Welcome to Phil's Crossword Corner (PCC)! Philip Chow (aka Phil) is an auditor at NYC Dept of Parks and Recreation who makes crossword puzzles for fun in his free time. A new meta puzzle posts every other Saturday weekend on Crosshare.
Phil’s metas will usually include immediate nudges, a great tool for new solvers. You can reach him at pchow13@gmail.com
Finally getting around to posting my old puzzles here on this forum.
Please see below for PCC#9 - "Character Study" originally posted on Crosshare 09/23/23
[Level 3] Meta prompt: The answer to the meta is a 7-letter word you might exclaim upon solving the meta
Note: the level is the intended difficulty I had in mind when I designed the puzzle, but may play differently since every solver has their own area of expertise... what one person may find easy, another may find difficult.
Have fun and keep in mind if you're ever lost at sea, google is your best friend (actually, I don't know if you'd get internet service in the middle of the ocean)
-Phil
Hint #1: The TV show associated with the theme song is the theme of the puzzle
Hint #2: "Autotrophs" and "Neanderthals" are easter eggs I included because they're in the theme song as well, but alas they are red herrings... focus on the title instead
Hint #3: "Character study"... study the clues for (main) characters from the show
Hint #4: The first letters of the answers to the seven clues with characters in them will spell out a relevant phrase... this will play out much easier if you're familiar with the show... if not, then google away
Solution below - SPOILER ALERT:
Answer explanation: The lyrics are from "The Big Bang Theory"... The main characters of the TV show (Sheldon, Leonard, Penny, Howard, Raj, Bernadette, and Amy) can be found in the clues... read off the first letter of the answers to those clues in grid order to spell out "Bazinga!"... which Sheldon uses as an interjection to rub a good joke in someone's face... it can also be used to cheer yourself on after a personal win
puzzle inspired by TG's "Chorus Line" puzzles (@reibello on Crosshare)
Turned the corner. Thanks Phil!