Cat nudged out of the bag. I needed Nudge #4 to understand the meta. Yep, very cool and very Madhatter!MEOW #145 Holding Out For A Hero
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KayW
- Moderator
- Posts: 3287
- Joined: Wed Apr 10, 2019 12:10 am
- Location: Chicago
Cat nudged out of the bag. I needed Nudge #4 to understand the meta. Yep, very cool and very Madhatter!Contest Crosswords Combating Cancer (CCCC) is a bundle of 16 metapuzzles created to help raise money for cancer-related charities. It is available at CrosswordsForCancer.com.
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ReB
- Posts: 675
- Joined: Sun Mar 29, 2020 9:34 pm
- Location: East Tennessee
Cat's out, at last, leaving me a few scratches to go with my alligator bites, I guess.
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DrTom
- Posts: 3785
- Joined: Sat Apr 20, 2019 6:46 pm
- Location: Jacksonville, FL
Yes, home with just three nudges, and if Madhatter does try to solve this one he will be smiling ear to ear. Cat is out of the bag, a little frazzled, but that comes with a heroic effort.
NUDGES!I am always willing to give nudges where needed; metas should be about fun, not frustration. Send me what you have done so far because often you are closer than you think!
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benchen71
- Posts: 2453
- Joined: Thu Jul 22, 2021 8:50 pm
- Location: Melbourne, Australia
- Contact:
Someone should mention @madhatter5 then!
Check out "The MOAT MEOW Mashup Pack" here. US$10 for 14 metas that don't always abide by the "rules" of the game: asymmetry, 2-letter words, uncrossed letters, who knows. And this time there's a mega-meta! 
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SamKat9
- Posts: 270
- Joined: Sat Aug 19, 2023 7:45 pm
- Location: Southeast Florida
Cat's finally out of the bag, and I needed the nudges. Thanks, this puzzle was tricky but impressive!
Shannon 
PS: If you want help with a meta, PM what you have so I can help without spoiling too much. I've received lots of help in the beginning and I love to pay it forward!
PS: If you want help with a meta, PM what you have so I can help without spoiling too much. I've received lots of help in the beginning and I love to pay it forward!
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benchen71
- Posts: 2453
- Joined: Thu Jul 22, 2021 8:50 pm
- Location: Melbourne, Australia
- Contact:
Some more solvers have released the cat!
Pair O Ducks
MatthewL
Katiedid
markhr
Abide
Ergcat
KayW
Berto
ReB
hoover
DrTom
SamKat9
Laura M
That brings us up to 19. Still plenty of time to get that cat out of its bag (and be in the running for the MOAT Music Meta Pack prize!)
Pair O Ducks
MatthewL
Katiedid
markhr
Abide
Ergcat
KayW
Berto
ReB
hoover
DrTom
SamKat9
Laura M
That brings us up to 19. Still plenty of time to get that cat out of its bag (and be in the running for the MOAT Music Meta Pack prize!)
Check out "The MOAT MEOW Mashup Pack" here. US$10 for 14 metas that don't always abide by the "rules" of the game: asymmetry, 2-letter words, uncrossed letters, who knows. And this time there's a mega-meta!
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ajk
- Posts: 967
- Joined: Mon Dec 21, 2020 4:22 pm
- Location: Colorado
Finally got it. Needed nudge #3 (figured out #4 in advance and didn't figure out #5 until after solving). Always helps to look at the prompt from time to time. 
Fun stuff, thanks.
Fun stuff, thanks.
Check out this very cool project by many of your favorite muggles to raise money to fight cancer. You get a fun puzzle bundle and good causes get $. Win-win: Crosswords for Cancer
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rjy
- Posts: 1035
- Joined: Fri Oct 08, 2021 12:52 pm
- Location: Gaithersburg, MD
Hints and a nudge got the cat debagged… tough! But clever concept and execution, Ben
Ray
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HeadinHome
- Posts: 1091
- Joined: Sun Apr 26, 2020 9:06 am
- Location: Charlotte, NC
Cat free and irritated at how much time she spent in that bag! Needed all the nudges, since I just couldn’t get what I was expecting out of my mind. As usual, all is clear and clever in retrospect. Thanks Ben!
The other Wendy. 
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edestlin
- Posts: 240
- Joined: Sun Apr 10, 2022 9:22 am
- Location: Michigan
- Contact:
I have freed the cat and while I took an educated guess to get the answer, I very much appreciated the backsolve to find out the second step. Nice job, Ben!
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whimsy
- Posts: 2790
- Joined: Sun Jun 21, 2020 9:51 am
- Location: Hopkinton MA
My swash nearly buckled with this one; had to use every single nudge I could scrounge up.
Finally got there and can say thanks, Ben, for a nifty puzzle!
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Darth
- Posts: 742
- Joined: Sat May 15, 2021 6:51 pm
- Location: Champaign, IL
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benchen71
- Posts: 2453
- Joined: Thu Jul 22, 2021 8:50 pm
- Location: Melbourne, Australia
- Contact:
Here's another solver update:
rjy
ajk
Carolyn
HeadinHome
lbray53
SeamusOL
rdavey1287
whimsy
Tyrpmom
kurtalert
edestlin
LindaPRmaven
Darth
Bbaack
We're up to 33 now. Final solver update in about 24 hours time...
rjy
ajk
Carolyn
HeadinHome
lbray53
SeamusOL
rdavey1287
whimsy
Tyrpmom
kurtalert
edestlin
LindaPRmaven
Darth
Bbaack
We're up to 33 now. Final solver update in about 24 hours time...
Check out "The MOAT MEOW Mashup Pack" here. US$10 for 14 metas that don't always abide by the "rules" of the game: asymmetry, 2-letter words, uncrossed letters, who knows. And this time there's a mega-meta!
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benchen71
- Posts: 2453
- Joined: Thu Jul 22, 2021 8:50 pm
- Location: Melbourne, Australia
- Contact:
Two more solvers for a grand total of 35:
Cindy Heisler
CPJohnson
The answer reveal is imminent...
Cindy Heisler
CPJohnson
The answer reveal is imminent...
Check out "The MOAT MEOW Mashup Pack" here. US$10 for 14 metas that don't always abide by the "rules" of the game: asymmetry, 2-letter words, uncrossed letters, who knows. And this time there's a mega-meta!
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benchen71
- Posts: 2453
- Joined: Thu Jul 22, 2021 8:50 pm
- Location: Melbourne, Australia
- Contact:
Here's the solution to "Holding Out For A Hero":
The impetus for this puzzle was thinking about Madhatter5's puzzle "Color Code". Knowing I had a MEOW slot coming up in a couple of weeks, I thought it might be good to do something colour-related. But there was no way I could come up with an entirely different sort of puzzle like Madhatter5 did; it was always going to have to be a crossword. But as I thought about different colours, I thought it might be fun to do something with lots of entries of one specific colour that would combine to form a picture. It didn't take long to think of the meta answer. I didn't try to recreate the Green Lantern logo, since I thought it wouldn't be very well known. But a lantern shape should be doable. I started from the bottom of the grid and worked my way up. I very quickly ditched symmetry. I knew I wanted WICK in the middle (yes, I know propane lanterns don't use wicks; they use mantles). SHREK appeared soon after that, quickly followed by the puzzle title - which has an added connection to the meta answer: you can hold out a lantern!
One interesting aside: Green Lantern's alter ego is Harold "Hal" Jordan. I didn't know that until I was googling for the solution image, or else I would have tried changing 5A from HDL to HAL!
The impetus for this puzzle was thinking about Madhatter5's puzzle "Color Code". Knowing I had a MEOW slot coming up in a couple of weeks, I thought it might be good to do something colour-related. But there was no way I could come up with an entirely different sort of puzzle like Madhatter5 did; it was always going to have to be a crossword. But as I thought about different colours, I thought it might be fun to do something with lots of entries of one specific colour that would combine to form a picture. It didn't take long to think of the meta answer. I didn't try to recreate the Green Lantern logo, since I thought it wouldn't be very well known. But a lantern shape should be doable. I started from the bottom of the grid and worked my way up. I very quickly ditched symmetry. I knew I wanted WICK in the middle (yes, I know propane lanterns don't use wicks; they use mantles). SHREK appeared soon after that, quickly followed by the puzzle title - which has an added connection to the meta answer: you can hold out a lantern!
One interesting aside: Green Lantern's alter ego is Harold "Hal" Jordan. I didn't know that until I was googling for the solution image, or else I would have tried changing 5A from HDL to HAL!
Check out "The MOAT MEOW Mashup Pack" here. US$10 for 14 metas that don't always abide by the "rules" of the game: asymmetry, 2-letter words, uncrossed letters, who knows. And this time there's a mega-meta!
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benchen71
- Posts: 2453
- Joined: Thu Jul 22, 2021 8:50 pm
- Location: Melbourne, Australia
- Contact:
And the randomly-drawn winner of the MOAT Music Meta Pack is....
Danny K Bernstein
Your puzzle pack will be sent to your email immediately!
Danny K Bernstein
Your puzzle pack will be sent to your email immediately!
Check out "The MOAT MEOW Mashup Pack" here. US$10 for 14 metas that don't always abide by the "rules" of the game: asymmetry, 2-letter words, uncrossed letters, who knows. And this time there's a mega-meta!
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boharr
- Moderator
- Posts: 3211
- Joined: Fri Sep 06, 2019 8:57 am
- Location: Westchester, NY
The only green superhero I ever heard of is the Jolly Green Giant, so I bailed. LOL
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madhatter5
- Posts: 673
- Joined: Sun Sep 27, 2020 1:48 pm
Sorry I wasn't clever enough for this one @benchen71! I did think of coloring the green (after all the nudges) but couldn't quite see the lantern. Great puzzle and I am chuffed to be the inspiration.
The thing that really strikes me about your puzzles is that they are very consistently great. With mine it's always hit or miss, but you never seem to miss
The thing that really strikes me about your puzzles is that they are very consistently great. With mine it's always hit or miss, but you never seem to miss
https://pandorasblocks.org/crosswords-for-cancer
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rjy
- Posts: 1035
- Joined: Fri Oct 08, 2021 12:52 pm
- Location: Gaithersburg, MD
Really clever construction, Ben, and enjoyed getting a bit of a behind-the-scenes glance at your process!
Ray
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DrTom
- Posts: 3785
- Joined: Sat Apr 20, 2019 6:46 pm
- Location: Jacksonville, FL
In brightest day and darkest night, no meta shall escape his sight!
NUDGES!I am always willing to give nudges where needed; metas should be about fun, not frustration. Send me what you have done so far because often you are closer than you think!