Thanks for the kind words everyone, and to Sean for the lovely write-up! I’m sure my mom will be by soon to say hi. In the meantime, you can see more about what I’ve been up to in crosswords since my last NYT appearance on my personal website :) <a href="https://www.rachelfabi.com/crosswords" target="_blank">https://www.rachelfabi.com/crosswords</a>
@Rachel Wow, welcome back, thanks for the puzzle, and Kudos on the fundraising!! (I might donate as a CIVICDUTY)
@Rachel Thank you for the very enjoyable puzzle.
@Rachel Hi Rachel! Thank you for the puzzle--I think we can coin a new term: "a Fabi Friday"! (And happy to see the Weird Al reference--was that your clue?)
@Rachel Thanks for the puzzle! Also love that your mom dropped in to say hey. We gotta add a "Constructor's Parent Notes" section to the column.
@Rachel I loved your puzzle and your work on TPFA. I'm ordering my set today!
@Rachel So nice to both you and your mom back! Wishing you the best.
We woke early to Rachel's text from a different time zone (cough cough) with her happy news of today's puzzle. Congrats, sweetie! My thoughts -- high school chemistry is never far from her heart; we're always glad to celebrate pride, even in April; I want the other half of the chocolate bar; she was a swimmer - her sister played soccer - so the beckham error is forgivable but noted; "the arc of the moral universe is long, but it bends toward justice"- and today requires 44D - so get out there and help register 10 people; and I need more coffee. @Barry - hope all is well with you!
Rachel's Mom, Great to see you! All fine here; wishing you the same.
@Rachel's MomI meant 44A (I do need more coffee)
@Rachel's Mom I'm glad -- but somehow also sad -- to see that you, too, had a problem with the Beckham clue. Thanks for sharing the (auto)biographical background.
KNEE is hardly a mistake! <a href="https://www.cnn.com/2025/11/04/uk/david-beckham-knighted-king-charles-intl-scli" target="_blank">https://www.cnn.com/2025/11/04/uk/david-beckham-knighted-king-charles-intl-scli</a>
The song about the absolute value function ends on a positive note. (But the one about y = ln x has a great loga-rhythm to it.)
@Mike (asym)totes adorbs. It goes down fast the less you have. Probably emo.
@Mike We can always count on you to be upbeat. What a natural!
I believe that DARKEST TIMELINE originates from the greatest live-action sitcom ever created, Community. It’s from the episode Remedial Chaos Theory, where the study group decides who’ll get the pizza based on a die roll. Abed warns that this will result in six new timelines being created, each differing greatly and diverging from this moment, only for Jeff to say it’s ridiculous to think that. The episode’s all about seeing how each timeline differs, with the same setup of what everyone has on their person and what’s in the room. Timeline six, where Troy gets the pizza, is the aforementioned DARKEST TIMELINE. Everything that can possibly go wrong does go wrong, with Troy innocently walking into the room excited for the pizza only to see the room on fire, Pierce bleeding out, and everyone in full panic mode. You’ve probably seen the GIF of that moment, and now you know where it comes from. If you’ve ever spent hours reading TVTropes, you owe it to yourself to watch Community, because it’s the only sitcom written with the site open at all times so they can subvert the tropes.
@Aaron Community is streets ahead. Calling it anything else is moonman talk
@Aaron I was wondering if the constructor was a Community fan, as that episode was nominated for a HUGO award which was another clue!
Because a few letters here were last for me, I was wondering exactly which TIMELINE we were in: DANKEST? DULLEST? DEADEST? DAFTEST? Yes, just call me Eeyore. But, it’s nice to see our pal Rachel back here!
@Cat Lady Margaret Certainly not DULLEST. These are the the proverbial infamous "interesting times". DEADEST, I guess, if you get in the path of a bomb or a missile or are dealing with ice in Minnesota. DANKEST, if we are talking about Alligator Alcatraz. But I'd have to go with DAFTEST. The Daft-o-meter pegged out years ago, and has since torn the peg right out. DARKEST might also work, unless we're talking about light pollution. So might DICIEST, if we're talking about our way of life and representation in leadership. No one, and I mean No One, out-Eeyore's me.
@Cat Lady Margaret The dankest timeline is 4/20.
@Cat Lady Margaret I’m pretty sure we’re in the DEADA$$ timeline.
A bit of crossword punditry to open the weekend solve: Novice solvers approach Friday with trepidation, but at least get an Easy Version and TWO CLUES FOR COMFORT. The editors would love to offer it on Saturday also but of course are SHORTZ STAFFED. Meanwhile the long-term solvers open the puzzle with GRID EXPECTATIONS and hope for plenty of FILL GOOD MOMENTS. And what do the veterans long for on Sunday? THEMES LIKE OLD TIMES, while the newbies just wish not to get THROWN UNDER THE REBUS.
Every time I turned a corner in the box I ran into a word or phrase that hit an inner happy button. Things that, for instance, looked or felt silly (GLOP, GIRTH, PRONG), or had a zingy ring (GO BIG, SQUARE UP, LORD IT OVER), or were delightfully conversational (ON A POSITIVE NOTE, GROW UP, GET USED TO IT). So, Rachel beautifully filled the grid. She also skillfully designed it with remarkable flow -- no isolated areas -- which brought me plenty of "Whee!" (Xword Info rated today's flow in the 97th percentile of all Shortz-era puzzles.) I liked seeing BOP / HOP / GLOP, which brings me to pop, and this puzzle shined with it, containing nine NYT answer debuts. That central vertical three-stack – GET USED TO IT, FACILITATOR, and ON A POSITIVE NOTE positively shimmers, with two debuts and one once-before. These little touches, for me, elevated the puzzle from competent to singular, and the solving from mental exercise to a rich experience. What a joy -- thank you, Rachel!
Rachel! Great to see you! Thanks for the delightful Friday. I hope your mom will show up in the comments.
I think maybe the Times mixed up today's and yesterday's puzzles because yesterday's took me out back, beat me up and left me in puddle of shame. I couldn't get anywhere even after I got the theme, but today's effort was smooth... and I am thankful for that.
@Crazy Me I had a similar experience. I needed ten cheats for the 'Thursday' puzzle, and only one for the 'Friday' puzzle (I didn't know what '50, on a table' was until I read the word play (ohhh, Periodic table!)) I enjoyed the Friday puzzle very much. The Thursday puzzle was also interesting, with all the T extensions, definitely clever. It was just a lot harder for me!
Isn't REOIL something you would do when you RESEASON a pan?
@MC Nope. Most cast iron skillets come preseasoned from the manufacturer. So they've already gone through at least one oiling-baking sequence before you can get them home. Then, you REOIL them before use.
@MC That bothered me too. If you're REOILing it, you must be re-seasoning it, not starting to season it.
Once I found a wee toe-hold, this puzzle gradually worked itself out, but it was quite a hunt. For their help, I would like to thank the HUGOS and (who'd have thunk it?) Clint Eastwood. I fell for most of the misdirections...??MODERATOR, and ON A ?HAPPIERNOTE, and ????ESTTIME LINE (evil?) and KITkat bar. I had a lovely time! Happiest entry: 17 Down... because it evokes a memory that makes us smile every time we play one of our LP recordings of "The Planets." (Skip on down if you hate digressions.) Five-year-old PhysicsDaughter (small for her age) was listening to music with DHubby, who was explaining in detail the fascinating passage that embodies Mars. She was thrilled, but "What are planets?" So...off to the library with Mom, where (never shy) PhysDau asked for a book about this subject. "Oh, PLANTS! Are you going to have a garden?" the sweet librarian asked. Indignant , emphatic PhysDau: "Not plants! Plan-NETS! Like Mars, the BRINGER of War!" ?BOP for "Catchy tune" made me go, "Hmm." And thanks, Rachel Fabi, for 44A. Definitely a POSITIVE NOTE!
@Mean Old Lady - What a wonderful memory! Much appreciated by this ‘once upon a time’ children’s librarian 💕
Hey, Andrzej... You coming back or what?
@Francis If we say his name 3 times, will that make him appear? Andrzej Andrzej Andrzej…. If this works I have a new strategy for home repair appointments.
@Francis I'm here, I'm just not commenting on the puzzles.
@Francis I’m guessing that many people here mistake civility for affirmation. If all that we are supposed to say here is how great the puzzle is and how fabulous the setters are then this is a fan club not a comments section. Saying you don’t like something isn’t rude nor an insult. I know people work very hard and enthusiastically to generate and edit these puzzles but we can also have opinions about that work. After all we do pay. The interactions here are almost always very civil and at worst people seem to get irked by something that can be looked up in a dictionary. It’s a good space and a good space should be inclusive.
I got a kick out of completing 44A, as this afternoon I voted in the NJ 11th Congressional District election.
This one was on the easy side of a Friday for me, but with enough crunchy bits that I wasn’t disappointed. I expect DEADA** will draw some complaints, but I won’t let the NAYSAYERs get me down. (GROW UP, already!) It may feel like we are living in the DARKEST TIMELINE, but there are still BITS OF hope to be found. That is, if we all do our CIVIC DUTY. It’s time to SQUARE UP our obligations and GO BIG. Semi-unrelated, but I like that HAN and YODA shared a puzzle. That’s another honor code that could be studied.
Nice puzzle. Rachel, you're the best!
I'm pre-programmed to like Rachel Fabi's puzzles because of her columns in Wordplay (did Sam Corbin succeed her?) -- what I enjoyed about her writing and analysis is that she had an ambidextrous brain, both right and left sides working together, the cerebral scientist and the lyrical humanist, so it was no wonder to be on a positive note about this puzzle. Quick, yes, but witty throughout. And there was a welcome reminder to bring in my Honda for servicing. I'll tell them to REOIL it. That's doing my CIVIC DUTY. (Similarly, I liked the triad of AND REOIL AANDE, as if giving the terse "and" a squirt of WD40 you'll get a long greasy AANDE...) Gran Torino -- Eastwood is really a very good director, not all that deep, but could tell a story and tease out the moral underpinnings. I can imagine watching that movie again with pleasure (same can't be said for "Bridges of Madison County" -- that's him, right?).
@john ezra I am so conflicted about Clint Eastwood. I hated his Dirty Harry days, I hated his comedic days, and I wasn't all that enthusiastic about his Westerns, although he redeemed himself big time with "Unforgiven". "Gran Torino" was mostly ok, except it seemed to be his attempt to make himself into a martyr. His whole "empty chair" talk with Obama was absolutely bizarre, and really disturbing. But more than anything I thought it was incredibly stupid, which I think might summarize Eastwood pretty fairly.
Did not expect to get a Community shoutout in my Friday puzzle, but it was well received. I shall don my black construction paper goatee and await further instructions in this, the DARKEST TIMELINE. Cruel, cruel, cruel.
@UCCF I saw this as quite green-painty. That is, it was an adjective and a noun that could conceivably appear together somewhere but had no particular history or idiomatic value. Do I take your comment to mean that this phrase has some other life?
@SBK in TO I hear it pretty often online. We’re definitely in the darkest timeline at the moment - some speculate the world ended in the “Mayan apocalypse” of 2012 and we’re currently in hell. The tv show “Community” (a cult fave) also has a very famous episode about the idea of the darkest timeline
Reasons to be grateful, Part 1: A Friday puzzle with a Friday-level of originality and difficulty. How wonderful! Best answers: CIVIC DUTY and FACILITATOR Best clue: Sticker that usually comes in sets of three or four? (I'm sure I wasn't the only one thinking TINES!) Small nit: Aaron Carter, rather than Bow Wow Wow? Really? I guess it's a generational thing. But there's Al Yankovic and Clint Eastwood there to pacify us oldsters. Biggest nit: "Bend it like Beckham" (but that's been discussed enough already)... ...and should be overlooked completely in this otherwise splendid puzzle. Thanks, Rachel Fabi!
Bonus points to you if you got the Ian Drury allusion in the first line. <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1injh4-n1jY" target="_blank">https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1injh4-n1jY</a>
@The X-Phile That song popped into my head immediately! I was just going to ask you if you did it on purpose, but then saw your next comment.
@The X-Phile Aaron Carter, really? Talk about the DARKEST TIMELINE. And David Beckham was knighted recently, so he bent the KNEE. Sorry, the only Ian Drury song I know is "Sex and Drugs and Rock and Roll."
Wow. I play 7th chords on the piano every day, but never think of them as tetrads. It's odd that one of the last clues I solve is one that I should be familiar with.
@Jonathan I found that odd, too. I guess it's because it takes four notes to really define the chord? Like for G7th, we'd have the notes G, B, D and F. I'm guessing that musically, any three of these wouldn't really be a full seventh?
I can't count the number of times I've linked the YouTube video of Weird Al's "Yoda." I hope y'all were paying attention. In a puzzle with not one, but two, Star Wars references, it's worth pointing out that John William's music for "the Imperial March" (aka Darth Vader's theme) was, um, *inspired* by Holst's "Mars, the Bringer of War." (Although the Holst is in the unusual time signature of 5/4, and therefore not technically a march). Here's the Williams: <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vsMWVW4xtwI&list=RDvsMWVW4xtwI&start_radio=1" target="_blank">https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vsMWVW4xtwI&list=RDvsMWVW4xtwI&start_radio=1</a> Here's the Holst: <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AGGlL1wexQk&list=RDAGGlL1wexQk&start_radio=1" target="_blank">https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AGGlL1wexQk&list=RDAGGlL1wexQk&start_radio=1</a> FWIW, those iconic, dissonant chords at the end of "Mars" qualify as TETRADS--just not seventh chords. After all that War, how about a little Peace? Even the Buddha knows that "tetrad" is a perfectly cromulent word: <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mb4ds-QM1AA&list=RDmb4ds-QM1AA&start_radio=1" target="_blank">https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mb4ds-QM1AA&list=RDmb4ds-QM1AA&start_radio=1</a> (if only Nirvana could be achieved in 1:15!) (Odd that spellcheck doesn't like "tetrad," but has no problems with "cromulent.")
@Bill For alternate takes on "the Imperial March" and "Mars," here's the former, feat. the Man Himself: <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nohQReM7BpI&list=RDnohQReM7BpI&start_radio=1" target="_blank">https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nohQReM7BpI&list=RDnohQReM7BpI&start_radio=1</a> Here's "Mars," recorded live, in the city in which GRAN TORINO was filmed: <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MTIF3V05Zjg&list=RDMTIF3V05Zjg&start_radio=1" target="_blank">https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MTIF3V05Zjg&list=RDMTIF3V05Zjg&start_radio=1</a>
@Bill Good composers borrow. Great composers steal. Shameless plug for a local MN radio show about movie soundtracks. It's on KSJN here in the Twin Cities, but you can hear it on classical stations all around the country, or just listen to the stream if you're not 500 years old like I am: <a href="https://www.yourclassical.org/saturday-cinema" target="_blank">https://www.yourclassical.org/saturday-cinema</a>
@Bill Hmm, well, the Vader music is a wholly threatening march, while Holst's "Mars" builds and builds most thrillingly. I declare, "No contest!"
Nice to see you, Rachel and a fun puzzle from you and Christina. But I WANT (my) CANDY performed by Bow Wow Wow. Different generations, I guess. Meanwhile, hooray for ATHENS, home of the B-52s and REM. The terrificly talented Kate Pierson is a member of the B-52s and is featured on REM's Shiny Happy People. But here she is with Iggy Pop performing his song CANDY. <a href="https://youtu.be/XlhGWuQWY3U?si=E3TKKo6J6BJCZCEu" target="_blank">https://youtu.be/XlhGWuQWY3U?si=E3TKKo6J6BJCZCEu</a>
@Vaer Yikes, somehow I misread the Wordplay column and came away thinking that Christina was a co-creator of this this puzzle. But that was an earlier one. Sorry about that.
@Vaer Wow, I love that Kate/Iggy song! Thanks for posting it.
We may be living in the DARKESTTIMELINE. Everyone GLANCESAT the news. BITSOF lost freedoms and a HOST of atrocities. We OWETO our nation to vote as our CIVICDUTY. We cannot GETUSEDTOIT. We cannot have tyranny LORDITOVER us. That’s what YODA would say.
Everyone knows the definitive I Want Candy was done by...Bow Wow Wow! (Also a cover but anyway)
@Mike C. THIS. I was so irritated when I got the answer, because Aaron Carter is not the composer, lyricist, or hit-making performer of that song. He only covered it for a bubble-gum version my children might have listened to in middle school. Sheesh. Bow Wow Wow would be the correct clue, I agree.
@Mike C Bow wow wow, yippie yo, yippie yay. Yeeeeeah, boiiiii!
I don't think the knee has anything to do with what Beckham bends. The point of the expression, as used in the film and in soccer in general, is that given the right force and at the right angle, a soccer ball will bend in its trajectory during flight. Good players can take advantage of this to curl the ball around defenders and into the net. So "Bend it like Beckham" means "Kick it in a curve."
Asher B., He was recently knighted. I posted a photo here earlier.
In case you can't find it... <a href="https://www.cnn.com/2025/11/04/uk/david-beckham-knighted-king-charles-intl-scli" target="_blank">https://www.cnn.com/2025/11/04/uk/david-beckham-knighted-king-charles-intl-scli</a>
@Barry I don't know which feels stranger to me; saying King Charles or saying Sir David Beckham.
Asher, The constructor came up with a very clever and very timely answer for the clue [Bend it like Beckham!]. I would think everyone who knows the expression knows what it means.
Wow! That was my fastest Friday time ever, by a long shot... And that was with the time continuing while I was distracted. I mean, I just wasn't expecting to ever finish a Friday this fast. It wasn't a SNORE, definitely smiles abounded while filling it out, and I did have some thises before thats but it... just, I'm kind of in whatever level of shock is appropriate to crosswording, to be honest. Anyhow, I really like DARKESTTIMELINE crossing ONAPOSITIVENOTE. I liked the little science fiction vibe going on, especially the solo pilot clue for HAN. I haven't looked at the comments yet, but if I finished up this fast, I can only imagine what the vibe is out here. I think I'll take a GLANCEOVER
Cue the pearl clutchers for 34D… In three, two, one….
@Steve L Why? What's wrong with Dead As "S"? I confess that I don't know who "S" was or why "S" is dead, but that's probably because I'm old and not up on hipster jargon.
@Steve L Is it still "modern slang" if it has been in common use since the 90's?
@Steve L I actually found the clue a little wonky. Probably me. But I only know the term DEADA$$ in the context of “no joke. I’m being deada$$ serious”. But I guess it can be an adjective for other qualities? “You are deada$$ crazy”. “I’m deada$$ broke”. Now that I think about it. I don’t use that adjective enough. I’m deada$$ deficient in my daily usage of this colorful adjective.
@Steve L Since you seem to expect it, here is a link to my note on this issue from yesterday: <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/shared/comment/4ffa6h?rsrc=cshare&smid=url-share" target="_blank">https://www.nytimes.com/shared/comment/4ffa6h?rsrc=cshare&smid=url-share</a> Today's specimen is even more repellent. And now, cue your sneer in 3, 2, 1...
@Steve L I had the same thought. Because words are scary, Especially when they refer to parts of the anatomy. Even when they don’t refer to parts of the anatomy, but use a slang term synonymous with “extra”. But let’s clutch anyway. Just to be safe.
@Steve L I'm a knitter, can I clutch my purls instead? ;)
The funny thing is there are more complainers about potential pearl clutching than there are actual pearl clutchers. 😂
I have a few reservations on this puzzle but overall it was a good solve especially as Fridays go lately. My biggest question is DARKESTTIMELINE. Seemed like a bit of a random phrase but looking it up it appears to be a concept from the show Community—which I don’t watch—so asking—has this reached a broader cultural Zeitgeist yet? If not maybe it should have been referenced to that show specifically? If so do you have any other examples of it being used in a broader context? That said I liked the cross between that and ONAPOSITIVENOTE, and many of the other debut and longer clues. Still a few gimmes on a Friday—NET, really?—but somehow they didn’t spoil the solve so much, and were balanced with some fresh clues—notably, TIN, YODA and finally some love for ORCAS. Last, nice call out to GRAN TORINO, a great movie and an opportunity to watch it if you haven’t seen it yet.
@SP It’s used in online spaces frequently, at this point probably by people who have never seen Community. It was one of a few answers that felt “very online” to me.
@SP I had no knowledge of the phrase “darkest timeline” but could intuit it from only a few crossings. Only filled it in mentally until I could get more confirmation. No complaints from me.
@SP I had no knowledge of that phrase and filled it in only from the crosses. That, and several other answers, made this not one of my favorite puzzles which, as is common, leaves me pretty much alone in my assessment. Unless others are too afraid to voice any negative opinions, since many of the regular commenters always seem to adore every puzzle.
@SP I watched and thoroughly enjoyed “Community,” but I don’t recall DARKEST TIME LINE being a concept in it. Not a phrase I for one have heard but easy enough to get from the clue and the crosses.
@SP I have never seen “community” or even know what kind of show it is, but I am familiar with the concept of “worst timeline” or “I hate this timeline”, etc. Even if I hadn’t ever heard it specifically, “darkest timeline” makes total sense to me.
@SP According to ngram it's been on a steep upswing since 2011, when it was introduced on Community. I've never seen or even heard of Community, but I'm familiar with timelines and multiverses so it was easy enough to get from crosses.
I think this was a Friday level puzzle? Maybe Friday- ? Should have powered through this pretty quickly. But I struggled with having DATABAse instead of BANK. cost me a lot of consternation. I had to play a quick alphabet game on the cross of LAUDANU_ and _AST. But not many choices there. We’ll see what the comments say regarding difficulty. Never head of DARKESTTIMELINE but I love that it crosses ONAPOSITIVENOTE. Good versus evil. Thanks for the challenge, Rachel.
Hi Rachel! Nice to see your words again, although a we had to supply some of them this time. For me, it had a nice mix of answers that came right away along with a few that took me most of my solving time to come up with. Even had a couple with the "Oho! So that's what that meant" reaction. This ended up being on the quicker end of my Friday range, but it was fun while it lasted! Thanks, Rachel!
This was super-fast for a Friday, but it was so much fun to work through! Those intersecting spanners really are gorgeous as puzzle elements and for the contrast highlighted in the constructor's notes.
@Anthony This was my experience, too!
Amazing crossword! No random niche proper nouns, no crosswordese entries. The grid felt fresh and fun. I did it quite quickly, which is unusual for a Friday, but I have no complains as the grid and the entries were quite fun to solve.
My Partner (whom I often mention in these comments) had the second round of hip-replacement surgery on Tuesday. Not usually a pill-popper, he's been taking opiates, albeit Hydrocodone (in the form of Vicodin) and not LAUDANUM. Still, opiates, with their potential for addiction, and their attendant side-effects, are a big topic in our household just now. And last week, we were watching *the Forsytes* in PBS Passport, and in one scene I explained that that tincture that Frances Forsyte was dripping into her drink was most likely laudanum.
I loved the use of THE DARKEST TIMELINE, a nice reference to one of the best Community episodes. There was one Naticky spot for me and that was LAUDANUM. Especially being crossed with TETRAD a technical music term, MAST when I’d never heard of a Mizzen, and AANDE just because you usually spell it with an ampersand. Overall loved the indirect cluing like TIN as its periodic table spot.
Chris, AANDE has appeared 26 times. A&E has appeared 4 times ... in rebus puzzles.
@Chris Although as a music-theory nerd I'm most likely to use "tetrad" as it was clued--as a chord containing four tones--"tetrad" can be used four a group of any four things anytime you want to sound geekier, or shall we say, Greekier, then "quartet"--a molecule of four atoms, say, or four biological cells. Fact-checking this, TIL that the those wacky Pythagoreans, who found the Godhead in numbers, used the term "tetrad," or "tetractys'' to designate what modern mathematicians would describe with the formula 4+3+2+1=10, or ten thingies arranged in a triangle, a concept which they found particularly venerable. Now pardon me while I head to the bowling alley to worship.
@Chris Then you have missed Patrick O'Brian's "sea novels" about Jack Aubrey and Stephen Maturin. Not only are they gripping stories, the battles were based on real accounts, and you will be interested to see how thoroughly (wind-powered) sailing terms affected our language and usage.
@Chris: Any reader of 19th century novels know that laudanum was a common narcotic both as a pain reliever and as an abusive drug. Me knoeing mostly from Sherlock Holmes and a Wilkie Collins opus or two. Dont think it is a natik qualifier
Challenging. Fun. Took some thought. Thanks.
Hi. I think the only way to parse 31D - "Bend it like Beckham!" is because he recently bent the KNEE and was knighted. Without that particular context the "it" would be ball, shot or goal.
@Jesse Yeah, that one got me too, especially since I'm a programmer. Plus it gave me a minor grumble, as it's a rather outdated term – though of course still legit.
@Jesse I think it’s just some wordplay. The clue is *referencing* the phrase “Bend it like Beckham” (in which the bending refers to the path of the ball), but when taken literally, Beckham bends his KNEE when he’s about to kick the ball.
Regarding THE DARKEST TIMELINE, the sub on Rex Parker posted the following three-minute video from the tv show "Community" that will flesh out the term, and is such a fast-moving hoot, IMO, that it just may kick off your day with happy feelings. Here's the video: <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=POT3plx0vBs" target="_blank">https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=POT3plx0vBs</a> .
Alright, today's the day: I'm entering the "puzzles are too easy now" discourse. Perfect day: personal best Friday for me (under 7 minutes), but I don't see any complaints rising to the top about easy puzzles. Instead, it's lovely to see Rachel praised, with the number 2 comment from her mom. So here's my opinion. Why are puzzles easier? Why do people reference the archives (I've done every puzzle since Feb 2018), finding them difficult, and declaring: wow, today is easier. Occasionally someone will nod to the topical nature of answers, but that's huge: it is just easier to solve today's slang and hot topics than having to remember 2018. But it's more than that: constructors (and the editors) clearly better prioritize fresh, contemporary fill more. You can say that makes it easier, but isn't it more fun? The other thing I never see people call out is constructing technology. It's so much easier to make a great puzzle, avoid bad fill, and fit fresh answers from great personal dictionaries. So of course there's less crosswordese and poor crossings. Is that easier? Who cares. So, all that to say, do I sometimes feel like puzzles are softly clued? Sure (yesterday did wreck me, too, though). But what I've come to is this: most if not all of the "ease" today is a reflection of more fun and interesting puzzles. And it's not all about personal bests.
@mTownTeapot, it’s just such a subjective “science,” isn’t it? Frankly, there are weeks when I’ve found the Tuesdays harder than the Saturdays, and before I blame editing, I evaluate “luck of knowledge” vs. “samesies” (or, “I happen to be on the same wavelength of the creator,” on any given day) vs. “how many times did I wake up from anxiety dream last night and just…cannot…focus?”
@mTownTeapot - A couple of weeks ago, I decided that every day I read a comment that claims the NYT crossword puzzles are way easier than they used to be, I'm going to go do the oldest unsolved puzzle I have in the archive for that day of the week, just to compare. So far, my times on the archived puzzles have been better or comparable to the latest puzzle. Today I went back and did Friday, December 3, 1993, and I finished it almost nine minutes faster than today's puzzle. But, notably, both times are more than half an hour faster than my average for Friday. Why? Because I'm a better, more experienced solver than I used to be, that's why. When I started tackling Friday puzzles years ago, I'd spend hours on them. It doesn't take me that long anymore because I persevered and got better at it. Were puzzles harder in the 1950s? Maybe. Probably. I can't say. But I disagree with those who think they've grown alarmingly easier over the last thirty-odd years. I don't see it. We've gotten better at solving them.
@mTownTeapot So a few things. I don’t think it’s the contemporary/non-contemporary question. For me modern slang and references are actually more difficult, usually, than 2018 and I still find those puzzles harder. And I don’t think it’s the construction. Decent construction software has been around for a long time, and I don’t think it’s the grid construction that is different. As I see it, there are two issues. First, I feel like the editors are allowing and/or promoting more easier clues to make the solve gentler for a wider audience. So, even the more difficult or fresher entries become easier to solve because there are so many crosses, and themes that would be more challenging are spoiled by too many gimmes around them. Second, I for themed, I think, the editors are avoiding or rejecting very tricky themes that might have been accepted in times past—at least, that’s my observation, and it has been implied in some of my responses from editors to my own submissions. That’s my take on it—and I don’t have a big issue with today’s puzzle at all, certainly not the most challenging Friday but didn’t stand out as an example of the erosion of difficulty I’ve seen over all.
@mTownTeapot I disagree, this was very hard for me! How did you get “darkest timeline” easily? Maybe I am just new but this puzzle felt maximally difficult
I know it's a Friday and supposed to be hard, but crossing LAUDANUM with TETRAD (and MAST), just wow. Of all the ways to clue TETRAD, they picked one that's so esoteric that even my friend who's super into classical music said he never heard that expression before. I feel like it would have been a lot more palatable if the number four was included in the clue
@Steven M. I’m also a musician (classical piano, tuba, euphonium) and I know my chords (C7 is C-E-G-Bb, etc) but I’ve not heard TETRAD before either. It makes sense though, as a 3-note chord is a triad (not the Hong Kong gangs haha). Learnt something! Fun puzzle for me for sure. Mark
Pro musician here as well, although “only” on the writing/theoretical side and not on the performing. Maybe that’s why TETRAD was a pleasant kind-of-gimme. I do think we would normally call it a tetrachord, hexachord etc, but that implies the notes are played together. A tetrad (or a hexad) would be played one note after another. BOP on the other hand had me scratching my increasingly thinning head. Such are the differences of perspective I guess
Sorry, @MartyS, you got it backwards--a tetrachord, or hexachord, is a four-note (or six-note) scale, or segment of a scale--think the descending Ut-Si-La-Sol tetrachord which is the bass line of the passacaglia. A tetrad is a chord of four totes, as a triad is of three. The clue, whilst recherche, is entirely cromulent.
@Steven M Pretty easy, though, if you know jazz. Seventh chords (Root, third, fifth, seventh, and inversions) are fundamental to jazz.
This puzzle felt hard for what felt like a long time. As a Canadian who's never watched an NFL game, 16A and 55A were only ever going to be possible from the crossings. I've also never watched Storage Wars (or A AND E, for that matter), adding to the list of TILs that I've already forgotten. And of course I made the usual wrong guesses (KiT before KAT, rise before STIR - things like that). And I have a few reservations about some clue/answer pairs too. Like, in what dialect does OWE TO mean "Result from"? I can say dead crops "result from" a drought. I can also say they're dead "due to" a drought. But it doesn't sound like English to me if I say dead crops OWE TO a drought. Bleh. But I did enjoy 1A, 10A, 59A, 32D, among others. And in the end, I guess I shouldn't complain, because when I finally fixed (what turned out to be) my last mistake, I was surprised to be told that not only did I finish in 2/3 of my Friday average time, but also that this puzzle was ... ... number 700 in my streak!
@Grumpy I hear OWING TO often used to replace “because of”. Oddly I don’t hear OWE TO very often in that tense, but I suppose it’s not an impossible construction…
@Grumpy I OWE such knowledge as I have TO the stalwart efforts of my parents to force me to go to school. My knowledge /results from/ their persistence. Congrats on successful solution DCC!
@Grumpy I OWE such knowledge as I have TO the stalwart efforts of my parents to force me to go to school. My knowledge /results from/ their persistence. Congrats on your DCCth successful solution!
Superb, superb puzzle. Loved all the debuts. Had no idea what Laudanum was but knew the word thanks to the Asterix comics so thank you Goscinny and Uderzo!
@Rahul I knew laudanum from Deadwood, one of my all-time favorite television shows. A main character was addicted to it. In the 19th century, it was commonly prescribed to treat ailments as simple as a headache, but its addictive properties were not recognized then. (It’s an opiate.) Remember, this is a time when Coca-Cola contained actual cocaine.
@Rahul and @Heidi Sherlock Holmes lives on in popular culture but maybe people aren't reading the original Conan Doyle stories anymore-- laudanum pops up a number of times in them.
That was fun, but what Beckham bends is the ball! Although I can see he bends his knee to do that…
@Sukey That was exactly what I was going to comment on. 😅
@Sukey that’s what I came here to say as well!
@Sukey It was a misdirect. I fell for it, too.
@Sukey it's referring to his being recently knighted
Fun Fabi Friday! Haven’t read all comments yet, but comedian Brian Regan will give you a solid chuckle using the word GIRTH. <a href="https://youtu.be/89frRi8GgGA?si=t5JUxhMFz0GdsW7K" target="_blank">https://youtu.be/89frRi8GgGA?si=t5JUxhMFz0GdsW7K</a> Have a lovely day all!
So, Sean, as you suggested, I checked your math regarding answer debuts on Xword Info, and, I'm sorry to report, your 10 should have been a 9. No big deal. I loved your observations about KAT crossing I WANT CANDY, and how the two spanners beautifully complement each other. I'm greatly enjoying your reviews!
N.B. Xwordinfo.com also counted the debuts: Answer summary: 9 unique to this puzzle, 2 unique to Modern Era but used previously.
@Lewis Thank you! You're right — I had incorrectly counted SQUARE UP as a debut, but it has appeared before (way back in 1960!)
BRINGER was the other unique to Modern but used earlier.
I like LAUDANUM. Hmm, that sentence could be misunderstood. Let me explain. "Heroin" is depressing. It makes me think of great musicians that we lost to addiction. It makes me think of Neil Young's "The Needle and the Damage Done." "Opium" makes one think of Chinese "dens" of iniquity, with people laying around in a near-death stupor. But LAUDANUM? For me, the word makes me think of 19th Century poets, coping with terrible pain in the best way they can, and producing great works of art and poetry. Coleridge's "Kubla Khan" ("In Xanadu did Kubla Khan/A stately pleasure dome decree...") was created by a laudanum-induced dream. Keats, too, took the elixir. I'm sure that I'm romanticizing, but romanticizing Romanticism seems somehow appropriate. But, to be clear, I've never touched the stuff, and I don't intend to.
@The X-Phile Edgar Allan Poe was also a laudanum guy.
@The X-Phile You write: ["Opium" makes one think of Chinese "dens" of iniquity, with people laying around in a near-death stupor.] i couldn't slog through the whole lay/lie discussion yesterday, but would this construction pass Ms. Peterson's high school English class? I will check out Neil Young's opus that you mention. I recently played "Hotel California" by the Eagles. Interesting song, too.
@The X-Phile My go-to heroin song (doesn't everyone have one?) is John Prine's "Sam Stone". There's a hole in Daddy's arm where all the money goes.
@The X-Phile Lynyrd Skynyrd does a better job with The Needle and the Spoon. I like your reference, I simply have little use for Neil Young. His early work with CSN was epic, but his solo career doesn't do it for me. "A southern man doesn't need him around, anyhow." ~ Ronnie Van Zandt 😉
ONAPOSITIVENOTE I thought this was a worthy Friday effort with a lot going for it: lots of fresh fill and non-obvious long entries. The middle of my puzzle remained an ocean of white for longer than I care to admit. As a former morning solver who switched to night when i discovered the joy of puzzling on line, maybe I’m not as sharp in the morning as I used to be and ought to stick to night solving. A couple of quibbles. REOIL seemed off. When I season a pan, I oil it. If I later need to re-season it, then I would REOIL it. Also, BOP seems a stretch for catchy tune. In my world bop is a sub genre of jazz that I wouldn’t describe as catchy, or it describes the act of bouncing along to a catchy tune, not the tune itself. Usually musical clues are catnip to me, but I couldn’t remember BRINGER, and, although I knew the song IWANTCANDY, I had no idea that it was by Aaron Carter. I partially redeemed myself by knowing that the B-52s and R.E.M. came out of the ATHENS, GA music scene. Back in the day I used to write music reviews for the local Philly press, and I pride myself on being the first in Philly to write a review of R.E.M.’s initial E.P., Chronic Town, a neglected gem in their oeuvre.
@Marshall Walthew I replied elsewhere to the same complaint. "A bop" is Gen Z/Millenial slang for a high energy, infectious pop song. Sometimes when an answer seems like a stretch it's because you don't have expertise in a particular area. And sometimes it's because you're old. Can't win em all.
@Marshall Walthew BOP has come to mean a catchy tune to the youngs and has been clued that way before, though who knows if it's still used that way IRL.
@Marshall Walthew "In my world bop is a sub genre of jazz" In mine, too, but for the younger folks, it has taken on a different meaning. For seasoning a new cast iron pan, what I remember is having to constantly reoil it every day for a couple of years before it would develop the seasoning I wanted. In my grandmother's day, when they cooked bacon every morning for a large family plus farmhands, I'm betting it did not take as much extra effort.
Some really nice colorful long answers. I found this pretty easy much of the time, but hit some snags. I needed DARKEST TIMELINE to get me from DATA BAse to DATE BANK. I so wanted SEE for "You get the picture" -- but the S didn't SQUARE UP with SQUARE UP. ETC was a really tricky answer, I thought -- and perhaps a hint of an abbreviation should have been included in the clue? Re NAYSAYER at 51A. Please stick with Debbie and leave me the heck out of it. Thanks so much! I just love GET USED TO IT; LORD IT OVER; TAKES A HINT and ON A POSITIVE NOTE. Anenjoyable and lively grid that I found a lot of fun.
This was tough but also a lot of fun. Maybe it was just my bad mood yesterday, but that puzzle frustrated me so much. Today's made me much happier. I did struggle in parts, did some look-ups. Current music, sports, and math are my weak points. But thanks Rachel Fabi for the fun and the challenge both.
Great to see Rachel here again! (Where’s Mom?) I loved her columns for Wordplay in which she beautifully articulated her unique perspective as writer, solver and constructor.
Great Friday challenge. Thanks to Rachel. Loved the large crossings of DarkestTimeLine with OnAPositiveNote. Embarrassed to say, it took me too many crossings to figure out CivicDuty.