Netflix’s Enola Holmes weaves an all-new dimension into the life of enigmatic fictional sleuth Sherlock Holmes, namely by giving him a domestic side with the introduction of his mother and little sister. However, this is not a Sherlock Holmes story.

Enola Holmes is based on Nancy Springer’s book “The Case of the Missing Marquess: An Enola Holmes Mystery” and is directed by Harry Bradbeer (Fleabag – this will be important later) and adapted by Jack Thorne (His Dark Materials.) Stranger Thing‘s Millie Bobby Brown is spunky and indomitable as Enola.

At the start of Enola, Sherlock and brother Mycroft have packed up and left the family estate following the death of their father, leaving their mother and infant sister behind. Mum Eudoria (Helena Bonham Carter) raises little Enola unconventionally, eschewing needlepoint, deportment and other feminine disciplines in order to teach her fencing, history and, surprisingly, jiujitsu. (Plot point alert.)

Enola’s wild child ways aren’t a problem until the morning of her 16th birthday, when Eudoria seems to have vanished without a trace. Eventually Sherlock (Henry Cavill) and Mycroft (Sam Claflin) are called back to the manor to investigate, and throw several hissy fits over the unkempt state of their sister.

The threat of finishing school leads to a desperate escape, and Miss Holmes tackles the mystery of her mother’s disappearance (spoiler: she did in fact leave a trace) as well as the whereabouts of that runaway Marquess (Louis Partridge) who crosses paths with Enola while she’s on the lam.

To say more about the story would ruin the plot, which is a rollercoaster ride of wordplay, martial arts, anarchy, suffragists, assassins and cross-dressing, somehow never going overboard with any of it.

Just like the title character in Fleabag, Enola breaks the fourth wall with knowing asides to the audience, and as with Phoebe Waller-Bridge’s character, it works, mostly thanks to Enola’s enormous quantities of charm. The secondary cast includes Fiona Shaw as the miserable mistress of the finishing school (who just escapes being too one-note) and Burn Gorman as the man in the brown bowler hat, terrifying.

Older bros Sherlock and Mycroft are disappointing in this for opposite reasons: you’ll want more of the thoughtful and ultimately decent Sherlock and a lot less of stick-in-the-mud Mycroft, who is a caricature here. (It’s rumored the Cavill may indeed play Holmes again in his own spinoff.) Adeel Akhtar as Lestrade and Susan Wokoma as Edith, the Jiujitsu instructor, are inspired casting choices.

Enola Holmes clocks in at over two hours, but it’s such a fun romp that the time will fly, and it’s good for all age groups – especially children who enjoy adventure (with a decent amount of danger) and a good mystery.