The old “this word can precede the first words in the long Acrosses” gimmick hardly feels stale when the long Acrosses are juicy ones like these. BUZZWORDS is, namely KILL ME NOW, SAW THAT COMING, CUT IT OUT ALREADY, and OFF TO THE RACES. “Bees Do It,” by Freddie Cheng, WSJ (March 21).Here are the Honorable Mentions for Best Easy Crossword, in order of publication: There were many contenders for this award. The best word to describe this puzzle? Stellar. All these constraints and everything remains accessible and smooth? That’s some magic there.
Awkward radio silence clue plus#
But wait, there’s more! Even POSEIDON, the dude that banished Cassiopeia to the sky, appears in the grid, opposite ETHIOPIA, where Cassiopeia ruled! That’s 36 theme squares PLUS the visual depiction of the constellation through the use of Xs. Jennifer uses THE NEREIDS (to whom Cassiopeia favorably compared herself) to balance out the revealer, adding even more thematic material to the grid. Let’s get the party started with the award for Best Easy Crossword of 2018!
Awkward radio silence clue free#
If one of your favorites is not feted here, feel free to give it some love in the Comments. Given these constraints and general human fallibility, some good puzzles worthy of recognition are sure to slip through the cracks. As in past years, no one constructor was nominated more than twice in any one category. Finalists for each award are selected based on a combination of the star ratings awarded by readers of this site, the independent assessment of puzzles by the Selection Committee (a formal term for “me”), and consideration of puzzles not reviewed on this site. Alas, that means you’re in for a post that’s about 11 percent longer than usual.įestivities start below the jump. That brings the total number of Orcas awarded to an even ten. On this, our eighth year, we’re introducing a new category, Best Variety Crossword.
Awards include Best Crossword of 2018, 2018 Constructor of the Year, and Best Gimmick Crossword of 2018.
Welcome to the 2018 Orca Awards! If you’re new, the Orcas is our annual celebration of outstanding achievement in crossword construction and editing.