The answer to the meta is what you can hear hiding in the puzzle
I can't really say too much about this one without spoiling it, so I won't. The answer to the meta is what you can hear hiding in the puzzle. Answer & explanation (and nyan cat gif): https://xword-muggles.com/viewtopic.php?p=153689#p153689
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!
I heard the sound of an angry cat and wondered if the central word in the grid was part of the meta ... a DOG backing away? But then the cat was quietly content, so I decided not. :D Thanks, Ben.
Ergcat 🤓13:09 · 2024-01-09T16:12:31.635Z
Nice one! I saw the hiss and meow but then got distracted by all the MA’s in the grid so I guessed “goat” ! But who has a pet goat? Then I looked more and saw Purr! So it has to be a CAT! Duh!
Thanks, Ben!
Carolyn 3s · 2024-01-09T18:17:02.071Z
Cute! It makes up for all the time I spent on the MGWCC ;)
Bird Lives 3s · 2024-01-09T20:27:54.596Z
SamKat9, Ergcat -- they had it easy. But that's not me. Those of us with non-feline or even feline-aversive identities had to work for it. Fun nevertheless, and an exceptional album.
KayW 🤓6:38 · 2024-01-09T21:06:08.300Z
Nice one!!! Yeah I fell for the Beach Boys red herring at first... even tho you explicitly said this has nothing to do with them.
Well that was a hard one, not the solve, the entry. I had cat noise, cat noises, cats, animal sounds....I was WAY over thinking. I did also toy with GOAT for a few reasons: (1) the album in question (the Beach Boys best by most estimates) has them playing with GOATS on the cover. (2) the Beach Boys had a song about a GTO...commonly referred to as a GOAT. I was originally confused by the HISS PURR MEOW and did not know Japanese for MEOW so I thought there might be animal(s) sounds (Snake, ?, Cat, Cat) and was thinking there was maybe an abbreviation I was missing. In the end all was well, and it reminded me of some of my favorite BB songs. Thanks Ben
HeadinHome 🤓1:25 · 2024-01-10T05:44:44.737Z
Huh - yes it really could be that simple! ( :
Is SPIT one of them? (It’s vertical, but I can certainly hear a cat doing that.). I also looked for ACK, thinking of that awful looking Bill the Cat meme. Might have worked into 59A.
Sharkicicles 🤓7:04 · 2024-01-10T16:37:28.241Z
Bill the Cat is AWESOME.
Sharkicicles 🤓7:04 · 2024-01-10T16:38:18.792Z
Had some issues submitting to crosshare myself, but the puzzle itself was really enjoyable!
Possible answer to the question, "What flavor is that quark?"
18A
Modify, as a law
19A
Maiden name preceder
20A
"Young man, you come here right ___!"
22A
"Wouldn't it be ___"
23A
Zaire's Mobutu ___ Seko (that, at least, is googleable; the other option was "Exclamation found in Shakespeare that might mean 'cease'")
24A
Flat ___ pancake
25A
What Santa's laugh consists of
27A
Camera type, for short
29A
Black and white symbol
33A
2 days before 38 down
36A
Mission that was the location for a pivotal event in the Texas Revolution
39A
King Saul's medium's town
40A
Apple music players
42A
"___ only knows"
43A
Frighten
44A
Free of charge
45A
As a friend, in French (and the title of S07E15 of "The X Files")
47A
Gaping chasm
48A
Encouraged (with "on")
50A
Sommelier's prefix
52A
Sixth sense, for short
53A
Upper house rep.
55A
Sailing far from land
59A
"Don't ___ (put your head on my shoulder)"
62A
Holders of property deeds
65A
"You have 3 choices: option C, B, ___"
66A
Instrument with bellows
67A
Elijah Wood or Aston Kutcher, for example
68A
Pen name?
69A
People that get things done
70A
Civil war historian, Shelby ___
71A
Hairy Tibetan
72A
Nemesis
73A
"___ there's an answer" (but it's got absolutely nothing to do with the Beach Boys)
Verticali
1D
___ the dummy (loses one's temper)
2D
Gracefully slender
3D
Green place in a desert
4D
Difficult burdens
5D
Bursts, as a balloon
6D
Apple computers
7D
"Aquaman" star, Jason ___
8D
Arabian gulf
9D
Person who said, "First they ignore you, then they laugh at you, then they fight you, then you win"
10D
Long in the tooth
11D
Short skirt
12D
Obi Wan actor, ___ Guiness
13D
Elation
21D
Voice of Darth Vader, James ___ Jones
22D
"Bye Bye Bye" band
26D
Outfit for a newborn
28D
Things that go "pew pew pew" in space movies
29D
"The greatest teacher, failure is" speaker
30D
First line of the Ogden Nash poem entitled "Fleas" (the second, and last, line is "had 'em")
31D
With 49 down: Writer/director of "Sleepless In Seattle"
32D
Got bigger
33D
Transgressions
34D
Per unit
35D
Bean curd
37D
Long in the tooth
38D
2 days after 33 across
41D
Jason Mantzoukas' character in "The Good Place"
46D
Stereo predecessor
49D
See 31 down
51D
"___ of the North" (1922 silent documentary)
53D
Insincere flattery
54D
Wee
56D
Apply a patch
57D
Poet's Muse
58D
Good ___ (restored)
59D
Hardworking English character actor, ___ Jones
60D
Aussie equivalent of a Grammy
61D
"Jesus looked at him and loved him. 'One thing you ___,' he said. 'Go, sell everything you have and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow me.'" (Mark 10:21)
63D
Curved molding
64D
Something that really needs to be added to Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs