Sunday, November 27, 2016

Monday, November 28, 2016, Kristian House

0:04:46

Hah! This theme made me laugh out loud. A duck, a duck, and a goose are hidden in three long theme answers. TRIBU[TEAL]BUMS, APARTH[EIDER]A, and SWOR[NENE]MIES. Very nice.


The long down fill is full of good answers, too. GUSSIEDUP (11D: Dressed to the nines), NOGOODNIK (34D: Baddie), SLICKERS (41D: Rain jackets), PETUNIA (Flower that's also a girl's name) (could have been so many things…), all of these are strong. And yes, ENACTOR (44D: Legislator) is not good, but I'll take it, because we've also got SCRIMP (23A: Be extremely frugal), ROGUE (43A: Go ____ (no longer follow orders)), and PAGAN (9A: Wiccan or Druid). It's a high-quality grid, I'm telling you. And this is a Monday! I even like the bold ABORC (2D: Multiple-choice options)! And all we PAY is a little ESO HERE, a little ALA there… that kind of thing leaves no SCAR.

1A: Taxis (CABS) gets a C+. The plus is for not cluing it as wine. It was my first confident answer.

Thumbs up, AMIGO, thumbs up.

- Horace

3 comments:

  1. 3:59 (1 typo error at PONES)
    Good theme, well done hiding of the words across two word phrases. Favorite answer is NOGOODNIK.

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  2. Totally agreed that the theme is fun, and all three are crosswordese to boot (which wouldn't normally be a positive, but somehow it is fun here). Some nice fill too (such as PAGAN and PUNT, even BULB although I would have clued that one in terms of plants). Toughest cross for me was USGA crossing DUNST - could imagine various Golf Associations and, well, actors.

    All in all, a SOOTHEing puzzle.

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  3. 7:15
    Excellent Monday. I tried TRIBUTEbands (didn't fit) and TRIBUTEmovieS (didn't work) before I got a couple of crosses. And though I saw many signs while driving in Hawai'i warning us to be on the lookout for crossing NENEs, I never ESPY'd one CROPUP.

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