Political writer Kenneth / SUN 5-21-17 / Peer Gynt character / Two-time Wimbledon winner Lew / Japanese relative of husky / Setting for spring in Vivaldi's four seasons

Constructor: Randolph Ross

Relative difficulty: No, yes, whatever, who cares? Let's say "Easy"

THEME:"Misquoting Scripture"— "puns" (loosely defined) based on familiar phrases of biblical origin:
Theme answers:

• AN AYE FOR AN AYE (22A: The Bible on political horse trading?)
• THE FLASH IS WEAK (29A: The Bible on camera problems?)
• ASSAULT OF THE EARTH (42A: The Bible on an alien invasion?)
• GARDEN OF ETON (58A: The Bible on where Prince Harry learned horticulture?)
• FALSE PROFITS (71A: The Bible on bad business practices?)
• THE ROUTE OF ALL EVIL (82A: The Bible on directions to hell?)
• IN THE BIG INNING (95A: The Bible on a climactic part of a baseball game?)
• A MARK UPON CANE (107A: The Bible on ruined sugar crops?)
• LET THERE BE LITE (16D: The Bible on diet food?)
• FORBIDDEN FLUTE (48D: The Bible on a taboo musical instrument?)

Word of the Day: Kenneth VOGEL (66D: Political writer Kenneth) —

Kenneth Vogel is an American journalist. He is the chief investigative reporter at Politico. He is also the author of Big Money: 2.5 Billion Dollars, One Suspicious Vehicle, and a Pimp–on the Trail of the Ultra-Rich Hijacking American Politics. Vogel's writing often focuses on money in politics. As part of his work, he focuses on political fundraising with particular emphasis on the political activities of the Koch brothers. (wikipedia)

Just when you think the NYT might be righting the ship ... Sunday! Talk about wronging the ship. This is precisely the tired, hackneyed weaksauce the NYT has taken to serving of late, in increasingly frequent and unpalatable helpings. A pun / homophone puzzle had better be brilliant if it's going to carry an entire Sunday. Merl Reagle could do Fantastic Sunday-sized pun puzzles. Ridiculous, baroque, dazzling, theme-dense creations that had been meticulously thought out and planned, for months, sometimes years, as he waited to find just the right combination of answers, just the write "punchline" (usu. that final themer, which would often have *two* theme elements in one answer—the man was a genius). Now, no one can make a wacky puzzle like Merl could, but this thing isn't even in the ballpark. Not the same city, state, or solar system.


THE FLASH IS WEAK—what is that!?!?! If you're gonna pun, *pun*. At least make the clue a taunt from Superman, say. Better yet, change the answer to THE FLUSH IS WEAK, and give it a toilet clue. Instantly better. I mean, nothing is going to save this terrible theme from its terrible self, but if you're going down in flames, the more outrageous the better. THE FLASH IS WEAK ... ugh, who is chortling at that? There puns are So Tepid. Also, FLUTE for FRUIT is ridiculous and has nothing in common with the other "puns" (where you're dealing either with straight homophones or with a vowel change). And "a salt of the earth"—is that the phrase??? Is it? Because I thought it was "THE salt of the earth," in which case The Pun In This Grid Makes No Sense. It's not "A Farewell to Oms"-bad, but it's bad. And then there's the fill, which is predictably nightmarish. I actually stopped solving at 3D: Setting for spring in Vivaldi's "The Four Seasons," partly because I literally choked while gasping at how bad that answer is, partly to take a screenshot in order to commemorate the moment. I titled this .jpeg "Vomit":





Signed, Rex Parker, King of CrossWorld

[Follow Rex Parker on Twitter and Facebook]