Constructor: Gary Cee
Relative difficulty: Easy-Medium
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THEME: "Hits and Ms.es"— songs with women's names in the titles. Clues reimagine the songs as being about actual women:
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This theme is far too straightforward and weak for the alleged best puzzle in the country. It's songs with women's names in them. That is all. The clues try to dress it up, but it's lipstick on a pig. Puzzle ends up being way way way too easy in the theme stuff (except for "JULIE, DO YA LOVE ME?"—never heard of that), and then clunky, crosswordese-heavy, and artificially toughened in the fill. Who clues ELDER that way? A tree? I know "elderberries," but I thought those came from bushes. My pop music knowledge of the late-70s is very good, but ELLIMAN? Couldn't bring her back at all. Anyway, I blew through the theme part, and then hacked at the rest with a machete. Lots of wincing, not a lot of grinning. Why can't I BE more positive? Right? Well, because. Because. Because LAE, Lady. LAE. Am I pronouncing that right? Is it pronounced "lie"? Gah, who knows? As you can see, now I'm just amusing myself, as the puzzle has failed to do that job for me. I do like KEY FACTOR alright. And BRITCOM (100A: "Absolutely Fabulous" or "Father Ted"). DOG EAT DOG, somewhat. The rest, no.
That's all. Wish there was more to talk about, but there isn't. Unless you want me to catalog the suboptimal fill for you. NEALE! ELYSE! Oh, you don't want me to do that? OK, good. I BE tired, anyway. Need to LAE down. Good day.
Signed, Rex Parker, King of CrossWorld
Relative difficulty: Easy-Medium
- 22A: "Greetings, Ms. Retton!" ("HELLO, MARYLOU")
- 31A: "Very nice, Ms. Kennedy!" ("SWEET, CAROLINE") (ew, introduction of the comma there is painful, especially as other songs do not have to be similarly altered to fit the clue)
- 37A: "Hurry up, Ms. Brennan!" ("COME ON, EILEEN")
- 55A: "Cheer up, Ms. Teasdale!") ("SARA, SMILE!")
- 62A: "Am I the one, Ms. Andrews?" ("JULIE, DO YA LOVE ME?")
- 74A: "You look hot in a thong, Ms. Hawkins!" ("SEXY, SADIE") (ew, ew, ew … why in the world did the clue go to "thong"??? Clue works perfectly well with just "You look hot…" "In a thong" is completely gratuitous and kinda creepy)
- 86A: "I need a hand, Ms. Fleming!" ("HELP ME, RHONDA!")
- 94A: "Leave it alone, Ms. Zellweger!" ("WALK AWAY, RENEE")
- 110A: "Time to show your cards, Ms. Field!" ("LAY DOWN, SALLY!") — is that the phrase for "show your hand"—"lay down"?
Sambucus (elder or elderberry) is a genus of flowering plants in the family Adoxaceae. It was formerly placed in the honeysuckle family, Caprifoliaceae, but was reclassified due to genetic evidence. It contains between 5 and 30 species ofdeciduous shrubs, small trees and herbaceous perennial plants.The genus occurs in temperate to subtropical regions of the world. More widespread in the Northern Hemisphere, its Southern Hemisphere occurrence is restricted to parts of Australasia and South America. Many species are widely cultivated for their ornamental leaves, flowers and fruit.[2]The leaves are pinnate with 5–9 leaflets (rarely 3 or 11). Each leaf is 5–30 cm (2.0–12 in) long, and the leaflets have serrated margins. They bear large clusters of small white or cream-colored flowers in late spring; these are followed by clusters of small black, blue-black, or red berries (rarely yellow or white). (wikipedia)
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That's all. Wish there was more to talk about, but there isn't. Unless you want me to catalog the suboptimal fill for you. NEALE! ELYSE! Oh, you don't want me to do that? OK, good. I BE tired, anyway. Need to LAE down. Good day.
Signed, Rex Parker, King of CrossWorld