Finally, I'm in the know about some INSIDEINFO! The four theme answers all have the word INFO "inside." And, what's more, INFO crosses a word boundary in all four entries, which, as all us crossword puzzle solvers know, is the way it should be.
My favorite of the theme answers is TINFOILHAT. It PUT me in mind of a great Simpson's episode. I thought it worth noting that it appears just above the baseball-themed answer ATBAT (Up, in baseball). Could there be some kind of connection? There's another baseball reference in the puzzle at 27D: "Not foul, as a baseball hit" (FAIR), and we have "Keeps under surveillance (SPIESON) at 45A. Coincidence? I don't think so.
The puzzle's self-referential clue 30A: Like a Monday crossword, typically (EASY) held true for me for the most part. It's not my fastest Monday ever, but it went right along. I did get hung up briefly at 5D. One who's always looking for a lift? where I had a little trouble parsing SKI__M. I wasn't thinking ski lift - not with today's weather! - but that was the way to go (SKIBUM). I also thought the wording of the clue at 26D: Last emperor of the Julio-Claudian dynasty had a air of difficulty, but this being a Monday and the answer being four squares, crossword darling NERO went right in. The clue "Bug seen mostly in winter" also had me thinking for a minute (FLU). Ha!
I enjoyed SPUD, and what's more, reading, across the bottom, we get TASTY SPUD, and then MISO which is crossed with BLINI. What's not to like? Other good fill includes KNAVE, WATERY, OASIS, PRIM, and last but not least, INLATE. The name AURIC Goldfinger (Bond villain) is clever, but that's down to Ian Fleming, I suppose.
~Frannie.
4:01
ReplyDeleteThat Simpsons episode is classic! And for those unfamiliar with it, Bart develops a conviction that MLB is spying on the population.
Nice review!
6:13
ReplyDeleteNot my fastest Monday, either, but like Frannie, I went right along with it. I wasn't familiar with Goldfinger's first name, and I'm sure I haven't seen that movie in several decades; maybe I should look at it again. PDIDDY looks odd in the grid.