Daijoubu

So Gonzo has cretaed what sounds to be a perfectly horrendous adaptation of Romeo x Juliet, and some are wondering what their next Shakespearean excursion might be. Let’s consider how some of the bard’s other works might make the transition to anime form…

The Taming of the Shrew: Let’s face it, this play has the original tsundere! But Petruchio ia a lot more forceful than the average anime male lead, but still, there’s a lot of potential for an anime of this! I mean, if they can make a teen movie of it, they could do an anime. Let KyoAni make it and have Aya Hirano as Katherina, Tomokazu Sugita as Petruchio, and Yui Horie as Bianca.

The Merry Wives of Windsor: Its now set in Windsor Academy High School and Falstaff, the boastful and corpulent Shakespearian character who lusts after other men’s wives will be transformed into a bishounen lead in charge of a Host Club, who makes the wives swoon.

Henry V: Instead of invading France, King Henry leads his team of Shounen fighters to rescue Princess Katharine from being executed by the soul society. In the finale, the team joins together for the “Band of Brothers Attack!”

Hamlet, King Lear & Macbeth: The people behind “Akira Kurosawa’s Samurai 7″ could do “Akira Kurosawa’s The Bad Sleep Well,” “Akira Kurosawa’s Ran” and “Akira Kurosawa’s Throne of Blood.”

The Winter’s Tale: The producers decide to chuck the original plot (they figure its one of the more obscure ones anyway) and do it as a variation on Kanon, featuring “Sad Shakespearian girls in Snow.”

Othello: Actually, this wouldn’t be Shakespeare, but an adaptation of a shoujo manga. Or maybe its a Haruhi spinoff about a game Kyon and Itsuki are playing.

A Midsummer Night’s Dream: Obvious potential here for sumptious animation. Maybe Miyazaki could do it justice. The mock play within a play could be adapted to an anime within an anime, like Kujiun on Gekiganger III.

The Merchant of Venice: A new series set in the world of Aria?

Alls Well That Ends Well: But what if they do a “reset ending” with this one?

I’m sure there are even better ideas than the weak ones I’ve been able to come up with! As For Romeo x Juliet, I’ll probably give it a pass, unless I hear about some big improvements. I guess the best thing to try to enjoy it is to pretend its not based on Shakespeare at all! (BTW, this is OT for anime, but to check out will probably be a much better appearance by Shakespeare, there’s always today’s episode of Doctor Who!)