Constructor: Paolo Pasco
Relative difficulty: Easy-Medium
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THEME: none
Word of the Day: TAMAR (26D: Daughter of David, in the Bible) —
I'm told this constructor is roughly my daughter's age (b. 2000). This is insane. Partially because no one that young should be able to do anything, according to me, and partially because this grid looks like it was put together by a competent, experienced, middle-aged constructor. It's conservative in terms of its content—in a good way. It's a solidly general-interest grid with very little in the way of aracana, contemporary or ancient. And yet it's not boring, and it looks simpler than it is. That middle—where three 11s run through three more 11s—is impressive. No easy feat to bring that off with all lively, unawkward answers. Corners are less interesting, but they do no harm. Might've wanted to have another go at that NE, where ANITRA and ESTOPS give off a faint whiff of mothballs. But emphasis on the word "faint." I assume this is a debut—with a 15-year-old constructor, It Better Be! [shakes fist at no one in particular]. If so, it's very promising. It's also the highlight of the NYT puzzle week thus far, for sure.
So this started LGS DIGS IN CAN IT I'M IT (I don't mind the two "IT"s because I'd rather have I'M IT than the abbr. IMIT.). Then I was able to draw on my vast experience in Having Lived Through The '90s (something this constructor Did Not Do WTF!?) to get "MAD ABOUT YOU" (and, not much later, "TIME COP").
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Things got a little loose after that, as I went careening down the grid on a NW-to-SE angle, latticing my way to the bottom of the SE corner and then going back and filling things in. Here's my first Journey to the Bottom of the Grid:
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You can see (or infer) that I tried to get those long Downs in the middle to budge, but since I couldn't do so instantly, I moved on, figuring I'd pick up crosses sooner or later to help me out. You can also see that I have SWINGS down there at 41D: Playground stables (SLIDES). That one set me back pretty bad. ARI was a gimme (49A: Agent Gold of TV), but because it worked with the incorrect SWINGS, it gummed things up rather than opening them ... up. E-ending ATHENE is pretty archaic and unlikable, but it caused no problems. There were simply no other problems. Needed all the crosses to get ANITRA. Had MINOR TICKET (?) before I had MINOR THREAT. Had WHIP before CHAP (8D: Get cracking?). Otherwise, a smooth ride.
Signed, Rex Parker, King of CrossWorld
[Follow Rex Parker on Facebook and Twitter]
Relative difficulty: Easy-Medium
THEME: none
Word of the Day: TAMAR (26D: Daughter of David, in the Bible) —
Tamar (Hebrew: תָּמָר, Modern tamar, Tiberian tāmār) is a person in 2 Samuel in the Hebrew Bible. She was the daughter of King David, and sister of Absalom. Her mother was Maacah, daughter of Talmai, king of Geshur. According to the narrative in 2 Samuel 13, she was raped by her half-brother Amnon. [...] Absalom, who hated his half-brother Amnon for his rape of Tamar, waited for two years and then had Amnon murdered.(wikipedia)
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I'm told this constructor is roughly my daughter's age (b. 2000). This is insane. Partially because no one that young should be able to do anything, according to me, and partially because this grid looks like it was put together by a competent, experienced, middle-aged constructor. It's conservative in terms of its content—in a good way. It's a solidly general-interest grid with very little in the way of aracana, contemporary or ancient. And yet it's not boring, and it looks simpler than it is. That middle—where three 11s run through three more 11s—is impressive. No easy feat to bring that off with all lively, unawkward answers. Corners are less interesting, but they do no harm. Might've wanted to have another go at that NE, where ANITRA and ESTOPS give off a faint whiff of mothballs. But emphasis on the word "faint." I assume this is a debut—with a 15-year-old constructor, It Better Be! [shakes fist at no one in particular]. If so, it's very promising. It's also the highlight of the NYT puzzle week thus far, for sure.
So this started LGS DIGS IN CAN IT I'M IT (I don't mind the two "IT"s because I'd rather have I'M IT than the abbr. IMIT.). Then I was able to draw on my vast experience in Having Lived Through The '90s (something this constructor Did Not Do WTF!?) to get "MAD ABOUT YOU" (and, not much later, "TIME COP").
Signed, Rex Parker, King of CrossWorld
[Follow Rex Parker on Facebook and Twitter]