Tony

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.

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.

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 was hoping for a clever but accessible April Fool's Day puzzle. And while the full was ready, I don't think the "prank" was pulled off in the way the writers and editors had hoped. It's like telling someone that they're pocket is untied. It's sort of amusing, but more confusing as to why someone would think it's funny.

So much whining today, as if NYT Thursday's aren't allowed to be challenging once in a while. The theme was quite clever, perhaps too clever for the folks who want eat puzzles every day. I honestly thought I'd come in at more than my average, but my 13-ish minutes was 3 minutes under. Well done, constructors.

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.

Not my favorite Sunday ever, but I enjoyed the unique grid design. And for all you truckers solving this at some Flying J or a rest area, thanks for what you're doing, and watch out for the idiots on the road.

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.

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!

I don't get all the hate from regular Sunday solvers. "Oh no, there's a trick I didn't get right away, so it's a bad puzzle." There were a couple on new words and terms to me (Don't know much about Thai cooking or Indian music), but all of the cluing eventually made sense. For the theme, I enjoyed getting a bit of one, then using that to figure out the other two parts (GATE CHANGES was my last, because I guessed ANGELIC for the middle portion, and sussed out the rest). A minute or two worse than my average, which typically means my brain had to think around some corners. Kudos to the constructors!

This felt like it was taking a bit longer than usual, but once each section of the puzzle came together, it felt sure- no strange places where one vowell or another might solve some particular bit of trivia- and so I got the gold star immediately upon filling in the last letter, and a couple minutes below my average. I loved both the spanners and that large open space in the middle, and some wonderful cluing. This was one of my favorite puzzles in months!

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.

This is the first Saturday in a long time that I've come in above my average (if only by about a minute). A great mix of cluing and trivia and the occasional logical guess (SNORLAX sounded better than some alternatives). Great puzzle today.

I liked this a lot. I enjoyed the theme entries quite a bit, especially when I figured out the CMAs clue from just the last 4 letters. A nice shout out to an old favorite (Tom Lehrer), a new (Ego Nwodim), and all the improv comics out there. The comments are also amusing. The same crowd that complains a puzzle is too easy one day then complains the next that certain clues are too obscure and "ruined their day."

This might be one of my favorite gimmicks ever. I started off with SWEETSIX and TEEN, thinking there be more to explain the split, but then the down entries weren't working. But as soon as I got ALF, it clicked. I quickly got two of the others (WHEN I'M FOUR^THREE and ONE IN A TEN^SIX) with no crosses. The only one I didn't love as much was the others was the slot machine, as both 1 to any exponent or any non-zero number to the power of zero could have fit. I quickly narrowed it down to the latter option, but still needed the down entries to finish it. Thanks for making this math teacher's day.

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.

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.

A very enjoyable Saturday. There was such a good for to it. I seemed to be on the constructor's wavelength, as most of the "?" clues came rather quickly. I finished a a little under 13 minutes, far below by average Saturday of about 25 minutes, but the comments seems to indicate many solvers found it rather tricky, so I suppose a few lucky guesses helped.

The middle stumped me for a bit, but I got YETI, and everything else came quickly. Just a bit under my average Sunday time, and an enjoyable puzzle.

I was having a good time doing this puzzle, and, at about the 13 minute mark, only had the southeast corner to go. Ended at over 20 minutes. Baldish, Dian Fossey, and plenty others got filled in eventually, but very slowly. Still a good puzzle overall.

Yesterday's Friday puzzle was tougher for me (by about a minute and a half), but this was still a pleasant workout, with a few letters requiring educated guesses (Did I know YODEL or KAYE? No, but they seemed the best fit with AH__). I was glad for the little pause that always comes before the 'solve' confirmation.

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.