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Two lovers meet their demise in nearly the same place and time, their truths staying intertwined with one another, too powerful to be expressed in life, and being forced to live on in death. This is not about Romeo and Juliet. Instead, this is about their similarly tragic peers, Mercutio and Tybalt. Being presented in the forms of subtle speech, actions, and parallels, Mercutio and Tybalt prove to be a side love story overshadowed by our two star-crossed lovers.
Mercutio talks in quick manner and with passion on any given topic, especially when it comes to Tybalt. Letting his love of speech parallel his love for Tybalt. When rambling on about almost anything, Mercutio always has some negative approach to it; demeaning Romeo and his feelings in act one, knocking down love in general throughout the play, and it seems as if whenever he talks to other characters, he always has something backhanded to say. However, in the instance of Tybalt, Mercutio’s words are only filled with positive admiration. In his famous “Prince of Cats” speech, Mercutio is, for once, not full of malice, “More than the Prince of Cats. Oh, he’s the courageous captain of compliments… The very butcher of silk button…” (2.4.18-24). In this particular tangent, Mercutio’s choice of words only paints Tybalt in a positive light. There’s no annoyance, no backhanded compliments, just pure admiration. This tone would also suggest that the prince's kinsmen is quite fond of Tybalt. This is a side of Mercutio the audience has never seen before and will never see again. An interesting choice to show this side of him when talking about Tybalt and when talking about Tybalt only. Another thing of note is how characters outside of Tybalt and Mercutio’s relationship view their relations with each other. In the beginning of act three, after Mercutio was slain, Romeo goes up to Tybalt and says a very peculiar line, “That late thoust gavest me, for Mercutio’s soul. /It is but a little ways above our heads, /staying for thine to keep him company.” (3.1.pg 148). It’s a little off-putting for Romeo to say such a thing, considering Mercutio dies by Tybalt’s hands. Off-putting, of course, if they weren’t in a relationship. Romeo, with his knack for romantics and their metaphors, is one to believe in lovers meeting after death. This is explicitly shown at the very end of the play where he kills himself to be with Juliet. So, for him to say Mercutio is waiting for Tybalt in heaven suggests that Romeo believed there’s something going on between the two.
Both the Capulets’ lovers noticeably share a lot of parallels with each other in terms of love. An example of this would be how both Romeo and Juliet and Mercutio and Tybalt met their demise by being indulged in their passions. In the play, Romeo is so obsessed and bent over with the idea of him and Juliet being together that he literally killed himself to be with her in the afterlife upon seeing her stiff body, this in turn prompted Juliet to do the same. Now compare this with Mercutio, with him being so hellbent on violence in act three that he ends up causing both his and Tybalt’s deaths by the end of scene one, albeit mostly indirectly. Another thing of note in Romeo and Juliet is how both of the tragic lovers’ deaths were caused by an interference. With Romeo and Juliet’s being caused by everyone else’s involvement throughout the play, and with Mercutio and Tybalt’s being caused by Romeo’s interjection. One of the leading plotlines in Romeo and Juliet was the trouble given to the newlyweds caused by outside sources and if it weren’t for those outer sources, they could have been together in peace. This is duly stated by Mercutio himself in reference to his own situation to Romeo, “Why the devil came you between us? I am hurt under your arm.” (3.1.98-99) directly stating that if Romeo had never inserted himself in the fight between him and Tybalt, none of this would have happened and eventually they would have been left be, much like Romeo and Juliet. It’s also worthy to mention that all four lovers were killed by some involvement of Romeo, the literal symbol of hopeless romanticism in the play.
A lot of people would say this entire argument is ridiculous and holds no grounds simply for the fact that Mercutio and Tybalt have done nothing but show malice to each other upon speaking face to face, but subtle evidence would politely disagree. Flipping through the pages of the script, it can be noticed that when characters talk about another character, it’s usually strictly out of love or some sort of deep admiration akin to love; with Romeo’s countless babbles about his fair Juliet, the Nurse’s small tangent on her husband way back in act one, scene three, and finally, Mercutio’s speech on Tybalt’s swordsmanship in act two. When looking at all the instances of characters talking about another and how it almost always relates back to love, it’s a bit hard to not at least raise a brow during Mercutio’s less than shameless flaunt on Tybalt.
Mercutio and Tybalt were doomed from the start. Having to be set up on opposing sides and pinned against each other to make up for some blossoming romance that wasn’t their own. Though, it’s fitting considering the many parallels Romeo and Juliet share with them. They were in love, plain and simple. Presented in the most subtle of ways and clever parallels, all this is saying is that Mercutio and Tybalt had something going on for them, and much like our main lovers, their love was squashed before it could fully bloom.