Doctor Who review: The Paternoster Gang: Whatever Remains is a great tribute to Sherlock Holmes
By James Aggas
The second episode of Doctor Who spin-off box set The Paternoster Gang: Heritage 3 not only has Madame Vastra exploring her roots. It’s also a funny and clever tribute to Sherlock Holmes.
In their second appearance in Doctor Who, The Snowmen, the characters of Madame Vastra, Jenny, and Strax had truly formed into an exciting new team, living on Paternoster Row and investigating the strange and the unusual. In short, it was in this episode that the trio became truly defined as the Paternoster Gang that we now know and love.
Interestingly, one thing that the Christmas special made clear is that, (in the universe of Doctor Who, at least,) the stories of Sherlock Holmes were in fact directly inspired by Madame Vastra and her many adventures. Obviously, some details were changed (well, OK, many details were changed). But the strong implication was that Vastra’s detective abilities were a major inspiration for Sir Arthur Conan Doyle and his character of Holmes.
This hasn’t been explored in-depth, something that writer Robert Valentine clearly enjoyed doing with Whatever Remains, the second episode of The Paternoster Gang: Heritage 3. And he has a lot of fun with it, too. From the moment Vastra gets compared to Holmes, her feelings on the fictional detective are extremely clear. They’re also rather hilarious to listen to. But Whatever Remains isn’t just a story that pokes fun at Holmes. It’s also a clear pastiche of at least one of those classic stories…
The Paternoster Gang has solved many cases so far. But – by their standards, at least – this might be one of their most unusual yet.
Image Courtesy Big Finish Productions
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The Great Detective(s)
Robert Valentine includes plenty of references to Sherlock Holmes mythology in this story that fans will surely love. But he also makes sure to throw in a few subversions, too. Not just for Holmes, either – the solution of this particular episode of The Paternoster Gang is definitely unusual for the series. But it still works, and actually reminds the audience that it’s not just Vastra who’s brilliantly clever.
Speaking of Vastra, just as Jenny got to face her past in the last episode, so does Vastra have to face hers. While she isn’t reunited with her family like Jenny was, she does come across something extremely important to her. So important, in fact, that it shakes things up with Jenny, giving us some really fantastic scenes between the two.
But while the drama is handled well and there’s a strong feeling of serious buildup in terms of Heritage‘s arc, it’s the tribute to Holmes that makes this episode stand out. (Well, that and Strax having to fend off some very unwanted advances.) An extremely enjoyable and clever episode, one that works well as a Holmes tribute while giving us another great case for the Paternoster Gang to solve.
Next. The Paternoster Gang: Family Matters reveals Jenny’s past. dark
Are you a fan of Sherlock Holmes? While fictional in the world of The Paternoster Gang, do you think the trio should meet him anyway? (After all, Holmes has already met the Doctor.) Let us know in the comments below. And if you’ve listened to and enjoyed this tribute to Holmes, make sure to check out Jago & Litefoot: Series 7, which has the titular duo disguising themselves as Holmes and Watson while meeting Sir Arthur Conan Doyle himself.