Listen With Others

D2 is the 140^th published puzzle from the setting duo Eclogue, but the first to make it into the Listener.    Following a rejection some time back of a puzzle that subsequently saw the light of day elsewhere, this was our second attempt.  We can’t speak for the average Listener setter, but having originally submitted this puzzle on 21 June 2021, it is going to be a challenge to fill these paragraphs with anything meaningful some 17 months later (17 minutes would be challenge enough!)

So, what do we remember.  Well, we do recall that Shane said our original submission might fall foul of the average entry length guidance, so we poked and prodded the NW/SE corners to generate alternative entries which nudged that to a more acceptable level.  The constraints of having before/after words being the main challenge of construction.

What else?  OK, the middle cell is effectively unchecked, so the title was added to give solvers something to use by way of confirmation.  Neither editor got the connection, which never bodes well, but a few of the message boards have, with comments ranging from ‘vaguely connected’ to ‘LOL’.  And yes, it is designed to reference the Star Wars Droid after consideration of the central cell before and after that lunar eclipse: ART+OO+D2.

We recall also that some clues needed replacing as the message was changed from …EACH PLANET… to …ALL PLANETS….  Other than that, not much to report.

Tick one more off the crossword bucket list, now for that tricky second puzzle….