Okay. Things have gotten a bit wild. We are nearly down to Final Four and 3 Henry 6 is still hanging around. Pericles beat 2 Henry 4 and Macbeth. The writing has been unbelievable. I love that some of these lesser-known plays are getting the spotlight and analysis they deserve.
Biggest Surprise
Pericles and 2 Henry 6
Pericles beat Macbeth and 2 Henry 4. What? Then 2 Henry 6 beat Comedy of Errors and Richard II. That is honestly wild.
Yeah, Of Course, That Won
Midsummer
Unbeatable. It's the most popular play for a reason.
Great Quotes
The writers are awesome. Simple as that.
“When Henry the Eighth wants to probe
And Claudius wants to disrobe
They kill and they cheat
To placate their meat
But Hamlet didn't burn down the Globe.”
“Two Noble Kinsmen is, at its heart, honestly one of the best plays Shakespeare wrote and one of the top five I would argue should be preserved even at the expense of his others.”
“As clever as he is ruthless, he weaves a masterful web of lives that culminates in the play's tragic climax--and the audience gets to follow every step.”
“His motives come from such an understandable, genuine place that his death at the hands of Hal feels almost bittersweet.”
“CYMBELINE is a masterpiece because Imogen is a masterpiece: a woman of grace and grit who stares down danger with dignity and meets the legions of men who let her down with the nerve to say I deserve better.”
“The stakes couldn’t be higher, the speeches couldn’t be sublime-er, and the message couldn’t be more timeless…or timely.”
“Shakespeare still manages to squeeze in romance, family reconciliation, and some jokes at the expense of the Catholics all within this hilarious romp - the perfect respite from the state of the world.”
“Comparing this play with Comedy of Errors is like comparing The Godfather Part II with Paul Blart Mall Cop.”
“You’re allowed to see plays purely for enjoyment. For humor. For romance. For magic.”
“Not because of any shortcoming in the writing or the plot, but rather, I think Shakespeare might have been too good at capturing the reality of humanity.”
“What is this, a race to the bottom? “Which Play Is Most Deserving of the Hate It Already Receives”?”
“Timon is the Christmas Special of Shakespeare.”
“Shakespeare weaves a magical epic that sees a king directly corrupted and undone by forces beyond our understanding.”
“While Pericles exemplifies a good king who puts his people before himself, Macbeth becomes absorbed in selfish ambitions and bleeds his kingdom dry to protect his legacy.”
“Against the backdrop of a failing superpower crumbling under its own bloat, the descent of a once-noble family into a bitter spiral of violence and madness takes on an urgency that is at once cosmic and personal.”
“Even though this is about a historical event, what shines through is the cast of characters that give the history a human face.”
"Through the characters of Hamlet and Iago, we are invited into the thought process of two magnificent manipulators. Both of them exude patience and cunning as they resist impulse and play the long game--moving each chess piece with the utmost care and forethought."
"In Desdemona, we get a deeply tragic character who fights desperately for her relationship with Othello--even when she has every reason to give up."
"He shows us the tragedy that inevitably arises when we fragile beings sacrifice the little time we have for titles, glories, and legacies that will outlast us."
"Richard II is like the Avengers--it's a great story and a warning of things to come. Henry VI is the moment Thanos comes to make good on those warnings."
"In Geekspeak: As the caboose of a rickety attempt at an epic, the final HENRY VI falls short of classic status because it lacks the heart-thumping satisfaction of Return of the Jedi or the emotional suspense of Revenge of the Sith, and we need a helluva follow-up, RICHARD III, to redeem the series."
"Wow, who would have thought that Henry VI part Three would have been a quarter-finalist!"
"With all of his genius, Shakespeare shows us a man who loses everything: his kingdom, his safety, and his family--and through his own honor, Grace, and humility finds it again--while Titus begins his play a father and hero who is offered the throne--and through his own hubris and bloodlust dashes all of his hopes against the rocks."
"But while the compounded tragedies of shipwrecks, lost love, and dead daughters send Pericles spiraling into feckless catalepsy, Titus responds to the death of his sons, the loss of his honor, and the mutilation of his daughter by stepping up to the plate (er…platter?) and, like a true soldier, actually doing something about it."