Good Guy Friar Laurence

Once again Reddit's bringing the interesting conversation, this time on an old Romeo and Juliet question:

Do you think that Friar Laurence is a criminal or a hero?

Somewhere along the line, someone (was it you, David Blixt?) told me that Friar Laurence is a really bad guy who used two stupid lovestruck kids as pawns in his scheme to be the hero who ends the feud. When I go look in the text, however, all I really find is that one line of his where he tells Romeo "For this alliance may so happy prove, To turn your households' rancour to pure love."

Where do you stand on Friar Laurence?  Is he to be completely forgiven?  A character who tried to do the right thing, for all the right reasons, and it just didn't work out?  Or does he share in the blame for bringing it all down upon their heads? After all, what would have happened had he not married Romeo and Juliet?  Romeo had already shown that he was pretty fickle in the love department.  Nobody was dead at this point, nobody banished.  Would they both have just gotten over it?  Romeo's impulsiveness could have been cut off at the pass real quick if Friar Laurence hadn't enabled it.

What's the Funniest Tragedy?

We've often discussed the fact that Romeo and Juliet, right up until Mercutio's death, is a romantic comedy that suddenly goes very very badly.  Even the darkest plays have at least a couple of jokes thrown in (or do they?)  So let's talk about that.  Among all the plays that are not supposed to be comedy, which one do you think is the funniest?

There's multiple ways to look at this:

* Laughs where Shakespeare put them, and expected them.
* Laughs where a modern director found an opportunity to get a laugh.
* Laughs where the audience laughed, and probably wasn't supposed to.

So let me rephrase it this way - which play do you think provides enough potential for the audience to walk away thinking, "Wow, I never expected to laugh that hard!"

I've seen a fair share of laughs in Othello, and Macbeth.  I didn't laugh at Ralph Fiennes' Coriolanus, but when I saw a production in Boston Common the lead character was so over the top snarky in his attitude toward everybody that I couldn't help myself (although I also wanted to punch him).  I'll be very surprised if King Lear makes this list.  Somebody remind me if there's any funny bits in that one at all?

Theme Song Shakespeare : Prospero's Island

My turn! I can play too! Theme Song Shakespeare continues!

Just sit right back and you'll hear a play,
A play about a fateful trip
That started from the port of Milan
Aboard a tiny ship.

There sat the sorceror Prospero,
His daughter at his side.
His enemies sent them out to sea
And left them there to die (left them there to die....)

The weather started getting rough,
The tiny ship was tossed,
If not for the loyalty of Gonzalo
His books would all be lost, his magic would be lost.

Now Prospero made his home on this uncharted magic isle
With Ariel,
And Caliban,
Who made his move, now he's a slave.
They're all alone -
But not so fast, what's that ship out there?
Here comes King Alonso.

So this is the tale of Propero,
Setting traps for his enemies.
He'll almost have revenge at last
Until his daughter begs mercy.

Miranda and now Ferdinand
(Who, come on now, she just met!)
Will make her dad at last accept
That now they want to wed.

Hey wait don't forget about Caliban,
He's hatched another plan.
Now Stefano plans to run the show
With Prospero's books in hand.

So have no fear it all works out,
No tragedy, no one dies.
There's guaranteed a happy ending
Here on Prospero's Isle!