"The Two Gentlemen of Verona" by William Shakespeare: In the Italian town of Verona, there lived two bosom chums named Proteus and Valentine. Rarely had finer friends existed. They were like Starsky and Hutch without the fancy car. But, alas, they were destined to part company. Valentine wanted to have adventures and see the world. Proteus was hopelessly in love with the fair Julia, so he had no intentions of leaving Verona. Never one for love, Valentine mocked Proteus' weakness of the heart, and ventured out on his own, confident he'd never suffer a similar affliction.
Valentine settles in Milan, lodging in the emperor's court. There he meets Silvia, the Duke of Milan's daughter, and suddenly love is no longer a laughing matter. Meanwhile, back in Verona, Proteus wants to keep his love for Julia a secret from his father, so he pretends one of her love letters is actually a message from Valentine telling how wonderful things were in Milan. Proteus' father had recently been thinking it was time for his son to leave home and experience life, so he takes the letter as a sign, instructing Proteus to join Valentine. Proteus can't deny his father's wishes without revealing his love for Julia and admitting his lie. Heartbroken, he does as he's told.
Seeing Valentine again eases the pain Proteus felt in leaving Julia. Seeing Silvia for the first time eases everything else. This Silvia broad must have been something special, a regular cross between Angelina Jolie and gin. He barely sets eyes on her before Proteus is willing to forswear his love for Julia in pursuit of his new obsession. Even the discovery that Valentine and Silvia are in love fails to temper Proteus' passion. Knowing Silvia's father intends her to marry a jerk named Thurio, Proteus informs the Duke of Valentine's plans to elope with Silvia, resulting in Valentine's banishment from the city. Proteus convinces Valentine to accept the punishment, promising to act as his go-between with Silvia, carrying her his letters until the day they could be reunited.
With Valentine out of the way, Proteus cons the Duke and Thurio, saying he'll do all he can to slander Valentine to Silvia, thereby paving the way for Thurio to win her. But Proteus is only interested in claiming Silvia for himself. For her part, Silvia wants no part of Proteus. She knows he betrayed Valentine, and she also knows he left Julia back in Verona. Proteus could care less about Julia. He had forgotten all about her. But Julia remembers him. She misses Proteus so much, she plans to surprise him in Milan, disguising herself as a boy so she can travel freely by herself. Proteus doesn't recognize his former love when she arrives, and he even uses her as a messenger in his plans to woo Silvia. No one said Proteus was smart.
Silvia eventually runs off to find Valentine only to get abducted by a band of thieves. Don't worry, good ol' Valentine is actually the leader of the highwaymen, having joined their ranks while searching for direction in the wake of his banishment. But seconds before Silvia and Valentine can be reunited, Proteus rescues her, once more proclaiming his love. This time he won't take no for an answer. Valentine, having overheard the whole exchange, intervenes. Confronted by his former friend, Proteus immediately repents, begging forgiveness for his dreadful deeds. Valentine is quick to forgive him. Julia then confesses her true identity, causing Proteus to question how he could ever find anyone her equal. He swears his love for her, and both couples live happily ever after. Gee, that's swell.
Did that ending sound a bit too simple? Good, because it is. In fact, the entire play is rather simplistic. This was one of Shakespeare's earliest works, and the inexperience definitely shows. All the conflict disappears in a space of about 10 lines. Basically, it's like...
PROTEUS: Oh, hey, Valentine. Sorry about that whole trying-to-steal-your-girlfriend thing.
VALENTINE: Aw, don't sweat it, Proteus. You're still my boy. Wanna go get a beer?
The play's structure is almost as elementary as the ending, with more than two people rarely sharing the stage. And when there is a crowd, usually two hold a conversation while everyone else is rendered mute. Silvia, perhaps the play's most interesting character, is completely forgotten in the final scene, her last words being an "Oh, heaven!" when Proteus attempts to molest her. She doesn't even say anything to Valentine at all.
There's also a bit of confusion involving Proteus and Valentine's servants. Early in the play, Speed, Valentine's knave, delivers a letter to Julia for Proteus, despite Proteus having his own servant named Launce. It's almost as if Shakespeare added the character of Launce later and forgot to go back and change the earlier scene. On the other hand, unlike a lot of Shakespeare plays where the fools and clowns are nothing but annoying, here they actually get off a few funny lines. Speed has a somewhat clever exchange with Proteus in which he defends himself from being called a sheep, and Launce has a rather humorous relationship with his dog that should provoke at least a modest grin.
One more thing about the ending, it should be noted that when Proteus reconciles with Julia and professes his rekindled love for her, she's still wearing the disguise of a boy. Now, is this just another minor mistake on the part of a young Shakespeare, forgetting to have Julia at least free her hair, or was he trying to say something about Proteus' sexuality? Were Proteus' immediate repentance and Valentine's swift mercy sparked by more than just friendship? Did they finally realize they were truly in love with one another? And, unable to act on their love, did Proteus only accept Julia because she's dressed as a boy and resembling his beloved Valentine? Not that there's anything wrong with that.
Despite all its flaws, I still really enjoyed "The Two Gentlemen of Verona." It's definitely one of Shakespeare's lesser works in terms of technique and craft, but it remains an interesting examination of friendship versus romantic love. And I'm quite fond of both female leads. And by "female leads" I mean Silvia and Julia, not Proteus and Valentine. So while I can't see giving it more than two shots, they're an affectionate two shots. Drink them kindly.
RATING: 
If you'd like to learn more about Edward de Vere and the truth about Shakespeare, here are a few links to get you started...
Shakespeare Oxford Society Home Page
The Shakespeare Authorship Studies Conference: Who Was Edward de Vere?