Leto II mentioned that Paul also saw the Golden Path, but was too weak to implement it and instead went into the desert as the Preacher. It wasn't mentioned that worm transformation was required for the Golden Path to succeed, but it gave Leto longevity to oversee it.

What I'm trying to say is that Paul likely thought about transforming into the worm.

It’s really getting to me how many people are memeing Paul turning into a worm.

It feels like it’s a fact that was misinterpreted from one of those “7 CRAZY Things that Happen in the DUNE Novels - You’ll never believe number 6!” Videos. But because they haven’t read the books, they assume it must be Paul that worms out because he’s the Main Character, right?

Depends, can you see the future?

Get Duncaned on!

It was weird when the sand puppies merged into the worm. It was less weird when thousands of years later they were like… nah, we out.

“Yeah you’re right”

shaves it off, dies of dehydration two hours later

I think the last coming back was a Brian Herbert thing because Frank spent too much time beating his children and not enough telling them that Paul is actually a bad guy.

A blank template for your duneposting needs (I pulled it from a trailer so the frames don't quite match, but image quality is better)

Messiah is good

Children is decent but spotty

God Emperor is essentially a fever dream. I was like WTF while reading it but I love how off the rails it went.

The last couple are kind of meandering and forgettable.

The immediate prequels (house books) are a fun read and plotted well, but his kid isn't as good of a writer as poppa Herbert

The legends books are garbage

The last 2 books that tie up the original series (hunters and sandworms) are not good and are infuriating in that elements from the legends books are reintroduced as deus ex machina bullshit. I saw the twist coming halfway through the last book.

I never read any of the other gap filler books that have been written in that universe. It got tiresome

Everything up until God Emperor is worthwhile with the prequels being a fun appetizer. Read the synopses of the others if you need to know what happens

As with most sci-fi the author gets loopier in the later books. That being said:

• Dune: masterpiece of philosophy, one of the best books ever put to print
• Dune Messiah: a worthy sequel and must read after the first book; completes Paul's arc
• Children of Dune: more plot driven than the first, but still thematically rich and entertaining.
• God Emperor of Dune: the most divisive of the books: you love it or you hate it. I am in the love it camp, the book is unhinged and the themes are marvelous. This is where I'd stop a read of the series.
• Chapterhouse and the other (Heretics?): forgettable in my opinion, simply because I've forgotten them. Later book fan opinions welcome.
• anything Brian Herbert: not terrible but not awfully good either. Makes for decent light reading I guess, and there's good lore building in some of the books despite some unforgivable retcons (Agemmemnon, sigh)