The Book Rules. Whenever you are dealing with Book vs. Movie vs TV series, the Book will always win, especially when you are trying to capture a series that will probably be one of the top three favoured series of Fantasy/SciFi literature fandom. Movies and TV Series just can't capture all the threads of plot, the characters that readers know like family and the vivid scenes that have been uniquely painted in each readers imaination. So, how did this series do, for me? My first attempt to watch the series failed, due to a number of first impressions: the visual representation of space and the panorama of Arrakis from the Duke's window felt like the low budget necessities of a TV series from the 50s; WIlliam Hurt's performance of the Duke was wooden and stiff (Can the man actually act?); the Baron was more slug than viper; Alec Newman's Paul was not noble or strong but was petulant and weak; the Reverend Mother of the Bene Gesserite was a cardboard villian from a bad melodrama, and her reverberating voice and her trial of Paul made little sense. In my second attempt to watch, I pushed passed the disappointing first half of the first episode and was finally captured by the remnants of Herbert story: the character of Lady Jessica, the Fremen and the political machinations of the houses; the counterbalance of Chani's devotion and Princess Irulan's intelligence; and, of course, the self discovery of Maud'Dib. I also was captivated by the beautiful marble of the Duke's palace, the steel lines of the Baron's and the Versailles like elegance of the Emperor's. So, my rating for the series begins with a 4 (poor) for the first half of the first episode, which grew to a 7 (good) out of 10 for the last two and a half episodes (with one caveat - the voice over explaination of the future of Princess Irulan given at the end was lazy writing and a cheat resolve.) My advice: read the Books! [Fantasy SciFi Drama]