Constructor:Martin Ashwood-Smith
Relative difficulty:Medium
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THEME: none
Word of the Day:SEIDEL(22D: Large beer mug) —
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OK, so, the thing about these stack puzzles (triples, quads, whatever) is that they all feel the same. This is not to say that they are all of the same quality—MAS here does them as well if not better than anyone else (among constructors who bother to make stackers, he mostly has imitators, not equals). It's just that the experience of solving them is the same: hack away at the short Downs and then use pattern recognition (and, uh, your general knowledge base, I guess) to get the long Acrosses. Usually one Across tips things pretty hard your way (esp. in a triple-stack situation; quads might be a little peskier). The grid-spanners often come in dull or forced, or at any rate not scintillating. This is where good separates itself from not-good: the quality of the stack components. Getting a stack to work is one thing. Getting one to work and by majority-cool, that's tougher. Oh, the good also separates itself from the not-good in the tolerability of those short Downs. No one expects gold, but the less cringing, the better. I would put this puzzle on the higher end of stack-based puzzles. That center stack, in particular, is very solid, very nice. I might even be more impressed by the general smoothness of the short Downs. I doubt most solvers note this kind of stuff, but as someone who has a low tolerance for wincing and a huge appreciation for craftsmanship, the exactness of the little details pleases me. Still, solving this type of puzzle always feels like a by-the-numbers exercise. No real sparkle or surprises, and not much room for interesting answers anywhere *besides* the long Acrosses.
Didn't get 1A straight off ([Ones making the rules?]) but figured it had something to do with lines (like ruled paper?), so it wasn't too hard, after my first pass at the Downs, to pick up MEASURING STICKS. Having MESSINA at the back end of an entry had me thinking Loggins, but instead I get STRAIT OF MESSINA—new to me (17A: Passage between Sicily and the toe of Italy). Manage to get out of N without much trouble. Tried to make Shirley BASS(E)Y work at 2D: Shirley of "Goldfinger" (EATON). Didn't she sing one of the Bond theme songs. Yes! In fact, she sang "Goldfinger," just as I suspected. 10 points to Gryffindor!
Hardest part of puzzle for me was SEIDEL (what?) next to ALL UP (who?) two doors down from OCULI (really?) (30D: Round openings in domes). Otherwise, nothing too tough. That middle has a rather ugly east end (ISSET MERS), and also AHAIR, which would've been not so big a deal if it hadn't been followed shortly thereafter by AWIRE. Still, as I say, short fill stays pretty dang clean. Overall, a fine Friday outing.
Signed, Rex Parker, King of CrossWorld
[Follow Rex Parker on Twitter and Facebook]
Relative difficulty:Medium
Word of the Day:SEIDEL(22D: Large beer mug) —
["dated"?]
• • •
Didn't get 1A straight off ([Ones making the rules?]) but figured it had something to do with lines (like ruled paper?), so it wasn't too hard, after my first pass at the Downs, to pick up MEASURING STICKS. Having MESSINA at the back end of an entry had me thinking Loggins, but instead I get STRAIT OF MESSINA—new to me (17A: Passage between Sicily and the toe of Italy). Manage to get out of N without much trouble. Tried to make Shirley BASS(E)Y work at 2D: Shirley of "Goldfinger" (EATON). Didn't she sing one of the Bond theme songs. Yes! In fact, she sang "Goldfinger," just as I suspected. 10 points to Gryffindor!
Hardest part of puzzle for me was SEIDEL (what?) next to ALL UP (who?) two doors down from OCULI (really?) (30D: Round openings in domes). Otherwise, nothing too tough. That middle has a rather ugly east end (ISSET MERS), and also AHAIR, which would've been not so big a deal if it hadn't been followed shortly thereafter by AWIRE. Still, as I say, short fill stays pretty dang clean. Overall, a fine Friday outing.
Signed, Rex Parker, King of CrossWorld
[Follow Rex Parker on Twitter and Facebook]