Quantcast
Channel: Rex Parker Does the NYT Crossword Puzzle
Viewing all articles
Browse latest Browse all 4351

Eponymous physicist Ernst / WED 3-13-19 / Mythical figure known for ribaldry / Legendary Manhattan music club / Lineage-based women's grp

$
0
0
Constructor: Jeffrey Wechsler

Relative difficulty: Medium (oversized 16x15 grid, 4:46)


THEME: OBLIQUE REFERENCE (60A: Indirect comment ... or a hint to this puzzle's circled letters)— reference books run "obliquely" (diagonally) through the grid: ATLAS ALMANAC DICTIONARY and THESAURUS

Theme answers:
  • There are none besides the revealer ... :/
Word of the Day: AURIGA (10D: The Charioteer constellation) —
Auriga is one of the 88 modern constellations; it was among the 48 constellations listed by the 2nd-century astronomer Ptolemy. Located north of the celestial equator, its name is the Latin word for “the charioteer”, associating it with various mythological beings, including Erichthonius and Myrtilus. Auriga is most prominent during winter evenings in the northern Hemisphere, along with the five other constellations that have stars in the Winter Hexagon asterism. Because of its northern declination, Auriga is only visible in its entirety as far as 34° south; for observers farther south it lies partially or fully below the horizon. A large constellation, with an area of 657 square degrees, it is half the size of the largest constellation, Hydra. (wikipedia)
• • •

Today and tomorrow's write-ups are gonna be pretty short, as I have horrible time crunches in this week leading up to my Spring Break (Spring Break!). Today's puzzle is a good example of a concept that works perfectly but a puzzle that is not all that interesting or pleasant to solve. Actually, as my friend Matt pointed out on Twitter last night, the bottom half of the grid is far more enjoyable than the top half, where all of the theme constraint lies. That is, all those circled reference book squares are *dense*  toward the top and relatively sparse through the bottom. This allows the grid to breathe, which (magic!) better fill. The grid up top is also horribly segmented. It is never ever going to be fun to solve a little 6x6 or 4x4 or 6x6 section that has no real connection to the rest of the grid (see the top three sections of this puzzle). Even the middle section has no real connectivity—though he got that part to work out OK (too bad he had to rely on a celebrity accused of "unwanted sexual aggression," but I guess the court of public opinion hasn't turned on that guy yet). The real problem, though, from a solving angle, is that this is a giant grid with only one theme answers. I can't count those circled squares, since they don't have clues. They might have helped you work out some of the thornier parts of the grid, but for me they were just words to look at once I was done. Never felt like there was a proper theme. So kudos to the execution of the theme, but the solving experience was pretty mediocre.


Last thing: really? ASSAD *and* ALEPPO, the most notable site of his many war crimes?? (10A: Longtime Syrian leader + 56D: City under siege from 2012 to '16). And ALEPPO is crossed by PELT? And your ALEPPO clue emphasizes the brutality without naming ASSAD. The *one* time I would have actually *appreciated* a (finger-pointing) cross-reference! I'd rather never see ASSAD, but if I have to, maybe don't emphasize the war crimes content so much. Not like the NE corner is so great (I mean, AURIGA? IBEAM? SSS?). You could probably refill it all kinds of ways. All kinds of ASSAD-less ways. ALEPPO is great. Ditch ASSAD, and the puzzle all of a sudden becomes *far* less of a downer. OK bye.
    Signed, Rex Parker, King of CrossWorld

    [Follow Rex Parker on Twitter and Facebook]

    Viewing all articles
    Browse latest Browse all 4351

    Trending Articles



    <script src="https://jsc.adskeeper.com/r/s/rssing.com.1596347.js" async> </script>