The contestants are falling fast and furious now, readers. From the first part of the Round of Sixteen: Richard III outwits the mischievous Puck, although our merry wanderer of the night makes a decent fight of it (48-37). I’ll warrant that mis-shapen Dick wasn’t counting on so much spirit from the sprite. Antony, on the other hand, hardly presents a challenge at all for Lady Macbeth, whose wiles and determination make a quick end of him (63-13). In the battle of the self-admitted villains, Iago takes the edge over Edmund (50-30). We can only assume Edmund got trapped up in some family drama and lost his concentration. Finally, for the catfight, Queen Margaret puts an end to Goneril’s ambitions (47-24). There’s only going to be one queen of this isle, and if Margaret has anything to say about it, she’ll be French. These results leave us with our first quarterfinal matches:
Quarterfinal 1: Richard III vs Lady Macbeth
Quarterfinal 2: Iago vs Queen Margaret
We’ve winnowed out the weaklings, and we’re left with some really fierce competitors. Any of these four deserve to move on, ruthless, conniving, bloodthirsty schemers all. Ultimately, though, I’m going to take a stand for my gender and root for both of the ladies.
These polls will stay open until Monday, when I’ll announce our first semi-finalists. You still have until Thursday to vote on the Round of Sixteen, Part 2.