Pod Emperor of Dune

At long last, we get out act together and record our thoughts on the whole main Dune series, discussing the overarching plot, comparing our respective rankings, and considering how the series fits into the greater sci-fi canon. We hope to be back for future Dune content and, just maybe, some other nerdy podcasts about sci-fi. In the meantime, thank you for listening and watch out for sandworms!

In this episode, we take a look back at all of Sandworms of Dune, discussing our thoughts on the this novel, its plots, and its characters, on its own merits, as the second half of the non-Frank-Herbert mainline Dune lineup, and as the conclusion to the Dune series as a whole.

In this episode, we take a look at the final third or so of Sandworms of Dune, in which the thinking machines orchestrate a duel between competing Paul gholas only for Duncan to turn out to be the Kwisatz Haderach they were looking for, the Oracle of Time shows up and finds both saving the human fleet and destroying Omnius to be barely an inconvenience, the Face Dancers are summarily dispatched before they can actually execute any of their plan to turn on the machines, and we see the final state of the Dune universe - complete with a surprising number of happy endings for characters from throughout the series.

In this episode, we take a look at the second third or so of Sandworms of Dune, in which the Bene Gesserit of the Ithaca are met with a hostile reception on the world of Qelso, Edrik brings a dying Tylwyth to Rakis before falling prey to a fatal ambush at the hands of the Face Dancers, Murbella desperately works to prepare for the machine invasion in the face of plague and betrayal and the loss of another daughter, and the Face Dancer saboteurs aboard the Ithaca are finally revealed…but not before succeeding in leading the no-ship directly into the hands of the thinking machines.

In this episode, we take a look at the first third or so of Sandworms of Dune, in which the Ithaca crew traumatically awakens several gholas while the ship is attacked by one or more elusive saboteurs, the Baron and Paolo are summoned to Synchrony as the machine fleet makes its bizarrely slow way to destroy humanity, and Khrone continues to manipulate the factions of the Old Empire to surreptitiously undermine Murbella's attempts to mount a resistance to the oncoming danger, and tragic consequences ensue when Edrik and Tylwyth use the oceans of Buzzell as a testing ground for genetically-engineered sand…er, seaworms.

In this episode, we take a look at the final third of Hunters of Dune, in which several members of the Ithaca crew narrowly escape a deadly trap on the planet of the Handlers, Murbella finally defeats the rogue Honored Matres after they strike a devastating blow against her nascent fleet at Richese, Uxtal achieves some success in his Tylwyth ghola project but shortly thereafter receives some karmic comeuppance, and a war fleet is launched by Marty and Daniel…aka Erasmus and Omnius, aka the exact same thinking machines who were apparently at the center of the Butlerian Jihad, somehow. We also discuss the book as a whole, including our feelings on the novel in relation to the previous Dune entries, the reliance on characters and plot elements introduced in various intervening prequels, and our likes and dislikes of the story so far before the story is tied up in Sandworms of Dune.

In this episode, we take a look at the second third or so of Hunter of Dune, in which Murbella continues conquering the remaining Honored Matres in her attempts to unify the old Empire before the Outside Enemy attacks, Uxtal continues making gholas to make himself useful to both the Face Dancers and the Honored Matres, Khrone chafes under the watchful eyes of emissaries from Marty and Daniel while secretly working for his own purposes, and discord continues on the no-ship regarding their goals and gholas - one of which appears to have mystical sandworm abilities, for…reasons.

In this episode, we (finally) take a look at the first third or so of Hunters of Dune, in which the Chapterhouse escapees jump dimensions and start up a ghola factory, Murbella attempts to wrangle her combined New Sisterhood to be united against the coming enemy, the Scattering Face Dancers are revealed to have their own plans and motivations, and one of the last surviving Tleilaxu is pressed into service churning out even more gholas - including a most unwelcome face from the past.

In this episode, we take a look back at all of Chapterhouse: Dune, discussing our thoughts on the characters, plotlines, and how we thought about this novel in relation to the previous entries in the Dune saga, as we look ahead to examining the controversial posthumous conclusion to the series in Hunters and Sandworms of Dune.

In this episode, we take a look at chapters forty-six through forty-eight of Chapterhouse: Dune, in which Sheeana recruits some other dissatisfied Reverend Mothers to the plan to escape from Chapterhouse by stealing the no-ship, Duncan makes a desperate play to keep the no-ship out of the hands of the mysterious old couple and their net, new Reverend Mother Superior slash Great Honored Matre Murbella confers with Odrade about the future now that Sheeana and Duncan have abandoned her and the Order, and we get a fascinating glimpse into the perspective of the mysterious and powerful Marty and Daniel…who appear, with no one else observing them, to just be puttering about gardening, revealing clues about their possible Face Dancer origins through their conversation.