I'd say that Henckels stuff is very good, but not the best. I have small set that I keep on a magnetic rack.
These two
are my favorites.
A chef's knife and a paring knife are all you need for 90% of food prep anyway.
The thing about current Henckels knives is that they are too stainless (i.e. idiot-proof). The carbon content is lower now than in their pre-mass-marketed days. They are designed to cope with with soaking in a sink overnight or (shudder) going through the heat and agitation of a dishwasher cycle. To be fair, most of the other premium brands such as Wusthof share this overcautious approach.
In my personal experience, my Henckels have been great. I steel them regularly and don't subject them to soaking or any other abuse. They hold their edge well and are easy to maintain, so I'm pretty happy with them. It's kind of lame that they use sintered construction instead of traditional forging, but so far it hasn't been a disadvantage to me. However, if I hadn't got them for a really great price I would have picked a less common brand.
They get top marks for snob appeal from people who have a passing familiarity with kitchen knives... except from the person I know that sells Cutco. Don't get me started on her.
One German company that makes forged knives with higher carbon content is F. Dick.
If you treat them well, they are great, and a lot of pro chefs like them. They're not for someone who isn't acquainted with the basics of knife care, however. I'd guess that this covers about 95% of the general population. They would be my first choice if I had to replace my Henckels. I also like Wusthof and Forschner because they're traditionally forged.
Oh yeah, if they're planning on joining a cooking class, some actually require the use of Henckels knives, which strikes me as being a tad inflexible.
