LAST WEEK’S RESULTS:
Title: “Tables Games”
Prompt: This week’s contest answer is a 6-letter adjective that I hope you won’t think applies to this puzzle.
Hints: #1: Alternate title: “It’s Elementary”; #2: “The first part of six clues are important.”; #3:
One of those clues is 34-Down.
Answer: LEADEN
Tough one, but there was hintage! Three hints were made available to solvers along with the puzzle, as listed above. Some solvers appreciated the nudges; others felt they were too tempting to peek at and suggested staggering their release in the future (Saturday noon for the first, say, followed by Sunday and Monday noon for the last two). I think such nudges may have a place in future MGWCCs, but only time will tell.
The trick was: The first word of six theme entries starts with a chemical symbol for an element that can have these initial letter(s) replaced by the name of the element itself to satisfy another entry in the grid. To wit:
15-A: [Cara of “Fame” fame] = IRENE, but C = Carbon = CARBONARA, which satisfies 25-D: [Popular pasta preparation] = ALFREDO = A. All that for an A! Rube Goldberg would be proud of us.
35-A: [Arne who was Education Secretary from 2009-2015] = DUNCAN, but Ar = Argon = ARGONNE, which satisfies 2-D: [Region of France known for its natural beauty] = LOIRE VALLEY = L
59-A: [“Cut one,” more delicately] = BREAK WIND, but Cu = COPPER = COPPERTONE. Indelicate and cheaty since “cut one” is two words, but I put it in quotes and the result was too beautiful to not use. Satisfies 66-A: [Popular lotion brand] = NIVEA = N.
4-D: [Fey who wrote “Mean Girls”] = TINA, but Fe = IRON – IRONY, which satisfies 17-A: [Literary device often used humorously] = EUPHEMISM. E.
34-A: [Aucoin of cosmetics fame] = KEVYN, but Au = GOLD = GOLD COIN, which satisfies 44-A: [What you might put in a safety deposit box] = EMERALDS. E.
68-A: [Snore or shout, e.g.] = NOISE, but Sn = TIN = TIN ORE, which satisfies 26-A: [Stuff in a mine shaft] = DIRT
In the usual grid order (see diagram above) these spell contest answer LEADEN, which our friends at Webster’s tells us means “Lacking spirit or animation,” which I hope did not describe this one for you.
THIS WEEK’S INSTRUCTIONS:
No instructions given here since there are no-instructions solving options available this week.
Solve well, and be not led astray by words intended to deceive.