Pun of a Kind

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...