A Friday puzzle that was obviously right in my wheelhouse and/or this one got assigned to the wrong day. The 16 minute bracket is way below my Friday average, and 16:11 is only 7 seconds slower than Tuesday's time. Maybe they didn't put enough tri in the TRIAGE this week. :)
We have some nice stacks of three ten-letter words in the north east and south west. My favorite might be 16A. Question often asked after twirling (HOWDOILOOK).
The stacks were surrounded by some amusing fill - not quite enough to BUSTAGUT, but enjoyable. Some of my favorites were
5D. One going everyhere on foot? (SHOE) - ha!
36A. Like a pact with the devil (UNHOLY), aptly crossed with ANTIPOPE - Apt!
38A. Jobs in tech (STEVE) - very smooth hidden capital.
39A. Subject of a 1984 mockumentary - who doesn't like a reference to SPINALTAP? No one doesn't.
30. "O" follower (CANADA) - good old America, Jr.
3D. Antic (MADCAP) and 25D. Bop (CONK)- excellent words.
And a fine pair of Sycophants at 9D and 40D: TOADY and LAPDOG.
There were a few answers I wasn't GOOGOOGAGA over. I'm not a big fan of gun-related clues, so starting right off at 1A with AMMO didn't thrill me, although the clue is clever enough. B. At 21A. Coffee shop freebies for LIDS seemed a bit misleading, and not in a good way. 7D. Baby animal in a parable in II Samuel (EWELAMB) seemed a bit over the top - ewe AND lamb?
~Frannie
30:30
ReplyDeleteI had ___LAMB for quite a long time before the crosses started filling in; I thought EWELAMB a bit much, too. BATCAVE is timely, and PHASER is fine, but I don't know about cluing it as if it were a real weapon. Everyone loves a nice SKYATLAS, and I should confess that TOMBRADY took me a very long time to figure out.
10:57 FWOE
ReplyDeleteI was totally fooled by the hidden capital, and the V of COVE and STEVE was wrong when I finished. Dammit! Otherwise, though, this was a fun Friday romp. I love the look of the grid.
14:32
ReplyDeleteI just want to say that TOMBRADY was the first thing I entered. I thought it immediately and only hesitated to see that the B would work (MBA was obvious). SUPERDOME was also a gimme, entered with only the (also a gimme) DAVY Jones cross.