Constructor: Natan Last
Relative difficulty: Easy-Medium
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THEME: Lane Changes— theme answers are clued two ways, one that goes the normal way (straight Across) and one that "diverges" off at an angle (signified by circled squares):
Theme answers:
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The concept is somewhat interesting, but half of this thing just missed me because those "diverged" parts are totally irrelevant. The first parts of the theme clues are sufficient to get the Across parts, and you can get those circled letters from all the other answers in the puzzle, so ... there were five "who cares so what didn't see 'em" roads, the diverging of which meant nil to me. I can look back now and go "Huh, OK, neat." But they were totally inessential. When the main concept of your puzzle is one that the solver can safely ignore—that seems like a problem. I guess the central answer, THE ROAD NOT TAKEN, was meant to be not just another themer, but a kind of second title. An apt title, it turns out, as half the roads were not taken, by me, during this solve. Anyway, this played like a giant themeless. It was fine, but not nearly as exciting as an actual themeless would be, so overall I'd say this was disappointing. The grid is well made, for sure, but themes should make their presence felt, and this one didn't.
DRIVE IN A RUN is like a notch above EAT A SANDWICH. It's definitely a phrase you hear in baseball, but it just doesn't feel strong enough to stand alone, especially not as a themer. LAWD took me so long. I just sat there staring at it even after I had LAW-. Not wild about crossing JAFAR and AFAR. Or about crossing NONOS with NO SPIN. Or UPSELL and UP AHEAD. Would you really use FRISKS to mean [Gambols]? Lambs ... frisk? ... in the leas? I wanted FROLICS, but of course there were space issues. I misspelled RAINN Wilson's name twice before I got it right (RAYNE, RAYNN). The whole NE was the hardest part for me. None of the longer Acrosses wanted to come into view, and TABARDS and KARA were both unknown to me. I'd also never heard of ELSA Morante (63A) and I didn't know [Freudian "will to live"] was EROS, so the center region was a little dicey. I thought I was pretty slick when I took one look at 36D: Monumental support with a "P" at the front of it and dropped in PLINTH. And in fact a plinth is a "heavy base supporting a statue or vase." It just wasn't the right answer *here* (PILLAR). Finished up in the SW, with a movie I've never seen and a singer I've never (to my knowledge) heard. Wait, did BRENDA LEE sing "Fever"? Whoops, nope, that's Peggy Lee. So no, BRENDA LEE I've never heard. But I have heard *of* her, and that was enough.
STUBHUB is a good answer. My favorite thing in the grid by far. GOD HELP US was pretty good too. And ATTACK ADS. See, it really is a decent themeless in parts. Just wish the theme had been, you know, *there*.
Signed, Rex Parker, King of CrossWorld
P.S. you should watch "GILDA" if you haven't already. It is Great. Though you would never, ever call a movie a "femme fatale film" (!?) (34D: 1946 film fatale film)
[Follow Rex Parker on Twitter and Facebook]
Relative difficulty: Easy-Medium
Theme answers:
- WAYNE'S WORLD / WAY OF LIFE (22A: 1992 movie based on an "A.H.L." sketch ... or, diverged: Modus vivendi)
- DRAG AND DROP / DRAG SHOW (39A: Computer mouse action ... or, diverged: Event for RuPaul)
- THE ROAD NOT TAKEN / THE ROAD TO HELL (67A: 1916 Frost verse ... or, diverged: Start of a saying about meaning well)
- DRIVE IN A RUN / DRIVER'S ED (97A: Bring someone home ... or, diverged: Common high school offering)
- PATHFINDERS / PATHOS (117A: Nissan S.U.V.s ... or, diverged: Emotional appeal)
I Am Legend is a 2007 American post-apocalypticscience fictionhorror film based on the novel I Am Legend, directed by Francis Lawrence and starring Will Smith, who plays US Armyvirologist Robert Neville. The story is set in New York City after a virus, which was originally created to cure cancer, has wiped out most of mankind, leaving Neville as the last human in New York, other than nocturnal mutants. Neville is immune to the virus and he works to develop a cure while defending himself against the hostile mutants. (wikipedia)
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DRIVE IN A RUN is like a notch above EAT A SANDWICH. It's definitely a phrase you hear in baseball, but it just doesn't feel strong enough to stand alone, especially not as a themer. LAWD took me so long. I just sat there staring at it even after I had LAW-. Not wild about crossing JAFAR and AFAR. Or about crossing NONOS with NO SPIN. Or UPSELL and UP AHEAD. Would you really use FRISKS to mean [Gambols]? Lambs ... frisk? ... in the leas? I wanted FROLICS, but of course there were space issues. I misspelled RAINN Wilson's name twice before I got it right (RAYNE, RAYNN). The whole NE was the hardest part for me. None of the longer Acrosses wanted to come into view, and TABARDS and KARA were both unknown to me. I'd also never heard of ELSA Morante (63A) and I didn't know [Freudian "will to live"] was EROS, so the center region was a little dicey. I thought I was pretty slick when I took one look at 36D: Monumental support with a "P" at the front of it and dropped in PLINTH. And in fact a plinth is a "heavy base supporting a statue or vase." It just wasn't the right answer *here* (PILLAR). Finished up in the SW, with a movie I've never seen and a singer I've never (to my knowledge) heard. Wait, did BRENDA LEE sing "Fever"? Whoops, nope, that's Peggy Lee. So no, BRENDA LEE I've never heard. But I have heard *of* her, and that was enough.
STUBHUB is a good answer. My favorite thing in the grid by far. GOD HELP US was pretty good too. And ATTACK ADS. See, it really is a decent themeless in parts. Just wish the theme had been, you know, *there*.
Signed, Rex Parker, King of CrossWorld
P.S. you should watch "GILDA" if you haven't already. It is Great. Though you would never, ever call a movie a "femme fatale film" (!?) (34D: 1946 film fatale film)
[Follow Rex Parker on Twitter and Facebook]