Comments on: Independent 7,880 / Scorpion

By: nmsindy

nmsindy — Tue, 17 Jan 2012 21:02:01 +0000

Yes, I agree with Lenny at #10. Getting NEXT in an answer was how I saw the theme here. My advice to Bamberger would be to go through clues in turn, spending just a little time on each, and, if the answer does not come, move to the next clue. When you’ve gone thro them all once, I’d suggest repeating the process. Thanks, Scorpion and RR.

By: Lenny

Lenny — Tue, 17 Jan 2012 20:40:32 +0000

Hi Bamburger. I thought you got some pretty rough treatment on this site last week. Unfortunately I was a couple of days behind in my solving so I could not come to your defence. For what it’s worth, I think you are the most important contributor to this blog. Newcomers to crosswords are probably put off by people like me who say this was easy (see above). There are probably hundreds of silent followers of this site who identify with your difficulties and admire your honesty.

Now, if I can offer some advice. It is usually better, when attempting themed crosswords, to ignore the theme. In the course of solving you will find a themed word like I did with Next and KD did with Lidl and then the rest will fall out.

By: Bamberger

Bamberger — Tue, 17 Jan 2012 18:10:17 +0000

I got one or two of the unthemed clues but spend an eternity (well 20 minutes) on the gateway clue but just couldn’t see it which meant that any of the clues with 15/13 were pretty inaccessible. A pity because the clues to them look gettable once you have that theme.
I suppose that it is the problem with themed crosswords-if you can’t get the theme and you’re not good enough to get several of the unthemed ones you hopelessly becalmed.

By: Paul B

Paul B — Tue, 17 Jan 2012 17:55:35 +0000

I haven’t looked at my penne lately. Perhaps I should.

Very nice work in this one, and lots of fun had with the theme.

By: Polly

Polly — Tue, 17 Jan 2012 16:45:48 +0000

Re 1d, penne aren’t always ridged (rigate): they can also be smooth (lisce).

By: freda

freda — Tue, 17 Jan 2012 15:54:51 +0000

3d might refer to the film of that name – http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0079871/

By: flashling

flashling — Tue, 17 Jan 2012 15:14:19 +0000

My last in was Cooper misled in my head by the different sounds to Co-op v coop. Did wonder why before I started RR had put BUY on the front page…

Once penny drop moment happened this was a nice bit of fun, thanks Scorpion and of course RR.

By: Lenny

Lenny — Tue, 17 Jan 2012 14:27:09 +0000

I usually struggle with Scorpion’s puzzles so I was grateful for this relatively straightforward effort. Didn’t a blogger recently query whether brand names were acceptable in crosswords? I think he got his answer here today.

I got the gateway clue from seeing the Next in In Extremis. My last in was Solidly, the Lidl combinations of letters being rather unusual. Thanks to RR for explaining Magistrates’ Court. I was fixated on Strat being the smart guitar and was trying to find retail opportunities in the surrounding letters.

I had trouble spelling Isambard despite the fact that I used to work in an office in Bristol overlooking his statue. Most Monday mornings he would have a traffic cone on top of his top hat.

By: RatkojaRiku

RatkojaRiku — Tue, 17 Jan 2012 12:20:13 +0000

@Kathryn’s Dad – I agree: there were a lot of retailers to choose from, which might explain my inability to predict the ones that Scorpion would have chosen. Incidentally, BHS is still around – I was in one on Oxford Street only recently.

@Thomas99 – thanks for clearing that up. Chambers doesn’t give the fleet derivation at all, only the single vessel. Chambers is always my first port of call, but this time I ought to have cast my net wider.

By: Thomas99

Thomas99 — Tue, 17 Jan 2012 10:26:54 +0000

Re 9 – Argosy usually means fleet, not a single vessel, doesn’t it? I’ve always assumed it came from Argo (Jason’s ship) to mean the Argo (or other ship’s) expedition, by extension coming to refer to the ship, or more commonly ships, making up such an expedition. I was surprised to see the single vessel comes first in one dictionary online, but the fleet meaning is the next definition.