Dune: Prophecy episode 4 review: Valya's plans are derailed when the Emperor unleashes his secret weapon

As the show passes the halfway point, episode four of Dune: Prophecy winds up the tension, as Valya begins her plan to get back into the Emperor's good books.

The episode opens with all of the Acolytes having what appears to be the same nightmare. When Tula hears about this, she decides to try and discover exactly what they were dreaming about, placing them in a trance so they can relive it, and draw what they see. The two main things in their dream were Shai Hulud and a pair of unidentified eyes staring out of the darkness, both of which hint at Desmond Hart, as he was "born again" after being swallowed by a sandworm and is also the unseen threat to the Sisterhood.

Meanwhile, Valya has a reunion with her family, which as you might expect is not a happy affair. Once again, she's not there to help them, but just to get something from them. Now that she's been removed from the palace, she needs a way to get close to the Emperor again. The best way she can do that is as a Truthsayer to a great house, which in this case happens to be House Harkonnen, as it's one she can easily manipulate, exploiting Hanno's desire for respect from the other nobles.

Using the Sisterhood, she spreads rumors around the great houses about Pruitt Richese's death, suggesting they need to request an investigation. None of them are willing to ask for it themselves, though, so instead they invite House Harkonnen onto the council, so they can call for an inquest in their place.

This is the main focus of the episode, once again sticking with the political manipulation and devious plans of Valya. Once again, she manages to pull herself out of a difficult situation through careful planning, and once again she proves to her family that she's not interested in what she can do for House Harkonnen, but only in what she can get from them. She's already refused them a Truthsayer four times, though having one would have been a great help, and would have elevated them in the eyes of the other houses.

Perhaps the most important development, however, is that Empress Natalya has decided to put Hart to good use. She sends him out to find the rebels planning to attack the palace and has him bring them before the council where he executes them in public, revealing the Emperor's secret weapon, meaning he can no longer just sit on the fence and wait for the storm to pass. Now, he's made an important move and needs to follow it up with equally strong actions.

This has also upset Valya's plans, as she knew about the rebel attack on the council, and was going to step in at the last moment to prevent it from happening, proving her loyalty to Corrino, and hopefully being welcomed back to the palace by him.

I know it's not really the focus of the show, but it wouldn't harm to include some more action in it. Sure, the political scheming is the main element, but it's not to the level of complexity that fully immerses you, meaning the show has a lot of flat points where not much is happening. It would also help it blend more with Denis Villeneuve's movies where action and fight scenes are a big part of the appeal.

Aside from that, though, this was possibly the strongest episode yet and has flipped the tables, where Valya was the strongest player, she's now been deposed, and replaced by the Emperor and Desmond Hart, which means there's still everything to play for in the final two episodes.

Don't miss new episodes of Dune: Prophecy Sundays on HBO.