It's rather peculiar that this story, the first of the Eighties, the start of John Nathan-Turner's era onscreen, is sometimes held up as an example of the (then) new fast-paced style. The Leisure Hive has a good claim to be one of the slower stories, if anything. The establishing shots for instance. There are far too many of them, and they pad the story out interminably some of the time. The shots of the Hive are definitely overdone - a few would have done but they pop up time and again. And I'm not sure we really needed that shot of Vargos walking down the corridor once, never mind twice. That opening pan past the tents is at least a minute too long as well, and I could have done without those rather pointless shots of the shuttle arriving too, because there's no sense of scale and they don't really tell you enough. Why show it arriving anyway? What's wrong with just having a character saying "So and so has just arrived" or similar? I also think the shots of the Hive are rather overdone - one or two would do. Establishing shots do undoubtedly serve a purpose in creating atmosphere and scene setting and so forth but too many here are superfluous or overlong and merely expose how slight the storyline is, considering that they stretch out an already unusually short serial.

There are almost two separate plots (Hardin's time experiments and Pangol's attempts to recapture the Argolins' former glory), and what is perhaps more of a problem, there's little role for the Doctor and Romana in either of them. All too often it feels like incidents are being manufactured and crowbarred into the plot just to give them something to do. Hence the Doctor urgently asks to be taken to Mena in Ep 1, only for him and Romana to scoot off almost instantly once they're there, mainly, it seems, for the sake of producing a instant cliffhanger. And the business of the Doctor being aged, which follows on from that superb piece of classic television (if you're being kind), The Time Monster, with Stuart Hyde's ageing redone here, only to the Doctor. While the make-up is superior in this story, the concept feels just as childish and embarrassing as it was there. Although it probably serves as a subliminal hint that the production team were tiring of Tom Baker and felt jaded with him at this stage, it still feels like probably the silliest idea used in the series since The Invisible Enemy, and something best left to the Yellow Submarine cartoon (specifically the "When I'm 64" section).

The appeal of the images and designs tends to be variable. For instance, the boardroom is reasonably effective, given its utilitarian nature, and there are some lovely shots where we see it from the outside, or when the characters are looking out from within through yellowy-orange colour filters. The black bubble-type screen for the Generator, mounted just above the windows showing the exterior of the planet, is also striking and memorable. I don't care for Hardin's laboratory though, the white and pink blend is hideous, and some of the mixes of colours seen throughout the story are sickly and unappealing in the extreme.

The Foamasi have come in for a lot of criticism before now, and it's true they aren't what they could be. The reptilian style is fine, with the real problem being that their shape and design makes the poor things look obese and lumbering, and gives them a distinctly unmenacing appearance, not helped by the shuffling, waddling gait they exhibit. They do at least turn out to have distinctive personalities and a rather dry sense of humour (I've always rather liked the "You mentioned Foamasi?" bit at the end where the government one turns up, flourishing a non-existent cape).

The generator's functions are highly inconsistent. If Pangol and the Doctor have both set it on (respectively) reduplication and rejuvenation, then shouldn't it do both to each of them (ie cause Pangol to grow younger as well)? And when Mena and Pangol are both rejuvenated at the end, shouldn't they also be mass-duplicated as before, because Pangol still has it set for that too? I suppose Romana's statement that it's "totally unstable" might cover that, and the disappearance of the duplicates shows that it's not working properly yet too. And where exactly does the Doctor get his usual clothes from in the corridor, when he's still dressed as Pangol? He doesn't have any room to conceal them, so how can he be able to struggle into them and be suddenly pulling his scarf from the helmet? There is a fairly contrived feel to some of these scenes, as though producing bizarre images was more of a priority than working out how they could be included credibly in a narrative.

Although Stimson arguably has little plot purpose (as it's already been established that Hardin is faking the experiments) it could be said that he functions as a body for the Doctor to be falsely accused of murdering. The scenes where he finds the Klout skin hanging in Brock's room work well, bathed as they are in a deep green light, and assisted by some wonderfully creepy music. Apart from hinting that Brock and Klout are not what they seem, it's also very well lit, directed and scored. Indeed, there's a good sense of rising menace to the whole sequence of Stimson stumbling alone through the Hive and into the darkened and seemingly deserted Generator Room.

Indeed, the acting is mostly excellent. I particularly like Nigel Lambert, who manages to imbue Hardin with an edgy nervousness and creates a much more sympathetic and rounded character than was probably there on paper. Also good is John Collin, playing Brock with a gruff efficiency (his delivery of the line "A novel concept" after Pangol says he has something better than money is notable), Laurence Payne manages an authentic weary dignity in his brief screen time. Also good is Adrienne Corri, giving a highly controlled and sober performance. David Haig probably has the most challenging part, as he has to go from steely politeness to an all-out raving madman, and I think he pulls it off in the end. Special mention must go to those boardroom scenes in Ep 3 between Mena, Pangol and Brock which are possibly the best in the story. They advance the themes and help develop the characters further via good writing and acting, with Brock and Pangol circling each other warily, and subtly battling over the former's dodgy contract, along with Pangol slowly allowing the revelation of his origin to dawn. That nose-to-nose "Who cares if an alien Doctor lives or dies?" sequence is a strong bit of concentrated character drama, in DW terms at least. As for the regulars, Tom seems decidedly subdued, if not bored, possibly because he was unwell at this time, although he still manages to include some light comic touches here and there. His turn as an aged Doctor gives the impression of being tired rather than old, and watching it, one does not get the feeling that he is particularly enjoying having to act while weighed down with all the make up, wig and false beard. Lalla carries the story with a perfectly judged balance between melodrama and quirkiness, however, and often makes for a more effective focus character than the Doctor. Certainly her performance seems much more enthusiastic than Tom's, and the scenes where she helps Hardin apparently perfect his time experiments show her persona in a pleasingly authoritative light.

There are some good ideas and elements undoubtedly, some entertaining and enjoyable scenes, but I think the story ultimately ends up being less than the sum of its parts. It frequently has an awkward and inconsistent feel, and is probably my least favourite story from a generally accomplished season.