Doctor Who: Series 12, Episode 4 – “Nikola Tesla’s Night of Terror” (2020)

I really enjoyed this one. On the whole, the Chibnall era has succeeded with historicals so far, and this episode is no exception. Great slice of history, engaging guest characters, and plenty of excellent moments for our heroes!

The Doctor and co. are following a strange energy signature, and it just so happens to lead them to one Nikola Tesla. The energy is coming, not from something he’s working on, but on an alien device he’s discovered, and he and team TARDIS aren’t the only ones who are interested in it. Some truly unpleasant creatures are also on its trail, and it’s up to our heroes and Tesla (along with some pinch-hitting from Thomas Edison) to stop them.

Nina Metivier hasn’t written for Who before, but she makes a fine debut with this episode. Everything comes together so nicely. There are some great themes that tie together in different ways, we get subtle but important references to past developments this season, and the one-shot characters are just wonderful. Goran Visnjic does a really great job as Tesla, and he fits so well into the spirit of the episode. The rivalry between Tesla and Edison is well-done, and I really like how, while they (and Tesla’s associate Dorothy) are all interesting on their own, they’re also used to offer us insight into the Doctor, Yaz, Ryan, and Graham. Each of them connects with one of the guest characters in different ways in meaningful scenes.

The aliens of the week are a little lackluster in execution, but the idea of them is really neat, especially how they tie in with some of the Tesla-Edison stuff. However, they do offer some good chances for our heroes to oppose them. The Doctor is of course in full improvisational-inventing-mode here, Yaz holds her own in a scene of great danger, and although Ryan and Graham don’t have quite as much to contribute, they still get at least a few scenes that highlight them in some way. Also, not for nothing, all the companions are in Gilded-Age period dress in this episode, and they look fantastic!

Finally, I have to say: the Skithra Queen here is played by none other than Anjli Mohindra, who played Rani on The Sarah Jane Adventures! I knew that she was guest-starring sometime this season (and that she wouldn’t be playing Rani, sadly,) but I had no idea it was going to be this one. Didn’t recognize her at all, not until I saw her name attached to this episode and realized it was the only option for who she was playing. Talk about a far cry from Rani!