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HBO Prequel Series ‘Dune: Prophecy’ Capably Tailors the Epic Franchise to Television: TV Review
HBO prequel series 'Dune: Prophecy' capably tailors the epic franchise to television.
Working loosely from “Sisterhood of Dune,” a 2012 novel co-written by Herbert’s son Brian, “Prophecy” takes place only a couple generations after the Butlerian Jihad, a massive war that ended the use of so-called “thinking machines” — though, like Villeneuve, “Prophecy” avoids the Herberts’ specific terminology in favor of the more generic “war.” Valya Harkonnen (Emily Watson as an adult, Jessica Barden as a teenager) is the order’s second-ever Reverend Mother, and her efforts to secure its future contain the same lessons in the arrogance of social engineering as Paul’s eventual rise. Valya’s predecessor, founder Mother Raquella (Cathy Tyson), praises her followers who “push the boundaries of what it means to be human.” For new fans drawn in by the movies, “Prophecy” emphasizes an aspect of “Dune” lore that could get lost in the spectacle: in excising computers, this society has oriented itself around enhancing one’s natural abilities. The primary “Dune” plot finds many echoes throughout “Prophecy.” Like Paul ingesting the Water of Life, some acolytes at the Bene Gesserit’s training academy undergo The Agony, a rite in which a sister drinks poison to unlock her ancestral memory.
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