3.3: Gridlock
Synopsis: Showing off for Martha in the TARDIS, the Doctor takes her to New Earth, thirty-odd years after his last visit. Martha is promptly kidnapped and taken to the motorway so that the occupants of the vehicle can use the highly desirable HOV lane. The Doctor launches into a single-minded rescue mission, discovering that the motorway is really just thousands of (hover) cars, stuck in traffic, literally for years.
One of the cat nuns, Hame, whom he has met previously, catches up with him and teleports them out, asking him to tend to the ailing Face of Boe. Hame explains that a virus killed the Senate, just after they closed down the motorway as a safety precaution - this is why no one can get out. The Doctor rigs the computers to open it up again, and Boe gives his last bit of energy to fuel the effort. The drivers are ecstatic to see the sky, and Martha's (nice normal folk) kidnappers deliver her to the Doctor.
The Face of Boe finally confesses his great secret to the traveller, as was predicted the last time they met. Boe says, "You are not alone," and expires. Later, Martha notices the Doctor's tight-lipped demeanor and forces him to tell her what's wrong. He confesses to her for the first time the truth about the destruction of his planet and his people.
Golden Comic Moment: Probably the most entertaining thing about this episode is Thomas Kincade Brannigan, the humanoid feline who seems to hail from New Ireland. His single funniest line is utterly ridiculous, but makes us laugh because of its randomness. "A fifty-foot head, just think of it... imagine picking that nose." Yes, most of us would marvel at the difficulty of having a fifty-foot head, should the subject come up, but it takes a particular type of mind to speculate over the difficulties of picking the nose.
Which brings us to an interesting question regarding the Face of Boe...
Golden Fangirl Moment: The Doctor's obsessive pursuit of Martha, once she gets carjacked, means that there are lots of little fangirl squee moments in which he says things, does things, behaves in ways that make us see that he actually does care about her. It is comforting for us to think that throughout all of that, all that he goes through that day on New Earth, Martha is at the forefront of his mind. There is no other episode in which almost all of his actions are motivated by Martha's well-being.
For example, when Brannigan asks what Martha means to him, he answers, "Hardly know her," which is harsh, but it's the truth. Then, he acknowledges, "I was too busy showing off. And I lied to her. Couldn't help it, just lied." These statements reveal that he understands that he could be closer with Martha, but he's been holding her at arm's length. Obviously, part of his obsession to get her back is fueled by guilt over this. He refuses to go with Hame because he hasn't found Martha yet, and once he realises Hame has a teleport, he demands that she use it to rescue those trapped on the motorway, starting with Martha. He reminds himself and others over and over again that Martha is trapped, calling her specifically, "my friend," making sure that everyone knows that he has some investment in her, and that she's not just a hapless citizen who's got herself into some trouble. And when he finally contacts Martha from the Senate, the cutesy, flirty look on his face when he says, "Been quite a while since I saw you, Martha Jones," is a tone and demeanor he hasn't used since the last time he got cutesy wih Rose. We never see Martha's reaction to it, but we imagine that she blushes.
Perhaps the best example of this phenomenon, of the Doctor's rage over losing her, and his single-minded desire to get her back, is when she is first taken and he follows the kidnappers out into the alleyway. With a crazed, totally unhinged panic, he leans out over a balcony and screams, "Marthaaaaa!" One wonders how many takes of this moment that Tennant was able to do before he lost his voice completely. It's one of the few times when the Tenth Doctor comes unglued enough to lose the ability to articulate himself. The only tragedy here is that Martha's not conscious to hear it.
Fangirl points also go to Martha for accusing the Doctor of being on the rebound, and to the Doctor for cuddling kittens.
Cringeworthy Moment: In this episode, many small advancements are made, as mentioned above, in the Doctor and Martha's friendship, or more accurately, in how the Doctor views Martha. The trouble is, the audience and everyone around the Doctor hear the things he says, but Martha never does. And so, when this exchange takes place, it initially looks like a huge step backwards, and clearly hurts her very much:
Martha: What did he mean, the Face of Boe? 'You are not alone'?
Doctor: I don't know.
Martha: You've got me. Is that what he meant?
Doctor: (smirks) I don't think so. Sorry.
So, until Martha forces him to tell what's bothering him, he goes right back to holding her at arm's length, even though he seemed earlier to realize that this isn't a good thing. He reacted terribly to her question. Perhaps even patronizing, and certainly callous. Couldn't he at least pretend to think that possibly the Face of Boe was referring to her? Just a "maybe" wouldn't have killed him. Or couldn't he pretend to at least think about it before saying "I don't think so"? Couldn't he not have smirked when he said it, as though she were cute but stupid? The Doctor can't be this blind! Her romantic feelings for him aside, he's just spent forty minutes claiming that she's his friend! Who shoots down a friend that way?
However, unlike most of the Doctor-rejects-Martha-and-we-cringe moments, this one is made up for a minute later when he tells her that he lied to her, and begins to confess the truth about his planet. This actually opens up a whole new avenue to their friendship.
Golden Moment: Four words: "You are not alone." This episode completes what could be called the "New Earth Trilogy," and rounds out the Doctor's relationship with the Face of Boe (though as it turns out, it is simply another chapter in his long-lived friendship with another travelling companion, though we don't find that out until much later). Despite being an episode not very well-remembered, there is this enigmatic, prophetic and ultimately extremely important line given toward the end, without which, this season's story arc wouldn't make a whole lot of sense.
First of all, it leads the Doctor and Martha, ultimately, into their first real conversation about the Doctor's past, their first real moment as Doctor and Companion. Second of all, it is a mysterious enough phrase that it leaves much open to interpretation, so that the other vein, the "Vote Saxon" posters, doesn't register right now. Martha takes one meaning from it, the Doctor tries to discount it as meaningless. The actual meaning winds up being so big for this season, and for David Tennant's entire run, that it's hard not to think of this moment as having swallowed the entire episode.
Why I Beg To Differ: The aforementioned confession of Gallifrey's fate is named as the Golden Moment by DWM. They like it simply because David Tennant's performance is so captivating in this scene, and they claim that if he doesn't make you cry, you don't possess a heart. Okay, fair enough. The man is a good actor - can't fault them for that.
But we take exception on two points. The first is that there are more compelling reasons why this scene is could be Golden, starting with the implications for the Doctor's relationship to his Companion. When the Ninth Doctor did the same with Rose, it was pointed out that their closeness is made flesh by his opening up. Why not give Martha the same consideration? (This is my Martha-fan angst in full fruition.) The second is that if you were to draw a web of associations over this season and the subsequent seasons around the phrase "You are not alone," you'd have a crazed net of lines which pervade the series in the twenty-first century. And the conversation about Gallifrey would be included in that!
So the Doctor's confessional is big, but Boe's is bigger. (Put that in your pipe and smoke it, Captain Jack.)
One of the cat nuns, Hame, whom he has met previously, catches up with him and teleports them out, asking him to tend to the ailing Face of Boe. Hame explains that a virus killed the Senate, just after they closed down the motorway as a safety precaution - this is why no one can get out. The Doctor rigs the computers to open it up again, and Boe gives his last bit of energy to fuel the effort. The drivers are ecstatic to see the sky, and Martha's (nice normal folk) kidnappers deliver her to the Doctor.
The Face of Boe finally confesses his great secret to the traveller, as was predicted the last time they met. Boe says, "You are not alone," and expires. Later, Martha notices the Doctor's tight-lipped demeanor and forces him to tell her what's wrong. He confesses to her for the first time the truth about the destruction of his planet and his people.
Golden Comic Moment: Probably the most entertaining thing about this episode is Thomas Kincade Brannigan, the humanoid feline who seems to hail from New Ireland. His single funniest line is utterly ridiculous, but makes us laugh because of its randomness. "A fifty-foot head, just think of it... imagine picking that nose." Yes, most of us would marvel at the difficulty of having a fifty-foot head, should the subject come up, but it takes a particular type of mind to speculate over the difficulties of picking the nose.
Which brings us to an interesting question regarding the Face of Boe...
Golden Fangirl Moment: The Doctor's obsessive pursuit of Martha, once she gets carjacked, means that there are lots of little fangirl squee moments in which he says things, does things, behaves in ways that make us see that he actually does care about her. It is comforting for us to think that throughout all of that, all that he goes through that day on New Earth, Martha is at the forefront of his mind. There is no other episode in which almost all of his actions are motivated by Martha's well-being.
For example, when Brannigan asks what Martha means to him, he answers, "Hardly know her," which is harsh, but it's the truth. Then, he acknowledges, "I was too busy showing off. And I lied to her. Couldn't help it, just lied." These statements reveal that he understands that he could be closer with Martha, but he's been holding her at arm's length. Obviously, part of his obsession to get her back is fueled by guilt over this. He refuses to go with Hame because he hasn't found Martha yet, and once he realises Hame has a teleport, he demands that she use it to rescue those trapped on the motorway, starting with Martha. He reminds himself and others over and over again that Martha is trapped, calling her specifically, "my friend," making sure that everyone knows that he has some investment in her, and that she's not just a hapless citizen who's got herself into some trouble. And when he finally contacts Martha from the Senate, the cutesy, flirty look on his face when he says, "Been quite a while since I saw you, Martha Jones," is a tone and demeanor he hasn't used since the last time he got cutesy wih Rose. We never see Martha's reaction to it, but we imagine that she blushes.
Perhaps the best example of this phenomenon, of the Doctor's rage over losing her, and his single-minded desire to get her back, is when she is first taken and he follows the kidnappers out into the alleyway. With a crazed, totally unhinged panic, he leans out over a balcony and screams, "Marthaaaaa!" One wonders how many takes of this moment that Tennant was able to do before he lost his voice completely. It's one of the few times when the Tenth Doctor comes unglued enough to lose the ability to articulate himself. The only tragedy here is that Martha's not conscious to hear it.
Fangirl points also go to Martha for accusing the Doctor of being on the rebound, and to the Doctor for cuddling kittens.
Cringeworthy Moment: In this episode, many small advancements are made, as mentioned above, in the Doctor and Martha's friendship, or more accurately, in how the Doctor views Martha. The trouble is, the audience and everyone around the Doctor hear the things he says, but Martha never does. And so, when this exchange takes place, it initially looks like a huge step backwards, and clearly hurts her very much:
Martha: What did he mean, the Face of Boe? 'You are not alone'?
Doctor: I don't know.
Martha: You've got me. Is that what he meant?
Doctor: (smirks) I don't think so. Sorry.
So, until Martha forces him to tell what's bothering him, he goes right back to holding her at arm's length, even though he seemed earlier to realize that this isn't a good thing. He reacted terribly to her question. Perhaps even patronizing, and certainly callous. Couldn't he at least pretend to think that possibly the Face of Boe was referring to her? Just a "maybe" wouldn't have killed him. Or couldn't he pretend to at least think about it before saying "I don't think so"? Couldn't he not have smirked when he said it, as though she were cute but stupid? The Doctor can't be this blind! Her romantic feelings for him aside, he's just spent forty minutes claiming that she's his friend! Who shoots down a friend that way?
However, unlike most of the Doctor-rejects-Martha-and-we-cringe moments, this one is made up for a minute later when he tells her that he lied to her, and begins to confess the truth about his planet. This actually opens up a whole new avenue to their friendship.
Golden Moment: Four words: "You are not alone." This episode completes what could be called the "New Earth Trilogy," and rounds out the Doctor's relationship with the Face of Boe (though as it turns out, it is simply another chapter in his long-lived friendship with another travelling companion, though we don't find that out until much later). Despite being an episode not very well-remembered, there is this enigmatic, prophetic and ultimately extremely important line given toward the end, without which, this season's story arc wouldn't make a whole lot of sense.
First of all, it leads the Doctor and Martha, ultimately, into their first real conversation about the Doctor's past, their first real moment as Doctor and Companion. Second of all, it is a mysterious enough phrase that it leaves much open to interpretation, so that the other vein, the "Vote Saxon" posters, doesn't register right now. Martha takes one meaning from it, the Doctor tries to discount it as meaningless. The actual meaning winds up being so big for this season, and for David Tennant's entire run, that it's hard not to think of this moment as having swallowed the entire episode.
Why I Beg To Differ: The aforementioned confession of Gallifrey's fate is named as the Golden Moment by DWM. They like it simply because David Tennant's performance is so captivating in this scene, and they claim that if he doesn't make you cry, you don't possess a heart. Okay, fair enough. The man is a good actor - can't fault them for that.
But we take exception on two points. The first is that there are more compelling reasons why this scene is could be Golden, starting with the implications for the Doctor's relationship to his Companion. When the Ninth Doctor did the same with Rose, it was pointed out that their closeness is made flesh by his opening up. Why not give Martha the same consideration? (This is my Martha-fan angst in full fruition.) The second is that if you were to draw a web of associations over this season and the subsequent seasons around the phrase "You are not alone," you'd have a crazed net of lines which pervade the series in the twenty-first century. And the conversation about Gallifrey would be included in that!
So the Doctor's confessional is big, but Boe's is bigger. (Put that in your pipe and smoke it, Captain Jack.)