I just listened to all the audio books in the series written by Frank, took me about three months. Chapterhouse was the one I was most looking forward to but ended up being my least favorite. It was almost hard to get through sometimes. The ending came out of nowhere for me & left me audibly questioning “wait, it’s over?!?!? Is that it?!?!” The series really started out with an unmatched BANG and went out so oddly, in my opinion…. Not saying it was bad, just didn’t resonate with it the way I did with the first four.
As a kid, read the series over and over, especially the first 3 books. I was in a club of fellow readers in grade school, where each of us adopted a book character as their own identity. Later in life, I met a woman who had 2 young boys (4 and 8), and remembered the stories so well I started NARRATING the first book (A Princess of Mars) to them as a bedtime story. I was very pleased that not only had I remembered it so accurately, but that they enjoyed hearing it.
I really enjoyed it for the philosophy but honestly not that much happens. A lot of conversations but action? No. I really believe Frank Herbert wrote this because people didn’t get the message of the first book. It’s the same thing with Fight Club. so many dudes in college with me thought that the message was that you should try to be like Tyler. No! He’s full of shit!
I think the idea of Bene Gesserit storing diseases in their bodies is a really cool concept that, while obviously improbable in the real world, feels really in line with the type of body manipulation and nerve control we see from the Bene Gesserit in Frank’s books. Similarly the Baron getting a sexually transmitted disease that causes him to become hideous is definitely within Herbert’s character since Herbert depicted the Baron as being a sexual deviant who is almost assassinated using a sex slave. So watching him get a disease from assaulting the mother is the type of poetic justice that I think Frank would’ve liked and thought was fitting for the character even if he didn’t come up with the idea. My problem is that the Baron getting the disease sexually, while a cool idea narratively, contradicts a line in the original book that says Raban would need suspensors as he got older like the Baron, suggesting the condition is genetic in some way.
This is one of my older videos. I didn’t know how to properly mix around this time. My new videos don’t have this problem. I might just delete all of these because I keep getting the same complaints. They’re valid.
I'm expecting Denis Villeneuve's take on this novel for the next movie will differ greatly from the book. Especially since there was no time jump between the dune part 1 and part 2 and the way things were left off. I really can't wait to see it though and I hope he doesn't shy away too much from some of the weirdness of the novel.
I agree with pretty much everything you said here. Though the introduction of the Nhogri didn’t bother me. Writing kept very loyal to the original characters. Totally could hear there voices in my head and picture their facial expressions whilst reading. The conflict within the new rebellion was very believable and a nice different take in the Star Wars universe.
I knew about Jessica being daughter of Baron Harkonen. However, I didn't know Bene Gesseritt Helen Mohiam was Jessica's mother. And she introduced a virus into Baron Harkonen body which made him into grotesque behemoth we know later in Dune Saga.
Yeah, I get what you’re saying. I don’t think it’s as bad as the C-3PO thing because it sets the stage for their relationship in the original Dune novel. Yueh is hired to help the Baron with his medical condition, which I think is a plausible way to begin telling the story of how he eventually ends up betraying the Atreides. It shows how dangerous it is to be even slightly associated with the Harkonnens.
This is one of my earlier videos and I didn’t know how to properly mix that stuff in at the time. Sorry! My new videos don’t have that problem. I think I’ll eventually do re do reviews of the Herbert books anyway with no distracting music in the background.
One other thing, Edgar Burrows made a slight error in one of his descriptions of mars. He wrote that no where on mars does the elevation exceed 4,000 feet. Keep in mind he wrote this in 1912. The discovery of Oylmpus Mons the tallest vulcano in the solar system happened in 1971. At almost 14 MILES tall it dwarfs everything around it. So I guess just imagine the look on Edgars face if you could tell him about it. Imagination is fun.
This book was written in 1916, and right around that time a story came out that claimed that on the WOI battlefield the spirits of the bowmen who fought at the battle of Agincourt had come back to help their British descendents and shoot at the Germans. It is called the story of the Angels of Mons. I'm pretty sure this is where ERB got it from, especially when archers and bows and arrows never appear anywhere else in Barsoom.
I grew up on this. Started reading during sinestro corps way and through brightest day and skipped war of the green nametags lanterns and picked back up during new 52 and then collected the whilething and one of my favorites alongside ultimate Spider-Man by Brian bendis and mark bagley
I've read every single Conan, Kull, Solomon Kane and Bran Mak Morn story that Robert E Howard wrote even the untitled and unfinished stories. Robert E Howard was a great and amazing writer he also did historicals and horror stories that are reakly good. Robert E Howard is one of the greatest. You should check out sll his work.
2 years later im back yeah i dojt cate this is a great season n finally we get to reflect on dexter n that hes a killer i think people misunderstood the show. They thiught they were watching sn anti hero but in reality ee erre watching the villain from his perspective thats how i seendexter slways had..blove your channel oh n do more fonsn robert e howard videos i love consn n Robert E Howard and i love tour channel keepnup the good work peace. From Australia.
Modern pulp culture starts with this book. Princess of Mars leads directly to Superman, Dungeons & Dragons, and Star Wars. Gary Gygax listed Burroughs as his most important influence when creating D&D, not Tolkien.
Yeah, he had a son named Victor with Kailea Vernius. I go back and forth on whether I like that or not. It does add some tragedy to Leto’s backstory I guess.
John Carter has been strip mined by everybody. Ray Bradbury claimed that Edgar Rice Burroughs was the most influential writer ever because of the many writers and scientists he inspired. Many of the first NASA astronauts were Burroughs fans as was Carl Sagan. And of course, one of the big reasons Dejah Thoris makes a great impression is that when we encounter her she is essentially naked. Her entrance simply wouldn't go over today and the Disney movie put A LOT more clothes on her than the books did.
In truth, his books made me the person I am now. Honest, gentlemanly, respectful of others. Though sometimes its a detriment in todays values. Even conan had some of these values.
All six novels form a symphony . Don't stop until you reach the end of Chapterhouse. One of FH's overall themes is to sensitize you to what you have been "thrown" into as a being in time...to come to awareness of our unconsciously internalized systems.
Odrade and the future path of the sisterhood with mankind's survival are my favorite aspect of all Dune books. I loved Heretics, Chapterhouse and Odrade.
I think Alia was a smart, though pretty big change. But I understand why a 2-3 years old Alia would have been too creepy. Thufir and Count Fenring were cut, meanwhile Shishakli got a pretty huge screentime and I think that wasn't the best decision. We already see enough Fremen POV, I think expanding the plotting, political plotlines would have been better.
I like what they did with Rabban, though he became way too coward and pathetic. He didn't pass as a brutal warrior who earned the nickname 'Beast'. However Bautista was great I didn't see Bautista but really Rabban from the novels. Feyd is less book accurate and I didn't like he was made an even more cruel oppressor than Rabban. The opposite was true, he was the more 'likeable' that's why the Baron planned to put him on Arrakis. I guess they made this plot line simplier just it doesn't make sense why Rabban was bad when Feyd was basically the same except he was 'smarter'. The Baron was ok. Finally we can see his plotting side, though he still could have got more screentime. But the Baron meeting with baby Jessica??? 😮 Wtf, it never happened. Not just this, I think the Bene Gesserit never would have reveal the child to the Baron anyways. Jessica had secret lineage, even in Dune not just in the prequels.
Totally forgot about that little scene with baby Jessica. I agree with you, I wanted a little more screen time for the Baron. Something I forgot to mention in my review: I liked what they did with Gurney overall. The baliset was a nice nod to the fans and I’m glad they actually let him get his revenge with Rabban. The only thing I didn’t like was his line to Rabban: “This is for my Duke… and my friends!” Really? Not your family that Rabban murdered?
And I hoped Rabban will last at least a minute, but not... Though this death was consistent with his movie portrayal. And I can even imagine Rabban as someone who is only confident when he beats/kills weaker people. And when he meets someone who is equal or superior to him he becomes insecure or even coward. Also, he didn't really have a sword fight /combat in the prequels either. But this Rabban wouldn't have lived 61 years. Or did he hide somewhere in his whole life?
The dialogue between Paul and Chani reminded me more of Barbie and Ken in that recent travesty of a film than a pair of faithful lovers. Quite irreverent to the source material I think. Like in the Barbie movie, all the men look like fools too. Stilgar is comic relief blinded by religion, Paul is being pushed around by Jessica and Chani, the emperor is hardly a shadow of his role in the book. Feyd is an impulsive bloodthirsty killer instead of a smart, scheming killer. etc. I don't understand why they feel the need to change so much, especially after how closely the first film followed to the book.
Exactly, Feyd 's behavior on Arrakis is basically' what if Glossu Rabban would be smarter' The Arena scene is more accurate where he was an egoist 'playboy'.
