'Doctor Who' Series 12 Episode 4 Review: A wholesome story that lets Nikola Tesla's genius shine through
This article contains spoilers for 'Doctor Who' Series 12 Episode 4 'Nikola Tesla's Night of Terror'
'Doctor Who' Series 12 is back on track with an excellent Episode 4 that more than makes up for the downer that was Episode 3 'Orphan 55'. There's less moralizing and more tribute in this "Celebrity Historical" that features Goran Višnjić and Robert Glenister as Nikola Tesla and Thomas Edison respectively.
One minor inaccuracy aside, the episode was a truly wholesome watch, celebrating the genius of Tesla, a man who could stand on par with the Doctor herself. As per usual, Jodie Whittaker's Thirteenth Doctor bounces about and gushes with excitement at the opportunity to meet a great historical figure, even if he is one that the history books have mostly left behind.
There's also something of an immigration angle involved, as we see a crowd of protesters tell the Serbian-American inventor that he doesn't belong in America, only for Tesla to retort by stating that he is an American citizen. In a way, Tesla is cast as a talented and hardworking immigrant who was cheated and left penniless by the powerful businessman, Thomas Edison.
Throughout the episode, Edison is portrayed as a greedy old man but he's not completely demonized either. While his interactions with Tesla at the beginning of the episode are clearly full of spite, the two still end up working together to help the Doctor and by the end, we see that they have achieved some degree of mutual respect for one another.
There were some echoes of the highly popular Eleventh Doctor (Matt Smith) story 'Vincent and the Doctor', especially in the episode's final scene where the Doctor reveals that Tesla would die penniless but his ideas would change the world. Tesla's parting words, in particular, was some of the best writing we've had on the show since Chris Chibnall took over as showrunner.
"Let them talk," Tesla says of his detractors. "They’re of the present. I work for the future. And the future is mine."
"I’ve always been a huge fan of Doctor Who," Višnjić said, according to the show's website. "So when the offer to play one of my favorite people in history came, it made me so happy to be part of the show and it turned into this awesome, dream job!"
"I first appeared in Doctor Who in The Caves of Androzani at the tender age of 24 in 1984," said Glenister. "Thirty-five years later I got to be in it again at the not so tender age of nearly 60. How time flies!” Glenister wasn't the only guest star featured in the episode with a previous connection to the show. Anjli Mohindra, who played the main villain for the story, used to be one of the stars of the 'Doctor Who' spinoff show 'The Sarah Jane Adventures'.
“As a huge fan of the last series, it’s a bit of a dream come true getting to work opposite Jodie, Mandip, Tosin and of course after all these years, to work with Bradley again!" Mohindra reportedly said. "There’s something undeniably special about Jodie’s Doctor, and to be bringing some terror to the joint was rather fun indeed.”
Hopefully, we'll be getting more such episodes from the show this season as this is exactly what the fans want from a 'Doctor Who' episode.
'Doctor Who' Series 12 Episode 5 'Fugitive of the Judoon' will air on BBC America on January 26.
