CCCWC April competition voters’ comments
Clue no. 3: Certain pairs of physical attributes can make you this?
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A clue to PHAT.
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| Comments on the competition |
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| 1. |
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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. |
| 2. |
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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. |
| 3. |
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k) It was a new word to me, but nice to read imaginative short clues to this short word.
One narrow miss - #3 - amusing, but I think it should be 'pair', not 'pairs' for the surface reading, which would wreck the cryptic reading. The 'Certain' did not seem needed either but that was a minor point.
In reverse order 5th 1 pt #7 4th 2 pts #39 3rd 3 pts #30 Needed a little convincing that 'fat' was 'fulsome' and that the surface descriptions were not mutually exclusive, but satisfied on both counts. Reads very well. 2nd 4 pts #4 Very good surface and clear wordplay removed any reservations about a perhaps slightly vague definition. 1st #27 - I thought this was tbe best this month by a wide margin - top quality. |
