Ah, another from the quad-stack master, MAS. I really liked the open layout of this one, the puzzle flow being pretty darn good. That ...
read moreAh, another from the quad-stack master, MAS. I really liked the open layout of this one, the puzzle flow being pretty darn good. That bottom stack sure contains a lot of great stuff. When your 15's have to carry so much of the burden for pizzazz, WISDOM OF SOLOMON is the way to do it. ASCENT OF EVEREST felt a little newsy at first, but I think I like that one quite a bit too.
I like the direction in which MAS is moving, not just being content with quad stacks in themselves. The crossword art form is always evolving, and if you don't try new things as a constructor, you'll get left behind. In the past, we "just" saw triple stacks and quad stacks, but MAS's recent ones have all given us such nice long answers crossing through the stacks. NEON TETRA and HERSHEY BAR through those stacks? Yes, please! And note how those long guys keep the puzzle flow open. As a solver, I really appreciate that.
WHEN IM GONE... I'm a complete moron when it comes to pop music, perhaps only better than my (identical twin) brother, who once asked, "Who's this 'eh-my-nem' guy?" Ha ha ha, he's so out of it! (Sadly, I couldn't identify Eminem at that point, either.) Anyhoo, WHEN IM GONE is a song I recognize now, so that's saying something. Still, I like prefer the NEON TETRA type answers, unless the song is wildly popular, like BABY GOT BACK.
The top stack isn't quite as snazzy, especially given the two ONES phrases (glad MAS is humble enough to admit this issue up front) and the abundance of common letters. So many RSTLN E type squares. And there are some rough crossings, as with most quad stacks. The SOHNE / TRE area, STAFFA/SNERD... well, I won't belabor the point.
The first ever quad stack was a huge eye-opener, a visual stunner. Now that we've had a good handful of them, it's going to require raising the bar to keep them interesting. I'm looking forward to seeing how MAS can evolve, what different types of grids he can give us in the future. I'm betting we'll see more innovations out of him.