| Comments on the competition |
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| 1. |
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| Some nice ideas here, but still far too much garbage from such a relatively experienced bunch of crossworders (eg clue 44 and 26's first exit=E : I ask you!). The & lit arriving late (48) just steals the show from a nicely contextualised 21 (Tim Moorey's, I'm guessing), with No 7 (good oblique definition) placed third. Nos 6 and 34 are not hugely exciting but they make honest use of a simple anagram and deserve 0.5 points each. |
| 2. |
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Of the 47 clues, I was able very quickly to come up with a short-list of 11. Bearing in mind the clue word, I was a little surprised by how uninspiring some of the clues were. Poor surface readings abounded on many of the sound clues. However, as always, there were also a few brilliant ones.
Two that didn't quite make my short-list but are worthy of comment are:
11. 'Hand of God' claim re foul - This would be a fantastic clue if 'Hand of God' meant miracle, but Chambers does not seem to define it so.
43. Wonder if empirical formula = pi(x) - An interesting idea indeed, but I don't think it *quite* works.
My short-list:
3. Bush remarkably inflamed, for instance, by Liberal America's endless stirring - Excellent clue with misleading definition and associated surface reading.
6. Dodgy claim re bleeding statue? - Nice idea, but better executed in clue 34.
7. Email leaders of Roman church about possible grounds for canonization - Decent surface reading and a slightly different slant on the definition.
14. In problematical situation a class idiot's not going to be considered a prodigy! - A different approach. not sure it merited an exclamation mark.
19. LA, crime-free?! - Made me laugh, but on reconsideration not quite correct grammatically and perhaps pushing things a bit too far as a definition.
20. Law-breaker, perhaps, reversing vehicle in the distance - Interesting definition in a natural surface reading. Simple and fairly elegant.
30. One rarely sees this many drivers in a race - I liked the definition and, after some thought, 'many drivers' for RAC.
34. Preposterous claim re supernatural event - Straightforward and elegant.
35. Rehabilitation of this ever-blind: incredible marvel! - Best of the composite anagrams by far and not too contrived in trying to obtain an &lit clue. 'Ever-blind' is slightly weak.
42. Wonder drug seized by porter on remote station - Great way to bring in 'Wonder' as the definition. Completely misleading context for all parts of the clue and a very plausible surface reading.
48. What a martyr's original relic might generate? - Neat &lit clue. In my opinion it misses out slightly to some of the others because it is a bit too direct (i.e. no misleading context). |
| 3. |
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A good lot this month. The word lends itself to many interesting treatments.
1st = (3 points each): 38. "Sort of rice many Asians like for starters" [beautiful; pity the surface couldn't have said "as a starter" not "for starters", which doesn't seem quite grammatical if you think of miracle rice as a "starter"] and 40. "What initiates rapid conclusion to insurance claim? Blooming this!" [great fun] 3rd = (2 points each): 3. "Bush remarkably inflamed, for instance, by Liberal America's endless stirring" [very good, but I don't really like "by"] and 36. "Religious drama? High Carmel's setting for one" ["High Carmel" is a bit unnatural, but otherwise very nice]
5th (1.5 points): 11. "'Hand of God' claim re foul" [the definition perhaps needs a question mark, but the idea is good]
6th (1 point): 19. "LA, crime-free?!" [not strictly Ximenean this, but an amusing idea]
7th = (0.5 points each): 6. "Dodgy claim re bleeding statue?" [I couldn't separate this and 34, so included them both], 13. "In Kashmir a clearly wondrous event" [very simple but nice], 27. "New Year claim to promptness - it could be this, says R.T. Top tip? Omen?" [almost very good and rather fun, but I couldn't understand "Top tip", which doesn't seem to have anything to do with it], 34. "Preposterous claim re supernatural event" [see 6 above] and 48. "What a martyr's original relic might generate" [nice, but miracles tend to be more to do with workaday things so far as I can see, like disease and blindness and death] |
| 4. |
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| Good to see a long list again with some very good clues and a variety of approaches. I thought however there were some composite anagrams that were very long indeed and would not have been much fun to solve I'd say. Some of the definitions (esp the 'wonder' ones) were maybe just a little too obvious. Votes, 1 pt (5th) 6 a well-chosen indicator and nicely brief 2pts (4th) 34 a slightly better one using a similar idea. 3rd (3pts) 48 - a pleasing &lit. 2nd (4pts) 3 Very original idea to use Bush like that at the start of the clue. My winner 5pts 22 While first letters can be too easy sometimes, this is very well constructed and read very well as a surface while giving a precise cryptic route to the answer. |
| 5. |
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Generally, a better crop of clues, I thought, than last month and, despite there being twice as many entries, easier to judge, especially as there is, in my view, a very clear winner. Several perfectly acceptable clues (eg, 2, 13, 34) missed out on the points only because they struck me as a little bland.
5 points: 48. What a martyr's original relic might generate? A superbly crafted and completely natural-sounding &lit.
2 points each: 6. Dodgy claim re bleeding statue? Neat and economical, and, although it is not in fact claimed as an &lit in the explanation, it surely has a much better claim to be one (or at least a semi-&lit) than many others in these competitions that make that assertion. Some Catholics might, I suppose, find the suggestion mildly offensive, but, set beside Clue 10, it is mild indeed in that respect!
24. Means of achieving insurance claim, after accident? 40. What initiates rapid conclusion to insurance claim? Blooming this! I find it difficult to separate these two seemingly heart-felt side-swipes at the insurance industry. Clue 24 is punchier, has a more natural-sounding surface and marginally smoother wordplay, while Clue 40's surface meaning for the &lit is more accurate and more precise. The comma in Clue 24 is perplexing.
1.5 points each: 29. One darner ultimately stopping monstrous camel achieving this? This original, intricately constructed and daring attempt seems to me to fall short of complete success as an &lit, but it is, I think, the most interesting approach on offer. Although it would indeed be a miracle were a camel to pass through the eye of a needle, it isn't really accurate to say that it is the needle that prevents the camel from achieving that miracle; what's more, unlike the wedding at Cana, the calming of the storm, etc used by others, the episode of the camel and the eye of the needle is not a miracle, but a parable. The surface reading is also a little strained.
42. Wonder drug seized by porter on remote station The definition is straightforward and only very lightly disguised, but the subsidiary indicator has rather more to it, offering a convincing surface (fairly) leading the solver well away from any idea of miracles. However, "porter" = ALE is a case of defining the general by the particular, which is a weakness, if not a very serious one in this case. (I don't feel competent to take sides over the contentious issue of whether, technically, porter is in fact an ale; Chambers seems to suggest that an ale is a beer that does not contain hops, but this is clearly not the view of most beer aficionados on the web.)
0.5 point each:
11. 'Hand of God' claim re foul This is very neat and has an immediately recognizable reference, but I am a little uncomfortable, for all that the overtones are right, with "Hand of God" as a DEFINITION of "miracle".
18. It's no small wonder Michael's confused: Henry's out and Ray's first in An acceptable definition and accomplished wordplay, but, although the surface makes sense, it has no obvious reference to anything - why should it be confusing that "Henry's out and Ray's first in"? |
