April Fooling Remains a Vibrant Tradition in Crossword Puzzles
As April unfolds, the tradition of April Fools' Day continues to thrive in the world of cryptic crosswords, with setters devising clever and humorous tricks to challenge and entertain solvers. The ebb and flow of this playful foolery shows no signs of slowing down, offering a delightful blend of wit and deception for enthusiasts.
Notable Puzzles and Their Ingenious Tricks
While rule-bending cryptics have yet to surface this season, several standout puzzles deserve attention. The Financial Times features a creation by the setter known as Harpo, while the Independent offers puzzle 12,318 by Enigmatist. Additionally, the Guardian's own Paul contributes to the festive spirit with engaging content.
Across the Atlantic, the New York Times employs a unique approach by breaking amusing quotations over longer entries. For instance, clues like "Quip, part 1" prompt solvers to use crossing letters to piece together witticisms. A recent example included entries such as QUICK START, YOUNG AT HEART, SECOND LINE, and PAY UP FRONT, which collectively form a clever quip, showcasing a style more commonly seen in European puzzles.
Genius Puzzles and Creative Clueing
Turnstone's Genius 273 exemplifies crafty design, requiring solvers to move letters between across and down clues to generate the message: "SUM TO FINAL." The sum of numbers for paired clues reveals the final clue number and theme, THIRTY-ONE, hinted at by unclued entries like GALLIUM, NETHERLANDS, and HOGMANAY. As May approaches, another Genius puzzle from KGB promises to be a challenging endeavor, unlikely to be solved quickly during a commute.
In cluing conferences, contributions for GREENE have sparked creativity. Le74's clue, "He wrote the beginning of the end of the genre novel," intrigued many, though its mechanics remain unclear. For author Graham Greene, wordplay suggestions abound, such as Wellywearer2's reference to "The Heart of the Matter" in the clue "Author of tt."
Innovative Wordplay and Haiklu Creations
Rakali announced a novel concept blending cryptic wordplay with Japanese verse to form a "haiklu" (patent pending), exemplified by the clue: "Blend cryptic wordplay with Japanese verse to form a delectable haiklu (patent pending) he made The Third Man once oddly go missing with endless avarice (6)." Runners-up included Mr_Rob_T's "Wilder perhaps carrying on becoming author" and Newlaplandes's "Teenagers perhaps sat around with this Blue Peter presenter," with the winner being Fozza9's evocative "Lime, perhaps, Vienna's third man who told tales."
Crossword enthusiasts are encouraged to share their entries for GREENE and favorite clues or puzzles in the comments. Alan Connor, the Guardian's crossword editor, continues to oversee these engaging discussions, with his book "188 Words for Rain" available for purchase to support the Guardian.
