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Constructor: Michael Lieberman
Relative issue: Simple-Medium
THEME: “Size-ening” — acquainted phrases get two adjustments: the addition of “EN” and the altering of the spelling / that means of the phrase that follows “EN”—so the phrases have been “length-ENed” but in addition respelled:
- SQUARE EN ROUTE (from “sq. root”) (24A: Why the occasion’s about to get much less hip?)
- HOW EN SUITE IT IS (from “How candy it’s!”) (35A: Realtor’s exclamation a few main toilet?)
- MARINE ENCORE (from “Marine Corps”) (49A: How Shamu acknowledged the gang’s appreciation?)
- “EN GARDE, IANS OF THE GALAXY!” (from “Guardians of the Galaxy”) (70A: “Put together for a sword combat, McKellen, Fleming and all different namesakes on the market!”?)
- MAKE-UP ENTREE (from … I assume, “make-up tray” (?)) (90A: Dish cooked to easy issues over after a combat?)
- CHOPPING EN BLOC (from “chopping block”) (106A: What college students in a karate class are sometimes doing?)
- THE ROYAL ENNUI (from “the Royal We”) (118A: Problem for a courtroom jester?)
Phrase of the Day: “The MEAGRE Firm” (Frans Hals portrait) (30A) —
The Meagre Firm, or The Firm of Captain Reinier Reael and Lieutenant Cornelis Michielsz Blaeuw, refers back to the solely militia group portrait, or schutterstuk, painted by Frans Halsoutside of Haarlem, and at present is within the assortment of the Amsterdam Museum, on mortgage to the Rijksmuseum, the place it’s thought of considered one of its predominant sights of the Honor Gallery. Hals was sad about commuting to Amsterdam to work on the portray and, in contrast to his earlier group portraits, was unable to ship it on time. The sitters contracted Pieter Codde to complete the work.
Hals was initially commissioned in 1633, after the favorable reception of his earlier militia group portrait, The Officers of the St Adrian Militia Firm in 1633, wherein all ensigns are holding flags and all officers are holding their weapons. The sergeants have been proven, holding halberds to distinguish them from officers with spontoons. Hals appears to have initially meant an Amsterdam model of the identical portray, starting on the left with a smiling flag bearer carrying a flamboyant cut-sleeve jacket with lace and holding a flag within the coloration of his sash. Although it’s inconceivable to inform on which aspect of the canvas Hals started portray, the sunshine falls onto the figures from the left within the “normal” Hals custom and that is additionally the place crucial figures are located throughout the portray. Since every sitter paid for his personal portrait, it’s presumed that Hals started with crucial sitters with a view to “promote” canvas room to different paying officers. Whether or not or not Hals did in reality begin on the left or drew a sketch of your complete group directly, the flag bearer on the left on this portray has been painted in a remarkably flamboyant means from the tip of his hat to the toe of his boots. This was presumably to show to the choice makers in Amsterdam that Hals was able to portray a schutterstuk within the “Amsterdam type”, which included your complete determine. In Haarlem, the civic guards have been historically portrayed within the kniestuk type of being “reduce off on the knee” in three-quarter size portraits. (wikipedia)
• • •
Preferred the way in which this one began, with the BLURRIER TAQUERIA of the NW nook, however with the revelation of the primary themer, SQUARE EN ROUTE, I might really feel my spirits deflate slightly. “We’re simply including ‘EN’!? That is what ‘Size-ening’ means!? O… boy.” There was one thing that appeared so, effectively, MEAGRE concerning the idea (extra on MEAGRE later). After which got here MARINE ENCORE, following the identical add-an-EN sample, which felt much more flaccid, and I reconciled myself to merely enduring yet one more Sunday. However I’ll admit that “HOW EN SUITE IT IS!” … effectively, it did not win me over, precisely, however it positively introduced me round a bit. That’s the sort of all-out loopiness I actually need, in reality *want*, to see in themes which might be this primary (e.g. add-a-letter (or two), drop-a-letter (or two), and so on.). You wanna do some dumb puns, effectively OK, however please, nothing … MEAGRE. Go for it. Higher to be actually actually gorily horrible, fully loony, then merely mildly chuckleworthy. “HOW EN SUITE IT IS!” has a fearless madness that I love. I additionally actually do like that we’re dealing not simply with an “EN” addition, however with an entire phrase change as effectively (within the phrase that follows the “EN”), regardless that the title of the puzzle would not seize that side of the theme At All (it is a actually unhealthy title, tbh). I even retrospectively went again and gave slightly credit score to the clue on SQUARE EN ROUTE (24A: Why the occasion’s about to get much less hip?). It creates a ridiculous state of affairs. Now, not all of the themers (or their clues) do that, however there have been sufficient that did. Sufficient, that’s, to make me like this puzzle considerably greater than I like your common straightforwardly themed Sunday puzzle, and far more than I preferred it at first blush. THE ROYAL ENNUI may be very intelligent, and, effectively, I discover it very troublesome to be mad at a solution like “EN GARDE, IANS OF THE GALAXY!” That could be a Marvel film I might truly see.
MEAGRE made me MOAN much more than ÉTAPE (oof, crosswordese of the oldenest sort) or EWASTE (a factor that I acknowledge is actual however that’s nonetheless backside of the E-barrel fill). Then there’s the execrable and all the time unwelcome EL*N MUSK, why!? That could be a alternative. I don’t perceive that alternative. I additionally don’t perceive placing “IT” in your puzzle not as soon as not twice not thrice however quattrice! HOW EN SUITE *IT* IS, IN *IT*, “*IT* CAME!,” BOP-IT! make it cease. A few “IT”s in a Sunday-sized puzzle might be not going to attract anybody’s consideration, however 4 … 4 is 4, and it is quite a bit. It’s possible you’ll assume, “I … CON DU IT …” … however you actually should not.
Spherical-up!:
- 13A: A boatload (LOTS) — I had TONS due to course I did, the Curse of the Kealoa* is upon me!
- 108D: Pleasure of TV (BEHAR) — I’ve it on good authority that she solves crossword puzzles. That authority is a 2016 US Weekly interview the place she says “I do the New York Instances Crossword day-after-day.”
- 97D: “On Juneteenth” writer ___ Gordon-Reed (ANNETTE) — she’s a professor of legislation and American historical past at Harvard. I assumed “On Juneteenth” was a poem. I used to be mistaken. It is a well-regarded quick e-book explaining the importance of the annual commemoration of the top of slavery within the U.S.
- 111A: Flatbread made with atta (ROTI) — had the “O” and wrote in DOSA, which is “a skinny pancake in South Indian delicacies created from a fermented batter of floor black gram (lentil) and rice” (wikipedia). No atta in sight 🙁
- 17A: “Preserve Ya Head Up” rapper, informally (PAC) — as in Tupac Shakur, or 2Pac.
- 92D: In contrast to p (RATIONAL) —I received this simply regardless of having no thought what “p” stands for. I figured it was one thing one thing math one thing quantity one thing, and I used to be proper. Seems to be like lowercase “p” can imply numerous issues, relying on context, however nearest I can determine right here, it is someway “pi” (!!?). You could not simply write the extra “i”?? [UPDATE: the clue *actually* reads [Unlike π] however my software program could not deal with the character and so rendered it “p”]
All hail the return of Normal Time, the Greatest Time, God’s Personal Time. Please benefit from the hour you have been denied by Demon DST. See you … quickly, I hope.
Signed, Rex Parker, King of CrossWorld
*kealoa = quick, widespread reply which you can’t simply fill in rapidly as a result of two or extra solutions are viable, Even With One or Extra Letters In Place. From the basic [Mauna ___] KEA/LOA conundrum. See additionally, e.g. [Heaps] ATON/ALOT, [“Git!”] “SHOO”/”SCAT,” and so on.
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