Comments on: Inquisitor 146 – Mean – what do you think? – by Lato

By: Andy Stewart

Andy Stewart — Wed, 25 Nov 2009 05:32:30 +0000

For reasons I won’t go into, I tackled this very late in the day. I thought it was a delightful puzzle. I liked the misleading, but amusing, KISS coming at the end of the incomplete quote, and I enjoyed compiling the list of politicians, which came easily once I had the theme. Until I had the quote the only unclued entries I had were MUGABE, THATCHER and SADDAM. I did have slight reservations about BLAIR = LEO, but had no problem with the other references. I loved the clue to SOAP, which was my last entry.
The quotation is itself rather interesting. I think that I would include it’s originator amongst the “ninety per cent”.

By: Lato

Lato — Sun, 25 Oct 2009 13:53:58 +0000

Thanks for the blog and comments.

TOP GEAR may not be timeless but it has been running since 1977.

By: Mike Laws

Mike Laws — Sun, 25 Oct 2009 03:37:37 +0000

(Delete “the”)

So is Holyghost.

By: Mike Laws

Mike Laws — Sun, 25 Oct 2009 03:34:13 +0000

nmsindy is spot on about the Lato’s intention.

By: HolyGhost

HolyGhost — Sat, 24 Oct 2009 17:31:43 +0000

PS And of course the unclued entry at 2a cryptically indicates the first word of the puzzle’s title …

By: nmsindy

nmsindy — Fri, 23 Oct 2009 19:07:04 +0000

My solving experience was very similar to Peter’s. Saw QUISLING very early and thought this might be very easy but no – it took me three hours or so too, if I recall. The title leaves it to judgment but I’d say it’s all presented as an amusement (as IMHO puzzles should be) based on the quote. I enjoyed it anyway.

By: HolyGhost

HolyGhost — Fri, 23 Oct 2009 11:15:42 +0000

I’ll accept BOB (=Hope) graciously, and GERI (=Spice Girl) grudgingly, since the Spice Girls do have an entry in Chambers Biographical Dictionary (newly after Schadenfreude’s puzzle #137 with all those names of poets). But LEO (=Blair) is hardly timeless, and maybe the same goes for TOP GEAR (=a TV show).

And too many of the extra letters in wordplays were clued as isolated letters (e.g. the I in 10a) or as one letter in a two-letter word (e.g. HE in 22a, GO in 6d, SO in 25d).

All of those are fair and doable, but reduce enjoyment/satisfaction for me.