0:58:19
Well, unlike yesterday, when we put the last letter into this one, we got the "Well Done!" screen and we weren't at all surprised. That's not to say it wasn't tough, but, well, it just didn't have as much stuff that we positively did not know.
WHATSUPG (1D: "How's it goin' dawg?") was a bit of a shock, and if they're going to go there, why not go all the way and have it be "What up, G?" instead? What gangster bothers to put on that apostrophe s?
That whole area was the last to fall. I'm not sure why it took us so long to think of WHIPIT (1A: 1980 new wave classic), but it did. Much of it, HAMELS (15A: Cole ____, 2008 World Series M.V.P.), TRUTV (19A: "Bait Car" channel), and UDE (25A: Ulan-____ (city in Siberia), and ILUV (5D: "____ It" (2006 Young Jeezy single) might as well have been written in Gaelic for all it meant to us. Frannie had put in SADO (22A: It can precede masochism) early, and then pulled PINCENEZ (29A: Wear for Teddy Roosevelt) out of her waistcoat pocket, and we were able to grimp our way up from the bottom. I'm sorry, is that French? Well, I'm not apologizing to Mr. Wentz for it, that's for sure!
In the opposite corner, which was the first to go, UNDERGOD (34D: Follower of one nation?) seems out of its element between GONZO (46D: Outrageously freewheeling), SEXSELLS (36D: Marketing mantra) and MMMMGOOD (35D: Soup line). And it's crossed by a gun, pop music, jewelry, barbarians and gluttony. And speaking of that last one, love seeing GORGE (50A: Have thirds, say) in the grid. And FAZOOL (55A: Rhyme for "drool" in a Dean Martin classic) isn't bad either.
Elsewhere, I enjoyed the side-by-side JARJAR (39D: Sci-fi's ____ Binks) and ONEONE (40D: Many an early tie), even though any mention of Jar Jar Binks is unfortunate. Me so tired of that'a creature.
All in all, a pretty nice Saturday. And in closing, RELEASE THE KRAKEN!
- Horace
1:18:24 (DNF)
ReplyDeleteYes, excellent that the KRAKEN was used, and unfortunate about JARJAR. MAGNUMS actually took a little bit for me, as did NAUT. Today, the trouble that I had was in the NE. I'd never have gotten SPACEJAM since it crossed with JONKYL (a person of whom I'd heard, but just couldn't pull his name out), SCHMUTZ and MASSEY. It just wasn't happening. These crosses, however, were not impossible, so I don't give this puzzle as bad a mark as yesterday's. I should have kept working on it, but I wanted to release my puzzle spreadsheet, which I will send to Frannie privately and also try to post on Facebook now.