The first two Dunes novels, which are currently two thirds of the way have been adapted into a film trilogy, they are often seen as a tragic condemnation of hero worship. Paul Atreides (played by Timothée Chalamet in the last films) starts off likeable, but by the time he becomes Emperor of the Universe, the reader/viewer already has to wonder if he's fit for the job. This whole jihad/holy war thing he's doing sure gives us the creeps, especially in "Dina: Messiah" when Book Paul casually mentions how his regime has killed far more people than Hitler ever did. I believe killing sixty billion people is wrong, and you can quote me on that.

But the Dinah series wouldn't be nearly as interesting if Paul were a straight-up bad guy, so the usual claim that Dinah is a straightforward critique of the savior narrative misses the mark. I would argue that the series is more a reflection on the saviors than a condemnation of them. This is most clear with how House Harkonnen (the main villains of the first book) are truly terrifying, and Paul is doing the galaxy a favor by taking them down. The Harkonnens are portrayed not only as evil, but truly grotesque; their mere existence is depressing, to the point that Dune: Part II it shows their planet as completely colorless.

When Baron Vladimir Harkonnen (Stellan Skarsgård) is killed by Alya in the book and by Paul in the movies, it's one of the few clear moments where the audience is allowed to cheer for the Atreides siblings without any moral complications. When Paul kills his cousin Fade-Rauta Harkonen (Austin Butler) in that final duel, it's hard to complain and; Fade-Routha was many things, but warm and fuzzy he was not. Although Paul and the rest of House Atreides didn't seem to bother killing any of the other Harkonnen, those two major deaths seemed to end the Harkonnen as major players in the series. They are not seen in the flesh in Dinah: Messiah, and when we do hear about them, the implication is that the family has learned to behave in Atreides' new regime in the universe.

There is one complication, however, which was revealed when Jessica went through the spice ritual and drank the Water of Life: Baron Harkonnen is an inescapable part of the Atreidi bloodline.

Jessica is a member of the Bene Gesserit, a mysterious, powerful sisterhood founded thousands of years before the story begins. There's a lot going on with these Bene Gesserit witches, but the most important thing to know is that they've been around for generations trying to breed the Kwisatz Haderachsomeone with the right genetic combination to make him the most powerful person in the universe.

Some of those genes, they must have believed, should have come from the Harkonnen family, so Jessica's mother Bene Gesserit (left unnamed in the main series) seduced the baron and used his seed to give birth to Jessica. In standard Bene Gesserit protocol, Jessica's parentage was hidden from all but the most senior members of Bene Gesserit.

In hindsight we should have known that Jessica's father was the baron; whenever a character's origin is unknown to them at the beginning of the story, it's a pretty good sign that we're in for some big dramatic reveal. Jessica learning that her father is the villain of the story is a lot like Luke Skywalker realizing his father's Darth Vader, except worse because, in the Dune universe, a person's consciousness can live on in the minds of their offspring . Sure, Star Wars has its own force ghosts, but the ego-memories in Dune can do far more damage. So even though Baron Harkonnen has been dead for twelve years since Dinah: Messiah, he can still cause trouble through Jessica's daughter, Alia...

The idea of ​​having access to the memories and consciousness of all your ancestors is fascinating and something that Frank Herbert was more than happy to explore throughout Children of Dune (book 3) and The God Emperor (book 4). He dives into the awkwardness inherent in having your child know about every private moment you've ever experienced. He also establishes that having the wisdom of your deceased ancestors is beneficial to a leader, but there is also the risk of letting one of your evil ancestors take the wheel. That's exactly what happens to poor Alia, who takes a little spice and accidentally gives the baron too much mind control.

Although Aliya tries to resist the baron, the boy just won't leave her brain. In Children of Dune she is almost completely under his spell after he turns into a vengeful tyrant towards the rest of her family. It's a tragic fate for Aaliyah, who was always suspected of being an "Abomination" due to the bizarre circumstances of her birth, and who finally became one in recent years. More ironic about Alia is how she's the one who killed the baron (at least in the books). Baron's consciousness is what kills her, it feels like the Baron is getting his posthumous revenge. The Atreides may have rejected the Harkonnens in their real world, but in their minds the Harkonnens are still out there to wreak havoc.

After Aliya's arc in Children of Dune, the Baron still resides in her nephew Leto the Second, but luckily Leto has figured out how to stay in charge of his own mind. Leto II is helped by being born years after the Baron's death. Harkonnen's subtle presence in their consciousness stung Jessica, Paul, and Alia because they all had real-life experiences with the boy, but as time went on, the further back in the Atreides' minds his consciousness seemed to live. Having a bad man as your father is a big deal; A bad guy is just one of the eight great-grandparents, it's easier to fight with. The Harkonnens may have continued to plague the Atreides for years after the Baron's death, but thankfully they don't seem to be doing much damage after Alia. As it turns out, Leto II is capable of dealing more than enough damage on his own.