Dune: Prophecy, Season One (2024)
Dune: Prophecy has an awful lot going for it, starting with a stellar cast that includes Emily Watson, Olivia Williams, and Mark Strong. Add some impeccable production and costume design (the Bene Gesserits’ flowing black robes are as impressive as any visual effect) and the series — which is set 10,000 years before the events of the Dune novel and movies — has all the makings for an epic space opera. So why does it feel so underwhelming? Chalk that up to the fact that the season is a mere six episodes long, which is simply not enough time to fully develop its various plots and conspiracies: the Bene Gesserits’ plans to control the Imperium; the power struggles within the enigmatic Sisterhood; and the machinations and rebellions inside the Imperial court. With only a half-dozen episodes, all of them feel underdeveloped and fail to generate the sort of epic-ness one expects from a Dune title. The series has been renewed for a second season, which hopefully means more episodes to flesh things out and/or more efficient storytelling now that the groundwork’s been laid.
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