Pun of a Kind

PDF  /  PUZ I made a list, I checked it twice, and I realized that pretty much everyone who would want to solve the meta has solved it, so there will be a reveal after all! You're thrilled, I can tell. 1.  Puzzle #44 recap Puzzle #44 answer:  TINSEL Correct entries: 57 (close to a record!) Pretty straightforward: The very anagram-friendly TINSEL has most of its sensible anagrams in the grid above. That, coupled with the title (two words that were anagrams of each other), should swiftly get us our meta answer. --- 2. It's the last meta of 2022! There's enough to chew on here that we might get to a Level 3 , which I'll put it at to be safe (so Level 37 for those who think I underestimate my puzzles). See you next year! Mikey G The answer to the meta is a common 8-word phrase.

PDF  /  PUZ Hello hello! It's about halfway through the month, so it's mini-meta time! This meta is also being sent in my Christmas cards this year (sending coal would've been equivalent), so there will not be a reveal to this when the next meta is posted, except to tell you how many solvers there have been. (Obviously, you can get instant feedback and count those who have "dropped the Mike" on Crosshare!) 1.  Puzzle #43 recap Puzzle #43 answer:  GRAVY TRAIN Correct entries:  40 You can find the writeup here ! --- 2.  This meta should  play like a Level 1 ; again, that's the meta itself, since the grids themselves do tend to lean in the crunchy direction! Until next time, may all the puzzles be yours! Merry Christmas and happy holidays! Mikey G The answer to the meta is a 6-letter word.

PDF  /  PUZ A belated happy Thanksgiving! I am stuffed (like my turkey). It was surreal to watch one of my dreams come true with my guest stop on MGWCC #755 last week, which I assume if you're reading this, you're reading that (though not necessarily the other way around!). I welcome the new puzzlers to my meta blog! You're JUST MY TYPE  (I had to, one last time). This blog was originally regular crosswords, but the meta bug bit me, and so metas seem to be the permanent law of the land, so I believe! 1.  Puzzle #42 recap Puzzle #42 answer: FACETIOUSLY Correct entries: 43 While I'm not the biggest fan of anagramming in a meta, since I like there to be a systematic way to spell out any meta answer, that was unavoidable here - but the last clue LESS implies that there are only 11 of something in this grid. The something in question are the letters themselves! Maybe a casual puzzle with a lot of common letters and crosswordese will get to 16-18 unique letters, but f...

PDF  /  PUZ It's roughly halfway through the month, so it's time for a mini-meta! And it is only 187 squares, compared to 225, so that counts! 1.  Puzzle #41 recap Puzzle #41 answer:  KIT KAT Correct entries:  31 Here's the plan of attack: a.  The title with TASTES in all caps obviously means something; combing the grid, you should discover six other entries (all six-letters) that all have that same ABCADC letter pattern. b. The first letter of each of the clues corresponding to those entries spells out KIT KAT , the answer to the meta and most certainly a "bar food" (har har). c. We also have an Easter egg, also symmetrical, featuring the words in the famed tagline: "Break me off a piece of that Kit Kat bar!" (Or Fancy Feast, if you're Andy Bernard.) --- 2.  This mini is about a Level 2 , I would conjecture. Let's see if any of those Kit Kats give you the energy needed to solve it! The PDF looks a bit different, but this is not meta-related - ju...

PDF  /  PUZ It's the last Saturday in the month, so that means it's type for a meta! This one's actually smaller  than the last one, since that was a bear to grid. See it below! 1.  Puzzle #40 recap Puzzle #40 answer:  NOAH'S ARK Correct entries: 28 Here's how success could have come your way: 1. The title obviously signals that "days" and "nights" will be important in some way, and I was expecting the TWELFTH to be an in with TWELFTH NIGHT, and then we even see OTHELLO going down for you fans of Shakespeare plays (or games with black-and-white tiles). There are other ins as well, especially knowing we have 8 letters in our answer. There are symmetrical, and cumbersome to grid around, pairs of entries involving the words "day" and "night": SAME (DAY), MOVIE (NIGHT) OPENING (DAY), MID(NIGHT) HEY(DAY), TWELFTH (NIGHT) EVERY(DAY), GOOD (NIGHT) 2. While I want you guys to have a rocking good time doing the puzzles, since it shoul...

  PDF  /  PUZ Happy 40th puzzle! I'm honored to have been noodling with metas (both constructing and solving!) for over two years now, and I'm hoping that there's plenty more left in the tank, both from a constructing and solving perspective. I'm grateful for your efforts on all fronts and look forward to more meta mayhem, both now and in the future! 1.  Puzzle #39 recap Puzzle #39 answer:  TOUCHDOWN Correct entries:  45 Apparently, I was too concerned with making the meta straightforward that I made the grid itself more complicated in the process. That was definitely unintentional! There are two references going across to SIX POINTS, and there are six of these points (or pointers!) at the bottom of the grid: six entries going DOWN, whose final word TOUCH is omitted (or represented by the words "touching" the bottom of the grid). In any case, this all suggests TOUCHDOWN  as our meta answer, and maybe my Broncos will get one or two more before the seaso...

PDF  /  PUZ Feedback on the last puzzle was mixed, some on the puzzle itself - but some on that drink! Some of you love it - some of you love to hate it (and refuse to acknowledge it as proper sustenance). 1.  Puzzle #38 recap Puzzle #38 answer:  PUMPKIN SPICE(D) LATTE, or, SCOURGE AGAINST HUMANITY Correct entries: 40 Simple mechanism that was, in retrospect, a bit too hard to see. Take the five entries that rhyme with themselves: HUMDRUM THINSKIN NICEPRICE HOTSPOT THEYSAY Take one syllable from each and Mad Gab it up: DRUM SKIN PRICE SPOT SAY DRUMSKIN PRICE SPOTSAY And if you say it enough times after having enough drinks: PUMPKIN SPICE(D) LATTE ! The Easter eggs were also a bit too hidden, but solver KayW found them! 11-A: Pointed, scathing lambasting 33-A: Places so lofty 52-A: Picasso's storied land 1-D: "pretty silly lol" 17-D: "Peace"-ful Storting location 24-D: Planned sched. listings Six of the clues, some awkwardly constructed, had the acronym PSL . Ind...

PDF  /  PUZ The Summer of Solves  is over, so we're back to our regular schedule, part of which means I have no schedule. Here's your mini-meta to tide you over until the end of the month! 1.  Puzzle #37 recap Puzzle #37 answer:  SHOW'S OVER Correct entries:  26 The answer to our final meta, a nod to the final puzzle of the summer (but not of the Land of Metas) was SHOW'S OVER : Nine of the clues ended with titles of game shows (hence "Endgames"), and the final letters to each of those entries spell the meta answer. I think the one that stumped the majority was Card Sharks , and Jim Perry did all he could with a game that basically had to do with just predicting if cards were higher or lower. ([overly excited]"Oh, no, it's a queen, it's not lower!"[/excited]) --- 2. It's 17-by-11, and that has an area that is less than 15-by-15, so it still qualifies as a mini in my book! Best of luck, as always, on your quest for meta greatness! Mikey G ...

PDF  /  PUZ Finally, we did match - last week's puzzle was indeed a Week 4 but what I felt was the best one of the month! 1.  Puzzle #36 recap Puzzle #36 answer:  HIGHLIGHTER Correct entries: 37 One of my favorite puzzles of the summer - and one that came to me while eating something spicy one day, which is every day. I like the fact that you have to be a little clever in figuring out what's going on with the mechanism. My line of reasoning: a. We have 7 starred entries - but also the fact that the prompt clearly says what we're looking for is more than 7 letters. So at least something else is going on. b. In perhaps bold, iconoclastic contrast to the title, the starred entries all seem to be congregating toward the bottom of the grid...so something clearly is going on toward the top! c. This is where we have to be a little bit more sneaky, but I will aver that - since I like clues that might have more than one entry that fits of the same length - I figured that it m...

PDF  /  PUZ Last week's Week 3 was probably a Week 5. 1.  Puzzle #35 recap Puzzle #35 answer:  IMPOSTOR Correct entries:  20 , of which fewer than  10  were likely solo solves I'm not sure how much credit I can take for a mere 15-by-9, but I'd love to see if this could've been done as a 15-by-15 (I think I tried for like 10 minutes, if that, and kept whittling it down, haha). There was certainly a lot of trial-and-error to make this one, and I figured what seemed obvious to me was probably only because I spent so long making it that the constraint loomed large in my mind. The left and right portions of the grid, not connected, and the "Left and Right" in the title referred to your hands, which may have even used to solve a bunch of the puzzle if you did it online! The left grid comprised, mostly, of letters that are typed using the left hand in a standard QWERTY keyboard; the right grid was, well, the right! Thank goodness I was able to at least squeez...

PDF  /  PUZ Welp, no records this week - sorry about that! 1.  Puzzle #34 recap Puzzle #34 answer:  AUGUSTA Correct entries: 26 , of which fewer than 12  were likely solo solves My original Week 2 idea didn't have a strong enough click in my mind, so I quickly put something together in about two days last week. I figured the spanner of CAPITAL with the word "state" in the clue would've been enough to get us over 40, but apparently, some of those capitals were really  well hidden! There's not much of purport in the grid, save for the main clue CAPITAL going across. This, coupled with the title, was meant to get you on a quest to find several hidden state capitals in the grid. I think the puzzle is fine; however , I think there did need to be more assistance for it to click down to a Week 2. Probably should've said "U.S. city" and got you thinking more about the clues than the grid. It wouldn't have been easy to hide too many others, although one a...

PDF  /  PUZ Quick recap this time as we set another record! 1.  Puzzle #33 recap Puzzle #33 answer:  STOP SIGN Correct entries: 61 - fans of prime numbers and Roger Maris, rejoice! This is also a record by far!! Eight definitely was enough in this meta for eight 8-letter answers to eight across clues. The problem? The entries themselves (also legitimate words and phrases!) were 9 letters long! You had to drop the unnecessary letter from each of those entries, and they spell STOP SIGN. Don't stop now, though - let's go to our next meta! (Any more traffic puns would be a dead end.) --- 2. A Week 2  meta this time! And that's all I have to say, haha. Good luck! Mikey G The answer to the meta is a city.

PDF  /  PUZ We had a couple of challenging metas last week - one of the best I've ever seen here and then my newfangled mathematical offering. Let's see how it treated you!! 1.  Puzzle #32 recap Puzzle #32 answer: DIVIDEND Correct entries:  24 -  Still a toughie, but several persevered! Here was the plan of attack. It is  a Week 5 , so keep that in mind! a) The four starred entries each contain a key word toward the end of them: FLAGS, CATCH, STEPS, AREA. b) In line with the title, each of these words is linked to another item (place or title) that contains a number: 6 Flags Catch-22 The 39 Steps  (arguably the hardest of the four, hence the Hitchcock clue elsewhere in the grid; in retrospect, I should've placed one for all four of these) Area 51 c) The title itself doesn't clue us into the number, but it does use the phrase "two-factor." Each of these numbers contains two main factors, other than 1 and itself . (Sometimes, we math nerds refer to thes...

PDF  /  PUZ Hello, everyone! As always, thanks so much for solving these metas. It never ceases to amaze me how passionate the meta community is, and I'm forever grateful to be a part of it! We had a challenging one last week - and another challenging one this week! The difficulty will reset when August comes, which isn't too far off! 1.  Puzzle #31 recap Puzzle #31 answer:  UPBEAT Correct entries:  23 - toughie! (Although I'm fully aware this would've been a high number in 2021, so perspective is everything!) I love music. You really didn't need to know that to do this meta, and I don't ever want to turn these into, "How well do you know Mikey G?" Here's how I envisioned the plan of attack: a) The title, coupled with the entries with the parentheticals, seem to give some "almost famous" people toward the end of it (note that the film of the same name also centers on the music industry): From top to bottom: PINK, ADELE, STING, SEAL, ENYA,...

PDF  /  PUZ 1.  Puzzle #30 recap Puzzle #30 answer: TRADE RUMORS Correct entries:  49 - I think this also might be a record! So close to the half-century mark! You know I love my baseball - but it wouldn't be fair to use prior knowledge of Mikey G to solve this one. Given the title, as well as some bizarre entries such as LIGERS, MAILINS, and TRIOLES, we might think that baseball is in play (especially since those entries look suspiciously like TIGERS, MARLINS, and ORIOLES, three MLB teams). Other longer examples, such as PILATES and DANGERS, turn into PIRATES and RANGERS with a letter swap, and we should be off to the races. There are 11 of these swaps, which also matches with the 11-letter prompt. When all the "trades" are made, the correct letters of the baseball teams (highlighted in yellow above) spell TRADE RUMORS , the answer to the meta. (And I have heard so many about the Cubs' beloved catcher Willson Contreras, it's not even funny.) 2. It's the fourt...

PDF  /  PUZ 1. Puzzle #29 recap Puzzle #29 answer:  7-UP Correct entries: 40   There are 7 UP s in the grid, for the drink 7-Up. Nothing more to say, haha. 2.  It's the middle of a month, which means it's time for a Level 3 meta.   If you know me, that's already a hint. Good luck! Mikey G The answer to the meta, 11 letters in 2 words, is an alternate title for the puzzle.

  PDF  /  PUZ 1.  Puzzle #29 recap Puzzle #28 answer: SATURDAY IN THE PARK Correct entries:  38 Could there be a better jam for the patriotic weekend? The first words of each multiword across entry of 8 or more letters spells out "I think it was the Fourth of July," a lyric in the first verse of Chicago's 1972 bop "Saturday in the Park."  Far be it from me, the millennial, to use the phrase, but this was certainly a time when music was music. I'm sure quality music exists today, but it seems like you have to search a lot more for it! 2. My mom was the test solver on this one, and I tried to make the clues and meta as easy as possible. To quote my mother, "Oh, there was a theme?" This, on both counts, should be as much of a Level 1  as I can offer. Good luck! Mikey G The answer to the meta is a drink.

PDF  /  PUZ 1.  Puzzle #27 recap Puzzle #27 answer:  VIBRANT Correct entries: 25 Perhaps one of the hardest challenges I've created and rightful of its place as a Week 4  (at least!!). Math story: Often, you have to solve proofs in geometry class. Sometimes, I'll look at one and think, "Oh, that's maybe just 3 or 4 steps," and then it ends up being 10. That's kind of what happened with this one! I knew it was a Level 4, but I didn't realize how intricate was until I actually went to explain how we get to our meta answer of VIBRANT . Here's the journey: 1. Recognize that the seven longest, symmetrically placed themers (all of which are followed by a number in parentheses) have a word within that are linked to another phrase or title. 2. Each of these phrases contains a color in the rainbow, in ROYGBIV, from top to bottom: PAINT THE TOWN RED ORANGE  IS THE NEW BLACK FOLLOW THE YELLOW  BRICK ROAD ANNE OF GREEN  GABLES ONCE IN A BLUE  MOON MOOD I...

  PDF  /  PUZ 1.  Puzzle #26 recap Puzzle #26 answer: DAD BOD Correct entries: 33 You did need some outside knowledge for this one! Only six of the entries in the grid were clued as people, be they real or fictional. Those are highlighted above in yellow. If we take their fathers' first names in order, as seen in the blue, we get DAD BOD , definitely a father figure! (I've got the dad bod with the dad jokes, so this meta answer was fair, haha.) 2. This finishes the month and is most certainly at least a Level 4 , if not a 4.5.  I'm not sure what categorizes a Level 5  over a Level 4 , but this one will require some thought. A special shout-out to Abide for test-solving and for some very solid editing suggestions. Good luck! Mikey G The answer to the meta is a 7-letter word.

PDF  /  PUZ 1.  Puzzle #25 recap Puzzle #25 answer:  FAIR Correct entries:  22 (maybe not as FAIR as I would have liked!) A lot of these puzzles for the Summer of Solves were written for the summer, but some I just had the backburner and wanted to try to clean up and use. I also typically like to have one "mini-meta" a month, where the grid is less than 15-by-15. My suspected logic was to note the central spanner with the simple clue of "Four" (matching the title), which would allude to the fact that we're looking for two-by-two squares (whose area is also four). And these squares can't just be random, of course; there has to be rhyme and reason to them. And what better rhyme or reason (so I thought) to have the two-by-two squares spell out words that complete the phrase "SQUARE ___." Yes, SQUARE AWAY is a bit of a stretch, but I had to for the meta and  this wasn't random. Our family says that a lot, especially in regard to IOUs, haha. (Also, ...