| Comments on the competition |
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| 1. |
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b) I thought this was a very good set of clues, with a pleasing variety of approaches. That makes scoring more difficult, but here goes.
First place, for 5 points, I give to clue 12; clean, succinct and nicely misdirecting. Second, for 4 points, I give to clue 2, which has similar virtues. 3 points, and third place, I give to clue 16, which works very neatly although the rap reference is lost on me. In fourth place, for 2 points, I place clue 39; 'alternates' clues are rarely as attractive and interesting as this. 1 point, and fifth place, I award to clue 21, which conjures up an appropriate image although I find the 'a' awkward. |
| 2. |
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c) A difficult word to define other than straightforwardly. "Fine" perhaps offered the most potential for a disguised definition, but those who tried this approach either did not have very convincing surfaces (2, 7, 8, 9) or were unsound (38 - even with a question-mark, "Traffic warden's habit?" to indicate HAT surely won't do). The best clues all took the straightforward approach where the definition was concerned, some more successfully than others in this respect.
3.5 points each:
21. Nymph's rear moving in a way that's sexy
A very apt surface and well-executed wordplay.
27. Rap's term for what's foremost?
An accomplished &lit that (for a change!) does what it says on the tin, even if "foremost" is rather a staid word to convey the essence of "phat".
39. Up the ante, when the odds are dropping? That's fine!
The way in which the subsidiary indicator is melded into the surface is masterly and a refreshing change from the now hackneyed "oddly". After such a beginning, the definition, though sound enough, is a shade pedestrian. It's a shame that a means could not have been found to extend the betting surface or to incorporate the definition a little more seamlessly into it (eg, "Best up the ante.").
2 points each:
4. Cool tango with a hot piano backing
I don't claim to be at all musical, but to me the combination of cool tango and hot piano sounds a little bit odd. Otherwise, it would be hard to fault either wordplay or definition.
6. Excellent - hose's nozzle goes in perfectly
The last three words of the subsidiary indication are very neat and well-disguised, but "nozzle" for "beginning" is pushing it a bit.
0.5 point:
12. Grand piano lid
Although "grand" can mean "very good" or "excellent", like "foremost", it is at the opposite end of a spectrum of nuance from "phat", but otherwise the clue is sound and it would be hard to beat it for economy. On the other hand, it is just a little bit dull and lacking in sparkle.
Some also-rans:
3. Certain pairs of physical attributes can make you this?
This is almost very good, but
a. "Certain" does not really indicate "first" or "leading" - something like "Prominent" would have been better;
b. "you" works well in the surface reading, but not in the cryptic one: "phat" doesn't "make YOU this (ie, phat)".
11. Grand piano -- something you may associate with the shows of Flanders and Swann
The bones of a good idea, but much too wordily executed.
16. 'Hot' in rap circles
Unfortunately, "pat" and "rap" don't mean the same thing, while "rap circles" to indicate "put a word meaning 'rap' backwards" strikes me as iffy, especially after "Hot in".
25. Plump is said to be the new sexy
Is "phat" really a NEW word for "sexy"? It strikes me as slightly dated. Including "the new" undoubtedly improves the surface, but it hardly seems justified from the point of view of the definition. |
| 3. |
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h) 5pts Clue #18 Hot, making knob swell [really needs a '?', but couldn't resist it!]
4pts Clue #12 Grand piano lid [my head tells me this is the best, but my heart told me to go with the smutty one - sorry]
3pts Clue #16 'Hot' in rap circles [very clever, but 'rap' and 'tap' not quite synonymous, I feel]
1pt Clue #3 Certain pairs of physical attributes can make you this?
1pt Clue #11 Grand piano - something you may associate with the shows of Flanders and Swann
1pt Clue #19 If hot tap's broken, it may be cool or heard to be dripping, for instance. |
| 4. |
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i) 5 points to clue no. 16 - a brilliant example of an &lit
4 points to clue no. 4 - cleverly done, with a very good surface reading
3 points to clue no. 14 - I couldn't agree more!
2 points to clue no. 5 - nicely misleading
1 point to clue no. 18 - for sheer rudery! |
| 5. |
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j) There was less unsoundness than normal in my opinion, although I still discounted a few I thought were borderline (e.g. too many extra words in hidden clues, inadequate indicators for first letters). I whittled it down mostly on how interesting the clues were and how misleading the context, but that still left quite a lot of the pack.
Some comments on specific clues. I discounted 18 for being a bit too obscene as a surface reading, although it would only just have been in my shortlist otherwise anyway. My favourite clue of all (even including my own) is 39, since it is an interesting and sound clue with a misleading context and a natural surface reading. My favourite of the "&lit"s are 16 and 27, since they are both sound, incorporate a precise definition, and are interesting in format and simple in phrasing. There are many other good clues that I cannot easily choose between. |
