Constructor:David Woolf
Relative difficulty:Easy-Medium
![]()
THEME:TURN OF EVENTS (59A: Unforeseen development ... or a feature seen four times in this puzzle's answers?) — four answers take a 90-degree "turn" somewhere in the middle of the letter string "EVENT":
Theme answers:
![]()
Wow, this puzzle worked exactly like it was supposed to, I imagine. I traipsed through it, enjoying the fill and the little bendy-word game, but not having any idea what the unifying concept was—then I end up in the SE, fiddle around with the answers down there, and Bam: the revealer actually does its damn job, giving me the conclusive "aha"+appreciation moment that is so elusive. What I like about this puzzle is how reserved it is. The concept, in the end, is simple, and despite all the turning, the theme answers don't crowd the grid, meaning that the overall fill can be reasonably clean and even sparkly at times. I never imagined I'd be shouting SATANISTS! gleefully, but here we are (20A: Devilish sorts?). OPEN TABLE, likewise great (5D: Restaurant availability). The cluing was a little on the easy side, which seems a reasonable strategy for offsetting the difficulty of figuring out the loopy grid trick. Though the puzzle seems to want me to be angry (SEETHE! ENRAGE! RANT!), I liked this one a whole lot: clever, clean, fun to solve.
The only parts that gave me a little scare were those teeny tiny corners. I honestly thought I might get stuck in the SW when the two little Downs ended up being mutually cross-referenced, and I couldn't figure out 66A: 100+, say (HOT). But then I calmed down and thought "Question that's an anagram of a question... there aren't really many options here." So WHO and HOW and done. In the NE corner, likewise, I wasn't sure if it was NAP or NOD (11A: Drift off), and for all I know Ginsberg wrote a poem about Plutonian ORE, so ... there was a little bit of muddling around up there before it all fell into place. None of the other nooks and crannies gave me trouble.
![]()
My only slow moments involved not knowing I was dealing with a turning answer. When did Hearst publish a magazine called "SEVEN," I wondered. Repeated title role for Jim Carrey ... four letters ... must be "LIAR (LIAR)." I also tried to make EVITA PERON fit and/or turn Down. It would do neither (44A: 1996 Madonna starring role = EVA PERON). I was weirdly happy to see the return of the Ampersandwich, i.e. the letter+AND+letter-patterned answer. Today: B AND E (15A: Home invasion, in police shorthand). I feel like we used to see these a lot more. I find them slightly charming, and they add to trickiness levels. I was also happy to end on a high note (figuratively) and end in a high place (literally)—last answer in the grid was APEXES (51D: Tops).
Signed, Rex Parker, King of CrossWorld
[Follow Rex Parker on Twitter and Facebook]
Relative difficulty:Easy-Medium
THEME:TURN OF EVENTS (59A: Unforeseen development ... or a feature seen four times in this puzzle's answers?) — four answers take a 90-degree "turn" somewhere in the middle of the letter string "EVENT":
Theme answers:
- PREVENTABLE (17A: Like many disasters, in hindsight)
- SEVENTEEN (10D: Hearst monthly)
- ACE VENTURA (37D: Repeated title role for Jim Carrey)
- TURN OF EVENTS
The Tyva Republic (Russian: Респу́блика Тыва́, tr.Respublika Tyva; IPA: [rʲɪˈspublʲɪkə tɨˈva]; Tuvan: Тыва Республика, Tyva Respublika, [təˈvɑ risˈpublikɑ]), Tyva or Tuva (Tuvan: Тыва, Russian: Тува́), is a federal subject of Russia (a republic, also defined in the Constitution of the Russian Federation as a state). It lies in the geographical center of Asia, in southern Siberia. The republic borders the Altai Republic, the Republic of Khakassia, Krasnoyarsk Krai, Irkutsk Oblast, and the Republic of Buryatia in Russia and Mongolia to the south. Its capital is the city of Kyzyl. Population: 307,930 (2010 Census). // From 1921 until 1944, Tuva constituted a sovereign, independent nation, under the name of Tannu Tuva, officially, the Tuvan People's Republic, or the People's Republic of Tannu Tuva. The independence of Tannu Tuva, however, was recognized only by its neighbours: the Soviet Union and Mongolia. // Forests, mountains, and steppe make up a large part of the geography of Tuva. // A majority of the people are Tyvans, but Russian is also spoken extensively. Tuva is governed by the Great Khural, which elects a chairman for a four-year term. The current chairman is Sholban Kara-ool.
• • •
The only parts that gave me a little scare were those teeny tiny corners. I honestly thought I might get stuck in the SW when the two little Downs ended up being mutually cross-referenced, and I couldn't figure out 66A: 100+, say (HOT). But then I calmed down and thought "Question that's an anagram of a question... there aren't really many options here." So WHO and HOW and done. In the NE corner, likewise, I wasn't sure if it was NAP or NOD (11A: Drift off), and for all I know Ginsberg wrote a poem about Plutonian ORE, so ... there was a little bit of muddling around up there before it all fell into place. None of the other nooks and crannies gave me trouble.
Signed, Rex Parker, King of CrossWorld
[Follow Rex Parker on Twitter and Facebook]