Tony

@Moira I think some of the clues are tricky for Tuesday, but I found once I got the revealer and cut 50% of the letters to a vowel it was quite easy to fill in. Being UK based I always struggle with a one or two clues that are especially American themed. Today’s was HiLiter. We don’t have them here, but the vowel trick let me see it. (If you are doing a UK crossword with the same clue the answer will be Stabilo!)

@HeathieJ I live right by Marlow… it’s a cozy little place for a cozy little mystery. I can forgive them the pain when I need to go into the town and the roads are blocked because they are filming by the church!

@John I got stuck on that as I originally entered HAVEABIT, which when I worked out my error made the naughty parsing inevitable!

@Ιασων On a Friday I think we have to expect a bit of wordplay, even on science clues. A system could be described as having a low chaotic state (low ENTROPY) or a high chaotic state (high ENTROPY). We are drawn to assume that the clue must mean a state that is actually chaotic, but that’s the misdirection intended. As a scientist by training I struggled to see through it, but I think it’s valid.

@Andrzej Agree I think I would have been lost without knocking half the letters down to a 1 in 5 choice. I have never heard of Hi-Liter markers… until now, but it was easy to guess with the vowel trick.

@Matt I don’t think paragon of a heart attack makes sense, but if you look at legitimate uses of paragon e.g. ‘of virtue’ or ‘of simplicity’ then textbook example fits fine. I’m not a crossword expert by a long shot, but maybe clueing as ‘Paragon, say’ would be appropriate.

@Jack McCullough Funny that’s the first thing I thought when I got the revealer. No OREO or ETNA today. Was expecting an OPI though that didn’t materialise.

@Jane Wheelaghan My favourite car nomenclature is the ‘shooting brake’, used to describe an estate car with a more sloping trunk/boot profile and generally more sporty appearance. They still get released now and then, though I’ve seen them called things like sport back and fast back more recently. It originates from the days of horse drawn carriages when they were used to transport hunting parties.

@Grant This UK contingent member works in ‘The City’ and would only that term to describe that financial district itself. London overall (including The City), is London. Certainly this UK interloper is very happy for anyone to use The City as they please, or indeed London, of which I think there are over 10 in the US alone!

@Bill Great trivia! Or maybe it’s common knowledge in motor city… it probably used to be!

@Richard I solved faster than my average, but the median solve time of 8ish minutes makes my 20 feel very sluggish in general!

@Stephen It was a big clue, but didn’t stop me filling in ELPHABA across and down at first, making my solve tricker than it needed to be!

@emma I like to think it’s because you always regret giving up. They the link on purpose, giving you another chance to solve unaided before you look it up on xwords anyway.

@Jane Wheelaghan That section was a stinker even with the 2 letter head starts. I got Lienee as I’ve worked on US finance deals, but I didn’t recognise triple A even after filling it in, and I was convinced a pitcher was retired, not relieved. Was 2 mins ahead of my best heading into the last 5 clues, but ended up missing by miles!

@Aaron I also srirachad! Happily MIOSIS gave me the I that exposed my error.