POMET = TEMPO

KAWET = TWEAK

MOLANS = SALMON

KELPIC = PICKLE

CARTOON ANSWER:

WHEN TELESCOPES WERE INVENTED, PEOPLE WERE EXCITED TO – – –

TEOEAKSAOKLE = TAKE A LOOK-SEE

Good morning, Jumble friends! It’s Wednesday, so that puts us smack-dab in the middle of the weekday Jumble puzzles where they tend to become more difficult. The 6-letter anagrams were the most difficult part of yesterday’s puzzle with SPRAIN barely edging out TANGLE as the most searched for solution. Today is a different story and here’s what I observed.

I was off to a quick start as TEMPO was almost spelled correctly in reverse. I tend to always begin my solves from the back and work forward so this time I just lucked out. Up next was TWEAK and it turned out to be my pick for the most difficult anagram of the day. The EA combination just didn’t look right at first. No other words came to mind so I decided to roll the dice and write it down. The last two words of SALMON and PICKLE were both instantly visible which is surprising because the 6-letter anagrams were such a challenge yesterday. With all of the clue words complete it was time to move along to everyone’s favorite part, the cartoon!

At first glance it was obvious that we were looking at a period piece with all of the characters being dressed in renaissance-style clothing. Five characters can be seen standing in an open field and they’re all huddled around a single telescope. It’s the object of everyone’s desire as they all anxiously await their chance to take a peek at the heavens which, at the time, must have been the ultimate sight to see. The man on the far right appears to be the orchestrator of the event and he looks perturbed as the crowd is growing restless. His hands have action lines around them indicating that he wants them to calm down and perhaps back up a bit as to not crowd the gentlemen that is peering into the scientific wonder.

The shading was perfect on this piece proving that Jeff really knows his stuff! The castle and its four flags in the distance were draped in darkness as the moon illuminates our cast of budding astronomers. There are a few clouds in the sky but the timing couldn’t be better as the moon is full and the weather appears to be just right for the celestial show. My favorite detail of this panel has to be the small design on the optical tube of the telescope. It’s not overly ornate and seems to fit just nicely with the time period that we’re observing.

The letter layout for the final solution was 12-letters in length and wonderfully cryptic. “A” was my choice for the one letter word with LOOK coming instantly after that. The “AK” coupled together closely to the first “T” allowed me to find TAKE leaving SEE for the finish. The overall length of the layout was intimidating at first but dissecting it into smaller pieces made it no trouble at all. Have a wonderful Wednesday, and I’ll see you tomorrow where we’ll hopefully have an MLB Opening Day inspired cartoon!