Fat & Greasy Citizens

Ever wonder what would happen if Shakespeare wrote for an off-brand Three Stooges in the late 16th century? That's act three of Comedy of Errors, in which we have a long scene involving a man trying to enter a house. Chuck and Gabe discuss this and other zingers.

After the ending of Two Gentlemen of Verona, an open bypass surgery would be funny, but luckily Comedy of Errors delivers classic commedia laughs from the very start. Two sets of identical twins get separated as babies and one set tries to find the other after they're all grown up and funny mix-em-ups ensue. Is this a comedy of mistaken identity? You bet it is. Chuck and Gabe break it down.

Nothing really sticks the landing in a comedy like sexual assault, and Shakespeare famously ends Two Gentlemen of Verona with one. Yet, there is still talk of marriage by play's end. A hard pivot? Sure. Listen as Chuck and Gabe stand in awe by Shakespeare's majesty.

The problem with Proteus is that he loves too hard, so much so that all the love he had for Julia is now directed at Sylvia. As fortune would have it, Proteus's best friend Valentine is also in love with Sylvia. Chuck and Gabe make references to Emo Philips and Don Knotts, so they're as timely as ever!

Despite his friend Valentine's insistence that young men must go off and see the world, Proteus says he has to stay put in fair Verona because he's madly in love with Julia, a local moron. Then, Proteus writes a letter! Chuck and Gabe try and unpack this staggering plot twist.

Looks like we made it. Look how far we've come, my baby. This act of Shrew ends the way you might expect: Kate is tamed. Did Shakespeare mean for this to be a comment on the society of the time? Or was this just a reflection of the masculine world he lived in? We don't know because he's dead. Queen Elizabeth I takes over as announcer and NOTE: this was recorded while Trump was still president.

Wow. Chuck opens this episode by saying this act is f***ed up and he is not wrong. After their expedited marriage, Kate is brought to Petruchio's weird dude manor and deprived of food (it's a comedy!). Then, Tranio finds a fake dad for Lucentio in one of those classic mistaken identity set-ups that MAKES NO SENSE WHATSOEVER.

Chuck and Gabe navigate trickier waters now as Bill Shakespeare's play gets uncomfortable in this act. Is there more gaslighting of Shrew's Kate? Yeah. Is it cruel? Yup. Is there wetting of holes? Definitely.