Listener No 4364: Plants By Ottorino

[AHearer]

That was fun and, for me, educational. I was stuck for a while on both 30 across and down, but it all finally came together. Some nicely convoluted clues, but all very fair, and no ambiguity in the endgame as far as I could see. Many thanks, Ottorino.

[starwalker]

I managed to complete the entire top half of the grid without having a clue about what was going on. Suddenly the light has dawned and I can see clearly, albeit with some missing entries, what is needed. Sadly, it must now wait. Food, drink and the rugby are calling. Thanks Ottorino for something I didn't know.

[AHearer]

How interesting. My way in was through the bottom half, which I had nearly full when I spotted the theme -- though I was adopting my usual policy with the longer rubrics of ignoring the details as long as the answers kept coming.

[olichant]

Brilliant, brilliant, brilliant.

I'd intended to just pick it up briefly and try to knock off a few stray clues tonight before picking it up tomorrow. But it had me absolutely hooked from the get-go.

Fantastic clues, and the way in which the various elements intertwined came together beautifully.

Thanks, Ottorino.

AHearer - yes, I found the bottom half more accessible too.

[Ruthrobin]

Yes, it was beautiful how it all came together in the end after what looked like a very daunting preamble. Many thanks, Ottorino for a gem.

[starwalker]

AHearer - I was following a similar policy - if the preamble makes no sense at first, then ignore it and see how much of the grid can be filled.

[upsetter]

Glad to be able to complete a puzzle after a three week dry spell.

[Scorpius]

Just finished tying all the components together for the final grid, though a few bits of wordplay still to sort out to my satisfaction. It was refreshing to have some very inventive clues after a rather dull batch last week.
Fortunately I was able to identify A and B instantly, but didn't know the connection between B and C. Like some above, I found the bottom half easier.
Thanks, Ottorino.

[UglyUncle]

I think I may have to transform myself into HappyUncle if puzzles as satisfying as this one are (at last) to start appearing again. I don't mean to dismiss every puzzle from the last nine months or so, although there have been some huge disappointments - rather, what I enjoy are puzzles in which multiple treatments lead by way of faultless clues and a nice grid to multiple PDMs and an educational revelation. And this is such a one. Bravo, Ottorino!

[Cruncher]

Some perplexing wordplays but nicely put together and unambiguous. Fun puzzle.

[pushmi-pullyu]

Everything sorted except 32 across which is resolutely opaque - I cannot see how to deconstruct the clue. I'm hoping that posting this will bring instant enlightenment!

[aldanna]

Fun puzzle. Some very clever clues - I particularly liked the "Wizard of Oz" one. Minimal grid-staring, too. Thanks to Ottorino.

[towsertaylor]

Well, grid complete with a guess or two but totally blank as to the proposed PDM(s). i hope it's worth persevering...

[towsertaylor]

Glass or two of wine and out leaps the A and the B and (eventually) the C. Many thanks Ottorino, many thanks.

[icynorth]

I was disappointed after solving around 10 clues - I'd worked out the preamble and the 'James Burke Connections'-style theme, and it seemed it would be another simple finish.

But I was wrong. There are some real stinkers in here, and I'm delighted to have finally cracked it. Thanks, Ottorino!

[Philoctetes]

Done, at last, and plenty of brain exercise. Unlike earlier contributors, I found the left side overall more amenable than the right, which suggests that difficulty was evenly spread throughout. Only nit-pick was that the deletions were not (AFAIK) really used.

[s_pugh]

A decent puzzle marred I felt by some unnecessarily and in some cases excessively convoluted clues (7dn in particular). At least there was no ambiguity in the endgame. Thanks Ottorino.

[IainGrace]

Coming to this late. Like others, main progress in lower half thus far. Can some kind soul please explain precisely what one is instructed to do with the second set of eight clues? We don't think this is clear. Thanks.

[jim360]

Some sporadic progress throughout the week, but wasn't too difficult in the end. The endgame was less complex than the preamble made out but that's not a complaint and I thought it was very fair and a well-constructed puzzle, with some fine cluing. Thanks, Ottorino!