Summary
Dune: Prophecy excels in conversation in Episode 2, delivering sharp, conspiratorial dialogue and building up several intriguing mysteries.
Let’s be clear – Episode 2 of Dune: Prophecy, “Two Wolves”, is very good. And it’s good in a number of interesting and specific ways that are reminders that, while this is set in the same universe as Denis Villeneuve’s movies, it’s a different type of story, with different aims and different means of achieving them. Unlike the movies, which worked best as big, operatic visual spectacles, Prophecy works best in conversation, through implication and mystery.
The premiere proved this too. The implications of that opening episode – namely, the simultaneous deaths of Mother Kasha and Pruwet Richese, both by internal immolation, yet many lightyears apart – are of primary concern in “Two Wolves”, with competing factions trying to get to the bottom of how it happened, why, and whether the man behind it can be redeployed to serve different ends.
Desmond Hart Takes Responsibility
It was obvious to viewers that Desmond Hart was responsible for telepathically cooking Kasha and Pruwet, and he clearly isn’t interested in keeping it much of a secret. Early in this episode, he confesses to Emperor Javicco, claiming that he had treated Javicco’s own words as an instruction to kill the boy – Mark Strong’s panicked reaction to this is very funny – and is perfectly happy to do it again if necessary.
While he deliberates on what to do next, Javicco has Desmond thrown in a suspension cell. This is a very delicate political situation, after all – the Imperium’s capital, Salusa Secundus, is awash with gossip about the event, and the semi-official line that he might have been killed by his Thinking Machine lizard isn’t sitting well with his father, Duke Ferdinand Richese. It would be a terrible thing if word of Hart’s involvement was to get out since Ferdinand already suspects the assassination was an effort to destabilize House Richese.
Naturally, Hart’s involvement gets out almost immediately thanks to Javvico’s son Constantine, who is having it away with Ferdinand’s daughter, Lady Shannon, and can’t keep his pillow talk to himself. Just as it all seems likely to erupt into chaos, Mother Superior Valya arrives without warning to smooth things over. But she does, of course, have her own agenda.
Like Natalya, who is fascinated by Hart’s survival after being swallowed by a sandworm on Arrakis, Valya knows that Hart is vitally important – but she doesn’t yet know how.
Prophets, Sandworms, Uprisings, and Other Matters
Travis Fimmel in Dune: Prophecy | Image via HBO
Desmond’s claims that he has been granted an all-seeing eye by Shai-Hulud should sound like the rantings of a madman, but a lot of people are pretty pious in the Duniverse and the evidence backing Desmond’s claims creates the potential that he may really be a superpowered prophet enacting supernatural justice.
Desmond himself believes this, anyway. When Valya interrogates him, he openly admits to murdering Pruwet and Kasha and claims to be able to see the “trail of blood” behind Valya. In other words, he knows and isn’t shy about revealing that the Bene Gesserit – sorry, the Sisterhood – are manipulating the Imperium for their own ends, so Valya is quick to point out to Javicco and Natalya, who’re watching, that while Desmond believes his claims, they’re still lies.
The problem for Valya here is that House Corrino is likely to turn towards Hart ahead of the Sisterhood; the idea of him being Shai-Hulud’s prophet is too strong to ignore. The solution for this is to offer the Emperor Keiran Atreides, his Swordmaster who is responsible for the attack on Desmond’s regiment on Arrakis and is planning a revolt on Salusa Secundus. Through a Fremen double agent, Mikaela, it’s decided to sacrifice the rebellion cell to win back the trust of House Corrino.
Desmond Takes The Advantage
Unfortunately for Valya, she’s too late. By the time she makes it to Emperor Javicco’s office with the intention of selling our Keiran, Desmond is already there. Earlier, Natalya had freed him and let him cook the Duke almost to death to dissuade him of the notion of recalling his fleet and seizing Arrakis. Desmond stops only at the Emperor’s behest – he’s his man now, though presumably not for good.
But with Hart allied to House Corrino, the services of the Sisterhood are no longer required, and Desmond takes great pleasure in telling Valya this. He intends to wipe out her order for the good of the Imperium, and Valya’s overconfidence gives way to a little touch of fear when she realizes that Desmond is immune to the commands of the Voice.
I loved this scene. Travis Fimmel is so good at playing nutters, which helps, but Emily Watson sells the idea of Valya’s horrifying realization with tremendous skill. Just two episodes into this show, we already have a full idea of the Sisterhood’s greatest fear – it isn’t not being heard, but being heard and ignored. Influence can only be exerted through trust and belief. These are the things that Desmond is attacking.
Chloe Lea and Olivia Williams in Dune: Prophecy | Image via HBO
Lila’s Choice
If Dune: Prophecy Episode 2 is a tale of two halves, and everything detailed above constitutes one of them, the other belongs to Sister Lila, one of the Sisterhood’s acolytes who is given a borderline impossible task while Valya is off gallivanting on Salusa Secundus.
Before she leaves, Valya instructs Reverend Mother Tula to convince Lila to undergo the Agony, a ritual designed to unlock her genetic memories that is just as likely to kill her as it is to work. Lila’s genetic memories are important since she’s the great-great-granddaughter of Mother Raquella.
There’s a surprising amount of depth to this decision because it gets right to the fundamental principles of the Sisterhood. Is Lila being exploited, or does she have a responsibility to a greater purpose? Does she truly believe in sacrifice, or is she being manipulated? Given the idea of Lila potentially being able to speak with her late mother who died in childbirth, I’m leaning towards the latter.
It ultimately doesn’t matter much anyway since the plan completely backfires. Lila undergoes the Agony, guided by Tula, but after hearing a kind of prophecy from Raquella, Lila presses on in the hopes of reuniting with her mother. It’s her grandmother, Mother Dorotea, who possesses her instead, and since Dorotea was killed by Valya, she isn’t in the best of moods with Tula. To prove a point, Dorotea steals “the hope” of the Sisterhood, and Lila drops dead. Oops.
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