Meredith Colton Hazy author page
1 puzzle by Meredith Colton Hazy
with Jeff Chen comments
| F | A | C | T | C | U | L | L | S | T | A | L | C | ||
| L | U | A | U | U | B | O | A | T | A | D | O | S | ||
| U | R | L | S | B | E | N | D | S | H | O | S | T | ||
| B | A | C | K | W | A | R | D | S | B | O | L | T | ||
| S | A | N | E | R | B | R | E | E | C | H | ||||
| G | I | T | Y | O | D | E | L | E | R | S | A | O | ||
| O | N | E | O | N | S | E | T | A | C | U | T | |||
| T | H | E | B | E | L | T | T | H | E | R | E | S | T | |
| H | I | T | S | O | O | H | R | E | N | E | E | |||
| O | B | O | M | I | N | I | B | A | R | T | S | A | ||
| T | I | T | I | A | N | G | L | U | O | N | ||||
| T | A | L | L | T | H | E | B | R | I | D | G | E | ||
| S | I | L | O | W | A | T | E | R | F | I | N | D | ||
| E | V | E | S | E | R | O | D | E | T | R | A | Y | ||
| W | E | R | E | T | O | P | S | Y | Y | E | W | S |
NIFTY gridwork, especially for 1.) a debut, and 2.) a tricky layout. Working with stacked themers is rarely easy, and four sets make for a potential minefield. Meredith did a great job separating the themers from each other, allowing each pair of entries to breathe.
Note the perfect symmetry, too. BENDS (over) BACKWARDS is opposite from WATER (under) THE BRIDGE. A CUT (above) THE REST on the east, and HITS (below) THE BELT on the west. That's a nice touch.
I worry when seeing long adjacent Downs, like ADOLESCENT and LOST CAUSES, because it's so tough to come up with entries that sing while keeping glue out of your short crossing entries. Such a solid result in the upper right! Nothing flashy, but nothing needle-scratching. I appreciate that trade-off.
INHIBITIVE felt slightly off in the opposite corner — who uses that ridiculous word?! — but I didn't find it painfully inhibitive.
Drat.
Constructors, be aware that one person's glue is another's treasure. A few years ago, Will Shortz asked me to redo an entire Sunday grid because he didn't think OBO ("or best offer") was fair if you'd never heard of it. Other editors disagree (and Will may well have changed his mind by now).
The "X literally Y" genre is overdone but underappreciated. Just like with other mature theme categories, there's usually room for an example with outstanding and elegant execution, and this strong debut qualifies.