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I also struggled with 13a. Also not very happy with the second word in 24, but I guess it's just about ok

Probably quite a good puzzle if I could get past my loathing for the source material. Made even stronger by it being used so recently, which isn't Bungo's fault, to be fair.

Setters - please, no more on this theme for at least a decade.

I'd love to be able to tag that with a laughing emoji, SH!

My initial reading of 13a was as an &lit. I was happy with my answer and moved on.
On reflection it does not really work as an &lit. While the whole clue could be a definition only part is required for wordplay.
So not absolutely sure how it works though the answer is clear.

I think if you use the def of "vegetable sheep" that's in Chambers, the clue works, with the first 4 words being the definition, the rest wordplay.

Ah thanks. Seemed such an unlikely combination of words I didn’t think to look it up.

Frustrated by this one. Seemed easy at first but took ages to crack the SW corner. Slowly whittled it down to: only 19D to solve; 3 extra words which don't ring any bells; 19 missing letters (still searching for a director) making a message that rings no bells with a final anagram, less one letter, that I can't solve.

Worst of all, I have 4 clashes involving 7 clues. Any further clash would involve 9 clues rather than 8, but I'm sure all the clashes I've found are right. And entering both letters in clash cells reveals no elements that I can see.

Apart from that, I'm perfectly happy.

The remaining clash could be in a word that already has a clash.

19D took me a while, too. The definition is the first two words. The wordplay is Paraguay followed by a synonym for the last three words.
I doubt the message rang any bells for most people, nor the thematic work without the help of the internet. If you can't work them out, try looking for the creators. They're well known.

The five clashes might be read as six chemical elements.

Yes, it has to be.

I had high hope of a couple of cells in the NE corner but when I finally solved 13A they were ruled out. If 19D includes a clash, it has to bring in a ninth clue, so it has to be elsewhere.

I'll have to check everything line by line to see what I've missed.