The various aspects of Kang life, clockwise from the top left: the last Yellow Kang; Red Kangs Fire Escape and Bin Liner; Kangs in their brainquarters; a wallscrawl; and Blue Kang leader, Drinking Fountain. (TV: Paradise Towers)
"Kang" was the name taken by young women living in Paradise Towers.
Society
By the time the Seventh Doctor and Mel visited Paradise Towers, there were three denominations of Kang living there, namely Red Kangs, Blue Kangs and Yellow Kangs. Each was only distinguishable by the colour of her hair and clothing, with the three groups adopting the same general mannerisms.
Kangs competed against one another, with the ultimate objective being to enter another group's brainquarters. Despite this, they never harmed one another. The Kangs were disliked by the Caretakers as they frequently created wallscrawls. This led to them being nicknamed "wallscrawlers". The Kangs also performed various dances round certain structures. They carried arrow guns as their primary weapon, but never used them against one another.
Language
The Kangs developed their own language, possibly through consonantal shift. They also varied somewhat on the pronunciation of certain words. The Kangs took the names of various objects as their own, for example, Air Duct and Fire Escape. Their motto was seemingly "build high for happiness", though this may have been exclusive to the Reds. Kangs greeted one another through a clapping game.
| Kang word/phrase | Standard word/phrase |
|---|---|
| Alleviator | Elevator |
| Brainquarters | Headquarters |
| Carrydoor | Corridor |
| Footing | Walking |
| Hide-in | Hide-out |
| Ice hot | Cool |
| Mayhaps | Maybe |
| Outgoing | Going out |
| Unalive | Dead |
| Unyoung | Old |
History
When war broke out and the men were all conscripted, the Kangs and the Rezzies were shipped to Paradise Towers. There they became enemies of the Caretakers due to their constant wallscrawling. Each Kang faction had a brainquarters from which they operated during their competitive games against one another. The Kangs lived in fear of the cleaners who had killed several of their number, leading to the Yellow Kangs being wiped out. Their relationship with the Rezzies also broke down after the Kangs discovered that they had turned to cannibalism and eaten a number of Kangs.
When the Seventh Doctor and Melanie Bush arrived at Paradise Towers, the first people they met were the Red Kangs who took a liking to the Doctor's clothes, deciding they were "ice hot". They were wary of Mel, however, as they were unsure of her allegiance. Despite their apparent friendliness, they tried to take the Doctor and Mel captive, but were forced to flee when the Caretakers launched a raid of the Fountain of Happiness Square.
Some time later, the Doctor found himself in the Red Kang brainquarters after falling through a hole. He showed them how to use a vending machine and they all began drinking Fizzade. While searching for the Doctor, the Caretakers tracked him to the brainquarters and began breaking down the door. The Doctor told the Kangs to escape while he delayed the attackers and was taken captive. Meanwhile, Mel and Pex met with Blue Kangs who related the story of Pex's arrival at Paradise Towers and taunted him for being a coward as he had avoided going to war. They nicknamed him "musclebrain" and "scaredy-cat".
The Red Kangs attacked the Caretaker base and broke into the Chief Caretaker's office. There they took the Doctor's guards prisoner allowing him to escape. Back at the Brainquarters, the Blue Kangs broke in claiming to have won the game. The Doctor convinced them that they would have to work together to defeat Kroagnon. They agreed and Bin Liner, Fire Escape and Drinking Fountain accompanied him to the basement. Their they watched as Kroagnon used corpoelectroscopy to take over the Chief Caretaker's body. The Doctor was attacked by a cleaner but the Kangs managed to free him and then flee.
The Kangs hold a memorial service for Pex. (TV: Paradise Towers)
They travelled to Floor 304 and allied themselves with the Rezzies, Caretakers and Pex. They began to respect Pex after he offered to lead Kroagnon into a trap. In preparation they created numerous devices, such as trip wires. However, Pex and Kroagnon arrived too early and the Doctor found himself under attack. Pex sacrificed himself to kill Kroagnon, taking himself, Kroagnon and a stick of explosive down a lift shaft.
In his honour, the Kangs held a ceremony and posthumously made him a Kang. As a parting gift, the Doctor was given a scarf that was blue on one side and red on the other, proclaiming him to be an honourary Kang. (TV: Paradise Towers)
