65: The Golden Path - Children of Dune (2003)

DuneWatch continues as Glenn & Scott review the 2003 miniseries Frank Herbert’s Children of Dune, adapting the novels Dune Messiah and, well, Children of Dune. How well does this miniseries translate the story of the books to a television audience? What changes worked, and which didn’t? Is enjoyment of an adaptation helped or hindered by how well you remember the source material? What is the legal status of gholas? Who was this miniseries’ Celebrity Stunt Casting Who Was Featured In All Of The Ads? And is it even possible to explain the world of Dune without the benefit of three-page asides in the middle of scenes? Scott laments how the miniseries handled iconic lines from the end of each book, but then he wins the Obscure References Game when Glenn forgets the difference between Dukat and Dukhat. Finally they discuss roles that were recast from the first miniseries and evaluate all of this show’s acting performances, including an unknown newcomer named James McAvoy, who is absolutely this miniseries’ Actor Placed Front And Center On The Cover Of Every Recent Video Release.

Never fear, listeners, the saga of DuneWatch is far from over. Come back next month for part one of our DuneListen, when we begin our review of these adaptations’ scores. We promise at least one of them is good!

You can support the show on Patreon at https://www.patreon.com/nontoxicfanboys. On the most recent patron-exclusive show, Glenn & Scott discuss the modern landscape of media consumption, the difficulties of presenting science information on television, and the folly of war.

Every Monday night, Glenn & Scott stream video games live on https://www.twitch.tv/nontoxicfanboys. Come hang out with us in the chat, or catch the archive later on our Youtube channel if you just want to watch us play games badly.

The theme music used in this podcast is Discovery by Alexander Nakarada
Link: https://filmmusic.io/song/5756-discovery
License: https://filmmusic.io/standard-license