Diana
California
Half the time people complain when a US-based puzzle is too US-centric. Now someone experiments with the use of a first-month-of-class French noun and everyone loses their minds. There’s no pleasing this comment section at all. Cheers to anyone trying to make a crossword puzzle these days.
Nobody who enjoyed this puzzle gets to complain about needing to know 21st century pop culture trivia. This thing came out of a time capsule. If I have to learn about GITANOS and JAGUARXKES (are you kidding me), y’all can learn who Missy Elliott is 25+ years into her career.
It took me forever to figure out the skin care brand, while a bottle of their hand soap was sitting approximately two feet away from my head.
I love the theme and I thought all the theme clues were well done! It’s just held back by weak fill - TRALA, OPERAARIA, SEEPY, etc. Would like more from this constructor, just need them to focus on nailing the rest of the puzzle as well as they nailed the theme.
Deb’s column made me think that completing the puzzle would reveal an animation of actual illustrated bums. I slogged through a boring 20 minutes because the thought of little bums in the NYTXW filled me with joy. Then I completed the puzzle and it was, in fact, just animated letters. Sigh.
I think this is one of my favorite themed puzzles of all time. I loved it, it’s cute, there were so many supplementary fills to stay on theme, I really enjoyed it. My only nitpick is the NYT Editor’s continued insistence that macaron/macaroon are interchangeable. They simply are not! They’ve been spelled differently for 400 years now. They share the same etymology - but so does “macaroni” and I don’t see the Editor ordering cookies with that word! You will not find a “macaroon” anywhere in Paris except a Jewish bakery in the Marais (unless you order a “congalais”). You will not find a “macaron” in the Lower East Side unless you go to a French patisserie. It’s historically, culinarily, and practically incorrect to treat them as interchangeable. The error isn’t happening at the crossword’s level, to be fair to the constructor, it’s included in the NYT style guide - and it drives me crazy! It’s like cluing “espresso topped with foamed milk” for “cafe au lait” instead of cappuccino just because they’re both coffee and milk. Love, A passionate baker and food history fan
As is my usual routine, completed today’s puzzle with my sweet little CORGI snoozing on my lap. A nice way to start the week. Cannoli tips his paw to the constructor.
This was a perfect Friday puzzle. By the end of the pass I only had a few squares filled in, after a few passes it seemed hopeless, but then slowly it opened up and came together. The noted doomsday prepper answer made me laugh, too. A really nice start to my day.
A perfect Saturday puzzle! A first pass that triggers feelings of despair that slowly opens up on the second pass until a lightbulb or two go off. Really, really enjoyable. Very minimal junk fill, a pun here and there, some interesting facts, nothing stale. I would love to see more work from this constructor!
Every morning, I do the crosswords with my sweet corgi curled up next to me. Today, CANNOLI would like to thank you for the shout-out. <3 Owen, you did an amazing job and I'll look forward to your next puzzle. The constructor notes made me a little teary, I'm glad crosswords brought you comfort during a difficult time, and it's beautiful that you found so many mentors in the community to help you build this. It's so exciting to meet the next generation of puzzle constructors!
It would never occur to me to do the crossword in the Guardian or the London Times and then whine when the puzzle uses specific British references that I don’t understand. I like hearing comments from international puzzlers explaining which clues they didn’t know - that can be interesting! It’s nice to hear from folks around the world. But some of you guys seem to take personal offense that a regional newspaper employs regionalisms in its puzzles.
This was a perfect Friday puzzle. Seemed impenetrable at first but worked my way through methodically. Great words, GREAT clueing. Thank you!
For three beautiful minutes this afternoon, I thought Shaq had launched a bestselling root beer. Thanks for that.
I didn’t love this puzzle, the constructor and I have wavelengths a million miles apart, but that’s okay. I just think it’s notable how many regulars who complain endlessly about 21st century trivia in puzzles seem just fine with this one. Is it “trivia” or is it just something outside your generational zeitgeist? This puzzle was mostly outside mine, but that isn’t a reflection on the puzzle or its maker, just on me.
@Esmerelda What is the point of comments like these? Do you want a cookie for also being concerned about the news? Every day someone opts to post about the worst events in the world in the only comments section of the New York Times website that isn’t intended for it. You could share your thoughts anywhere else, on any other article, but it’s absolutely vital that you let everyone know that you’re too busy being concerned to do the puzzles. It’s attention seeking, and anyone who dares to say “could we not?” is made out to look like an ignoramus who doesn’t want to face the truth, rather than someone who just wants 30 minutes of peace and relaxation doing a dang crossword puzzle in the morning.
I don’t know what it is about this puzzle but I give up. I’ve made a few passes and it’s basically empty, I can’t figure out the gimmick and I just don’t care. Everybody seems to love this puzzle but I am not on this puzzle’s wavelength one bit.
I do not ever want to hear anyone in these comments complain about an ”obscure” Missy Elliott reference ever again. What a slog, I am going to go enjoy my Saturday some other way.
This is the most enjoyable Thursday I’ve done in awhile! Thanks so much for such a cute puzzle. PS my fellow Americans need to get on the Barq’s train. I don’t know what you’re getting at the movie theaters, but when I see that Coke Freestyle machine I am READY. Barq’s vanilla crème soda + Barq’s vanilla root beer mixed together for me. I don’t drink soda or go to the theater that often, so this is my special concoction for a special occasion. I give it *****!
I thought this was an outstanding puzzle. A delightful theme, some clues that made me laugh, some clues that made me think, some answers I’d never heard of, giving me an opportunity to learn something new. Hats off to the constructor, I really enjoyed this one!
I really, really enjoyed this puzzle. Fun, clever clues; reasonable crossings everywhere; looked intimidating but had the right number of footholds. I really look forward to more from this constructor, well done!
@Jerry Put this in a museum. A perfect encapsulation of the Baby Boomer mind, posted with pride by one of their own.
I LOVED this puzzle. I was enjoying the theme and then when I filled in 52 across the second layer of meaning clicked in. A perfect Thursday.
Man, wait until all these pedants find out my singular (in every way) dog is named Cannoli.
A perfect Friday puzzle. Very few squares filled in after the first pass but eventually it all came together. A nicely balanced set of clues, too. Nice work!
Sorry I’m going to brag that I finished this in 12 minutes! There’s no reason for it except that I was on precisely the constructor’s wavelength and every word I guessed turned out to be right. Pure luck but I’ll take it!
I don’t even like rebuses but I loved this puzzle! Props to the puzzlemaster, this one was fun.
@Barry Ancona You know, Barry, sometimes people just get to disagree with you, and dislike a puzzle, and it doesn’t say anything about their competence.
@Katie Seriously, these comments come up every time someone under 40 builds a puzzle. The archives are right there in the app, I can pull up a puzzle from 1994 quite easily. I promise it's just as full of meaningless ephemera! Actually, writing this comment, I just pulled up a puzzle from 2002. It references the erstwhile leader of the AFL-CIO, Princess Diana, Lincoln Logs, and Yoko Ono. These are as inscrutable to a 17-year-old today as this puzzle is to some of the commenters. That's life!
A perfect Friday experience: despair, inspiration, frustration, determination, hopelessness and then finally enlightenment.
My sleepy Cardigan corgi, Cannoli, gives this puzzle four paws up.
I always like a puzzle with a second twist that takes it from good to great. I caught on to the theme pretty quickly, but when I saw the animation and realized the circled letters were pairs of L/R, I had to tip my cap. Nicely done.
I loved this puzzle, fell into place nicely and everything was on my wavelength. But then, I participated in an UNDIE RUN back in 2006! It’s tradition at my alma mater to do so during the first proper rain of the year. My campus was situated in a redwood forest so this was a more precarious situation than you might expect.
@Mean Old Lady Missy Elliott is a very famous R&B musician and producer. Her first hits came in the mid-90s, she’s entering her fourth decade of fame. They’ve used her for quite a few clues before, so she’s a name worth remembering. :) She had a guest appearance at the Super Bowl Halftime Show about ten years ago, which was a treat.
Just here to request a gold star for figuring out an anagram. It’s possibly the first time I’ve done so in my life.
@Sarah I’ve watched almost every movie referenced in this puzzle but I also think it was a slog. Sacrifices everything in service of the theme.
@Diana Oh man, I am embarrassed because I didn’t mention the point of my rant - that today’s clue actually works better than the ones they’ve used in the past! Today’s is a misdirection rather than an error. Macaron/macaroon comes up like every six months, and this is the first time I can remember the clue being fair. So hat tip to the constructor for threading the needle. Maybe they finally changed the style guide…
Sometimes it feels like constructors sacrifice the overall quality of the puzzle to jam it into a preconceived theme idea. This one doesn’t feel that way, I enjoyed the non theme clues too! Also now I’m humming “I’m Only Happy When It Rains” to myself, which is a good way to start the day.
The definition of “I didn’t love it, but I do admire it.” I was pretty meh on the theme (though I like an old-fashioned rebus) until the other shoe dropped re:the crossing words. THAT is impressive! But I never want to do this puzzle again, haha.
I loved this puzzle, and the answer to “Khan tract” was spectacular. Happy Halloween!
@Nick Roumel My junior year of high school is when I began *completing* the New York Times crossword, and Owen is already BUILDING it! Just amazing!
Oh my god, 29 minutes of beating my head against the wall trying to figure out what the “threads that are hard to find?” could be. Got all the real tricky misdirects but those four letters got me until the very end!!
My main takeaway is that I have absolutely no idea how many of you are pronouncing the word “paralegal.” The theme works perfectly well for me. I genuinely can’t imagine another pronunciation and I’m very curious, if anyone wants to share a video clip.
Dang, that was tough! I’m way over average. Everything made sense in the end, but I needed a few reveals to get going once I hit a wall. That’s exactly what I hope for from a Saturday, kudos to the constructor.
@riskstrategies “Are all sophisticated puzzlers ditching the NYXW or does one reader need to get a grip?” ELITES GHOSTING | ENGLISH EGOTIST
Just wanted to thank the constructor for a perfectly pleasant puzzle. What a nice start to my Friday.
@EmptyJ That’s exactly how I feel. The last few Fridays have been nice puzzles which ran on the wrong day imo. This morning’s puzzle feels just right.
An enjoyable puzzle but not one I should have done on an empty stomach. Santa Maria Tri-tip is one of my favorite meats ever! My friend cooks them for a million hours on his smoker and they’re to die for. I’m the seventh generation of my family to be born in Texas, but I’m also the last. No better sign of my West Coast conversion than the fact that I prefer Tri-tip over brisket any day!
@jennie lol were you also offended by John Lennon or is that long enough ago for you? what is the cutoff, exactly?
Huge thanks to this puzzle for introducing me to the original ska version of “One Love” - gonna be listening to this all day!
@Jackson honestly, I am a movie fan and I knew all of these titles, I am the target audience and I feel the same way about this puzzle. Oh well.