Dorotea's Dune: Prophecy Return Explained – How She Takes Over Lila & What It Means For The Bene Gesserit

Includes SPOILERS for Dune: Prophecy season 1

Dune: Prophecy’s season 1 finale sees Dorotea return and take over the Sisterhood in a shocking turn of events. Set 10,000 years earlier on Dune’s timeline than the movies directed by Denis Villeneuve, the HBO prequel show examines a much earlier stage of the Bene Gesserit. The powers audiences know them by are still beginning to take shape, and they’ve only recently begun the genetic breeding plan that would eventually lead to Paul Atreides several centuries later. Much of that was put into effect by Mother Superior Raquella Berto-Anirul before Valya Harkonnen took over.

Emily Watson and Jessica Barden play Valya Harkonnen at different stages of her life in the Dune: Prophecy cast. In the show’s first episode, viewers saw how the younger Valya came into power over the Sisterhood, using the Voice to kill Dorotea. Valya took over the organization by bloodshed, believing herself to be Raquella’s chosen heir. This path of bloodshed finally comes back to haunt her in Dune: Prophecy’s season 1 ending, when Dorotea returns from the dead to stage a mutiny against those who killed her and her supporters.

Dorotea Uses Lila To Return In Dune: Prophecy Episode 6

Dorotea Is Lila’s Ancestor

Dune: Prophecy episode 2 saw Tula Harkonnen utilizing Sister Lila for a dangerous procedure using the Rossak poison. Her plan was for Lila to be able to access her genetic memory so the Sisterhood could receive help from Mother Superior Raquella, Lila’s great-grandmother. In the Dune universe, genetic memory is a concept that suggests that memories become imprinted on an individual’s cells and, therefore, also on the cells of their descendants, allowing one to access their ancestor’s memories through a narcotic.

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The procedure goes awry at first when Sister Lila accesses not only Raquella but also the angered Dorotea, who’s, of course, still furious with Valya Harkonnen and Tula by proxy about being killed. Lila nearly dies from the process, causing outcries from around the Sisterhood about their friend and colleague’s death. In an attempt to save her, Tula takes Lila into a hidden chamber where she begins her recovery using the Spice Melange and the outlawed Thinking Machine technology they use for their genetic archives.

It’s to be seen how long Dorotea will have in the body or if she’ll find a way to maintain her presence, but she’s done damage already.

In Dune: Prophecy episode 5, Lila returns through Raquella, allowing Tula and Sister Jen to examine Sister Kasha’s body, discovering the new form of the Omnius Plague. However, in episode 6, Dorotea manages to take hold of Lila’s body. Raquella didn’t seem to know how long she’d have in control of Lila’s thoughts, but Dorotea took over her young descendant’s body long enough to stage a mutiny against Valya Harkonnen. It’s to be seen how long Dorotea will have in the body or if she’ll find a way to maintain her presence, but she’s done damage already.

What Dorotea Reveals About The Sisterhood When Valya Took Over

Dorotea Shows Them The Sisters Valya Killed

Mother Dorotea (Camilla Beeput) dies after stabbing herself in the neck with a dagger in Dune: Prophecy Season 1 Ep 1
Image via Max

In order to win the Sisterhood over to her side and pin them against Valya Harkonnen, she shows them proof of the blood on Valya’s hands. The young members of the Sisterhood are already weary of Valya at this point due to the horrible nightmares they’ve been experiencing, and Sister Avila makes a point in episode 5 to suggest that some of the students are trying to leave and return home. Tula ignores this detail, as she’s too focused on her mission. This allows Dorotea, shocking the sisters by using their friend Lila’s face, to win them over.

An earlier flashback scene in the episode saw Valya, Tula, Francesca, and Kasha kill all of Dorotea’s followers using the Voice. When Valya took over the organization, she did so by murdering nearly half of the sisters who had been unified under Mother Superior Raquella. She then buried them in a hole in the room where she had murdered Dorotea. Dorotea somehow knows about this, and she reveals the carnage to the Sisterhood. Sister Avila, who was present on that day and has also grown dissatisfied with the Harkonnen sisters, confirms it to be true.

Why So Many Sisters Took Their Own Lives Following Dorotea’s Death

Valya Gave Them A Deadly Ultimatum

Young Valya Harkonnen (Jessica Barden) using the Voice to get Dorotea to stick a dagger in her own throat in Dune: Prophecy Season 1 Ep 1
Image via Max

A brutal scene following Dorotea’s death sees several members of the Sisterhood taking their own lives in response to Valya Harkonnen’s request. With her and her friends using the Voice, Valya commands these sisters to decide at that moment between loyally serving her or slicing their necks with their blades. Forced to pick one of the options, those who don’t believe themselves capable of truly and loyally following Valya take their own lives. While it may have been their choice, the use of the Voice essentially makes this murder.

Desmond Hart (Travis Fimmel) suffering from pain when using his powers in Dune: Prophecy Season 1 Ep 4

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Sister Avila is the only sister outside of their circle who accepts Valya on that day. However, there are likely other sisters who were already loyal to Valya who also stayed alive from this era. The ones who were given the ultimatum were specifically the sisters loyal to Dorotea, and Valya wanted to eliminate them early rather than be forced to deal with potential uprisings along the way. Having access to the Voice gives her a clear advantage over them, and they’re killed with ease.

What The Truth About The Sisterhood’s History Means For The Future Of The Bene Gesserit

The Acolytes in the meditation test to embrace Sisterhood above all in Dune: Prophecy Season 1 Ep 3

The Sisterhood is essentially in shambles in Dune: Prophecy season 1’s ending. Valya Harkonnen is still technically Mother Superior, and she’s carrying out her plans by protecting Princess Ynez and looking to track down the creator behind Desmond Hart. The problem for Valya now is that she’s almost entirely out of supporters. Francesca and Kasha are dead, Tula is imprisoned, and the Imperium is under the control of Natalya and Desmond Hart, both of whom despise her. On Wallach IX, Dorotea will be able to maintain power for as long as she can access Lila’s body.

Dune: Prophecy season 1 saw Valya’s ambition and lack of humanity constantly cause people to be wary of her, and now, the bond between the young members of the Sisterhood has overtaken her. Younger sisters like Jen and Emeline trust Lila’s face and words more than they do Valya, and they don’t want to be part of something with their friends are used and eventually die for nothing. Dune: Prophecy season 2 will see the Harkonnen sisters away from Wallach IX for some time, and they’ll have to return with new strength to win back the organization.