Tony
Davis
OPER is an abbreviation for "operator" found on landline phones, not smartphones. I thought it was a fairly clever clue. To each their own, of course.
A big thanks to Mr. Navarro, my high school math teacher, who taught us the Latin for QED, but also referred to the phrase as "Quite Easily Done," which I've passed along to my students.
8D was key to my faster than average solve today. I got XCIX problems, but a Roman Numeral ain't I.
It took me longer than my average Thursday, thanks to BEES (not BEDS) and deleting QTR (for being next to another Q) and trying a couple rebuses. Finally, I had SYRA__ORANGE, then considered my previous deletions, and it dawned on me. To the constructor, I'm adding two more Qs to the ones in your puzzle, which makes 10Q. 10Q very much.
Came here to laugh at Rebus hate. It's just a game, and the rules are sometimes a bit flexible. There are plenty of other sources out there for always-traditional puzzles, but one of the things that I and many other NYT soccer enjoy is the occasional Rebus or other rule-defying puzzles. I especially like being surprised by them, and today's was extra fun. I didn't quite get it with PI/O NG PADDLE, but DI/O NG DITCH confirmed it. About 90 seconds faster than my Sunday average, about 30 minutes for the star.
When it comes to Sunday puzzles, I like to go in with no particular preconception of difficulty. Some Sundays, like today, play like a Monday. Many play like a Thursday, and every once in a while, it plays like a Saturday. For those complaining of "too easy" for today, maybe expand your expectations.
Sometimes I just come here for the entitled complaints. "Too much trivia!" "Product placement!” "Rebuses are a tool of the devil!” "Why don't these puzzles only contain things I know about?!" Rebuses, Oreos, and movies made after 1974 are not going away. Learn to live with them, or find a more traditional puzzle supplier.
It's a good feeling when you pick up on a theme before you finish, which is rare for me, and helped me get the southwest corner quickly and finish at more than 7 minutes under my average Thursday. This theme might have made a fun Sunday grid... Especially if shingle/ English could have found its way in.
@LW Next month: Fake celebrity name originating in comments of NYT puzzle chat (UT_A).
@Agent86 I was teaching about extrapolation today, and used this comment as a fun example.
It's not often that my years of being a pro wrestling fan is also handy to solving a crossword, but the People's Elbow helped me last the smackdown on this puzzle, coming in 6 minutes ahead of my usual Saturday. Plus a "Cactus Jack" reference (though not Mick Foley)? Bang bang! I smell what Mr. Lieberman is cooking.
@Rich in Atlanta I'm not sure what media you use to solve there crossword, but If you don't have the NYT Puzzles app, that might be a good way to make the puzzle portable.
BRUTUS and BRUTUS were both sure solves for me, and clued me in on the theme of double entries. JUDAS and JUDAS got me to the more specific theme of betrayers, but it wasn't until MUFASA that I figured out that the betrayed were also included. 21:45 for me today, about 10 minutes below my Sunday average. It was a very enjoyable solve with the theme slowly revealing itself. Too bad CYPHER couldn't have been worked in with NEO, but I'm sure the unusual spelling would not have led to a good double entry.
I liked the theme, but for some reason nothing was clicking with me in this puzzle. Almost 12 minutes more than my average Thursday. Still, if they were all easy, it wouldn't be as fun.
A fun rebus puzzle. I didn't get any of the rebus clues until I got the revealer, but then I was able to quickly finish the top half of the grid and work through the rest. Rebus haters can stop rANTing, they're not going away, and I'm glad.
@lioncitysolver Bartman is his superhero alter ego.
One of the rare puzzles where I got the gimmick with the first one I solved, and it helped me get other entries quickly. Not quite a personal best, but a relatively smooth Thursday solve for me.
An easy Friday. Seven minutes and change below my average. Or maybe I'm just getting better, thanks to Deb's tips and comments over the past couple of years. You'll be missed, Deb! Good luck on your next adventure!
@Lewis I had a similar thought! One of the 105Ds putting a movie together? EUGENE SPLICING.
What a fun Saturday puzzle! I hit occasional snarls, but then an "Aha!" on a longer entry would come along. I enjoy the little rush you get when one or two letters is enough to get an answer like 'HERE BE DRAGONS" or "KARATE LESSONS." And ESPN 8 May be one of my favorite clues ever. Now someone needs to work in "If you can dodge a wrench, you can dodge a ball."
A very good Saturday puzzle. A few entries I got quickly, some great long entries, and a few that got an "aha!” only AFTER filling it in (KNITS in particular was clever). A good mental workout today. Only disappointment was not using Ohio State standout and Tampa Bay rookie Egbuka for EMEKA. As an OSU graduate living in Florida, I get to say "Go Bucks!” on Saturday and "Go Bucs!” on Sunday.
I'm slightly miffed at myself for not understanding the numbers until I read the revealer clue, but that "Aha!” did help me fill in one rebus square. Great puzzle. Now I'm going to see if some version of Minesweeper is still accessible on my work laptop.
A quick, lively Thursday puzzle. I luckily caught onto the theme quickly, even without the revealer, and set a new personal Thursday best at a bit under 10 minutes. Thanks for the puzzle, Mr. Ayala.
An enjoyable puzzle, and I particularly enjoyed how the long entries were past of a specific story, rather than the more general themes I was thinking of during the solve. I'm also among those who had "slat" incorrectly entered in the top 3rd, and then chuckled when it appeared again in the middle third.
I was on the constructor's wavelength today, and breezed through this at just under 12 minutes. I was slightly stymied by AU NATUREL, but got it from the crosses. I've seen a lot of comments about MOCAP, which is short for 'Motion Capture,' and it's how a lot of movie directors create fantasy characters, and is how Andy Serkis has portrayed Gollum in Lord of the Rings and Caesar in Planet of the Apes.
Fairly easy Thursday puzzle. Like other commenters, I didn't think the 'Jack' from J<> was going to just be "Jackie." I kept trying to make "Jewelry Heist" work.
@Caitie Besides sharing the name of two presidents, I believe Harrison Ford has also played the role of POTUS twice: Air Force One and the latest Captain America movie, Brave New World.
1D was a poor clue, but Galois (and the constructor notes) made up for it. I've taught AP Calculus, but the name was still unfamiliar to me. "The Bartman" brought a smile of nostalgia.
@BL Lots of cluing in my wheelhouse. I'm a big Ohio State fan, have seen Lord of the Rings multiple times, and certain unique proper names sometimes stick in my head. Finding the theme helped too.
I had CLICHE and LOS in the NW for a while, and it slowed my solve, but I was near a personal Saturday best, and solved it faster than I did on Friday or Thursday. A fun puzzle though.
@The X-Phile Of course my brain goes to "Weird Al" Yankovic sining this to the tune of 'The Safety Dance' by Men Without Hats.
@Times Rita Sent COD means the company mails it, but when it arrives to you, you pay the postage or don't get your package.
@Cynthia Schmidt The Spanish version doesn't count, not any covers. Only the original version by Wham! You won!
@Drew This was me as well. I was expecting the whole screen to go white or something. Even better.... It could have led to another crossword, as some escape room exits will lead to other rooms.
@Grant Maybe Day knew he'd need a week to let a new QB air out the ball a year ahead of time? If so, that's some three dimensional chess. At least we get the Bobcats of OU next game.
Someone help me out here...I got PUPU platter easily, but it immediately evoked a memory of a character saying, "PUPU-PUU platter." Does anyone know what TV show or movie was just tickled in my brain?
@Barry Ancona The word "SETS" appears twice, once as part of the two-entry "SETS.... STRAIGHT" and once as part of the two-entry "STRAIGHT SETS."
@Laura Thursday puzzles often have some trick to them. Sometimes Sundays, too. Stick with the other days and the hundreds of puzzles in the archives (avoiding those Thursday puzzles, of that's your preference). I personally like the additional challenge of figuring out a Thursday gimmick, but it may not be everyone's cup of tea.
Due to a glitch in the game, my PR for a Saturday is 3:33, but I suspect today's 10 minute solve is my true PR. 6D made me laugh out loud, and the rest of the solve was worth it just for that clue and answer. I did not appreciate that "bump" and "rise" were interchangable in Connections and prevented a perfect puzzle today. But the crossword was just fine, if a bit easier than expected.
A nitpick on the themed entries: the "cookies" have one black row, one white row, and one black row. This they depict regular sandwich cookies, not 'double stuf.'
Very quick solve for me- set my Friday personal best at 8:36. The cluing and crosses hit my mental sweet spot.
@Lewis Pablo gets to come back tomorrow, but they stopped giving away lousy copies of their home game long ago.
I knew neither ELGRECO or GIGI of the top of my head, and it certainly didn't help that I had AIM and ARM mixed up. Once I switched the later pair, the crossing G quickly became apparent, but the identical cluing for two nearly identical words didn't help much. But it was a fun puzzle overall.
It suddenly came to me! It was Brak on an episode of Cartoon Planet! Which means it's been about 30 years since I saw it. No wonder I didn't come up with it immediately. Still, it's a very weird thing to be stuck in my brain.
@Barry Ancona I like "squishes." Everybody in the comments, let's start using squishes! We can make it happen!
@Steve L Thanks. I'll try to find that board, and make my comments, if any, more generalized in the future.
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