A couple, dressed like the American Gothic painting, sit inside a futuristic-looking vehicle, which they refer to as a car. The car begins to shake, and the man says into what looks like a radio transmitter that they require urgent assistance. A growling sound is heard, sparks fly, and we go to the credits.
In the TARDIS, the Doctor tells Martha that even though he promised her one trip, he could stretch the definition and make it one trip into the past and one trip into the future, and suggests that they go to a different world. Martha suggests they visit the Doctor's planet, but he's not so keen to go there, although Martha doesn't notice this as she's too caught up in the idea of visiting another planet.
Martha asks the Doctor what his home planet is like, and he paints a picture of it being a beautiful world. She asks again if they can go there, and the Doctor replies that he doesn't want to go home as it wouldn't be much fun for him, but instead he's brought her to New Earth in the year five billion and fifty-three, and they've arrived in the city of New New York.
As the Doctor and Martha leave the TARDIS, in a room somewhere else, the Face of Boe talks to a humanoid cat. Her name isn't given yet, but the cat is Novice Hame, from the episode New Earth, although I don't know how easy it would be to tell it was her without already knowing. The Face of Boe tells Novice Hame that “he” has arrived, and she must find him before it's too late.
The Doctor and Martha enter a street which doesn't look much different from a 21st century street. They find a computer screen on a wall, and the Doctor sonic screwdrivers it. A traffic report given by a woman named Sally Calypso appears, followed by images that look like the view of New New York from New Earth.
The Doctor says that was the New New York they saw last time, and they must currently be in the lower levels in some sort of under-city. Martha picks up on the “last time” comment, and is a little annoyed that he brought her somewhere he's already taken Rose. There's no chance for further discussion, as panels in the walls open up to reveal street vendors who are selling what appear to be moods – items like Happy, Mellow and Anger.
A woman comes up to one of the vendors and asks for Forget, saying that her parents went on the motorway. After she's made the purchase, the Doctor tries to ask the woman about her parents, but all he can get out of her before she sticks the Forget patch against her neck and it takes effect is that she believes that her parents won't be coming back.
As the Doctor and Martha watch the woman walk away, Martha is grabbed by an armed man and woman. They apologise, saying that they just need three, and drag Martha away. The Doctor gives chase, but is unable to catch them before they have put Martha to sleep using a Sleep patch and flown off with her in their flying car.
Inside the car, the woman checks on Martha while the man speaks into a transmitter, saying that they have three passengers and request access to the fast lane. He receives a reply that access is granted.
The Doctor returns to the street with the vendors and pounds on one of the panels. It opens up, as do other panels, and he asks about the couple who abducted Martha.
He learns that they were carjackers and needed a third person for the special access vehicles receive as part of the car-sharing policy if they're carrying three passengers. He heads off to the motorway, but not before telling the vendors to leave, as he'll be back to close the street down once he's found Martha.
Martha wakes up and grabs the gun that her kidnappers used, and demands to be taken back. They tell her that the gun isn't real, and then introduce themselves, the woman being Cheen and the man Milo.
They explain that when they found out that Cheen was pregnant, they decided to leave Pharmacy Town and head to Brooklyn, where the air is clearer. They tell Martha that it's only ten miles away, so it should take about six years.
I know the episode is supposed to be basically about the worst traffic jam ever, but ten miles in six years is verging on the ridiculous. After all, you can walk that distance in under six hours, let alone six years.
Meanwhile, the Doctor, following Martha has gained access to the motorway, which consists of rows and rows of flying cars. He stands on a platform for a while, beginning to choke on the exhaust fumes, when the door to one of the cars opens and the occupant beckons him inside.
The occupant turns out to be a humanoid cat, Brannigan, who is travelling with his human wife, Valerie, and their family, a group of two-month old kittens, who Branngian tells the Doctor were born on the motorway and have never known the ground beneath their paws. The Doctor learns that they've been on the motorway for twelve years, in which time they've travelled five miles.
The Doctor asks to be let out so that he can go after Martha, but the car has already passed lay-by. Brannigan cheerfully informs him that the next one will be in six months' time.
The car Martha is in descends to the fast lane, and she is told that it's rumoured that cars can reach speeds of thirty miles an hour there. Which only makes the notion of ten miles in six years even more ridiculous.
The Doctor tries to contact the police from Brannigan's car, only to be told that his call is on hold. He asks Brannigan if there's anyone else he can call, and Brannigan says that they're in contact with other cars, but it's only possible with cars on your list of friends.
Branngian gets in touch with the Cassini “sisters” (who correct Brannigan and remind him that they're married), and the Doctor asks them if any new cars have joined the motorway recently. One of the sisters is a carspotter, and she is able to determine which car Martha is in as it's the only one bound for the fast lane, but they can't offer any more help.
Meanwhile, as Martha and her abductors descend towards the fast lane, they hear strange noises from outside the car. Milo says that it's just the air vents for the exhaust fumes, while Cheen says that there are stories that there's something living down there and if you get lost then it's waiting for you. Milo repeats that it's just the air vents, but Martha points out that the air vents don't appear to be working, given the haze created by the fumes.
The Doctor asks Brannigan to take him down to the fast lane, saying that they've now got three passengers, but Brannigan and Valerie refuse and say that they'll keep on driving until the journey's over. The Doctor's reaction to this is to contact the Cassinis and ask them if they've ever seen a police car or any official vehicle in the time they've been on the motorway, which is twenty-three years.
Brannigan is annoyed by the Doctor's question, and snatches the transmitter away from him. The Doctor tells him that someone has to ask the question, because even if Brannigan won't talk about it, it's visible in his eyes – what if there's no help coming and the motorway never ends, but the cars just keep going round?
The discussion is interrupted by a broadcast from Sally Calypso who says that the sun is blazing high in the sky over the New Atlantic, and they're sorry for everyone out on the roads. The daily contemplation starts playing, and it's the hymn The Old Rugged Cross starts playing, and all the motorists join in. By the end of it, Martha is singing as well, although the Doctor doesn't, which must mean that he doesn't go to church as often as Martha.
The song ends and the Doctor decides that if Brannigan won't take him to the fast lane then he'll make his own way. He opens the hatch at the bottom of Brannigan's car and drops through, landing on the roof of the car below. He opens a hatch on the roof and enters the car, followed by an exit through the hatch in the floor. Luckily for him, all the cars appear to be the same make and so the Doctor is able to make his way down through the rows of cars.
In the fast lane, Milo and Cheen discover that the exits to the Brooklyn Junction are closed. Milo suggests they keep on driving, and by the time they've completed the entire loop, the exits will be open. Before they can do anything else, they hear the roaring noises again, and this time the car shakes.
The driver of the car behind them in the fast lane makes contact, and urges them to leave the fast lane, as there's something down there. Milo repeats that's it's just the air vents, and gets castigated for his comment.
The roaring noises can be heard again, and the driver says that she can't move, and something has her. She urges Milo to get out of there, and he starts to drive straight ahead as quickly as possible.
The Doctor reaches the car in the last layer, and asks the driver if he can take them down to the fast lane. The driver replies that the computer would lock the wheel, and I would have thought that the Doctor would have tried his sonic screwdriver on it, but for some reason he doesn't.
Instead, he uses the screwdriver to open the car's bottom hatch so that he can get a look at what's beneath it. He hears the same noises that Martha heard, but can't see anything because of all the fumes.
While the Doctor uses his sonic screwdriver on the car's system to try and transmit a pulse to get the ventilation working, someone starts cutting through the roof of Brannigan's car. The hatch falls open, and Novice Hame sticks her head through and asks where the Doctor is.
The Doctor manages to get the ventilation working, and he is able to see what is below, namely what appear appear to be giant crabs. The Doctor recognises them as being Macra, an enemy from the old series.
Meanwhile, Mile tries to escape the Macra. He manages to avoid them, but can't get clear. Martha suggests that they shut everything down, and perhaps the Macra won't be able to find them.
Milo does what she suggests, and it appears to have worked as the Macra leave them alone. However, Milo points out that without power they only have eight minutes of air left.
The Doctor explains to the car's driver that Macra used to be the scourge of the galaxy, feeding off gas and they built an empire using humans as slaves (presumably the Doctor stopped that when he encountered them). However, these Macra have devolved over billions of years into beasts who nevertheless are still hungry, and Martha is down there.
Before he can do anything else, Novice Hame enters the car. The Doctor takes a while to recognise her, but eventually does so, revealing her identity for the first time this episode.
Novice Hame tells the Doctor that after the human experimentation in New Earth, she sought forgiveness under “his” guidance, and if the Doctor comes with her then she might finally be able to redeem herself. The Doctor refuses to go, but Novice Hame grabs his hand and activates a teleport device.
The two of them arrive in a large room filled with skeletons. Novice Hame explains that those are the remains of the senate of New New York.
Twenty-four years ago, a new mood called Bliss appeared on the market, but it mutated into a virus which killed everybody in seven minutes. There was just enough time to seal off the undercity, but there wasn't enough power to get everyone out once the virus died out.
Novice Hame reveals that the Face of Boe was able to protect her, but with no one to maintain it, the city's power died. The Face of Boe wired himself into the mainframe, using his life force to keep things running. The Face of Boe then asks the Doctor to save everyone.
Meanwhile, Martha, Milo and Cheen are down to their last two minutes of air. Martha says that there's always the Doctor who might think of something.
Cheen asks about the Doctor, and Martha says that she followed him without even thinking about it, and if she were to die there, her family would never know. She doesn't even know that much about the Doctor himself.
Martha tells them that they have their faith and hymns and she has the Doctor. Milo takes note of this, and turns the power back on. The Macra begin to converge on the car, and Milo is forced to try to evade them again.
The Doctor notices that Martha's car is still registering, and is pleased by the news. He directs Novice Hame as the two of them try to restore power.
The Doctor flips a switch, and the power comes back on briefly but then dies again. As the Doctor tries to fix the problem, the Face of Boe says that he gives the Doctor his last, lets out a groan, and the power comes back on, this time for good.
The cars' drivers hear a loud mechanical sound, and wonder what it is. Brannigan looks out through the roof of his car, which has a hole in it thanks to Novice Hame, and sees the roof of the motorway open and sunlight come streaming in. The Doctor appears on the screens of all the cars and introduces himself, saying that Sally Calypso was just a hologram. He orders all the cars to drive upwards, and they do so, including the car containing Martha, who is very pleased that the Doctor came through.
As the Doctor looks out of the window at all the cars rising up into the New New York sky, the glass on the Face of Boe's tank begins to crack. By the time Martha has arrived at the senate, the Face of Boe is lying on the floor, free of the tank.
The Doctor introduces Martha to the Face of Boe, and Novice Hame says that he gave his life to save the city. Martha asks who the Face is, and the Doctor replies that he doesn't even know.
He goes on to say that legend says that the Face of Boe has lived for billions of years. Novice Hame adds that the legend says more, and despite the Doctor's protests, says that it is said that the Face of Boe will speak his final secret to a traveller.
That traveller is of course the Doctor, and the Face of Boe says that he is the last of his kind just as the Doctor is the last of his. Before he closes his eyes for the last time, the Face of Boe tells the Doctor that he needs to know one thing – “You are not alone”.
The Doctor and Martha return to Pharmacy Town to find it closed down, as per the Doctor's demands. Martha asks the Doctor what the Face of Boe meant, and he says that he doesn't know. Martha asks if it was that the Doctor has her, but the Doctor doesn't think so.
The Doctor says that they should get back to the TARDIS, but Martha picks up a chair and sits down on it. She tells the Doctor that she's not going anywhere until the Doctor talks to her properly, about things like being the last of his kind.
The Doctor is reluctant to say anything, but the strains of another hymn can be heard, and this seems to convince the Doctor to tell Martha the truth. He says that he lied to her because it meant that he could pretend that just for a bit his people were still alive.
He goes on to say that he's not just a Time Lord, he's the last of the Time Lords. There was a war, the last Great Time War in which the Time Lords fought against the Daleks and lost. As the Doctor reminisces about Gallifrey, the camera pans up to show the city of New New York, with the cars still ascending.
Quotes
Martha: You've brought me to the slums?
The Doctor: Much more interesting! It's all cocktails and glitter up there. This is the real city.
Martha: You'd enjoy anything.
The Doctor: That's me.
Brannigan: A fifty-foot head! Just think of it. Imagine picking that nose.
Alice: You know full well we're not sisters. We're married.
Brannigan: Oooh, stop that modern talk! I'm an old-fashioned cat.
Valerie: He's completely insane!
Brannigan: That, and a bit magnificent!
Martha: You haven't seen the things he can do. Honestly, just trust me, both of you. You've got your faith, you've got your songs and your hymns. And I've got the Doctor.