The answer to the meta will be patently obvious to fans of "The Last of Us"
I created this puzzle in 2023 shortly after the final episode of season 1 of "The Last of Us" aired. Here's hoping that when this puzzle is published in April of 2024, season 2 comes out so that this puzzle appears amazingly relevant! [April 2024 edit: Nope! Season 2 isn't coming out until 2025. Ah well, them's the breaks when you construct so far ahead.] The answer to the meta will be patently obvious to fans of "The Last of Us". Nudges available here: https://www.xword-muggles.com/viewtopic.php?p=162269#p162269
Check out "The MOAT Mini Pack of Marching Bands" here: https://www.ephesusscroll.com/about/interest4.html. US$5 gets you 7 Marching Bands which, hard enough on their own, now contain metas too. And once again there's a mega-meta!
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Comments
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Ohhhh.... I've never seen the show and know nothing about it, but while googling I figured I was looking for a 5LW and this one popped out. Was about to ask why this is the answer and then I looked at the grid again. I thought I was going to have to do something with ALE, HERTEMPLE, etc. Groan.
HeadinHome 🤓1:21 · 10 months ago
That’s actually how I figured out ELLIE from LE… all the rest have some kind of word at the end (ale, temple, ingle, (ua?)castle, hmmm… LE? LE? Ohhh… )
Cindy Heisler 2s · 10 months ago
I have never heard of or seen the show, but Google helped me confirm my guess. Very nice. Thanks, Ben!
Meg 2s · 10 months ago
Wiki to the rescue! I’m clearly not up on my post-apocalyptic dramas. Thanks, Ben.
MatthewL 🤓7:13 · 10 months ago
Big fan, saw the answer right away as you surmised. Wonderful cluing, as usual. Thanks for the puzzle, Ben!
Well I have never watched the show, not one for zombies and apocalypse. I saw the US's of course but tried, as others have, to make it ALE HER IMGLE UAL TLE and first and last letters. I though of submitting an Ed Sullivan answer when I got EEEEE as the last letter of all the US entries, but "A really big shew" seemed too punny (now if it was mine or Mikey's YES!). Finally I capitulated to a hunch. "hmmm LE at the end of them all and the heroine is named ELLIE - go for it!"...so I did. Thanks for the puzzle, but I believe I'll stay with Star Trek: Discovery or Piccard or one of those. I guess I don't like Last of Us, I'm just not a fun guy (ouch).
HeadinHome 🤓1:21 · 10 months ago
Other ideas yielded TEVEE (last letter of each line US is in) and AHIUT (letter right after US’s). This one sounded as likely a name from a dystopian show as any, so I looked up cast/names… didn’t get it right away, but listing the last word of all the themers gave me 4 words and an LE. Got it.
Laura M 🤓9:20 · 10 months ago
Nice! It's a really good show but so sad/scary I had to kind of watch it through my fingers :-)
whimsy 13:15 · 10 months ago
Very nice and solvable for someone who was only vaguely aware of the show.
Thanks, Ben!
Qmark 4s · 10 months ago
thanks Ben!
DCBilly 2s · 10 months ago
Picked it up again on day two after seeing the "gettable" comments. Finally saw and circled the right things; rechecked Wikipedia; and submitted FTW.
lol almost instantly saw the USs, but was only looking at the last letter, so the string of Es didn't click (even though I've seen every episode of the show). Wasn't until I looked at the wiki page today and started trying to find Ellie that I got it. Clever one, thanks.
Sharkicicles 2s · 10 months ago
Never seen the show or played the game but always trust Ben to make a solvable meta. I’m impressed with the construction!
KayW 🤓7:04 · 10 months ago
oh good grief... LOL Nudged across the moat.
Tyrpmom 🤓19:30 · 10 months ago
Typed in her whole name at first and got the dreaded incorrect.
imontoo 3s · 10 months ago
After solving yesterday, we began watching last night. Already two episodes in.
Should I mention that I have not actually seen the series or played the games on which the series is based? My daughters told me about the game when they watched YouTubers streaming a game play-through!