Holding Out For A Hero (Meta)
◆ · By benchen71 · Published 2023-09-06T06:00:45.458Z
Meta Prompt
The answer to the meta is a hero
It's time for another BenChen71-attempts-to-channel-Madhatter5 puzzle. Once again, the conventions of crosswords have been thrown out the window! Well, it's perhaps not quite as drastic as all that. OK, so there's no symmetry, but I made sure to avoid 2-letter words this time (which was hard, let me tell you!) All told, I consider this one to be "Persian" in difficulty (equivalent of a "week 3"). The answer to the meta is a hero. Answer & explanation: https://www.xword-muggles.com/viewtopic.php?p=141635#p141635
Check out "The MOAT Music Meta Pack" here: https://www.ephesusscroll.com/about/interest4.html. US$10 gives you access to 12 music-themed metas that will not be published at any time in the future. In other words, this is not a pre-release pack!
Checking for previous play data...
Leaderboard (updated hourly)
- Hector solved at 18:02 on 9/6/2023
- Danny K Bernstein solved at 18:37 on 9/6/2023
- Meg solved at 20:17 on 9/6/2023
- Cindy Weatherman solved at 21:21 on 9/6/2023
- I K Snamhcok solved at 23:54 on 9/6/2023
- woozy solved at 0:13 on 9/7/2023
- Pair O Ducks solved at 21:11 on 9/7/2023
- MatthewL solved at 22:04 on 9/7/2023
- Katiedid solved at 23:23 on 9/7/2023
- markhr solved at 23:36 on 9/7/2023
- Abide solved at 1:15 on 9/8/2023
- Ergcat solved at 1:33 on 9/8/2023
- KayW solved at 1:41 on 9/8/2023
- Berto solved at 1:52 on 9/8/2023
- ReB solved at 3:13 on 9/8/2023
- hoover solved at 3:33 on 9/8/2023
- DrTom solved at 4:22 on 9/8/2023
- SamKat9 solved at 6:06 on 9/8/2023
- Laura M solved at 8:26 on 9/8/2023
- rjy solved at 14:29 on 9/8/2023
- ajk solved at 14:40 on 9/8/2023
- Carolyn solved at 15:16 on 9/8/2023
- HeadinHome solved at 16:02 on 9/8/2023
- lbray53 solved at 19:10 on 9/8/2023
- SeamusOL solved at 1:17 on 9/9/2023
- rdavey1287 solved at 1:41 on 9/9/2023
- whimsy solved at 1:55 on 9/9/2023
- Tyrpmom solved at 3:22 on 9/9/2023
- kurtalert solved at 15:14 on 9/9/2023
- edestlin solved at 15:15 on 9/9/2023
- Darth solved at 3:29 on 9/10/2023
- Bbaack solved at 21:45 on 9/10/2023
- Cindy Heisler solved at 13:19 on 9/11/2023
- CPJohnson solved at 13:21 on 9/11/2023
Comments
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- Meg 2s · 2023-09-06T20:24:04.317ZLots of green things in the grid. Not a clue where to find the second part.
- Hector 3s · 2023-09-06T20:58:44.369ZMeg I think it's supposed to look like a lantern, delineated in green entries, complete with a WICK38DJohn ___ (four-time role for Keanu Reeves)[----] in the center
- And PROPANE59AFlammable gas[-------] in the tank at the bottom!
- Meg 2s · 2023-09-06T23:33:17.221ZThanks you guys for the explanation. Now it makes sense!
- Ergcat 12:35 · 2023-09-08T01:34:44.139ZAh, yes! Clever!
- But bees aren't green (or is that one specifically green)?Bees are not really related to hornets so I guess that's why my first WAG failed...
- That specific bee very definitely is green: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Euglossa_dilemma
- MatthewL 🤓6:22 · 2023-09-07T22:08:57.131ZYeah, definitely needed all of the nudges. Clever -- don't think I've ever seen something like this before. And it does look like a lantern when you shade it in. Thanks, Ben!
- markhr 🤓8:39 · 2023-09-07T23:45:28.959ZThis was tough for me, not really being among the comics 6D6DNerds[------]. Clever puzzle, though.
- Ergcat 12:35 · 2023-09-08T01:34:02.354ZGot it with nudges! That was very tricky!
- Berto 🤓9:20 · 2023-09-08T01:58:47.257ZWow. Felt a bit like one of those skeleton crosswords where you have to fill in the black squares lol. Would never have got it without nudges, but very cool idea!
- ReB 4s · 2023-09-08T03:18:07.998ZFinally got it somehow (after additional help with the missing words to enable me to complete the design) - by osmosis, I suppose. Or perhaps is was THE FLASH who came to my rescue...Very clever idea and ingeniously executed.
- hoover 4s · 2023-09-08T03:35:39.388ZSigh. After nudge 3 I noticed all the green things, but lantern was my 3rd try after hornet and arrow. So I guess I WAGged it with nudges. Now that I'm in, I see the explanation in the comments here.
- OK, now after reading I see the wick was important, the earwax not so much. Never saw the propane, at least not to tie it in. Here is something else that I happened to see when Googling things to confirm, there is apparently a "brand" of cannabis called Panacea Green Lantern! https://shopdtla.stiiizy.com/dispensary/stiiizy-dtla-los-angeles-1/product/panacea-1g-live-rosin-green-lantern-7
- Took me until Nudge #3 (to be fair, I already had been told #1 and deduced #2) to realize it was probably Green Lantern (hero with all those greens, but it could have been Green Hornet because of the "Bee"). i then looked for all of the things that were green (of course I did not notice them before...) and still wasn't sure but I did see they surrounded EARWAX37AAural blockage, perhaps[------] and WICK38DJohn ___ (four-time role for Keanu Reeves)[----], and remembering the opening of Shrek when he made a lantern out of earwax (eww!) I went with Green Lantern. I see later that I could have colored (or even coloured) in all the greens to form the lantern, Nice idea and tough puzzle mainly because it is different. You did indeed channeled your inner Josh.
- SamKat9 🤓9:28 · 2023-09-08T06:09:55.438ZI finally got it! It took me a while and some wrong guesses because even with the nudges I didn't recognize what it was supposed to be at first. Then it hit me just before bed. Very cool, the wick and propane are nice touches!
- Laura M 🤓7:07 · 2023-09-08T08:29:20.487ZNicely done! But I admit I needed all the hints; I noticed the green things (except the bee) but I'm so bad at the visual metas...
- Not sure why all the green stuff didn't pop before googling the BEE22ACentral American orchid ___ (Euglossa dilemma)[---] (which I would never have thought to do). Never seen SHREK48ACharacter who crosses the moat and storms the castle while Fairy Godmother sings "Holding Out For A Hero"[-----], so I think I was too worried that knowledge of the movie would be required or something. Once I googled the name and saw that it was green I quickly found the rest, but it wasn't until I looked back at the prompt that Green Lantern occurred to me. Was trying to decide if what I had circled constituted a lantern or not, but then I thought to google green lantern to see what the logo actually looked like and that was a clear match. Didn't see PROPANE59AFlammable gas[-------] until after I'd solved, and didn't notice WICK38DJohn ___ (four-time role for Keanu Reeves)[----] until coming here and reading. Fun stuff, and not sure why it was so tough in retrospect (though I suppose grid art is not usually one of my strong points).
- Carolyn 3s · 2023-09-08T15:17:45.011ZThird time's the charm! Lots of green heroes. Finally saw WICK38DJohn ___ (four-time role for Keanu Reeves)[----] and PROPANE59AFlammable gas[-------] and the shape. Cool construction!
- HeadinHome 🤓2:00 · 2023-09-08T16:10:34.858ZWOW I was all over the place with this one, before the nudges. John Cleese had a couple cameos (King Harold in Shrek, BASIL23APesto ingredient[-----] Fawlty in Fawlty Towers, and of course a member of 41A41AIdle member of Monty Python?[----] Monty Python) … all coincidence? So I spent a good bit of time looking up other roles, seeing if I could make something out of that … did he ever play a clear hero? I also rewatched that earwax candle scene from Shrek (https://youtu.be/inStPQaAgdM?si=mPrGVXfXU4YVe6cb) to see if there were clues… still disgusting as ever. The colored pencil nudge and the “two central clues” finally turned on the light… er, lantern. I do like how you got the wick (mantle) central and vertical in the grid!
- whimsy 🤓11:41 · 2023-09-09T02:19:55.870ZOh, that kind of mantle! My lantern resembled a building -- The Daily Planet -- and I first guessed Superman (admittedly, the guy's not green.) Also wondered if it was a birthday cake. (The MOAT puzzle still on my mind. :)) Finally, after Hulk and another one or two guesses, it all came together for me. Duh -- I need remedial drawing lessons! Thanks for the puzzle, Ben!
- Tyrpmom 2s · 2023-09-09T03:30:30.360ZI think the title threw me off or didn’t help get things going. Maybe something like “I’m Envious” would have gotten us off to a better start. Really cool. Wish I didn’t need all the nudges.
- I liked the idea of referencing the song since it appears so memorably in Shrek 2, and you can hold out a lantern!
- Very fun! I'd love to get more insight into your thought process into making this. Did you decide on the meta / grid art and then try to fit in green-themed answers first?
- I posted about this over at xword-muggles: https://www.xword-muggles.com/viewtopic.php?t=2411&start=20#p141635. I think the comment would be too long to fit here!
1A
Piece by Marina Hyde, for example (check her out on The Guardian; she's bitingly hilarious!)
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Across
- 1APiece by Marina Hyde, for example (check her out on The Guardian; she's bitingly hilarious!)
- 5A"Good" cholesterol (abbr.)
- 8AStrait-laced
- 12APalm fruit
- 13A68 across68AMay birthstone[-------], for example
- 15AFence opening
- 16ARamones single that opens with "Twenty-twenty-twenty four hours to go"
- 19APrinter's measures
- 20AGland near the kidneys
- 21APrinter's measures (the other ones)
- 22ACentral American orchid ___ (Euglossa dilemma)
- 23APesto ingredient
- 25AUse as a dinner table
- 28AEstonia, once upon a time (abbr.)
- 29ALocations
- 33AHooptown USA
- 35ANot more than
- 36AGovernment payment
- 37AAural blockage, perhaps
- 40AReply to "Are not!"
- 41AIdle member of Monty Python?
- 43AScrape, as a windshield
- 44ARoad Runner sound
- 45ASicilian hot spot
- 46A2.54 centimetres
- 47AHorse holders
- 48ACharacter who crosses the moat and storms the castle while Fairy Godmother sings "Holding Out For A Hero"
- 50APod occupant
- 51A"What do you call cheese that's not yours?" "___ cheese!"
- 54AMouse-catcher on a farm, perhaps
- 58ASound of satisfaction
- 59AFlammable gas
- 63AOrnamental pond fish
- 64AAuthor ___ Tolstoy
- 65AObelix has a crush on her in Asterix the Legionary (the word also means "Universal remedy" if you're not an Asterix fan)
- 66AShad delicacy
- 67ACCM luminary ___ Grant
- 68AMay birthstone
- 69ASum up
Down
- 1DGarfield's foil
- 2DMinor chess piece
- 3DZeta followers
- 4DLion's home
- 5DLanguage almost all of the OT is written in
- 6DNerds
- 7DProfessional wrestler Brock ___
- 8DGolf org.
- 9DAssign stars to, say
- 10DAny thing
- 11DDrugs, familiarly
- 13DCarved gemstone
- 14DPlaces to graze
- 17DDance craze with a repetitive name
- 18DBottom of the celebrity barrel
- 22DWith 53 down53DSee 22 down[----]: Chinese cabbage
- 24DSuccotash ingredient
- 25DCosmetician ___ Lauder
- 26DNot together
- 27DPoison of plant or animal origin
- 28DAt peace
- 30DOscar winner Marisa ___
- 31DIndustrial city on the Ruhr
- 32DTrain stations
- 34DLowest point
- 35DWolf killer in a fairy tale
- 38DJohn ___ (four-time role for Keanu Reeves)
- 39DExclamation heard in 31 down31DIndustrial city on the Ruhr[-----]
- 42DUS "cabbage"
- 47DEnjoy a favourite book again
- 49DBilliards ace Willie ___
- 50DGroup of experts
- 51D"The Lion King" queen
- 52DThroat-clearing sound
- 53DSee 22 down22DWith 53 down: Chinese cabbage[---]
- 54DValley of Weeping (Ps. 84)
- 55DCreole vegetable
- 56D35 down35DWolf killer in a fairy tale[---] target
- 57DTold a falsehood
- 60DBattering device
- 61DNot divided
- 62DGolfer's standard
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