Result of a tense build-up? / FRI 9-4-26 / Use a fork for, in a way / Be exceptionally good, in modern slang / Super, slangily / Ludwig ___, post-W.W. II leader who led West Germany's economic recovery / Mars rover named in honor of a 19th-century activist / ger dubbed the "Matriarch of the Blues" / Like someone using autoreply, perhaps

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Constructor: Julian Xiao

Relative difficulty: Challenging (more like a Saturday for me)

THEME: none 

Word of the Day: Ludwig ERHARD (26A: Ludwig ___, post-W.W. II leader who led West Germany's economic recovery) —

Ludwig Wilhelm Erhard (German: [ˈluːtvɪç ˈʔeːɐ̯haʁt]; 4 February 1897 – 5 May 1977) was a German politician and economist who served as the second chancellor of West Germany from 1963 until 1966. Affiliated with the Christian Democratic Union (CDU),^[b] he is known for leading the West German postwar economic reforms and economic recovery (Wirtschaftswunder, German for "economic miracle") in his role as Minister of Economic Affairs under Chancellor Konrad Adenauer from 1949 to 1963. During that period, he promoted the concept of the social market economy (soziale Marktwirtschaft), on which Germany's economic policy in the 21st century continues to be based.

In his tenure as Chancellor, however, Erhard lacked support from Adenauer, who remained chairman of the CDU party until 1966. Erhard failed to win the German public's confidence in his handling of a budget deficit and lacked public support for his direction of foreign policy. His popularity waned, and he resigned his chancellorship on 30 November 1966. (wikipedia)

• • •

It's certainly true that if SLINKY DOG were a known quantity for me (46A: Longtime Pixar character who says "I might be old, but I still got a spring in my step!"), this puzzle would've been somewhat easier, and yet even if I'd remembered a specific character from the one Toy Story movie I'd seen, I think this still would've played harder than usual, certainly harder than recent Fridays, which have gotten more and more simple over time. I don't mind the difficulty, but this had none of the sparkle and originality that I expect from a Friday. There are only a couple longer answers that seem at all original, and while much of the grid is solid, not many of the answers feel marquee-worthy. Fridays are supposed to zing and sing with freshness, and most of what you get here is merely solid. So the puzzle was hard without being bright or fun. 

[the only "Ludwig" in my life]

I guess the clues were trying to make up for the relative lacklusterness of the grid, which may in fact be why the puzzle played hard for me. That clue on JENGA TOWER is a good example (1A: Result of a tense build-up?). Actually, JENGA TOWER is the other answer besides SLINKY DOG that I'd put in the "Good Friday Answer" category today! But as with SLINKY DOG, I was baffled, in this case by the clue. Also, I've literally never played Jenga. I am familiar with the concept, though. But that answer eluded me longer than almost anything in the NW, in large part because its "J" cross (JINGLES) was also clued in a very deceptive way (1D: Change sounds). GUINEA got a "Leone" clue, I guess because of an attempted homophone thing (?) with the preceding clue (3D: Actress Lyonne) (her, I know). I could, and will, go on and on about the stuff I didn't know / struggled with, but the upshot is this felt like a Saturday puzzle to me. Might've liked it a bit more there, but I still think the fill, overall, just didn't have enough juice. INAUGURATE, NATIONAL TV, SPEEDSTER, PRESIDENTS, ATARI GAMES ... these all work fine, but "work" is the operative word. It's all very workmanlike.

TMAN or GMAN? (19A: Fed). Who knows? ERHARD? LOLOLOL who? No idea. Died before I was born, I know very little about "West Germany's economic recovery." Really balked at the second "R" in ERHARD because "No country starts 'SR-!'" I hilariously and fatally thought to myself as I read the clue 23D: First country to elect a female prime minister (1960) (SRI LANKA)—another answer that killed me. ELLY Mai before ELLA Mai (I keep doing that!) (Elly May is from Beverly Hillbillies!). The SW corner, everything ERHARD and below, was the real oof place for me today. ERHARD and SRI LANKA, we've covered. DRAGGY? (27D: Sluggish). Forget it. I had nothing and then at some point I had GROGGY (?). I nailed SLAP off the "P" but kept doubting it because I couldn't get any crosses at first (33A: Be exceptionally good, in modern slang). Then there was the SLINKY part of SLINKY DOG—that really wrecked me. I thought "well, weiner dog ... no? ... he had a name? pffffffff, Ok." Really thought POTTAGE had only a single "T" but at least knew what that was (35A: What Esau got in exchange for selling his birthright to Jacob). Never ever thought of a PUSH TOY as a toddler's "walking aid" (which makes it sound like the toddler is disabled, somehow). Wasn't sure what was meant by "autoreply" at 36D: Like someone using autoreply, perhaps (ON LEAVE). Sounded like a texting term, but of course automatic "out of office" replies are reasonably common in professional settings. I refuse to accept HECKA, what the hell(a)? (49A: Super, slangily). Is that like HELLA? Just say HELLA? Or "super," for that matter. And then ... oh, I think I had 56A: In the past (OVER) as ONCE at first. Again, the clue appears to be doing a bit there, echoing an earlier clue (5D: In the past), which is a much harder clue for OVER than it is for AGO. So ... yeah, things were mildly tough all over but, for me, majorly tough in that SW corner. 

Bullets:

• 21A: Buff (SWOLE) — again, the clue is rough. Roughly vague. So many meanings of "buff." I was thinking "polish," or "nerd / expert." But no. Still, even if I had thought of the gym-bod meaning of "buff," SWOLE might not have been top-of-the-brain.
• 24A: Mars rover named in honor of a 19th-century activist (SOJOURNER) — if I knew that rover was named after SOJOURNER Truth, I forgot. Still, this one was relatively easy to get, thanks to ETTA JAMES and her jaunty "J" (9D: Singer dubbed the "Matriarch of the Blues"). Side note: surprised that ETTA is considered "Matriarch of the Blues" when Big Mama Thornton exists (or Ma Rainey or Bessie Smith for that matter) (looks like Ma Rainey is called "Mother of the Blues," so that's something). Sorry, don't want to get too sidetracked, here's Big Mama: 

• 50A: Curve on a score (SLUR) — a gimme for me, but tough maybe for those who aren't familiar with musical notation.
• 12D: Stellar visual effects (CORONAE) — so "Stellar" as in "relating to an actual star, like the ones in the sky." The corona is the "outer layer of a star's atmosphere" (wikipedia), sometimes visible as a kind of halo.
• 54A: Asteroids and Space Invaders (ATARI GAMES)—yes, I put in VIDEO GAMES, of course I put in VIDEO GAMES. That's what they are, and that's a real phrase. ATARI GAMES is about as good as SEGA GAMES (i.e. not good).
• 37D: Start to congeal (THICKEN) — got this off the "N" and thank god because as you can see, above, I needed help in that SW corner something awful.
• 6D: Use a fork for, in a way (TUNE) — big miss here for me, as I put in LIFT.

That's all for today. See you next time.

Signed, Rex Parker, King of CrossWorld

P.S. I have an EALA update. Yesterday I mentioned that with every match win, tennis player Alex EALA is inching closer to your crossword grid. Yesterday, she advanced to the third round at the U.S. Open, defeating Ukrainian Oleksandra Oliynykova 6-1, 6-4. 

 

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