📝4/10

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"Paradise Towers: Towers of Trouble"

Paradise Towers takes a bizarre swing at social commentary but lands somewhere between overcomplicated and childish, resulting in an uneven, often frustrating story.

The premise revolves around a dystopian tower block governed by absurdly convoluted rules, a satirical take on bureaucracy run amok. It’s a concept with potential, but the execution falters. The factions—Caretakers, Kangs, Rezzies, and Pex—are presented in an overly convoluted manner, and their childish dialogue feels like the writers forgot Doctor Who wasn’t just for children. Worse still, the story’s attempts at pretension don’t mask its lack of truly engaging substance.

Sylvester McCoy begins to settle into the role of the Seventh Doctor here, showing glimpses of the fiercer, more serious side that will eventually define his incarnation. While the “goofy clown” aspects linger, McCoy feels more confident and enjoyable than in Time and the Rani. Bonnie Langford’s Mel also fares slightly better, though her intelligence and capability are sidelined by pairing her with the woeful Pex—an utterly uninspired “hero” who drags every scene down.

The guest cast is a mixed bag. Richard Briers brings some energy to the role of the Chief Caretaker, but his performance collapses into farce after being possessed by Kroagnon. Elizabeth Spriggs, Brenda Bruce, and Clive Merrison feel out of place, their delivery stilted. Howard Cooke’s bizarre attempt at channeling Bruce Willis makes Pex unintentionally laughable rather than sympathetic.

The Caretakers, clearly modelled as caricatures of authoritarian regimes, are almost comically ineffective, led by a Hitler-lite figure. The Cleaners—slow, clunky machines—are embarrassingly poor imitations of the War Machines, and Kroagnon, the villain of the piece, feels like a recycled Xoanon or Macra. A mad computer brain that’s little more than a plot device, Kroagnon fails to bring any real menace.

On the production side, Paradise Towers is serviceable but uninspired. The sets are functional, if unremarkable. The visual effects, while passable, lack impact, and the music—though marginally better than Time and the Rani—bafflingly insists on sampling the theme tune throughout, to diminishing effect.

The pacing begins at a steady clip, and while the second half picks up speed, the repetitive plot prevents it from fully taking off. What begins as a strange political allegory shifts awkwardly into low-budget B-movie horror. While there are moments of tension, the wooden direction and lacklustre production sap the story of its credibility.

Ultimately, Paradise Towers suffers from its tonal inconsistency, lacklustre acting, and underdeveloped ideas. While McCoy shows improvement as the Doctor, the story fails to provide the series with the fresh foundation it desperately needed. Despite a few interesting glimpses of potential, Paradise Towers is another misstep, leaving little desire for a repeat visit.

Random Observations:

• The Doctor mentions the TARDIS swimming pool being jettisoned, but it miraculously reappears in his eleventh incarnation.
• Kroagnon’s concept is reminiscent of Xoanon from The Face of Evil (1977).