Welcome back to the blog readers. You should know by now that I am a big fan of the Dune films: Dune (2021) and Part Two (2024). When I heard of this show, I got excited to see how the lore would be expanded upon. Last week's premiere was very solid and provided for some great political intrigue. Would we continue to get good storytelling with this episode, titled "Two Wolves," written by Elizabeth Padden and Kor Adana, and directed by John Cameron? Stick around to find out.
NOTE: I will be using spoilers for my thoughts, so DO NOT read ahead if you have not seen the episode.
Like I said in the introduction, last week's premiere episode set us up for some interesting stances and political machinations, and I was curious to see more about what the Desmond Hart character was all about. I also have had this inate fear that this series would not be a good tie-in to the Dune films; but after seeing this episode, I have to say that I am surprised at the quality of this episode. I enjoyed the performance this week of Emily Watson this week, and there is more political scheming and a twist ending that honestly left me speechless (for more reasons than one).
This week saw a masterful performance from Emily Watson as Valya Harkonnen. I was close to giving her a paragraph for last week's episode because she was amazing in that episode as well, but the ending of last week's premiere solidified it for Travis Fimmel for me. In this episode, we see a multi-layered performance from Watson as she fully embraces this maternal but also very powerful character. In this episode, she wields such control over the character and shows why she is a force to be reckoned with. She knows how to stay calm when her character is in a tough situation, and she is infectious when she is wielding her cunning smarts. Also, I think her scenes with Travis Fimmel are probably the best of the episode.
This week's story is definitely one that will get a lot of us talking, especially since we are already at the one-third mark of this series (it only has six episodes). We start on Wallach IX with Tula (Valya's sister) performing the autopsy of the recently deceased Kasha, and her and Valya decide to use a process known as the Agony on Raquella's great-great-granddaughter Lila to unlock her "Other Memory" and learn more about the founder of the Sisterhood's prophecy. Tula does not believe Lila is ready for the Agony, but Valya confides in her sister that with the proper guidance she will be able to pass this test. During the test, Lila learns of a "revenant" and visualizes Valya killing her grandmother Dorotea, before the spirit of Dorotea takes over Lila and seemingly kills her, much to the shock of Tula and the rest of the trainees of the Sisterhood. I definitely think that bringing in these supernatural elements is going to lead to some crazy shit going forward, and I personally do not know who will come out of this show alive.
Meanwhile, Valya decides to personally travel to Salusa Secundus to speak with emperor Javicco Corrino about the murders of Pruwet Richese and Kasha. Pruwet's father Ferdinand is pissed at Javicco regarding the mysterious circumstances following the death of his son, and the emperor's refusal to comment on the matter. Desmond confesses to the murder of Pruwet and tries to say Javicco wanted the boy dead after their rooftop conversation; and Javicco responds by having him imprisoned in a suspension chamber. When Valya arrives, she convinces the emperor to personally interrogate Desmond and learn why he did what he did. In this interrogation, Desmond also confesses to the murder of Kasha because she "could not see" why he is serving the Imperium, and also claims he was devoured by a sandworm which gave him his powers. Ferdinand threatens to back out of their arms deal with the emperor and Javicco uses Desmond to threaten Ferdinand and keep him silent. Valya decides to try to get Desmond to commit suicide using the Voice, but he proves immune to this practice, leading a horrified Valya to retreat. I love everything that is going on on Salusa Secundus and I really feel the political machinations are building to a masterful and grand climax.
Other plot lines that happen in this episode involve:
Princess Ynez's brother Constantine has sex with Pruwet's sister Shannon and reveals Desmond's part in her brother's murder.
Valya brings the news of Pruwet's death to Ynez, saddening her.
Javicco's swordsman Keiran Atreides is revealed to be an anti-Imperial insurgent and sells the plans to the layout of the emperor's castle to a black market salesman. Ynez tells Keiran that rebels captured her and her brother.
Valya confides in her spy Mikaela, who reveals Keiran's true allegiance, that they will betray their own rebels it secretly supported on Arrakis.
Dune: Prophecy is starting to get pretty good with great performances and a story heading up, and I cannot wait to see what we have in store for the final two-thirds of this series. Thank you all for reading, and I will see you for the next post.
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