Much Ado About Nothing-Or, Like The Avengers, Only Everyone Talks Like Thor...

I'm not going to pretend I'm a Shakespeare expert.  I most certainly am not.  I guess you could call me a 'spear late bloomer.  I do know enough about The Bard to know he is referred to as The Bard, and that my favorite play is MacBeth, and that to declare Romeo and Juliet his worst play is not an unreasonable position to take on his body of work.  I've so much work ahead of me and I suppose my ultimate test would be to be cast in a stage production.  Like some people desire to train to run marathons, this would be my marathon, I suppose.

I don't expect to ever be fortunate enough to participate in a Shakespeare production helmed by Joss Whedon.  I'll be blessed beyond expectation to be someday involved in one of his productions in any capacity.  But, in the meantime, being a fan of all things Whedon, it is my joy to take in his take on the work of The Bard.

Joss recognizes his audience is a smart, literate one, but not necessarily as grounded in da 'speare as he is.  So opening with a mostly silent scene with Alexis Denisof (Benedic) and AmyAcker (Beatrice), it hauntingly hearkens back to their chemistry as Wesley Windham-Price and Winnifred Burkel, and then opens up on a kitchen scene with rapid fire Elizabethan dialogue, but it is over relatively simple matters and allows you some time to get acclimated to it, kind of like slow rising after a deep dive to allow any linguistic gases that may cause pain in the vascular system to disappate safely and allow you to get in this tale.

Oh so many Whedon players are in here.  It is almost easier to point out the cast members who haven't worked with Joss before.  But Clark Gregg is in there playing Leonato, governor of Messina.  Nathan Fillion, who is an ass, is a modern cop version of Chief Constable Dogberry.  Fran Kranz plays a scheming Claudio.  Sean Maher is in there, Tom Lenk is in there, and more.

The black and white noir feel in the modern day, though the characters staying the same is an interesting touch.  It is Shakespear.  It is not for everyone.  But if you can develop a taste for it, you will find this take tasty indeed.