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Constructor: WILL PFADENHAUER
Relative difficulty: EASY-MEDIUM (the fill felt a little hard here, but my time says it wasn’t. YMMV)
THEME: ODD BALL (53A – Eccentric sort … or a “sport” where one might make the plays at 19-, 27-, and 44-Across?) — First words of theme answers are verbs that you might use when talking about a sport, such as the made up “Odd Ball”.
- RUN WILD (19A – Behave uncontrollably)
- CATCH OFF BALANCE (27A – Stagger with unexpected news, maybe)
- THROW OUT OF WHACK (44A – Cause to malfunction)
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| Now that’s an odd ball. |
The Xenomorph (also known as a Xenomorph XX121 or Internecivus raptus, and simply the creature[a])[1][2][3][4] is a fictional endoparasitoid extraterrestrial species that serves as the title antagonist of the Alien and Alien vs. Predator franchises.
I feel like this clue needed something to indicate that it’s asking for a specific alien. Xenomorph is not a generic term, as far as I know.
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| Did I choose this just to highlight the iconic HR Giger design? Maybe. |
• • •
Previously on Rex Parker Does the NYT Crossword:
Plot twist! You get Eli today! Hi everyone, good to be back and blogging today’s puzzle, a Wednesday and an NYT debut for constructor Will Pfadenhauer.
Ah, Wednesday. It never quite knows what to do with itself. Can’t be tricky enough to justify being a Thursday, but can’t figure out how not to be Tuesday. Today’s puzzle seemed decidedly Tuesday to me (even has a similar style of theme to yesterday’s).
As for the theme… fine? I mean, these are all words that are things you might do in a sport. I appreciate that all of the theme answers use their word in a non-literal sense, but the verbs are still referencing the sports actions. I was also ready to rant about the phrase “catch off balance” not being nearly as common as “throw off balance,” but a quick Google tells me that’s more of a “me” problem and “catch” is very much in the language.
Also, with only three theme answers and a revealer, the theme content is pretty light, and I’d like to see more sparkly fill as a result. The side-by-side of DUOLINGO (36D – Learning app with an owl mascot) and INUIT ART (37D – Walrus ivory is one traditional medium for it) is very nice, but most of the rest is just kinda there. I did find a lot of the cluing fun, but I’d like to see some of that humor carry over into the answers.
- 60A – John Jacob Jingleheimer Schmidt, for one (NAME) — That’s my name, too! Just kidding, my name is ELI (49A – Manning of ESPN’s “Manningcast”). One day I’ll do something notable enough to justify being a clue here…
- 39A – “Parks and ___” (NBC Sitcom, to fans) (REC) — One of my very favorites. My wife says Adam Scott’s character Ben Wyatt is the closest any character has come to being a representation of me on television. I do love a calzone…
- 25A – Kind of bikes for stunt riders (BMX) — RiffTrax’s live show this year was riffing the 80s BMX movie RAD, which features a BMX stunt prom set to the music of Sparks!
- 9A – Rifle filler (AMMO) & 41A – Toy shooters (BB GUNS) — No thanks.
- 29D – Team with a sausage race at every home game (THE BREWERS) — That “THE” feels a little arbitrary. Also, as a life-long Cubs fan, THE Brewers aren’t my favorite team to see in a puzzle (even though I, myself, am a home beer brewer). The sausage race is a fun tradition, though.
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| “The sun, the track, the |
I think that’s all I have for today. Rafa will be here for you tomorrow, then I’m back on Friday. Have a great Thanksgiving in the meantime!
Signed, Eli Selzer, False Dauphin of CrossWorld
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