Doctor Who and the Leisure Hive

"As a result of the war you waged, you made your own planet inhabitable for your own race. Yet at the same time you transformed your enemies into the only biological heirs to your own world."

Writer: David Fisher

Format: Novel

Released: July 1982

Series: Target 39

Featuring: Fourth Doctor, Romana II

Synopsis 

The Leisure Hive on the planet Argolis is an entertainment centre for the galactic travellers. At the heart of the Hive is the Tachyon Recreation Generator, a machine with a most extraordinary performance capability and vital to the continued existence of the Argolin after their devastating war with the reptilian Foamasi...

While visiting the Hive, the Doctor and Romana are sucked into a whirlpool of treachery and deceit, and are eventually arrested on suspicion of murder...

Verdict 

Doctor Who and the Leisure Hive was an excellent little read on my usual train journey home from mid-Wales and it was actually quite a significant story from my perspective! Why was it significant? It was my unique choice to have as my 500th blog entry! I can't believe I've reached the big 500 landmark in less than two years. I never imagined that would occur when I started on the back of the fiftieth anniversary celebrations. Since the very first blog which was An Unearthly Child, the entries have increased and I love reminiscing on my thoughts of stories I've watched, read or listened to. It's something I cherish and will be looking back on for years to come. As I'm set to go off to university in two months, I think it'll be nearly impossible for the next 500 to be blogged as quickly but you never know! I've surged through the First and Second Doctor eras on TV, I'm now up to the fortieth Big Finish Main Range audio as well as blogging countless Companion Chronicles, Lost Stories, Fourth Doctor Adventures and the first series of Dalek Empire. The amount of novels blogged hasn't been up to what I would hope for but lately I'm trying to see my reading increase as I have so much to get through! The Targets haven't been too bad though. 500 entries and I've still got a ridiculous amount of yet to be blogged stories just in my house, let alone on the retail shelves! It's been an incredible ride and here's to the next 500! But back to the novel at hand and this was a really good read. I really enjoyed the style of David Fisher in presenting this story in prose and I think he did a stellar job in the characterisation of the TARDIS team, particularly Romana II who I think is my all time favourite companion. Lalla Ward is just absolutely wonderful and I could read the words as if she was saying them in this story. The relationship she had with the Fourth Doctor was quite extraordinary and it was presented in novelised format here very well. I liked how with the novel we got to learn a lot more about the history of Argolis that may not have come across from the televised story in quite as much detail. The story of the war between the Argolin and Foamasi was very good and I found it quite shocking that despite the historic bloodshed between the two races, they hadn't actually ever come face to face! Something doesn't seem to add up with that fact. How is it even possible? The ageing process of an Argolin was quite rightly kept secret as it seemed a horrendous way to die! For most of your life it would appear that you wouldn't age but then suddenly in barely the space of a day you would age rapidly about fifty or sixty years! I quite liked the humorous reference to the Doctor and Romana being overdue on Gallifrey following her accompanying him on the task to find the Key to Time. I found it intriguing that the Doctor was still on the lookout for the Black Guardian. He needn't worry yet but it wouldn't be too long before their paths would cross again. Mena was a really great chairwoman and I thought her relationship with Hardin was very interesting throughout. The ending where he was carrying her nearly dead body into the generator room was quite emotional. What happened to the Doctor in there though sent Romana into an emotional mess! The Doctor was a withered old man. So much older than what his first incarnation appeared to be. He was on the brink of death. I do question why regeneration wasn't mentioned - surely it would be an easy resolution if the Doctor truly was on his last legs? He fixed the problem though but I still would've preferred it to be acknowledged. Pangol was a good character and I liked how he was immediately skeptical of how the Doctor knew so much about tachyonics. The murder mystery wasn't as pivotal as the synopsis might make out but it certainly prevented the Doctor with problems! The revelation surrounding Brock certainly wasn't expected but I thought it very interesting. It seemed like a slight anti-climax though considering this was the first meeting between the two species. I did enjoy the climax though with it being nicely paced. Overall, a very good read to mark number 500! 

Rating: 8/10