AS THE WORM TURNS: 'DUNE' SEQUEL THRILLS.

Byline: David Kronke TV Critic

TONIGHT, a miniseries begins about a people beset by suicide bombers, ancient religions that justify seemingly never-ending hostilities and environmental crises. It's a fantasy.

``Frank Herbert's Children of Dune'' is a frequently dazzling sequel to the Sci Fi Channel's 2000 miniseries ``Dune.'' The story begins a dozen years after where ``Dune'' left off; Paul Atreides (Alec Newman) - more often referred to by his messianic moniker, Muad'Dib - leads Dune, which, thanks to its giant fanged worms that produced the extraterrestrially essential Spice, is the most powerful planet around.

Alas, it isn't easy being King of Kings. His sister Alia (Daniela Amavia) is fighting madness (or, as John Harrison's script has it, ``She sinks deeper into the abomination of her own ghost'') - not the optimal conditions for a leader. Worse, the wicked Princess Wensicia (Susan Sarandon, sporting the silliest array of hairstyles since Princess Amidala in the first ``Star Wars'' prequel - she probably spent more time in the hair-and-makeup trailer than on the set) is planning to conquer the downfall of Muad'Dib. At the end of tonight's episode, she masterminds the capture of one of Dune's sand worms, which is one of the coolest sequences the miniseries has to recommend it.

Paul disappears after tonight's episode, and the fate of Dune is left to rest on the shoulders of his twin children, Leto (James McAvoy) and Ghanima (Jessica Brooks), who, when they reach adulthood, are, let's just say, very friendly with one another (Alia undresses before Paul in one scene, which makes you wonder about what was going on in Herbert's life, particularly since this miniseries suggests not one but two emptily unhappy marriages).

Production designer Ondrej Nekvasil, director of photography Arthur Reinhart and special-effects supervisor Jim Healy combined to create a production that looks pretty amazing by TV standards. The costume design by Theodor and Jan Pistek boasts those occasionally silly outfits you only see in science-fiction epics.

But their work is no match for some of the dialogue. ``Children of Dune'' is sort of overly convoluted in its story line, while boasting its fair share of exciting sequences, but be warned that if you sit through all six hours, you're going to run into lines like these:

``Atreides' power must never be marginalized by the chaos of democracy.''

``There's a thin line between enemy and friend - where that line stops there's no beginning and no end.''

``Is wind a trick? I am words in the wind. Words that are names. Names that are death.''

``What I mean is what I say and what I say is what I mean.''

``I awakened to consciousness in my mother's womb. I have memories of many women inside of me. I know what they know; I feel what they felt. But I can handle it - can you?''

These characters may not have a clue as to what they're talking about, but when the images are as pretty as they are throughout ``Children of Dune,'' it almost doesn't matter.

FRANK HERBERT'S CHILDREN OF DUNE - Three stars

What: The House of Atreides is still beset by intrigue and challenges inside and out.

Where: Sci Fi Channel.

When: 9 tonight through Tuesday.

In a nutshell: Visually, this is a wildly impressive production. Just don't take the dialogue too seriously.

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James McAvoy plays Leto, one of the heirs to the House of Atreides, in ``Frank Herbert's Children of Dune'' on Sci Fi.