The Leisure Hive

"There will be no future generations."

Writer: David Fisher

Format: TV

Broadcast: 30 August – 20 September 1980

Season: 18.01

Featuring: Fourth Doctor, Romana II

Synopsis

The Doctor and Romana arrive on Argolis in search of a peaceful holiday at the famed Leisure Hive. Instead they become embroiled in both a takeover scheme by the Argolins' historic enemy, the Foamasi, and the machinations of Pangol, the child of the Generator...

Verdict

The Leisure Hive was a very good serial to open up the eighteenth season of Doctor Who! I always seem to forget that the opening titles I usually associate with the Fifth and Sixth Doctors actually debuts here as the infamous John Nathan-Turner era is ushered in with this unique little adventure. I thought some of the directing in this one was different to anything else in the Classic era and it was both good and bad. I wasn't a big fan of how at least the first minute of the first part captured the scene of the beach adjacent to Brighton Pavilion, only for the entire story to actually be set on Argolis over two hundred years in the future! That didn't make a lot of sense for me. I also wasn't too sure about K9 going into the sea, but the sudden nature of how he was basically fried the moment he touched the water was pretty impressive. Now, I have to start with my highlight of the story and that is undoubtedly the cliffhanger to part one. I honestly think it has to rank as one of the greatest of all time. It was that good. Some of my favourites aren't always obvious candidates and this one seems to have gone forgotten, but how can the Doctor possibly come back from having his limbs torn from his body? Especially after we had just seen the fate befall somebody else earlier in the episode. I was hugely impressed with it. Then, part two's cliffhanger was also absolutely fantastic as the Doctor emerged looking pretty darn old! I thought the makeup for that was really good and I have to say that Tom Baker had a decent performance as the Fourth Doctor. However, for me it was definitely Lalla Ward's Romana that stole the show for me. She was really great as the companion and whilst there wasn't so much of the humour that I often associate with her and the Doctor, especially in his fourth incarnation, the pair still did well together. The history of Argolis and the 20-minute War was really intriguing and I felt Pangol made a good villain. He was hellbent on his cause which was admirable despite its ruthlessness. I thought the emergence of the Foamasi at the end of part three was good and I quite liked their look, but I do feel they probably should have been around a little earlier after all the hints about their coming being dropped in across the earlier episodes. Seeing the Argolin way of death was very interesting and I thought it was a good move to have the chairman die early on. I almost thought he was going to regenerate at first with the grey effect taking over his face. That opened up something of a lack of authoritative figure despite Mena taking over in his position. Pangol was able to pounce and manipulate things to how he wanted. The Doctor being on trial for murder and his suggestion that his scarf be put on trial was a terrific moment and I also loved the moment where the court was sitting and he was practically bouncing up and down. Lovely stuff. The Argolins being a sterile race was something excellent to play on and their efforts for rejuvenation were completely understandable. If they couldn't produce more of their species to continue it, then they'd just have to get younger! Pangol entering the machine with the Helmet of Theon and then the multiplicity of duplicates actually being the Doctor back to his normal self was magnificent. That grin was all that was required! The ending could have been improved upon with the Doctor smashing everything up with one throw, but as a whole this was a good little story.

Rating: 8/10