Paul

Paul
Personal details
Status	Alive
Residence	Phoenix Mall
Physical description
Sex	Male
Skin color	Pale
Hair	Brown
Eye color	Hazel
Affiliation
Tribe	Mall Rats
Relations
Parents	Unnamed parents †
Siblings	Patsy (Twin Sister; MIA)
Appearances
Episode count	16
Introduced	Series 1 Episode 1
Last appeared	The Tribe: Reunion
Portrayed by	Zachary Best
S1

"What? Are you deaf?" - Paul to Amber

Paul is one of the original members of the Mall Rats.

He is the twin brother to Patsy, who helps to explain what Paul says as he is profoundly deaf. He is first encountered at a playground with Cloe, Patsy and Salene, who looks after them. Amber and Dal would lead them to safety at the Mall where the tribe is first formed.

Being deaf, Paul is an easy target to be bullied by Lex, the bad boy of the Mall Rats. Paul disappears and is never found. His disappearance deeply upset his sister Patsy, who blames Lex for driving him away.

Personality

Paul is one of the younger members of the Mall Rats, along with his sister, Patsy. Despite being young, Paul is far from unnoticeable, however. He is a mischievous boy and enjoys playing practical jokes and games. He is fun-loving.

Paul is also profoundly deaf. He gets by though by lip reading what others are saying and Paul is still able to communicate with others even though he may never hear their voices. Paul is protective of his sister Patsy, as she is of him. Lex will often pick on Paul and it would be fair to say Paul is scared of the bad boy, Lex.

Paul can detect vibrations and even though he can't hear, he is able to pick up on some things that others will never be able to notice.

History

Series 1

Paul and his twin sister Patsy

Paul, along with his sister Patsy, arrived at the Mall along with others of the tribe. Paul, Patsy, Cloe and Salene survived for some time together within the city before they were found. Paul is profoundly deaf and Patsy interprets for him, but he doesn't let his disability set him back from anything. Instead he is as mischievous as Cloe and Patsy.

When he and Patsy discover Jack's secret stash of food, they make themselves sick when they gorge out on sweets they find. When Jack finds out he is furious but the two merely make him keep quiet about what happened or they will tell the others about his secret. They manage to blackmail him into sharing his food for a short time before he is discovered outright.

Paul played a pivotal role in discovering that Zoot entered the Mall. Although he is deaf, he is able to pickup vibrations from a far distance. Paul wakes up Patsy to inform Lex someone had entered the Mall. He wasn't believed at first, but Lex goes to investigate and realises Paul was telling the truth. Zandra would praise Paul for his abilities in sensing that Zoot had came into the Mall.

However things are hard for Paul, adjusting to living around so many, especially Lex who has no patience for any of the younger ones in the mall. One day Patsy and Cloe cannot find him, and a search is conducted but no sign can be found. Patsy blames Lex for her brother's disappearance.

The Tribe: A New World

While in captivity, Bray heard rumours that Ryan had been transported overseas and had met up with Paul.

In The Tribe: A New Dawn

While in captivity, Tai San is shown images of Ryan, Patsy, Paul, KC, Danni and Alice. Possibly hinting that they are all captives of The Collective.

The Tribe: (R)Evolution

When the Mall Rats are captured by The Collective and sent to Eden, they reunite with Alice, Tai San and Ryan. However, unlike the rumours Bray had heard while in captivity in The Tribe: A New World, Paul is not with Ryan. The Collective even mention they are trying to search for Patsy and Paul, meaning Paul was never a captive of The Collective in the first place and they simply have data of him.

The Tribe: Reunion Manga

Paul is revealed to have somehow been captured by the Technos, however he and two kids are let go. Paul wanders an unknown city where he runs into Natsu, who offers him to stay with her, as long as Paul helps her trade things. While Paul is manning her store, someone trades a Techno Head Visor and Paul curiously wears it. He is taken to a reality space version of the Mall where he reunites with Patsy and the Mall Rats. They host a big party for his return. However Paul takes off the helmet and is devastated to realise it was just an illusion. He wonders if he will ever see Patsy again, whom he misses terribly.

Gallery

Trivia

• Paul was written out of the show because actor Zachary Best started having trouble communicating with his fellow cast members as he was deaf in real life. Creator Raymond Thompson revealed in his book Keeping the Dream Alive that he chose to have Paul disappear instead of killing the character off, in case the opportunity arose where the character could be reintroduced down the line. This is why the fates of many characters who disappear throughout the show is left open ended.
• Paul is the first of many characters to completely disappear from the show with little explanation. Those who would follow him are: Danni, Patsy, Ryan, Bray, Luke, Andy, Tally, Moz, Charlie, Cloe, Ved, Dee and Patch. Some characters like Alice, KC, Tai San, May, Jack and Ellie have disappeared but eventually returned to the show.
• Although Paul appeared for only the first half of Series 1, he can still be spotted in the opening and end credits of the show until its cancellation.
  • Similarly, he can be seen in flashbacks in Series 3 Episode 7 and Series 4 Episode 51. But Zachary is uncredited in those episodes.
• Paul shares a few similarities with Charlie. Both were written off the show not long after their first appearances. Both characters also have sisters who had longer tenures on the show.
• Some fans believe that if Paul hadn't been written out of the show, he would have mostly filled KC's role. Although Harry Duffin has stated that KC was not a complete replacement for Paul as both characters were very different and KC's character begun a life of his own when they started writing for him.
• There are 2 occasions on the show where missing Mall Rats are listed out, but Paul is never mentioned despite being the very first Mall Rat to ever disappear. It is unknown why Paul is exempted during these listings, in fact he is never mentioned after Series 1 by name again until the novels.
• Paul reappears as the main character for The Tribe: Reunion manga that is illustrated by Carolin Tempest. Marking 20 years since the character was last seen in Series 1. The Manga appears to take place around Series 4 or 5 as Paul is held hostage by Technos.
• In The Tribe Game (which is currently adapting Series 1's storylines), Paul does not disappear and continues to have a larger role unlike the show.