Constructor: Matthew Stock
Relative difficulty: Easy-Medium (untimed)
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THEME: NBA movies — movies clued as if they had something to do with NBA players:
Theme answers:
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This one feels pretty thin. Not sure what the NBA has to do with movies, but weirder combos have been the basis of puzzles, so fine, let's accept the premise. Still, several problems. Mostly, it's just dull. These aren't terribly funny clues or interesting movie titles, and "THE GREEN HORNET" isn't even best known as a movie (it became well known as a radio show, running for 15+ years, and then spawned a series of movies none of you have seen, as well as an iconic if short-lived TV show, which some of you undoubtedly have seen). The 2011 movie did big business, but it has like zero cultural shelf life. It seems out of place here on many levels. Further, seems really weird to put this theme in a 15x15 with just three answers. If you (I) can instantly think of a better movie and better answer than any of the ones in the grid ("RAGING BULL"), then maybe the theme isn't being expressed ... as well as it might. You really couldn't do anything with SUN? ROCKET? WARRIOR? I mean ... "UNCLE BUCK"? No? The theme ends up feeling anemic and lackluster and just ... not ready for prime time. Doesn't help that it's totally outshone by the long Downs (specifically HIT THE WEIGHTS and CUTE AS A BUTTON).
Relative difficulty: Easy-Medium (untimed)
Theme answers:
- "THE KING'S SPEECH" (20A: Address by a Sacramento N.B.A. player?)
- "THE PELICAN BRIEF" (35A: Game notes for a New Orleans N.B.A. player?)
- "THE GREEN HORNET" (46A: Charlotte N.B.A. player in charge of recycling?)
A role-playing game (sometimes spelled roleplaying game; abbreviated RPG) is a game in which players assume the roles of characters in a fictional setting. Players take responsibility for acting out these roles within a narrative, either through literal acting, or through a process of structured decision-making regarding character development. Actions taken within many games succeed or fail according to a formal system of rules and guidelines. (wikipedia)
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ERBE, oof (48D: Flavorers in Italian cookery). That is ... something. I have no idea why ERBE > ERSE here. I'm no ERSE fan, but it's recognizable at least. Why would you try to get cute with the worst little bit of fill in the grid? Just accept that it's bad, keep its badness commonplace, and move on. But ERBE? YEESH. Nothing else in the grid is particularly IRKsome. Only trouble I had was totally self-inflicted. Wanted EXPO at 1A: Fair (JUST), and then when that was clearly wrong ... I don't know, I got turned around. Put in JEST at 1D: Not be serious and then crossed it with JAKE (doesn't JAKE mean "Fair," as in "on the level"? ... looks like it means "all right,""fine"). Anyway, once I had JAKE in there, my brain weirdly switched to thinking the 1D clue was the 1A clue, and so I ended up crossing JEST with ... JEST :( Wasn't til I reviewed the grid that I saw ETAH sitting there and thought, "well that can't be right" (2D: Home of the Anasazi State Park Museum) (UTAH). That's all. There's definitely a theme *concept* here, but the expression is ... a little wide of the mark.
Signed, Rex Parker, King of CrossWorld
Signed, Rex Parker, King of CrossWorld
P.S. here's an interesting little article at merriam-webster.com on the meaning of "swole" (18D: Make an effort to get swole), which I expect to see more and more as a five-letter answer in the coming years
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