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Colorado
Steve L. already said it but I feel compelled to add my opinion about a crossword so hotly debated in the Comments. A vote, I suppose. This puzzle was a masterpiece. I agree it should absolutely be a contender for puzzle of the year. I've personally liked rebus puzzles since my first encounter with one. If you don't like them, you don't like them. You have every right to hate them in general. This puzzle was a masterpiece.
I haven't posted to this board in quite some but that was my least favorite puzzle in quite some time. I confess to being a bit of a brat about Sunday puzzles; it's one of my favorite hours of any given week. So when the Sunday puzzle is full of trivia, poor cluing (just my opinion), and is generally a joyless slog it gets my goat, so to speak. I understand mileage varies. Just saying that for me, that was really not pleasant at all.
I'm a little surprised that so many people disliked this puzzle. I don't comment much, but I'd like to throw a vote into the "loved it!" column. I truly have no clue why anyone would have thought it was a rebus. I got through it too quickly, but it was constructed well and a joy to solve. Thank you, Adam!
I try to be sure and post when I particularly enjoy a puzzle. This is easily one of my favorite Sunday puzzles for quite some time. Loved that each rebus had a different "gimmick" and many of the clues were quite clever. Just very well done in my opinion. Thanks, Kareem!
Yes, a bit easy for a Thursday, but I enjoyed it quite a bit. Folks sure get a little bent out of shape in the Comments section. Not every puzzle can live up to your own personal idea of a "perfect puzzle". That's a ridiculous expectation to have. Perhaps "personal constructor" will someday be as viable an occupation as "personal chef". Congratulations on the publication of your first Thursday puzzle, Royce!
I try to make sure I comment when I believe I have just completed a particularly notable puzzle. Crossword puzzles, when constructed well, are (to me) a particularly satisfying blend of technical precision and artistic sensibility. The result of that adeptly crafted blend? Joy. In this case, a quiet and peaceful Sunday morning of appreciative smiles throughout the grid. Thanks, Jeffrey and Jeff!
Wow, a lot of complains about 1D. "The Governator" is a nickname. "Ahnold" is a nickname. The answer fits the clue. "Arnold" would not have fit, as it is not a nickname! When I saw the clue, the first thing that popped in my head was "Ahnold" - in the form of "Ahhhhnold". I entered it confidently. It was a fine piece of clueing, as were many others. I would describe the whole as clever, enjoyable, and on the easier side. It was a great start to Fathers Day, in my opinion. Thank you, constructors!
What a masterpiece. The most fun I've had solving a Sunday puzzle in quite some time. Amazing puzzles have always stuck with me. I will randomly see or hear something that takes me back to a puzzle I enjoyed ten years ago. Thankfully, there are so many talented constructers that my mind is blown several times per year. But the last time I felt this awestruck was June 27, 2024. I have no doubt I will look back on this treasure of a puzzle for years to come. Thanks, Dylan! Just spectacular.
Feel the need to add to the posts from the folks who liked this one to help balance out the board a bit. Personally, I was pleasantly surprised to be challenged again on a Friday. I found the last handful of Friday puzzles to be fun enough but lacking the level of difficulty Friday's deserve. Finished it clean about 7 minutes above my average. I thought that was perfect. The clueing was misleading and creative; I have no idea where people are getting "dark" from, but to each their own. Anyway, thanks for the tough but fun Friday, Adrian. For me, it was a great start to the day.
I have to chime in when I enjoy a puzzle this much. The cluing was just right for a Wednesday and the "aha" moment with the dashed clues was very fun for me. I also loved that the trick began with the first clue so one wondered where it was going from the start. Unlike Sam, I first put in "mesan", even though "chicken parmesan in fat" doesn't make a whole lot of sense. Clever, and very well done. Great puzzle. Thank you, Jesse!
When opinions are so divided I always feel compelled to cast my vote. I enjoyed this puzzle (happen to be a fan of the trickier ones), but I can understand people's frustration. I can't put my finger on it, but there was a lack of cohesion that left me a little unsettled. I guess, for me, the trick just didn't seem "tight". I do think, like many others, that this puzzle would have been a much more enjoyable solve using Barry's stone tablet. However, as I said, I had fun working it out. Thank you, Dan!
Sunday mornings with a crossword, a snoring hound, and a delicious cup of coffee are absolutely precious to me. When a constructor presents a puzzle that is as enjoyable to solve as this one, I feel compelled to thank them for the icing on the cake. Thank you, Dylan!
Just chiming in with the rest in congratulating Landon for constructing a very fun Wednesday puzzle. Tight clueing, clever gimmick, and just an overall enjoyable solve. Thank you, Landon!
It's been a bit since I've enjoyed a solve this much. A particularly fun puzzle and a tasty cup of coffee. What a great start to the day. Thanks, Simeon!
@Eric Hougland Agreed. It was a great Tuesday puzzle and I hope that doesn't get lost in the (as Eric said, justified) complaints. Well done, sir! I really enjoyed your puzzle.
Count me in with other solvers who's reading comprehension let them down. I solved the puzzle without realizing the first two letters of each down clue were the first two letters of the answer. I just knew they were missing. I tediously slogged through considering what each down answer could be, cycling through word after word in my head until one fit. Some were obvious; others required a little brain power. I finished it a couple of minutes above my average. And you know what? I loved every minute of it! What a fun puzzle! I think it would have been less fun (a little too easy) if I wasn't too dense to read 52A properly. In my defense, I solve at 4:30am before coffee. Thanks, Jesse! That was a great start to the day.
I certainly don't want to start another debate, but I spent yesterday with the family and didn't get a chance to check the replies to my post about "Ahnold". Just a quick thanks to Barry and Steve for a more accurate representation of what I was trying to say. I did mislabel Ahnold as a "nickname"; "variant" would have been a much better way to put it. I stand by my original assertion with that substitution, however. Just wanted to give a quick shout-out to those two; hope I'm not stirring up the pot again. Thanks to Jill and Michelle for a quick but very enjoyable Monday puzzle!
Strong enough debut that a shout-out is in order. I did not find it as challenging as some (we all know how that pendelum swings among us), but it was a puzzle I enjoyed thoroughly from start to finish. Perfect Tuesday, methinks. Thanks, Jonathan!
@suejean I'm guessing a lot us who are in the second half of the game immediately wrote Como. Luckily Katy Perry's name has been splashed in the news so frequently I knew it once I got to The Longest Day. It might be fun to see a puzzle entirely geared toward folks over 50 followed by a puzzle targeting people under 25. I wonder which group would struggle more.
@Francis Bit unimaginative, for sure, but perhaps took a bit more thought than No Name, Colorado.
I've disliked so many recent puzzles that I'm compelled to express how much I enjoyed this one. Like many others, apparently, I was immediately optimistic when I saw it was a Curry/Zhang collaboration. It did not disappoint. Clever clueing, reasonable trivia, fun theme. Every older Gen X-er remembers CB's - it was nice to reminisce for a minute. For me, it was a perfect Wednesday puzzle, and with a nice cup of coffee, a really wonderful start to the day. Thank you both!
@Eddie As others have said, I misread the revealer and tried to find some way to apply it to the answers instead of the clues. Since not all of the answers had A's and B's, I tried to figure out how they may have already been "ripped" from the answers. That's my brain at work at 5:00am. Not until I read Wordplay did I go back and take a look at the revealer. I would have seen the trick if I had read it correctly the first time. That's on me; the revealer was very straightforward. No gimmick, just a fun Thursday puzzle.
@Mr Dave May I respectfully suggest you might need to go talk to someone about Barry. A professional someone. Although this particular comment wasn't as "trol1y" as others; the mere fact you felt the need to post it continues an obession that's becoming borderline creepy. @Barry Ancona May I respectfully suggest you might want to look into some sort of Comment Board restraining order.
@Nora Speaking of beer and Fort Collins, I was fortunate enough to live there from 1991-96 when New Belgium, Odells, and HC Berger (no longer in existence) were only selling their beers locally in bombers and on tap in a few of the bars. What a great time to love good beer and be a student at CSU.
@B I'm surprised that you and so many others had a problem with the theme. Like Barry, I thought it was pretty obvious. It took me longer than 15 seconds to get it - but not much longer. It never crossed my mind that it was a rebus. I solved it a little more quickly than I would have preferred, but I enjoyed it thoroughly. Nice puzzle, Adam. Thank you.
@Eric Hougland I was born in Denver, moved to southeast Ohio at age 9, then back to Fort Collins at 19, then up to the Roaring Fork Valley for the past 35 years (my wife grew up in Carbondale). When I lived in Ohio I took several trips into the heart of Appalachia. I love the Rocky Mountains, and I'm beyond grateful to have spent so much of my life in the RFV, surrounded by beauty at all times. Durango is also absolutely gorgeous. The Rockies are spectacular, no doubt. But for me, the Smoky Mountains felt more like home, and are to this day the most beautiful topography I've seen in my lifetime. I love Colorado dearly, but I miss the trees of Appalachia. My vote goes to the Smokies.
@Matt 14D was a great clue, no doubt. I couldn't let go of Dracula for the longest time even though I saw it wasn't going to work for the crosses. Finally the correct answer dawned on me and a forehead slap shortly followed. Count Chocula: Cereal put out for breakfast Dracula: Count who is asleep (out) for breakfast Great clue.
Agree with most that this was pretty easy Friday. Just out of curiosity, do most people who do crosswords monitor their solve times consistently? I couldn't care less how long it takes me (and certainly don't care how long it took others, but post it if you must), and have no idea what my average times are. I'm certainly not saying there's anything wrong with it at all. To each their own, absolutely. It just seems like I am in the minority. Does pretty much everyone keep track of their times?
@B Are you pretty sure? Are you? You are insufferable sometimes. Was this comment necessary? At all? Pretty sure it wasn't. Here's a helpful two-step process: 1. Think about posting. 2. Don't There you go. You're welcome. Also, lose the signature. The emus don't care anymore.
@Barry Ancona Maya Lin attended the same high school I did - Athens. As did Joe Burrow, Atul Gawande, and David Wilhelm. For a smaller school in a rural(ish) setting, AHS has produced some distinguished alums - in no small part due to the fact that Athens is the home of Ohio University. "Harvard on the Hocking", as they call it.
@Steve L The way it hit me when I was solving: 20A should have been clued as something like "Tattle on...or the correction needed to make 22A fit its clue". Clueing it as "an instruction for "answering"" 22A definitely sounds as though the constructor is telling you go from "UT to RA". That was my thought at the time, anyway.
@Francis I like the idea of "meep, meep" more for some reason. But the fact remains that in Chuck Jones' 1999 Chuck Amuck he has a set of rules in which he refers to the sounds as "beep, beep". So is the debate just about what people hear or what Mel Blanc actually says? Like he went rogue and said "meep, meep" for kicks? The creator himself wrote in his book that it's "beep, beep". I'm very confused.
@Steven M. Agreed. I have wished for Prydain movies since the fourth grade (1970's). I absolutely loved those books. I'm one of the few folks that haven't read any of the Harry Potter books, but I also loved LOTR and Narnia. I would personally throw in Piers Anthony's Xanth, Adept, and Incarnations series as well.
@Pezhead I learned Appa when my son chose that name for his Chow Chow. He chose it based on the sky bison character in Avatar: The Last Airbender. I googled it and happened to catch the Korean meaning along the way.
@Dorothy It was obviously a self-deprecating joke. Emus have a sense of humor, no?
@Doug Very true. I think I was in my early teens when I got bitten by one. I had always been told they don't bite - by many, many people. The bite hurt just a bit for a second or two, and it was well worth the lesson learned that something so prevalently accepted as truth could be absolute bollocks. Much like Ralphie, I went out to face the world again. Wiser.
@Mr Dave I've always heard them referred to as rollaways or rollawaybeds also. I worked in a hotel for years in my twenties (quite awhile ago) and I don't remember hearing them referred to as cots - by guests or staff - even once. Obviously people do, as evidenced by the replies to your post. And I had no problem at all with it being the answer to that clue, of course.
@Francis The Cheyenne zoo! I haven't thought about that place in years. LOVED it as a child. I can still picture the biscuits you could buy to feed some of the animals with. And, if I'm remebering correctly, there was an Alpine Slide.
@Elsie Agreed. It's driving me nuts.
@Bill in Yokohama Lil Cherry?
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