Theme: None
Total block: 27
Sigh...another Matthew Higgins, what can I say?
Annoying amount of affixes and obscure words. Maybe Mr. Higgins should give up this ambitious themeless idea and plunge into themed puzzles for some badly needed batting practice and minor league training. Amazing how he can come up with 27 blocks every Saturday.
Look at how many ER, RE, ED he employed to create this grid, not to mention those pesky S'es:
15A: Puts back: REPLACES
61A: Raised letter designer: EMBOSSER
62A: More compressed: DENSER
1D: Gave a big hand to: PRAISED
45D: Those relaxing: RESTERS
37D: Populated: PEOPLED
And the irksome RENCOUNTER (27D: Hostile contest). Have you ever heard of it before? I have not. What a desperate a 10-letter word for a desperate constructor who desperately needs RE & ER affixes.
Sloppy editing job from our editor too:
6D: Frozen fruity treats: ICES
50D: Unfreeze: DEICE
58A: Wheel-driving channel: MILLRACE. Completely unkown to me.
29D: Garden tractor brand: WHEEL HORSE. Another unknown.
I had to flirt with Mr. google a few times, and I don't think I enjoyed the experience at all.
Have to share with you this interesting piece on Matthew Higgins.
Across:
1A: Perfect maker?: PRACTICE. PRACTICE makes perfect.
9A: Chucklehead: STUPES
16A: Sword of Damocles, e.g.: THREAT. This is Richard Westall's "The Sword of Damocles", the symbol of hidden perils of power.
17A: Cause supporter: ADHERENT
18A: Speakers' platforms: ROSTRA. Singular is ROSTRUM.
20A: Bony-plated dinosaurs: STEGOSAURS. I googled this one. Could not get the letter G and O. See this picture. Why is it called STEGOSAURUS? Needs some polishing with the clue. Terrible repetition of "saurs". Can you come up with a better clue?
22A: Rope fiber: SISAL. Named for SISAL, Yucatán.
24A: Worsted fabric: SERGE. Yawner. It's time to recognize the genius in SERGE Gainsbourg. No other song is more exotic and erotic than "Je T'aime... Moi No Plus": "Je vais et je viens, entre tes reins..." What other words do you need?
25A: U.S. Medical grp.: NIH (National Institutes of Health). I would not have got this one without the down clues.
26A: Splicing device: EDITOR. New to me. I always thought EDITOR is a person.
28A: Extinct bird: MOA
30A: Expression wish: DESIRE. I DESIRE U2.
37A: Lay down asphalt: PAVE. Now we are on PAVE binge. I kind of miss ET AL now.
46A: Narrative poetry: EPOS. Epic poetry. Also new word to me.
48A: Sleekly graceful: FELINE. Dictionary has another definition for FELINE: "Sly, stealthy, or treacherous".
52A: __ the ticket!: THAT'S. I don't understand this one. Is it a slang?
53A: Fitted for grasping: PREHENSILE. New to me also. So close to COMPREHENSIBLE.
57A: Blow a gasket: LOSE IT. SEE RED is clued as "Blue a gasket" last time.
60A: Make manifest: EVINCE. No need to "Make". "Manifest" is sufficient.
63A: Wakame and kelp: SEAWEEDS. I like wakame. Kelp is too coarse for me. My favorite SEAWEED is nori. Delicious!
Down:
2D: Beach close cause: RED TIDE
3D: Especial to special, e.g.: APHESIS. I've never heard of this term before. Was it a gimme to you?
4D: Some flowering vines: CLEMATISES. CLEMATIS the "Virgin's Bower".
9D: Russian count's wish: STROGANOFF. Or STROGNOV. Vaguely heard of it before. It's named after Russian diplomat Paul Stroganov. It's "a dish of tender beef strips, mushrooms, and onions cooked in a sour-cream sauce and served with noodles or rice." Russians put sour-cream in everything.
10D: Porky's sweetheart: PETUNIA. Learned this from doing Xword. PETUNIA was always a flower to me before.
21D: Fourpence piece, once: GROAT. Ha, I wonder if Mark (Buenos Aires) knows this English silver. I had on idea.
23D: Tribal knowledge: LORE
38D: Judge favorably: APPROVE. Are you happy with the "Judge" clue?
39D: Elects: VOTES IN
43D: Dark igneous rock: DIABASE. Another unknown. Here is a picture. Amazing how those yellow flowers can survive and bloom there.
44D: Inveigled: ENTICED. I did not know the meaning of "Inveigle". I only knew "Inveigh".
51D: Slug trail: SLIME. Icky!
C.C.
Total block: 27
Sigh...another Matthew Higgins, what can I say?
Annoying amount of affixes and obscure words. Maybe Mr. Higgins should give up this ambitious themeless idea and plunge into themed puzzles for some badly needed batting practice and minor league training. Amazing how he can come up with 27 blocks every Saturday.
Look at how many ER, RE, ED he employed to create this grid, not to mention those pesky S'es:
15A: Puts back: REPLACES
61A: Raised letter designer: EMBOSSER
62A: More compressed: DENSER
1D: Gave a big hand to: PRAISED
45D: Those relaxing: RESTERS
37D: Populated: PEOPLED
And the irksome RENCOUNTER (27D: Hostile contest). Have you ever heard of it before? I have not. What a desperate a 10-letter word for a desperate constructor who desperately needs RE & ER affixes.
Sloppy editing job from our editor too:
6D: Frozen fruity treats: ICES
50D: Unfreeze: DEICE
58A: Wheel-driving channel: MILLRACE. Completely unkown to me.
29D: Garden tractor brand: WHEEL HORSE. Another unknown.
I had to flirt with Mr. google a few times, and I don't think I enjoyed the experience at all.
Have to share with you this interesting piece on Matthew Higgins.
Across:
1A: Perfect maker?: PRACTICE. PRACTICE makes perfect.
9A: Chucklehead: STUPES
16A: Sword of Damocles, e.g.: THREAT. This is Richard Westall's "The Sword of Damocles", the symbol of hidden perils of power.
17A: Cause supporter: ADHERENT
18A: Speakers' platforms: ROSTRA. Singular is ROSTRUM.
20A: Bony-plated dinosaurs: STEGOSAURS. I googled this one. Could not get the letter G and O. See this picture. Why is it called STEGOSAURUS? Needs some polishing with the clue. Terrible repetition of "saurs". Can you come up with a better clue?
22A: Rope fiber: SISAL. Named for SISAL, Yucatán.
24A: Worsted fabric: SERGE. Yawner. It's time to recognize the genius in SERGE Gainsbourg. No other song is more exotic and erotic than "Je T'aime... Moi No Plus": "Je vais et je viens, entre tes reins..." What other words do you need?
25A: U.S. Medical grp.: NIH (National Institutes of Health). I would not have got this one without the down clues.
26A: Splicing device: EDITOR. New to me. I always thought EDITOR is a person.
28A: Extinct bird: MOA
30A: Expression wish: DESIRE. I DESIRE U2.
37A: Lay down asphalt: PAVE. Now we are on PAVE binge. I kind of miss ET AL now.
46A: Narrative poetry: EPOS. Epic poetry. Also new word to me.
48A: Sleekly graceful: FELINE. Dictionary has another definition for FELINE: "Sly, stealthy, or treacherous".
52A: __ the ticket!: THAT'S. I don't understand this one. Is it a slang?
53A: Fitted for grasping: PREHENSILE. New to me also. So close to COMPREHENSIBLE.
57A: Blow a gasket: LOSE IT. SEE RED is clued as "Blue a gasket" last time.
60A: Make manifest: EVINCE. No need to "Make". "Manifest" is sufficient.
63A: Wakame and kelp: SEAWEEDS. I like wakame. Kelp is too coarse for me. My favorite SEAWEED is nori. Delicious!
Down:
2D: Beach close cause: RED TIDE
3D: Especial to special, e.g.: APHESIS. I've never heard of this term before. Was it a gimme to you?
4D: Some flowering vines: CLEMATISES. CLEMATIS the "Virgin's Bower".
9D: Russian count's wish: STROGANOFF. Or STROGNOV. Vaguely heard of it before. It's named after Russian diplomat Paul Stroganov. It's "a dish of tender beef strips, mushrooms, and onions cooked in a sour-cream sauce and served with noodles or rice." Russians put sour-cream in everything.
10D: Porky's sweetheart: PETUNIA. Learned this from doing Xword. PETUNIA was always a flower to me before.
21D: Fourpence piece, once: GROAT. Ha, I wonder if Mark (Buenos Aires) knows this English silver. I had on idea.
23D: Tribal knowledge: LORE
38D: Judge favorably: APPROVE. Are you happy with the "Judge" clue?
39D: Elects: VOTES IN
43D: Dark igneous rock: DIABASE. Another unknown. Here is a picture. Amazing how those yellow flowers can survive and bloom there.
44D: Inveigled: ENTICED. I did not know the meaning of "Inveigle". I only knew "Inveigh".
51D: Slug trail: SLIME. Icky!
C.C.
