Constructor: David Steinberg
Relative difficulty: Medium
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THEME: FOUR-LETTER WORDS (39A: Curses ... or what 18-, 20-, 26-, 48-, 57- and 63-Across are, literally— answers in question are formed from a total of four letters ... at least I think that's it. I hope that's it. It's very early in the morning ...
Theme answers:
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This grid is a lovely bit of fun, but I confess I don't really get the theme. I mean, I *get* it (I think), but aren't ... a lot of words FOUR-LETTER WORDS, in the sense that they are made up of a total of four different letters of the alphabet? Yes, SASSAFRAS uses only SAFR, but, for instance, SENSEI uses only SENI, and ... so? I guess I just don't know how special these kinds of four-letter words are. Obviously the longer the word gets, the more unusual the four-letterness, but that still doesn't feel special enough to build a theme around. I like the idea of playing around with the meaning of FOUR-LETTER WORDS, but this particular play feels flimsy. But as I say, taken as a themeless, just for the pleasure of the words in the grid alone, I enjoyed this once. It bounced, and (for a Tuesday in particular) was very, very clean (with only OTTOI mucking things up—adding that guy to my Retire Your Fill! (RYF) list).
The bounciness was also the only thing challenging about the puzzle. It took a little thinking to parse stuff like K-TOWN (short for Koreatown) (17A: Neighborhood where kimchi might be found, informally) andBAD PR (6A: What a divorce may generate for a celeb) and "OH, WELL" (4D: "That's a bummer"). Easier for me to get something like PESETA than EHOW, which I had as ETSY at first (ETSY involves people selling things they make themselves, EHOW involves showing people how to do do things themselves). ZUMBA makes me think how little I've seen TAEBO in puzzles lately, which puzzles deserve commendation for. I hereby grant you a five-year license to use ZUMBA; we'll check back in in 2023 to see if ZUMBA still warrants it (68A: Dance-based fitness program). The toughest answer for me to get was PITON, because they have spikes so I always think there's a "K" in there, and then I think the answer's more literal, like GRIP ON, and ... I don't know, it's not a word I encounter anywhere but crosswords, and no other word looks like it (nothing very common fits -ITON, or P-TON, or PI-ON, or PIT-N, or PITO- ... it's weird), so I just have trouble slotting it in my brain properly.
Bullets:
P.S. I didn't understand the theme until I was done; while I was solving, I thought it had something to do with "stuff you say instead of swearing," like SASSAFRAS! and NONSENSE! (you know, instead of "bullshit!")
[Follow Rex Parker on Twitter and Facebook]
Relative difficulty: Medium
Theme answers:
- SASSAFRAS (18A: Its root was once used in root beer) (SASF)
- SENESCENCE (20A: Process of aging) (SENC)
- LOLLIPOP (26A: What always deserves a good licking?) (LOIP)
- NONSENSE (48A: Poppycock) (NOSE)
- TATTLETALE (57A: Snitch) (TALE)
- RECHERCHE (63A: Exotic) (RECH)
nountrademark
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The bounciness was also the only thing challenging about the puzzle. It took a little thinking to parse stuff like K-TOWN (short for Koreatown) (17A: Neighborhood where kimchi might be found, informally) andBAD PR (6A: What a divorce may generate for a celeb) and "OH, WELL" (4D: "That's a bummer"). Easier for me to get something like PESETA than EHOW, which I had as ETSY at first (ETSY involves people selling things they make themselves, EHOW involves showing people how to do do things themselves). ZUMBA makes me think how little I've seen TAEBO in puzzles lately, which puzzles deserve commendation for. I hereby grant you a five-year license to use ZUMBA; we'll check back in in 2023 to see if ZUMBA still warrants it (68A: Dance-based fitness program). The toughest answer for me to get was PITON, because they have spikes so I always think there's a "K" in there, and then I think the answer's more literal, like GRIP ON, and ... I don't know, it's not a word I encounter anywhere but crosswords, and no other word looks like it (nothing very common fits -ITON, or P-TON, or PI-ON, or PIT-N, or PITO- ... it's weird), so I just have trouble slotting it in my brain properly.
Bullets:
- 14A: Pharmaceutical giant that makes Valium (ROCHE) — can't keep my pharmaceutical giants straight, and totally forgot this one today. LILLY, PFIZER, MERCK ... where were you when I needed you!?
- 49D: Slimeball (SLEAZE) — wrote in SLEAZO because I really thought the NYT had tried in the past to convince me that was a term, but then I realized I was thinking of CREEPO
- 64D: Org. concerned with soil and water (EPA) — LOL not anymore. This clue is at least a year old.
P.S. I didn't understand the theme until I was done; while I was solving, I thought it had something to do with "stuff you say instead of swearing," like SASSAFRAS! and NONSENSE! (you know, instead of "bullshit!")
[Follow Rex Parker on Twitter and Facebook]