John

Fun puzzle! Not sure about watch this space though…Only clue I felt was a bit of a stretch.

Fun puzzle! Not too happy with OMNOMNOM though…definitely the biggest reach on an answer I’ve encountered in a while.

Overall fun puzzle. Wasn’t too thrilled with “ten g” answer for the clue “100 c-notes” though. Since c-notes is plural in its abbreviate / slang context, ten g’s should have been as well. Nobody says “yo I got ten g”. “Ten k” would have been a more appropriate answer here. Sorry this stuff bothers me!

Did not enjoy this puzzle. I’m all for some obscure clues to keep things interesting, but this was a little much. Even for a clue like “tied up”…nobody says “all even”.

A perfect Saturday puzzle I’d say. Hard enough to make you think outside the box and require imagination (the best part of the crossword!), and also very solvable. Clues and answers were amply clever without feeling like a reach, and all of the answers were consistent in both spelling and phrasing with real-world usage. I mention this because it always irks me when answers are bent too hard. Like “yeah this technically works, but…no”. One example is from the New Year’s Day puzzle. The answer to the clue “It always wins, they say” was “house”. It’s THE house. “House always wins” said no one ever. I deeply appreciate when puzzles are accurate in this way. ‘Twas the most satisfying Saturday puzzle in recent memory. Cheers!

Fun puzzle to start the new year! I wasn’t too thrilled with the NW quadrant - 1D, 2D and 1A. With idiomatic answers, I feel it’s crucial to include the complete phrase. 2D is always two words…always. In this case the first word / article was omitted. If we want to get technical, 1D answer relates to playing chords, not plucking. 1A just…felt like a reach. Overall these were all solvable, but bending standard phrasing or meaning (beyond word play) always irks me.

A couple fun clues in here but…an irritated outburst? I’m about to have one cause of the answer to that clue! Just…no. Not a memorable Wednesday. Will hope for redemption next week!

“Breezy things enjoyed at the beach” annoyed me. Easy reads can be (and are) enjoyed at any time in any number of settings. Nothing inherently ties them to the beach. Also, Elmo is entirely red, not just redheaded. I don’t know enough to say whether he was conceived as a monster. Otherwise fun puzzle.