Mystery Hunt recap, with lyrics.
Jan. 15th, 2007 12:05 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
saxikathThe Hunt ended 2:30 Sunday morning -- congratulations, Dr. Awkward! It was a great Hunt, with lots of creative puzzles (many of which I need to go back and look at, since I didn't solve them during). II&F (that's Immoral, Illegal, and Fattening, Attorneys at Law) was a fun team to play with, and I enjoyed not being the one in charge (though it's hard to shake some of those habits).
More details later, perhaps (and there are lots of comments popping up on the web, of course), but I wanted to record for posterity one of our creations.
One metapuzzle left us with the instruction, "Make a bad sequel to Wordplay." Alas, we never filmed ours, but here is the script for Wordplay 2: Al's Revenge: The Musical!
WORDPLAY 2: AL'S REVENGE: THE MUSICAL
(an IIFC Films Production)
Book and lyrics by![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-userinfo.gif)
bookishfellow, cnoocy, greenlily, and saxikath
Cast in order of appearance:
WILL SHORTZ (NARRATOR):bookishfellow
AL SANDERS:cnoocy
EMILE ZOLA/NEAL CONAN/HERSELF:saxikath
MERL REAGLE/ELLEN RIPSTEIN/OFFSTAGE VOICE:greenlily
SCENE 1
NARRATOR: On the eve of the 2007 American Crossword Puzzle Tournament, in a hotel room at the Stamford Marriott, Al Sanders performs an arcane ritual intended to ensure his victory and restore the supremacy that is rightly his.
(Tune: "The Phantom of the Opera")
EMILE ZOLA:
With arcane wizardry, to win the game
That voice which calls to me and speaks my name
And so I rise again, from out my tomb
The phantom of Emile Zola is here inside your room.
AL SANDERS:
Make your amends to me, my former bane
You plucked my victory, I’ll pluck your brain.
And all will bow to me in awe and dread.
The phantom of Emile Zola will be inside my head.
You felled me with your prose, its stark detail.
I’ll know what Zola knows.
ZOLA:
We shall not fail.
BOTH:
Your/my marker and my/your mind with one intent.
Al Sanders and Emile Zola will win this tournament.
SCENE 2
NARRATOR: The buzz has built throughout the weekend, and as Sunday morning dawns, everyone is talking about Al’s surprising performance.
(Tune: "And the Money Kept Rolling In," Evita
NEAL CONAN:
And the answers kept rolling in to every clue.
Nobody could do the things that Al can do.
Now you may wonder how he came to have this kind of speed.
But that’s not the point, my friends.
When the answers keep rolling in, you don’t ask how.
Think of all the people waiting for the finals now.
Katherine’s third and Ellen’s second; Al is in the lead
No one fills a grid with the speed of that solver named Al!
ALL:
Solvin’, solvin’, solvin’…
Fillin’ the grid, fillin’ the grid, fillin’ the grid, the grid!
MERL REAGLE:
And the answers kept rolling in at speed of light.
Al’s been solving clues as fast as I can write.
Now cynics claim that his handwriting looks a little strange.
But that’s not the point my friends.
When the answers keep rolling in you don’t pick nits.
The only thing that counts is if the answer fits.
No one’s looked too deeply for the reason for this change
We’re all too enthralled with the skills of that solver named Al!
ALL:
Solvin’, solvin’ solvin’…
Fillin’ the grid, fillin’ the grid, fillin’ the grid…!
(NEAL: It's a beautiful day for a crossword tournament. Let's play two!)
SCENE 3
NARRATOR: The moment of truth arrives. Al, perpetual finalist Ellen Ripstein, and first-time finalist Katherine Bryant take the stage for the big showdown.
(Tune: "Fugue for Tinhorns," Guys and Dolls. The following are sung overlapping.)
AL SANDERS:
I got the grid right here,
The answer’s crystal clear,
Now watch the empty spaces disappear.
Can do, can do
Emile says that we can do
If Emile says that we can do
Can do, can do.
My plan is working well,
As any fool can tell
I got my solving partner from the depths of Hell.
Can do, can do,
With Emile we can surely do
Can do, can do.
ELLEN RIPSTEIN:
Here I am again,
The same old marking pen,
And the Krewefolk cheering loud for En.
Still here, still here,
Al’s faster, but I’m still here.
Though he’s faster, I’m still here,
Still here, still here.
I can still solve clues
And I don’t always lose.
I even beat the Susan Lucci blues.
Still here, still here,
Al’s faster but I’m still here.
KATHERINE BRYANT:
I’m in the A’s at last,
Though Al is too damn fast,
I’m up here proving that I’m not outclassed.
I’m good, I’m good
Al’s scary but I know I’m good
At least I’m pretty sure I’m good
I’m good, I’m good.
But man these clues are tough,
I can’t write fast enough,
But at least I’ll show 'em that I know my stuff.
AL: Crystal clear!
ELLEN: Here again!
KATHERINE: Pretty good!
ALL THREE: I got the grid right --
AL (spoken): Done!
ELLEN and KATHERINE: Here!
NARR: Sadly, Mr. Sanders once again snatched defeat from the jaws of victory when the judges ruled that even a perfectly completed grid must be disqualified . . .
(ominous pause)
. . . for being written entirely in French.
(ZOLA cackles and flees.)
We rather liked this, but the winner for Wordplay sequels had to be the one with cats that they showed at the wrapup. I'll link to it once it's on YouTube, which I'm sure it will be eventually.
As always, it was good to see people who came in for the Hunt, however briefly.
More details later, perhaps (and there are lots of comments popping up on the web, of course), but I wanted to record for posterity one of our creations.
One metapuzzle left us with the instruction, "Make a bad sequel to Wordplay." Alas, we never filmed ours, but here is the script for Wordplay 2: Al's Revenge: The Musical!
WORDPLAY 2: AL'S REVENGE: THE MUSICAL
(an IIFC Films Production)
Book and lyrics by
bookishfellow, cnoocy, greenlily, and saxikathCast in order of appearance:
WILL SHORTZ (NARRATOR):
bookishfellowAL SANDERS:
cnoocyEMILE ZOLA/NEAL CONAN/HERSELF:
saxikathMERL REAGLE/ELLEN RIPSTEIN/OFFSTAGE VOICE:
greenlilySCENE 1
NARRATOR: On the eve of the 2007 American Crossword Puzzle Tournament, in a hotel room at the Stamford Marriott, Al Sanders performs an arcane ritual intended to ensure his victory and restore the supremacy that is rightly his.
(Tune: "The Phantom of the Opera")
EMILE ZOLA:
With arcane wizardry, to win the game
That voice which calls to me and speaks my name
And so I rise again, from out my tomb
The phantom of Emile Zola is here inside your room.
AL SANDERS:
Make your amends to me, my former bane
You plucked my victory, I’ll pluck your brain.
And all will bow to me in awe and dread.
The phantom of Emile Zola will be inside my head.
You felled me with your prose, its stark detail.
I’ll know what Zola knows.
ZOLA:
We shall not fail.
BOTH:
Your/my marker and my/your mind with one intent.
Al Sanders and Emile Zola will win this tournament.
SCENE 2
NARRATOR: The buzz has built throughout the weekend, and as Sunday morning dawns, everyone is talking about Al’s surprising performance.
(Tune: "And the Money Kept Rolling In," Evita
NEAL CONAN:
And the answers kept rolling in to every clue.
Nobody could do the things that Al can do.
Now you may wonder how he came to have this kind of speed.
But that’s not the point, my friends.
When the answers keep rolling in, you don’t ask how.
Think of all the people waiting for the finals now.
Katherine’s third and Ellen’s second; Al is in the lead
No one fills a grid with the speed of that solver named Al!
ALL:
Solvin’, solvin’, solvin’…
Fillin’ the grid, fillin’ the grid, fillin’ the grid, the grid!
MERL REAGLE:
And the answers kept rolling in at speed of light.
Al’s been solving clues as fast as I can write.
Now cynics claim that his handwriting looks a little strange.
But that’s not the point my friends.
When the answers keep rolling in you don’t pick nits.
The only thing that counts is if the answer fits.
No one’s looked too deeply for the reason for this change
We’re all too enthralled with the skills of that solver named Al!
ALL:
Solvin’, solvin’ solvin’…
Fillin’ the grid, fillin’ the grid, fillin’ the grid…!
(NEAL: It's a beautiful day for a crossword tournament. Let's play two!)
SCENE 3
NARRATOR: The moment of truth arrives. Al, perpetual finalist Ellen Ripstein, and first-time finalist Katherine Bryant take the stage for the big showdown.
(Tune: "Fugue for Tinhorns," Guys and Dolls. The following are sung overlapping.)
AL SANDERS:
I got the grid right here,
The answer’s crystal clear,
Now watch the empty spaces disappear.
Can do, can do
Emile says that we can do
If Emile says that we can do
Can do, can do.
My plan is working well,
As any fool can tell
I got my solving partner from the depths of Hell.
Can do, can do,
With Emile we can surely do
Can do, can do.
ELLEN RIPSTEIN:
Here I am again,
The same old marking pen,
And the Krewefolk cheering loud for En.
Still here, still here,
Al’s faster, but I’m still here.
Though he’s faster, I’m still here,
Still here, still here.
I can still solve clues
And I don’t always lose.
I even beat the Susan Lucci blues.
Still here, still here,
Al’s faster but I’m still here.
KATHERINE BRYANT:
I’m in the A’s at last,
Though Al is too damn fast,
I’m up here proving that I’m not outclassed.
I’m good, I’m good
Al’s scary but I know I’m good
At least I’m pretty sure I’m good
I’m good, I’m good.
But man these clues are tough,
I can’t write fast enough,
But at least I’ll show 'em that I know my stuff.
AL: Crystal clear!
ELLEN: Here again!
KATHERINE: Pretty good!
ALL THREE: I got the grid right --
AL (spoken): Done!
ELLEN and KATHERINE: Here!
NARR: Sadly, Mr. Sanders once again snatched defeat from the jaws of victory when the judges ruled that even a perfectly completed grid must be disqualified . . .
(ominous pause)
. . . for being written entirely in French.
(ZOLA cackles and flees.)
We rather liked this, but the winner for Wordplay sequels had to be the one with cats that they showed at the wrapup. I'll link to it once it's on YouTube, which I'm sure it will be eventually.
As always, it was good to see people who came in for the Hunt, however briefly.
![[identity profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/openid.png){kind=small}
no subject
Date: 2007-01-15 07:56 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2007-01-15 09:04 pm (UTC)Do you know where I can find the answers and the listing of who wrote which puzzle? At the wrap-up, the monitor was too far away for me to read it properly. :P
no subject
Date: 2007-01-15 11:17 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2007-01-15 09:15 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2007-01-16 05:31 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2007-01-16 05:32 pm (UTC)