Doctor Who: Paradise Towers

Paradise Towers is the second serial of the 24th season of the British science fiction television series Doctor Who, which was first broadcast in four weekly parts from 5 to 26 October 1987.

The Seventh Doctor and Mel, looking for a swimming pool, land in Paradise Towers, a luxurious 22nd-century high-rise apartment building now fallen into disrepair and chaos. It is divided between the Caretakers who maintain the building and roaming gangs of young girls called Kangs, grouped in colour theme; the Doctor and Mel encounter the Red Kangs.

The Chief sends a squad of Caretakers to arrest the Red Kangs and in the ensuing confusion the Doctor is split from Mel and captured by the Caretakers. Mel meanwhile heads off to an apartment in which two elderly residents (“rezzies”) live. Tilda and Tabby explain that all the able-bodied residents left the Towers to fight a war, leaving behind only children and the elderly. The only other man still loose in the Towers is Pex, a would-be hero, who appoints himself Mel’s guardian.

At the Caretaker control centre, the Doctor meets the Chief Caretaker, who greets him as the Great Architect Kroagnon, designer of Paradise Towers, and orders him killed. The Doctor cites an imaginary rule from the Caretakers’ manual, confusing them enough to make his escape. Mel and Pex meanwhile are captured by a party of Blue Kangs who reveal to Mel that Pex is a coward and only survived by fleeing and hiding.

The Doctor is reunited with the Red Kangs who explain that Kangs and Caretakers have been disappearing in ever greater numbers. Meanwhile, Mel has visited Tilda and Tabby again and soon finds herself under threat when it emerges they are cannibals and plan to eat her. After escaping, both Tabby and Tilda are killed by a mechanical claw from their waste disposal unit.

The Chief Caretaker has been allowing the robotic cleaners to kill anybody they encounter, and after reading a sales brochure for the Towers, the Doctor remembers that Kroagnon also designed “Miracle City” – a cutting-edge development which used its automation to kill its occupants. The Doctor surmises that Kroagnon inhabits Paradise Towers in the basement, and thinks that inhabitants ruin his creations, so kills them off whenever possible.

Mel and Pex finally find the swimming pool. When Mel takes a dip in the pool, she is attacked by a crablike robot. Pex’s cowardice prevents him from rescuing Mel, and she has to save herself which embarrasses Pex. Mel leaves him to find the Doctor, and he trails behind her.

The Blue and Red Kangs encounter and fight each other, but the Doctor persuades them that their game is over, and they must work together in order to defeat Kroagnon. As the Cleaners begin killing everybody, the surviving Rezzies and caretakers join forces with the Doctor and the Kangs to defeat Kroagnon. They plan to lure Kroagnon (now inhabiting the body of the Chief Caretaker) into a booby trapped room, but the plan fails. Pex sacrifices himself to drag the Chief into the trap.

After a period of reflection and Pex’s funeral, the Doctor and Mel leave, trusting the remaining Kangs, Rezzies, and Caretakers to build a better society. As the TARDIS dematerialises, a new piece of Kang graffiti is revealed – “Pex Lives”.

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To view the list of other Doctor Who serials, please click this link

Doctor Who Episode Guides for Sale on Amazon

Step aboard the TARDIS and journey across the universe with every incarnation of The Doctor in this series of unofficial Doctor Who episode companions.

This collection of twelve books explores every televised adventure of the Time Lord’s lives.

Each volume in the series delves into a different Doctor’s era, offering detailed episode guides, behind-the-scenes insights, character profiles, and story synopses.

Once you have clicked the link, choose which book you want, and then whether you want to buy the Kindle (eBook) or Paperback versions.

Previews are available before you buy.

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