Particularly significant in terms of Doctor Who's history, The Leisure Hive marked an end to Who's descent into vaudeville, and heralded the entrance of new hotshot series producer John Nathan-Turner. The opening long, slow pan across a wintry beach, on which an autumnal Doctor sits slumped, immediately declares the show's serious intentions. The narrative itself is an erudite discussion on fascism and racism taking in regeneration, megalomania, cloning, and a series of Agatha Christie-esque murders. It's the style, rather than the story, however, that's most prominent in The Leisure Hive: along with his new sober ambitious approach, Nathan-Turner brought a new theme tune, a new logo, a striking red costume, and a new title sequence--one that, tellingly, moved away from the enclosed time tunnel to show the vastness of space opening up. Productions values are also high: the Quantel effects are impressive even now, and the performances are quite stunning, particularly Baker's as the prematurely aged, infirm Doctor.

The JN-T Era begins...

Originally broadcast in 1980, the four-part story The Leisure Hive opened Tom Baker's seventh and final season as the Doctor. It also marked the beginning of the late John Nathan-Turner's run as the program's producer which lasted nine seasons through three more Doctors until the end of the original series in 1989. The Doctor and Romana (Lalla Ward) travel to Argolis, a planet scarred by a nuclear war which has left the planet's atmosphere poisonous and rendered the survivors sterile. Unable to reproduce, the Argolin have experimented with tachyonics in an attempt to prolong the existence of their race. David Haig is a superb villain as Pangol, and Adrienne Corri (A Clockwork Orange) is also great as Argolin chairwoman Mena. Lalla Ward joins script editor Christopher H. Bidmead (who scripted this story) and director Lovett Bickford on the commentary track. The Leisure Hive was a strong opener for Season 18, beginning Tom Baker's last season as well a controversial era for Doctor Who as the start of the John Nathan-Turner era. A great start to a very memorable season.

Entertaining "Who" that began a new era!

This is definitely a classic "Who" story, starring fan favorite Tom Baker as the Doctor. What makes this story so special is that many changes took place when "Doctor Who" entered the '80s.
One of the coolest changes is certainly the new opening sequence and theme music. On this DVD, the audio and visuals of the opening sequence are excellent. Another important change is the Doctor's costume. The DVD has a special featurette that explains this costume change from the costume designer of this story. Other extras include featurettes on the writing of the story, the new changes to "Doctor Who", and the construction of the title sequence. I feel one of the downsides of the DVD is the commentary. Although it is cool to hear Lalla Ward (Romana II) make her commentary debut, she constantly whines about Tom Baker with the script editor and the director on the commentary track. It is a shame that Tom Baker himself did not contribute to the commentary, even though he is briefly featured in one the featurettes. It is a good story, with the silliness of Baker's Doctor being toned down and showing a slightly more serious Doctor. This DVD is a must for any "Who" fan, old or new.

First of a Season of More Evolved Adventures

THE LEISURE HIVE is the kick-off of Tom Baker's final season with the Doctor Who program. This adventure is usually a bit of a shock to followers of the program since it includes changes to Baker's costume, the incidental music style, the titles sequence, a reduction in the comedic aspect of the Doctor, and a sharp reduction in the use of K-9.

The adventure itself is a fun romp on a war-weary planet dedicated to the leisure industry while a citizen is planning to turn his world back into a land dedicated to conquest. As always the Doctor's solutions to problems are unique and even though a new, more serious tone is being set, there are chuckles to be found.

I recommend this one to all of the Tom Baker fans out there.