Constructor: Sam Ezersky
Relative difficulty: Easy-Medium (10:06)
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THEME:"NUMBER THEORY"— on four different lines in the puzzle are numbers in foreign languages and also familiar phrases that contain that same number (only as an English word, not a foreign number). The point is that some foreign numbers look identical to English words. Elsewhere in the grid are the four different languages in question, and then there's a revealer:LOST IN / TRANSLATION (90A: With 92-Across, alternative title for this puzzle)
Theme answers:
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I'm actually startled at how poor this is. Aside from the stray interesting answer (say, DOBBY THE HOUSE ELF), this one was a bemusing slog from start to finish. Never cared once about the theme. Never really *got* what the theme thought it was doing, why the theme thought it was interesting. I just filled in a bunch of languages pretty easily (without ever having to check the cross-references) and then wrote in repeated words a bunch of times. Because that's what this is—a weirdly elaborate thematic excuse for having words appear twice. All that space wasted on useless stuff like ITALIAN SPANISH FRENCH etc. who cares? We know what language they're in. The revealer was pathetic, in that LOST IN / TRANSLATION is not catchy or kicky or even very accurate. Yes, there are foreign words for numbers that are also (with different pronunciations) English words: whoopty bleepin' doo! And for that I have to endure stuff like MAESTRI (no one says this) and GENYER (fewer than no one says this—seriously, negative people). Gen Xer, definitely a thing, GENYER, ack, no. Reverse-stacking DETOO / ARTOO, awkward. AMUN (with a "U"?) RA, awkward, EXEQUY, what the hexequy is that?! ABAFT? ODIC? SOMNI-? OOOO? ITTY? ACITY? How does this one pass muster? How? EFFS all around.
DOBBY THE HOUSE ELF is a memorable character, but I always felt bad for his brother, DOOBIE the House Elf. Remember when Harry fired DOOBIE just for being late to work a few times and failing that one drug test? Uncool, Harry, you narc. Moving on to other parts of the puzzle ... AKRONOH is a crutch. It's like if ERIEPA and USOFA had a horrid cursed baby. If you do this with Akron, you can do it with any city in the country, and that slope feels slippery and horrible. USE THIS? I guess someone might say that, sure, but it doesn't feel very tight. I do like WAS A BI PEA, but only because I think it's important to represent the full spectrum of legume sexuality in puzzles. Not all peas are either straight or gay, you know.
Nothing more to say about this one. On The Clipboard this week, I don't have too much to rave about. My favorite themed puzzle of the week was probably Patrick Blindauer's "T Time" (for the American Values Club Crossword (AVCX)), which featured five different crossings that formed the shape of "T"s and crossed at the letter "T." Clean grid, lots of fresh fill, neatly done. Favorite themeless of the week was Natan Last's New Yorker puzzle, which was glutted with great long answers: BECHDEL TEST, SPEED READERS, PROM KINGS, SWEATS IT OUT, OF MICE AND MEN, etc. Those New Yorker puzzles are reliably good, but this one was exceptional.
Until tomorrow,
Signed, Rex Parker, King of CrossWorld
P.S. I just saw "Parasite" so my mind is still reeling and also my standards for good art are kinda through the roof right now. I feel real bad for the next movie I see.
[Follow Rex Parker on Twitter and Facebook]
Relative difficulty: Easy-Medium (10:06)
Theme answers:
- QUINCE JELLY (24A: Relative of marmalade) / QUINCE (which is FIFTEEN (see 26A) in SPANISH (20A))
- DOBBY THE HOUSE ELF (46A: Whom Harry Potter frees from serving Draco Malfoy's family) / ELF (which is ELEVEN (see 45A) in GERMAN (34A))
- SEIZE / POWER (59A: With 60-Across, take control after a coup) / SEIZE (which is SIXTEEN (see 61A) in FRENCH (84A))
- DUE TO THE FACT THAT (71A: Because) / DUE (which is TWO (see 75A) in ITALIAN (104A)
Dr. I.Q. (aka Dr. I.Q., the Mental Banker and Doctor I.Q.) is a radio and television quiz program. Remembered as radio's first major quiz show, it popularized the catch phrase "I have a lady in the balcony, Doctor."
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DOBBY THE HOUSE ELF is a memorable character, but I always felt bad for his brother, DOOBIE the House Elf. Remember when Harry fired DOOBIE just for being late to work a few times and failing that one drug test? Uncool, Harry, you narc. Moving on to other parts of the puzzle ... AKRONOH is a crutch. It's like if ERIEPA and USOFA had a horrid cursed baby. If you do this with Akron, you can do it with any city in the country, and that slope feels slippery and horrible. USE THIS? I guess someone might say that, sure, but it doesn't feel very tight. I do like WAS A BI PEA, but only because I think it's important to represent the full spectrum of legume sexuality in puzzles. Not all peas are either straight or gay, you know.
Nothing more to say about this one. On The Clipboard this week, I don't have too much to rave about. My favorite themed puzzle of the week was probably Patrick Blindauer's "T Time" (for the American Values Club Crossword (AVCX)), which featured five different crossings that formed the shape of "T"s and crossed at the letter "T." Clean grid, lots of fresh fill, neatly done. Favorite themeless of the week was Natan Last's New Yorker puzzle, which was glutted with great long answers: BECHDEL TEST, SPEED READERS, PROM KINGS, SWEATS IT OUT, OF MICE AND MEN, etc. Those New Yorker puzzles are reliably good, but this one was exceptional.
Until tomorrow,
Signed, Rex Parker, King of CrossWorld
P.S. I just saw "Parasite" so my mind is still reeling and also my standards for good art are kinda through the roof right now. I feel real bad for the next movie I see.
[Follow Rex Parker on Twitter and Facebook]