This was such a wonderful show. Everything about it was charming and captivating.I loved the dark approach that this show gave to many myths and fairy tales. I guess this was one of the major influences for movies such as "Pan's Labyrinth" and "The City of Lost Children". And also, most of the movies made by Tim Burton.The atmosphere of every single episode of this show was beautiful and wonderfully made. This was one of the most original and inspiring shows ever made.Too bad that most of the modern kid's shows aren't so good as this one, being both disgusting and stupid. And also incredibly annoying.However, this show will remain as a timeless classic, and also, as one of the best television shows ever made.

Sadly, every single person I ask about this series says they've never heard of it. I remember it fondly from my early childhood (I wasn't quite 10 when it came out).My favorite story was "A Story Short". Something about the way the "stone soup" story was woven into a greater story gets me every time. And then the storyteller explains why he has no story to tell, and it becomes a story itself. I've always been a fan of Jim Henson, and this is just one reason why.I'm adding this DVD on the self with Labrynth, The Dark Crystal, The Neverending Story, The Princess Bride, The Last Unicorn, Willow and MirrorMask. These are all DVDs I share with my siblings who are 6, 5, and 4 yrs old.

I remember watching this show as a kid. It made quite an impression on me, to be honest I was absolutely spellbound. Quite recently I obtained a DVD-release and was somewhat amazed: It was just as good as I remembered it! This is not simply a bad case of nostalgia, this show is definitely something above the ordinary. We might have struck gold here.. The show is in nine stand alone episodes based on nine old folktales. (Mostly Russian or German) Not so "kidified" as most recent versions, just a little bit cruel, but always with a happy ending (with 2 exceptions) The special effects (especially the creature effects ) still look really good even in this time of photo-realistic computer animation. If you take into account that this is a TV-production from 1987 the effects are absolutely outstanding! They give a much more living impression than many computer generated creatures I have seen of late.The actor performances are maybe not always of academy award winning standard.. but I can live with that, and most probably so can you. Not all nine episodes are masterpieces either, but some come very close to being just that. "The Soldier and Death" is in my opinion one of the best and appears to be the first choice of most other reviewers. "Sapsorrow" (their version of Cinderella) is also worth mentioning. Maybe not for it's greatness but for the most enjoyable Disney reference. Very amusing. When this was aired it had the added title: "Stories for grown up children" and that is a good description of what this is. Maybe not for the very youngest but perfect for anyone else. Especially anyone interested in folktales or anything fantasy-like. Highly recommended.

Absolutely the best presentation on TV or movies of classical stories. If you want something magical you must see this. John Hurt is perfect as the storyteller as he retells the stories, often blending into them. Wonderful effects as paintings and shadows dance as the Storyteller enspells us. A definite must to own, especially if you have children, but a series *everyone* should see.