Discuss your thoughts, theories, opinions, and predictions based on episode 4 here!
The dream sequence was ok-ish, but the “automatic drawing” sequence was awesome and I kind of want one of those drawings now.
Is it worth starting now? I read the first episodes reviews and was turned away
After Wheel of Time I was skeptical but it shows promise.
Yes, I think it is. Just give it some time to evolve, and try to be patient with it. It’s got the same issue as other complex sci-fi adaptations (e.g. Foundation), where they need to do some world-building and take a bit of time to clarify and highlight some characters and arcs before they can really go to town. But I have a feeling that starting with the next episode (#5) things will start getting a bit more consistent and interesting.
It has a similar feel to the movies, and a good cast. The dialogue is a bit stilted sometimes, which makes the actors look mediocre. But they are all good actors and are doing their best with the material. And there are some very interesting characters in there (e.g. Desmond Hart and Theodosia), among a number of ‘blah’ characters.
I haven’t read the Sisterhood novel (I read the Prelude trilogy and stopped there since I didn’t like Brian Herbert’s writing style and how much he and Anderson repeated plot exposition). But from what I understand, they’ve made some major changes to the plot arcs in the show. And they seem to be improvements.
I’ve been very impressed, on the whole. I’m still in awe that a big-budget Bene Gesserit show is being made at all, and I had very low expectations. I assumed it would be a cynical action show about sexy warrior ladies or whatever, but so far they’ve shown a competent understanding of why I love the sisterhood.
There’s definitely fan-service: shoehorned references to the movies, accelerated timelines and drama, and constant nudity that doesn’t lift the plot. But it’s a complex story that is fundamentally about the intricacies of the early Bene Gesserit, and I’m having a great time.
It’s not perfect and not for everyone, so it really depends on what you want from a Bene Gesserit show. My ideal show would never, ever be green lit, so I’m happy to accept this version.
the first episode was a bomb, but it has been getting better. i am intrigued by the plot and i think the season will finish strong.
I’ve been watching week to week, I thought the first episode was a good start, the second was lacking, the third was confusing but interesting and the forth was good.
Overall I’m still not sure. I’m probably going to finish the season at this point. It’s got potential, but I definitely have a hard time keeping track of what’s going on.
I’d say give it a shot, but also maybe wait and binge it all at once.
That ending… I was not expecting that! They laid down some hints about Theodosia being unique in previous episodes. But I didn’t see her panning out to be a face dancer!
I now have a lot of questions. Like: what does she really look like (I assume that amorphous being she briefly became while switching from Griffin to Theodosia?)? How the hell did the BG manage to recruit a face dancer? How is is Theodosia? Is Theodosia actually make (given that the BT women are actually axlotl tanks)? It were women still interactive, sentient entities in BT society at this point?
Also, it was nice to see an Ixian pop up in the story. I’m hoping they touch on more of the Ixian culture in this series.
Given the time the Tleilax were still organ farmers and using industrial scale cloning to supply.
They could have been doing all sorts out of sight. They would still be illicitly using machines, axolotl tanks were a surrogate for machines.
Great points.
Maybe this is before the Bene Tleilax emerges. That way she could still be a proto-face dancer and female. I’m just guessing though.
I thought it was a great episode. I really want to see what happened with Lila, I thought she was going to become a guild navigator the way that spice tank was set up.
Good point.
And I agree, I thought it was an excellent episode too. I’ve been reading critic’s complaining about the pacing and how there’s too much dialogue and not enough action. But that’s a very common complaint with shows that have loss of moving parts: the first season is usually slower going. And considering the density of plots and subplots in the Dune universe, it’s basically an inevitability. It’s all about laying down value for future seasons. How do professional critics not get that?!
Too much dialogue is pretty much the point of a space opera like Dune.
