Introduction
A compass might prove useful in solving today's
National Post Cryptic Crossword from Cox & Rathvon (NP 220827).
The puzzle will be posted on the blog on Saturday, September 3, 2022.
I invite you to leave a comment to let us know how you fared with the puzzle.
Solution to Today's Puzzle
Falcon's experience
┌────┬────┬────┬────┬────┬────┬────┐
███████████████████████████████████
└────┴────┴────┴────┴────┴────┴────┘
Legend:
█ - solved without assistance
█ - incorrect prior to use of puzzle solving tools
█ - solved with assistance from puzzle solving tools
█ - solved with aid of checking letters provided by puzzle solving tools
█ - solved but without fully parsing the clue
█ - yet to be solved
|
| Symbols and Markup Conventions |
- "*" - anagram
- "~" - sounds like
- "<" - indicates the preceding letters are reversed
- "( )" - encloses contained letters
- "_" - replaces letters that have been deleted
- "†" - indicates that the word is present in the clue
| - "//" - marks the boundary between wordplay and definition when no link word or link phrase is present
- "/[link word or phrase]/" - marks the boundary between wordplay and definition when a link word or link phrase is present
- "solid underline" - precise definition
- "dotted underline" - cryptic definition
- "dashed underline" - wordplay
- "wavy underline" - whimsical and inferred definitions
|
| Click here for further explanation and usage examples of the symbols and markup conventions used on this blog. |
Across
| 1a | Capitalism anomalously displays // charm (8) |
— hidden in (
displays) capi
TALISM ANomalously
| 5a | Candy // pieces for a musician in audition (6) |
— sounds like (
in audition) SUITES (pieces for a musician)
| 9a | Short rant trashed //
NHL player (5,4) |
— anagram of (
trashed) SHORT RANT
The
Minnesota North Stars[7] moved to Dallas, Texas in 1993 and are now known as the
Dallas Stars.
| 11a | Mr. Welles, // or descendant (5) |
— OR (†) + SON (descendant)
| 12a | At a rodeo, catch // gal with loop (5) |
— LASS (girl) + (
with) O ([
letter that looks like a] loop)
| 13a | Show the way // one of Santa’s reindeer goes around some Christmas trees (4,5) |
— COMET (one of Santa's reindeer) containing (
goes around) FIRS (some Christmas trees)
| 14a | Wine god transformed // duck (7) |
— anagram of (
transformed) WINE GOD
| 16a | Em running across // someone with a van (5) |
— M (em) + OVER (running across)
POSER — double definition
| 19a | Novelist // stirred Red’s ire (7) |
— anagram of (
stirred) REDS IRE
Theodore Dreiser[10] (1871–1945) was a US novelist whose works include
Sister Carrie (1900) and
An American Tragedy (1925)
| 21a | Waggish one with hairless // guy’s name (9) |
— ARCH (waggish) + I ([
Roman numeral] one) + (
with) BALD (hairless)
| 24a | Dole out // a regressive tax (5) |
— A (†) + reversal of (
regressive) TOLL (tax)
| 26a | In play, notice // fawn (5) |
— AD ([commercial] notice) contained in (
in) TOY (play;
as a verb)
As a verb,
toady[10] means to to fawn on and flatter (someone).
| 27a | Cartoon // shark up to no good? (5,4) |
— anagram of (
no good) SHARK UP TO
South Park[7]
is an American animated sitcom infamous for its profanity and dark,
surreal humour that satirizes a wide range of topics toward an adult
audience. The series revolves around four boys and their exploits in and
around the titular Colorado town.
| 28a | Shake // vermin and let loose (6) |
— RAT (vermin) + (
and) anagram of (
loose) LET
| 29a | Keen on researching // poker debts? (8) |
— STUD (poker) + IOUS (debts)
Down
| 1d | Enmesh // tail of wet fish (6) |
— T (
tail [
final letter]
of we
T) + ANGLE (fish)
| 2d | Instruments // fabulists heard (5) |
— sounds like (
heard) LIARS (fabulists)
| 3d | In new arrangement, he records // Peanuts pianist (9) |
— anagram of (
in new arrangement) HE RECORDS
Schroeder[7] is a fictional character in the long-running comic strip
Peanuts, created by American cartoonist Charles M. Schulz (1922–2000). He is distinguished by his prodigious skill at playing the toy piano.
| 4d | Clownish // mannerism behind article (5) |
— TIC (mannerism) following (
behind) AN ([
grammatical] article)
| 6d | Material failing // Mrs. Dalloway author (5) |
— WOOL (material) + F (failing;
very poor grade on an exam)
Mrs Dalloway[7]
is a novel by English writer Virginia Woolf (1882–1941), published in
1925, that details a day in the life of Clarissa Dalloway, a fictional
upper-class woman in post-First World War England.
| 7d | Each one trying // current in New York City? (4,5) |
— EA (each) + STRIVER (one trying)
| 8d | Nasty air recycled // clean (8) |
— anagram of (
recycled) NASTY AIR
| 10d | Love story // from ancestors in the interior (7) |
— hidden in (
in the interior) f
ROM ANCEstors
| 14d | Two castes reconfigured // Vancouver’s location (4,5) |
— anagram of (
reconfigured) TWO CASTES
| 15d | Charms // one among finishers (7) |
— A (one) contained in (
among) ENDERS (finishers)
| 16d | Having hair on the face // has to hurt (9) |
— MUST (has to) + ACHED (hurt)
Mustache[10] is the US spelling
* of
moustache.
* C&R generally avoid using US spellings in this puzzle, today being an exception
| 17d | Spill // small serving dish (8) |
— S(mall) + PLATTER (serving dish)
| 20d | Front of store requires // wooden posts (6) |
— S (
front [
initial letter]
of Store) + TAKES (requires)
| 22d | Poem // not doing anything for the audience (5) |
— sounds like (
for the audience) IDLE (not doing anything)
| 23d | Cow // just passing relative (5) |
— D (just passing;
rather poor grade on an exam) + AUNT (relative)
| 25d | Plain // going back above everything (5) |
— reversal of (
going back) {ON (above) + ALL (everything}
Epilogue
One needs to rotate the grid 90 degrees clockwise to get the directions aligned with the compass.
