate acting. Somehow, for all the pussyfooting around in the London fog, the ending manages to feel shocking. The Hitchcock crew knew how to make something out of what might have at first glance seemed like nothing. It's how the tale was told that makes this one work more than the tale itself.

The episode is set in London in 1919. A spate of stranglings have occurred and no one seems to be able to get to the bottom of it. This is likely because there seems to be no rhyme nor reason for them....no apparent motive. A reporter (Rhys Williams) is an odd one as again and again, he seems to come to the scene of the crime before the police...and naturally you can't help but wonder if he's the murderous psychopath.

This is an excellent episode for many reasons. The atmosphere is very good, the acting very good and the story has the twists you would hope an episode of the series would have...though too often they didn't. Well worth seeing.

What BETTER team could there be than director Robert Stevens and writer Francis Cockrell to handle this spooky story. Favorites of Hitchcock.

The eerie scene is fog shrouded London, late at night -- where a Jack the Ripper-type maniac is on the loose. LOCK YOUR DOORS. Dogged police inspector Theodore Bikel is perplexed as to who can be behind these horrible crimes.... However, it gets even more interesting when dedicated reporter Rhys Williams outlasts his welcome.

Genuine Hitchcock material, very atmospheric, the acting tops. Bikel's performance may have lead to him being cast in the cult thriller I BURY THE LIVING (1958), the following year. He uses the same accent. Watch this film. A favorite of Stephen King.

Listen for "Greensleeves," whistled in the eerie background, a sentimental song reportedly written by Henry VIII, with a reference to ladies of the evening. The Jack the Ripper connection once again.

An ending you will NOT want to miss, and if only Sherlock Holmes was on the case. Wouldn't that be fun. SEASON 2 EPISODE 32 remastered Universal dvd box set. 2006. All seven seasons are on dvd in a single box set. Released 2022.

I am confused as to why this amazing show would choose to rip off an episode of the 1954 Sherlock Holmes tv series called The Thistle Killer. The story is extremely similar, which can't be helped as it's based on an old book. But why make the episode look and play out the same way? It even has a scene where an officer finds a body and blows his whistle while looking into the camera lense. I guess I am just disappointed because I'm such a big fan of both shows. It's a waste of talents.

This is all I have to say, other than the minimum characters for writing a review of a tv episode is simply way too long.

Hitchcock sends us to England for a Jack the Ripper type tale. I think they overdo the Britishness a bit for the sake of American audiences ("Wonder what she's got for Tea? Kippers.")

The killing(s) are shot from the perspective of the strangler, which is a nice directorial touch. However, it's tough doing a whodunit in 25 minutes, because there's no time to introduce many characters. Of course, it also may be that the killer isn't someone we see.

But this isn't primarily a story of suspense (the title kind of hints at that). Instead, it is atmospheric and somewhat talky, with some philosophical discussions added in. I thought the ending was OK.