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Hello, everybody! It’s Clare, again for the final Tuesday of October, which has severely flown by. I used to be fixing this puzzle whereas watching the ManningCast on ESPN2, which was moderately enjoyable (if slightly distracting, particularly when President Obama was a visitor). In basic, proper now could be the golden time for sports activities, with the Premier League, the MLB playoffs, the NBA and NHL beginning again up, NFL video games on on a regular basis, and the NWSL championship and the MLS Cup playoffs wrapping up. I’ve mainly simply had the TV on within the background 24/7 making an attempt to maintain up with every little thing! Too dangerous my Steelers look terrible, and my Liverpudlians aren’t killing it like they often do.
Anywho… on to the puzzle!
Constructor: Ashleigh Silveira and Nick Shephard
Relative problem: Easy-medium
THEME: STEPS UP ONE’S GAME — The circled letters within the puzzle every ascend diagonally to call a board sport
- SCRABBLE (ascending diagonally from the primary letter of 42A)
- RISK (ascending diagonally from the primary letter of 62A)
- CHESS (ascending diagonally from the fourth letter of 24A)
- MONOPOLY (ascending diagonally from the second letter of 60A)
Word of the Day: INXS (64A: “Need You Tonight” band, 1987) —
INXS (a phonetic play on “in extra”) have been an Australian rock band, shaped as The Farriss Brothers in 1977 in Sydney, New South Wales. The band’s founding members have been bassist Garry Gary Beers, fundamental composer and keyboardist Andrew Farriss, drummer Jon Farriss, guitarist Tim Farriss, lead singer and fundamental lyricist Michael Hutchence, and guitarist and saxophonist Kirk Pengilly. For 20 years, INXS was fronted by Hutchence, whose magnetic stage presence made him the focus of the band. Initially recognized for his or her new wave/pop fashion, the band later developed a more durable pub rock fashion that included funk and dance parts… In September 1988, the band swept the MTV Video Music Awards with the video for “Need You Tonight/Mediate” successful in 5 classes. (Wiki)
• • •
This puzzle was kinda good? The grid itself is visually interesting, with so few black squares in it. The building of the grid is spectacular, with how the creators labored two eight-letter board video games into the theme. Using the board video games within the puzzle labored properly and tied tightly to the revealer. There have been additionally different solutions that form of associated to the gaming theme all through the puzzle, with DISC (1A: It’s black on one aspect and white on the opposite, in Othello), ANTE (14A:
Casino buy-in), PURSE (15A: Holder of keys, telephone and IDs) (although clued in another way, a handbag might be the prize for successful a sport), PIECE (15D: Jigsaw merchandise), and even MUD HEN (9D:
Toledo minor-leaguer, named for a marsh hen) (a member of a crew that performs a sport; sure, I do know I’m reaching right here).
The solely piece of the theme that basically irked me was the revealer: STEPS UP ONE’S GAME (7D). Does anyone speak that method? One must step up one’s sport? People say, “step up your game” or “step up my game” however not that “one should step up one’s game.” I do know I’m being a little bit of a stickler, however that was an enormous piece of the puzzle to not be the frequent utilization. Granted, I didn’t use the theme or the revealer in any respect in my clear up, however I used to be irritated after I seemed again.
Hello, Natick at 58D/64A with VMI (Keydets’ sch.) and INXS (“Need You Tonight” band, 1987) crossing one another. I’ve by no means heard of VMI (and the identify of the obscure mascot within the clue certainly didn’t assist). I didn’t know the identify INXS, both (although I’ve positively heard “Need You Tonight” earlier than), so getting the “I” there was powerful and was the final letter I put into the puzzle. I assumed it is perhaps a “U” for “university” or possibly a “C” for “college” or possibly… or possibly…. An “I” for “institute” was just about the very last thing on my radar. I put “char” as a substitute of SEAR for 50D: Scorch on a grill, which triggered me some hassle within the southwest nook, too.
The puzzle appeared to skew a tad older, which made some components of the puzzle difficult for me. See: ELSIE (56A), the clue for POPO at 38D: The fuzz, INXS (64A), Lisa LOEB (16A), and SEE SPOT RUN (3D). My dad instructed me that the newbie books in first grade featured Dick, Jane, and Spot, however an fascinating tidbit is that, after I was googling to determine what SEE SPOT RUN was a reference to, I got here throughout somebody who stated the road SEE SPOT RUN really by no means seems within the books however is continually referenced. It looks like a type of Berenstein vs. Berenstain bear paradoxes (see: the Mandela impact). Also, for no matter cause, I learn the reply as “sees pot run,” which is not sensible and is kind of humorous to me trying again.
I actually disliked the double use of “tab” at 22A: Soda can opener with POP TAB and 31A: Key above Caps Lock as TAB. I do know working round “Scrabble” should’ve been powerful, but it surely’s fairly ugly to repeat like that. Those are each alongside TBAR (23D) and TERRA (34A), which makes that part have method too many T’s, B’s, A’s, and R’s. Then, within the reverse part round “monopoly,” you’ve received WOOING (49A), OOPSIE (45A), AFOOT (37D), and FOO (41A), which is a complete lot of double “oo”s.
Misc.:
- The crossword is outwardly the debut for each constructors, so congrats to them!
- I used to be simply a part of a DEPOSITION (28D: Testimony beneath oath) final week and will probably be in most likely many extra in my authorized future. I simply hope that I don’t turn out to be MOOT (61A: Not price having, as an argument).
- My uncle was as soon as the nationwide Scrabble champion. No one will play Monopoly with my dad once more as a result of he will get maaad on the sport (and his indignant eyebrows come out). I can’t play chess with my a lot youthful cousin as a result of she’s method too good. The solely actual reminiscence I’ve of Risk is after I was given the sport as a birthday current as a child, and it was the “Lord of the Rings” model; we by no means really performed the sport, however I took the ring that was a part of the sport and wore that round for some time. I ought to’ve stored that ring in my pocket for when the brand new “Rings of Power” premiered.
- 44D: Belief system as CREED makes me consider the trailer that lately dropped for “Creed III,” which will probably be Michael B. Jordan’s directorial debut and also will star Jonathan Majors. He’s within the new trailer that simply dropped for Ant-Man 3, too, and seems poised to be the large dangerous in Marvel for the foreseeable future. He appears great, and I’m very a lot right here for him taking up Hollywood.
And that’s it from me! Hope everybody has an ideal November.
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