Evan Birnholz's guide to the March 6 Post Magazine crossword, "Thanks, Captain Obvious!"

Since time immemorial, people have used cliches in everyday writing and speech. Just like I did right there. Some publications (I wonder which ones?) will tell you that it's better to avoid them, or at least consider substituting them for less trite expressions. For Captain Obvious, however, cliches don't really exist. That's because he interprets all figures of speech literally. He's like a conversational Amelia Bedelia, though I can't imagine Captain Obvious gets himself into wacky trouble the...