Othello is the weakest of Shakespeare's four major tragedies. Not only does its body count pale in comparison to that of the others, but also its plot is not nearly as complex, nor its themes as broad. At the heart of Othello lies a false accusation--Othello is duped into believing his woman has been unfaithful to him. Sound familiar? Except that, this being a tragedy, there is no kissing and making up at the end. Acts of suicide and murder instead take their positions of prominence here. 
 Othello himself is a pretty gullible character. I appreciate what Shakespeare tries to do here, which is to say that often only a single seed of well-planted doubt is enough to fuel our jealousy, enabling it to attain heights it otherwise might never have reached, clouding our judgment and making it nearly impossible for us to grasp the perspective needed to see reason or logic in a situation. But still, Othello is just a little too gullible for my liking, not once pausing long enough to consider any alternative other than that which his manipulator presents to him. That deeply flawed nature makes him not a very likeable hero in my estimation, aside from the fact that he also beats his wife (which is kind of a no-no, too, Daffy). 
 So why did I rate this so highly if I seemed to take issue with it? Well, I don't know that I really did take issue with it. I just don't believe it hits the same level of brilliance that King Lear, Hamlet, and Macbeth do. Those plays have characters and plot intricacies that Othello cannot match, although--if truth be told--I actually did like Iago. I know I wasn't supposed to, but his diabolical mind is almost too fun not to have enjoyed reading about.