D. N. F.
Very hard. We were booked and on the move today from 9:30am until almost 9:30pm, but before and after that, we spent well over an hour on this thing before getting it all filled in, only to find that we had a mistake that we just couldn't find! Our "Men in Black" agent names are a bit rusty, so when "Agent B" seemed as good as any other letter, and "Do the bob" seemed like it could have been a terrible, but at least possible, answer to 14D: Cut it (DOTHEJOB) (could have been talking about hair, right?), well... that's what happened to us. We also weren't entirely sure of the ESAI (8D: Morales of film) (When will I remember this!?)/DIETZ (30A: ____ & Watson (big name in deli meat)) crossing, or the meaning of HEELERS (44A: Many party hacks).
We said just yesterday that we like a challenge, but when you struggle and struggle, and the answer turns out to be PLACENAME (31D: Boson, Chicago or Kansas), it doesn't quite feel worth it. ALASKANKINGCRAB is 35A: One with long, luscious legs? Luscious? Really? Yuck. And speaking of yuck, MILK, MAMA, and FETUS weren't the greatest trio.
I don't know... I don't want to just slam it, I guess, but we didn't love it. Perhaps others will comment with things they liked about it. Me, I'm going to go rest, and look forward to tomorrow's grid.
- Horace
I'm quite proud of this one, as you DNF'd and Rex said it was one of the hardest Saturday's in recent memory. I actually breezed--OK, relatively speaking--through the bottom two-thirds. The northwest was indeed pretty darned pesky. I was hung up on "RapSoprano," even though I guess that wouldn't quite make sense, and "Sheet Music." I mean, wouldn't those at least be a great pair, what with "rap sheet," and all? OK, I liked PSALMIST, and I actually thought PLACENAME was kind of clever since I'm sure everybody and his brother were trying to work in something with the word "band" or "group." Loved, loved SAYHEYKID as the answer for a clue with "Sultan of Swat" in it. No mention of Ruth or Mays. Terrific. What I love the most about this--and this is usually true of great, tough Saturdays--is that so many of the long ones that seem so hard at first turn out to be simple phrases like MAKESAMESS, DOTHEJOB, and TOPHONORS.
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