Emilie

Seems I’m in the minority here, but I thought this was miserable to solve. I even like rebuses. The theme was clever, but for me there was so much odd fill and too few moments where I thought “ah great clue”. I applaud the constructors for creating this headache, very complex, but for me personally it was misery. Nearly doubled my average time.

Bunch of grouches in the comments today! Any puzzle mentioning the great Audre Lorde is a good one in my book. I also like the crosses of TRYTHIS / ITSYOURLUCKDAY and TATTLETALES / CREATIVELICENSE. Fun Friday.

Not fun. Corn pit? Nose rag? Just no. Brutal but not in a “ah tough but helped me get better” sort of way. I’m not usually negative but this one just put a burr in my saddle.

Wow, surprised by all the negativity on this one. Fun Sunday challenge. Dare I say, UPlifting? Then again, I’m a rebus fan. Be BRAVE, solvers! The effort is good for the SOUL!

Seems to be a lot of hate for this one, so I’m chiming in with some positivity. Hard one, but it’s Saturday! Loved seeing IN-N-OUT, the best ever fast food joint, mentioned. I’m GenX and thus a lifelong Goonies fan. Plus Star Wars! I had to laugh at myself wondering who Chewbacca’s rival could be before finally remembering I just ordered some litter from CHEWY. Thanks to my teens, I got MID right away, and hat tip to the clue for SEANCE. I thought it was fun, and I don’t usually say that for a Saturday puzzle.

Fantastic clues, IMO. I might even say this puzzle ATE, but then my kids would probably tell me I’m using it wrong and to never say that again. 😂

Adored this puzzle. It was a slow one for me, but the effort felt like a great mental workout. Fantastic clueing IMO. Tried to fit LEO in the July birthday slot, and it was fun to realize it fit nearby instead. Great shoutout to TRANSPRIDE!

I feel like all the Games editors got together today and said, “Yeah, let’s really stick it to ‘em today. Weed out the weak and anyone who thinks they might be good at this.” Spelling Bee, Wordle, and the crossword were all just brutal today IMO. Feeling humbled and testy lol.

Confidently filled in NERDCRED off the bat but sadly didn’t earn it. Needed too much help with this one. Brutal!

Gotta chime in to balance the negativity! I thought it was a delightful challenge, a good brain stretcher. Had that elusive aha moment when filling in the final F of CALF (as I’d also never heard of the crossing TV series)—“New Jersey” made me smile.

Faster for me than yesterday’s puzzle, but that may be because I will preach to all to go read OCTAVIAEBUTLER. Not only an incredibly talented storyteller, she was a prophet. We lost her too soon.

Half my average Saturday time but I loved every minute. Really delightful! Always nice to ponder two great films. “Private rejection?” was a favorite clue, but top marks for the clearest and most succinct definition of WOKE. How can anyone be offended by alertness to prejudice? Bravo, and may the emus and pagan gods approve.

I always forget to read the puzzle title. Usually it doesn’t matter. Today, well, I solved it with a ¯\_(ツ)_/¯. Cute idea but would’ve been more fun if I’d only read the title first. What if the title actually came up when you loaded the puzzle, instead of having to go to the info page?

Lordamercy had to call uncle for the first time in a long time. TENREC? What in the… Not knowing ANNE MEARA and hanging onto Smucker for too long, I just gave up. Enjoyed some of the clues (DECATHLETE and READPALMS) but who cares how often Ozempic is taken? You stumped me, Barbara! Think I’ll go do some Mondays to soothe my ego.

Lovely head scratcher for a Friday—the kind you have to try some fill, walk away from it, come back, make some headway, rinse, repeat. Some great aha moments and clue admiration. Thanks!

Top 5 favorite NYT crossword puzzle so far. Loved it all. Imagine my glee as a grammar nerd when I realized where this was going, yet it was still a challenge to complete. So cute! Thanks for this Sunday fun. ALLYOUNEEDISLOVE

Loved every bit of this one with the minor exception of CAMPOREES, which I’ve never heard of and made the NE corner a fight. Definitely on my wavelength on the whole (DIRTYMIND, SCREAMQUEEN, and MACGYVERS fell right away). I wish your original clue of “one ‘eeking’ out a living” had made the cut, though! Honestly that would have made my day. Great puzzle.

Figured it would be a tough one when I saw Ezersky’s name, and it was, but I enjoyed the challenge. Had a giggle at knowing WASI immediately, and I’m in awe of anyone who can do THEWORM! APOCALYPTICPOST seems a bit too on the nose right now, but a great clue. Fun theme.

Et voila! Loved it. Felt fresh, new cluing (CROOK) and fun gimmick. LADYBUG and LUCHADORA and the HMS BEAGLE!

Looks like I’m in the minority but I enjoyed this. Fast for a Saturday, despite not knowing Trini Lopez and staring at STANTHONY for the longest time…until my brain finally parsed it. The clue for NINTHS was a favorite.

I adored this puzzle and I love Triplets of Belleville, too! Haven’t seen it in many years—may be time for a rewatch. Thanks for a brisk Wednesday ride!

Hmm, I was going to say this was too smooth for a Friday, and the column greets me with crunchy! No matter, I like both. Fun, fast Friday fill.

I try to be positive about the crossword…don’t mind a challenge, but this one just had too many obscure pop culture references for me. Takes away some of the fun IMO. Still under my average time but just no warm fuzzies for finishing. But I did like the clues for TREEFORT and SIXTIES.

Understudy opportunities! The whole effort was worth that one. Great puzzle.

A perfect Thursday puzzle IMHO. As I sit here on a lunch break, listening to the birds and enjoying a sunny 72F day, I’m grateful more than ever for these moments. Additional thanks to the puzzle creators and this community for this moment of peace and small joys.

Impressive! A perfect Tuesday. When we first started dating, my husband said we should keep our relationship “on the DL”. He’s lucky I didn’t dump him then and there. He changed his mind about that, and we just celebrated 23 years of marriage! Thanks for that memory :)

I loved this puzzle and the clever misdirects. It took me longer than usual but was one well worth the battle. PIPE ORGAN about did me in, though. Just couldn’t see it, plus a lack of music knowledge. Thanks for a fun ride!

I laughed audibly when I finally solved “Hunks” of plastic. Great puzzle, fun clueing…I really enjoyed this one!

Just got back from a quick trip to Cedar Point, so I was vibing with this one…close to a PB!

Exquisite! Loved every second. I’m only sad I didn’t see the class abbreviations and had to wonder why it was SPINCLASSES (why “classes” per se) until reading the column. But that was like a bonus wow. Bravo. 👏🏻

Definitely my sweet spot as I knew the “obscure” trivia right away, and hey I’m not young! Old enough to know all about both MENOPAUSE and SISTERACT but still a fan of both RITAORA and CHARLIXCX! Fun if fast for a Friday.

Absolutely brutal. First pass, I only had WARRENG and NHL. Couldn’t get a foothold without a few lookups (never have been an Oklahoma! fan),which is a hit to the old ego. Ah well. Still thought it was clever. I’ll never look at McNuggets the same again. Then again, I never look at McNuggets.

Add me to the “loved it” column! Fun wordplay! First one to fall for me was CRY over spilled MILK, then EGGS and YOUR, which took some thinking but got there pretty quickly. Did not get the Texas one until reading the column. I also had donkey for a long time as “Party animal?”, but the northeast fell quickly after PIÑATA finally entered my brain. Thank goodness for easy crosses there, cuz I couldn’t mess with Texas. Can the MCRIB stay gone?

Personal best! Like others, I sailed through this one, but I also found it delightful and timely. Si se puede!

Most fun I’ve ever had reading the constructor notes. Always a huge fan, Nick! ❤️

I’m here for the struggle and the delicious payoff. Very crunchy, chewy, and decadent aftertaste. WECARE will feed me for days. Bravo!

I was ready to declare this my favorite puzzle yet until I got to CALLONTHECARPET, which is completely new to me. Even with one letter remaining, I had nothing. Have never heard that expression! Otherwise, for me, such a satisfying Saturday challenge.

Like Deb, I was cursing at first, but that just made the win sweeter when I finally realized the gimmick. I’m glad I read the constructor notes—what an effort! Thank you both for a treat of a puzzle!

Where I thought yesterday’s was charming and fun, though hard, today’s just felt uncomfortable. Nothing was clicking for me. I wasn’t on the wavelength for this one, and I don’t feel stretched in a good way. Also it has been a lousy few days personally, so I hope you’ll forgive the vent. Sorry, not my cup of tea!

Thanks, Mat, for this fun Thursday puzzle. I actually loved the [Player one?] clue. Delightful clues all around.

I enjoyed this one. Felt like a breezy Thursday with an unusual theme, something new. Loved the THIRTEEN connection and NODTO LUPIN. TAUTEN was bizarre, but I love the sound of it…might have to start randomly dropping it into conversations.

Tough for a Wednesday, at least for me, but I loved it. Clever and fresh fill. INTERN near SLUSHPILE, BOSSLEVEL crossing GAMEPAD, CHAILATTE crossing TEAS… Took me a while to break through some places and open my foggy brain a bit. WAFFLEFRY is not one that came easily to my LEFTBRAIN, to say the least! Thanks for the excellent puzzle.

I’m truly awed by this magnificent puzzle, and then to discover its constructor is only 14–wow! I felt like I was wrestling a bear solving this one, in the best way. TEXTBOOKEXAMPLE of a perfect Friday.

Loved the clueing! Fast and fun, like riding a roller coaster with some great twists and turns! And any puzzle with a Monty Python shout-out is a winner for me.

Though a bit longer than my Saturday average, I adored the clues on this one. Proud of my ultra confident fill of ATMS from the get-go and slow dawnings elsewhere as I battled through. Had the aha moment that it was nesting dolls, but had to get the one lookup to spell matryoshka correctly to finish. TWISTERMAT and MICROSCOPE were faves! Anyway, loved the Saturday struggle.

So fun! Enjoyed every second of this one! Many thanks to the constructor!

Very fun Monday puzzle! I needed some childhood nostalgia today. Not only the crafting theme, but also the pirate costumes and sledding on snow days. Lovely to take a moment and look back.