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Kathleen Duncan makes her New York Times Crossword debut.Jump to: Today’s Theme | Tricky CluesTHURSDAY PUZZLE — I’ve said it before in this column, and I will say it again: When it comes to Thursday puzzles, expect anything. Thursday themes will not always be the longest entries in a puzzle; they may not all be Across entries, as thmed entries typically are earlier in the week; and sometimes the letters may even escape the grid.You get the idea.Keep your mind open and flexible for this clever debut by Kathleen Duncan. I had a lot of fun with it, and I think you will, too.Today’s ThemeSometimes theme entries go off in different directions, and that is precisely what is happening in today’s puzzle. We will be making film genres bend to our wills: Each theme clue contains two movies each, and we need to figure out 1) what their genres are, and 2) where we need to bend them.Oh, and that’s why there are dashes in your clue list if you are solving online. The dashes indicate that the remainder of the genre you are solving for is included in that space.For example, the theme clue at 1A is [ “Interview With the Vampire” and “Prince of Thorns”]. The answer is DARK F and then just trails off. That doesn’t make any sense, so something else must be going on. If you look at 5D, where the F is in the first position, the clue is one of those dashes. Boo. That’s no help.We are having trouble retrieving the article content.Please enable JavaScript in your browser settings.Thank you for your patience while we verify access. If you are in Reader mode please exit and log into your Times account, or subscribe for all of The Times.Thank you for your patience while we verify access.Already a subscriber? Log in.Want all of The Times? Subscribe. More

Brandon Koppy makes space for us.Jump to: Today’s Theme | Tricky CluesWEDNESDAY PUZZLE — I’ve come to expect a trouncing from Wednesday puzzles — last week’s installment by Kathy Bloomer being an especially pronounced instance. So I was surprised to find myself breezing through today’s, constructed by Brandon Koppy. The puzzle has its fair share of midweek “crunch” (a term of art for challenging crossword fill), but is otherwise guileless.The theme is light and relatively easy to apprehend. In other words, there isn’t much gravity to it.Today’s ThemeThe exact origins of GALAXY BRAIN (61A), as in [Having ideas far too profound for anyone else to comprehend], are hard to pinpoint. The term often refers to a stock-image meme of a man’s brain expanding panel by panel, until it seems to radiate with cosmic energy. As it relates to this puzzle, GALAXY BRAIN gives you the power to see words about the galaxy in each of the themed entries.The [Honor for “Dune” and “American Gods”] at 18A is the NEBULA AWARD. At 25A, [Swifties vis-à-vis Taylor Swift] are STAR-STRUCK. The song described in 37A’s [Grammy-winning Soundgarden hit of 1994] was BLACK HOLE SUN. And the [Canadian province on the Gulf of Maine] at 52A is NOVA SCOTIA.Tricky Clues31A. In academic contexts, a score of 30 percent might be a failing grade. But when it comes to leaving a TIP, [30% is a very good one].We are having trouble retrieving the article content.Please enable JavaScript in your browser settings.Thank you for your patience while we verify access. If you are in Reader mode please exit and log into your Times account, or subscribe for all of The Times.Thank you for your patience while we verify access.Already a subscriber? Log in.Want all of The Times? Subscribe. More

Alex Eaton-Salners plays us in.Jump to: Today’s Theme | Tricky CluesTUESDAY PUZZLE — Whether or not I had good taste in music as a teenager depends on whom you ask. (One might argue that a sixth grader with most of Weird Al Yankovic’s discography memorized was a woman ahead of her time!) I might have been more popular if I had followed some of the bands in today’s crossword, constructed by Alex Eaton-Salners. I did catch up to the trends eventually — but alas, I walked a lonely road.Today’s ThemeThe bands may be our clues, but their entries have little to do with music. Instead, each band’s name is wittily linked to something more familiar — for instance, at 17A, some [Red Hot Chili Peppers] are CAROLINA REAPERS. At 29A, celebrate a [Green Day] and you’re observing SAINT PATRICK’S. And, at 43A, [Earth, Wind & Fire] are GREEK ELEMENTS. I’ll let you solve the last clue on your own, but I’ll give you a hint: Go west, not east.56A. [They Might Be Giants]BASEBALL PLAYERSTricky Clues23A. This word for a [Person chosen by ballot] isn’t wrong, but it doesn’t feel natural, either: It’s ELECTEE.47A./48A. Note that both [Bud holder] and [Pen filler] are vague in their wording, so don’t rely on their solving to similar answers in future puzzles. This [Bud holder] is an EAR, but in past puzzles it has also been “keg,” “vase” and “twig.” The [Pen filler] is INK here but has also been “sheep” and “hog.”We are having trouble retrieving the article content.Please enable JavaScript in your browser settings.Thank you for your patience while we verify access. If you are in Reader mode please exit and log into your Times account, or subscribe for all of The Times.Thank you for your patience while we verify access.Already a subscriber? Log in.Want all of The Times? Subscribe. More

Thomas van Geel’s second crossword is set in the ol’ factory.Jump to: Today’s Theme | Tricky CluesMONDAY PUZZLE — I don’t know what it was that inspired Thomas van Geel to come up with the theme of today’s crossword, but I want what he’s having. Solving this puzzle has me smiling from ear to ear with the kind of delight you wish you could bottle for darker days. I hope you’ll give it a try — and let me know whether you need a tissue afterward.Today’s ThemeUnlike themes that take shape within a couple of entries, identifying the [Polite response to the ends of 17-, 25-, 34- and 48-Across] requires solving all of the entries in question.17A’s [Coming-of-age ceremony] is a BAR MITZVAH. The [Place “rocked” in a Clash song] at 25A is THE CASBAH. An [Animal that can go 0-60 in three seconds] is a CHEETAH, at 34A. Let’s pause here to note the common ending of these entries, which is -AH. Will the same be true of 48A’s [Famed shoe designer]? Nope, it’s JIMMY CHOO.Now read the ends of these entries in order: AH … AH … AH … CHOO! The [Polite response] to this sequence at 56A is, of course, GESUNDHEIT.Tricky Clues14A. Top stories in the newspaper are found on the first page, called A1. But what’s [always the top story] of a house? Why, that’s the ATTIC.We are having trouble retrieving the article content.Please enable JavaScript in your browser settings.Thank you for your patience while we verify access. If you are in Reader mode please exit and log into your Times account, or subscribe for all of The Times.Thank you for your patience while we verify access.Already a subscriber? Log in.Want all of The Times? Subscribe. More

Greg Snitkin and Glenn Davis open our solving weekend with a spirited themeless puzzle.Jump to: Tricky CluesFRIDAY PUZZLE — This is Greg Snitkin’s third crossword in The New York Times, and Glenn Davis’s debut.Mr. Snitkin and Mr. Davis offer a puzzle packed with lively entries that gave me a real run for my money. Their long, stacked entries are all fairly crunchy, especially at 1A, which is also a debut.One thing that solvers may notice is a dupe in the grid. I won’t mention which entries duplicate a word, but if you are just joining us, that is usually a no-no in construction. I asked the puzzle editors about it, and they said that it was a duplicate, but that the two phrases were compelling enough to leave them as is in the grid.Tricky Clues15A. This is a good example of how a crossword clue is not a definition. Someone can be [Solitary] without being ANTISOCIAL, but being ANTISOCIAL means that the person prefers to be alone. Remember, this is a Friday puzzle, where most of the clues are not straightforward.17A. Adding the cultural suffix “-core” suggests a vibe or a trend. Crosswordcore, which I just made up, means that someone enjoys black and white squares in their wardrobe and décor. The [Trend that involves pink accessories and décor] is BARBIECORE.We are having trouble retrieving the article content.Please enable JavaScript in your browser settings.Thank you for your patience while we verify access. If you are in Reader mode please exit and log into your Times account, or subscribe for all of The Times.Thank you for your patience while we verify access.Already a subscriber? Log in.Want all of The Times? Subscribe. More

Ilan and Shimon Kolkowitz give us good advice as they make their New York Times Crossword debut.Jump to: Today’s Theme | Tricky CluesTHURSDAY PUZZLE — Ilan and Shimon Kolkowitz — brothers who are, respectively, a doctor and a physics professor — are men of science. They have been trained to approach problems broadly at first, as expressed in the medical aphorism “When you hear hoofbeats, think horses, not zebras.”I mention this because the Kolkowitz brothers are making their New York Times Crossword debut today with an entertaining puzzle that teaches a similar lesson. While we’re solving, let’s not lose sight of why we’re here. We’re here to have fun and maybe learn something.Before we discuss the puzzle, you should know that applications are now open for the New York Times Diverse Crossword Constructor Fellowship.The fellowship provides mentorship and support for constructors from underrepresented groups in the constructor community, including women, people of color and the L.G.B.T.Q. community. We want our puzzles to reflect the experiences of as many people as possible, which means publishing work that displays a wide range of cultural reference points and language usage. The fellowship is for constructors who have not yet been published by The New York Times. Fellows will get to work one on one with an editor for about three months, and by the end will have a crossword they can submit to The Times for possible publication.Today’s ThemeBefore we get started, today’s puzzle is not a rebus. You’re welcome.Our job is to see the FOREST for the TREES, as the idiom about shortsightedness goes. Someone who does not see the forest for the trees is considering only the granular details, and not the larger picture.That crossword forest is appropriately hidden while you are solving today’s puzzle, but reveals itself upon finishing in a way that I thought was very interesting. More about that later.We are having trouble retrieving the article content.Please enable JavaScript in your browser settings.Thank you for your patience while we verify access. If you are in Reader mode please exit and log into your Times account, or subscribe for all of The Times.Thank you for your patience while we verify access.Already a subscriber? Log in.Want all of The Times? Subscribe. More

Life may flash before your eyes as you solve Kathy Bloomer’s puzzle.Jump to: Today’s Theme | Tricky CluesWEDNESDAY PUZZLE — Puzzlers, I don’t lie to you. If I make a rookie mistake while solving, I am willing to acknowledge it in this column. So you can trust that I’m being sincere when I tell you that I nearly had to tap out of today’s crossword, constructed by Kathy Bloomer, and it was only dumb luck (with a little skill, sure) that got me to the finish line.No amount of shadowboxing (an apt verb for crossword grids, eh?) could have prepared me for such an opponent. Ms. Bloomer’s clever twists and misdirections — her 8D, if you will — are formidable; some of these entries actually made me gasp. One solution didn’t even make sense to me until a colleague explained it, at which point I gasped.But don’t let my preamble discourage you; if anything, I hope it heightens the thrill of the challenge. No answers in this crossword will be spoon-fed to you, even if the theme suggests otherwise.Today’s ThemeIt’s not the [Places to find the items at the ends of 4-, 8- and 14D] that you should pay attention to, but the phrases in which they appear, because that’s where the wit of this theme really shines. At 23D, that revealer clue solves to CEREAL AISLES.And indeed, in three “aisles” of this grid, there are cereal-based puns on common expressions. One who [Came out in favor of a certain breakfast product?], at 4D, ENDORSED CHEX rather than checks. At 14D, [Doing some shopping for breakfast?] may be described as GETTING ONE’S KIX — in aisle 66, perhaps? And the [Sugary bulk breakfast purchase?] at 8D is a WHOLE BAG OF TRIX, out of which you may well pull a rabbit, since it’s the cereal’s mascot. Don’t get too excited about this last joke: It’s the reason they chose a bunny in the first place.We are having trouble retrieving the article content.Please enable JavaScript in your browser settings.Thank you for your patience while we verify access. If you are in Reader mode please exit and log into your Times account, or subscribe for all of The Times.Thank you for your patience while we verify access.Already a subscriber? Log in.Want all of The Times? Subscribe. More

Per Bykodorov makes his New York Times Crossword debut.Jump to: Today’s Theme | Tricky CluesTUESDAY PUZZLE — Step right up, puzzle lovers, step right up! The theme of today’s crossword, constructed by Per Bykodorov in his New York Times debut, hinges on an expression that probably comes from the traveling carnivals of the 19th century.Let’s take a spin and test our luck together, shall we? Unlike most of the unapologetically rigged games at carnivals, this puzzle can be played fair and square(s).Today’s ThemeRound and round the circled letters go, and what they mean, nobody knows! Now that I’ve run out of carnival barks, though, I can explain what’s going on.Four rows of this puzzle contain a set of five circled letters each. An identical number of circles repeated across rows or columns usually indicates some kind of anagram-based theme. We can confirm this by solving a couple of the entries that contain those circled letters. 16A, [Like a film that’s both sad and funny], solves to TRAGICOMIC, and 22A, [Ben & Jerry’s flavor honoring a jam band legend], to CHERRY GARCIA. This makes a couple of things clear: The letters we’re working with are A-C-G-I-R, and the answer almost certainly has to do with what they unscramble to spell — CIGAR.Carnival games apparently used to offer liquor and smokes as top prizes, even above all the giant stuffed animals! That would certainly explain how the baby in “Who Framed Roger Rabbit” got his hands on a stogie. In any case, it’s as sensible an explanation as any for why we use the phrase at the center of today’s puzzle to mean [Not quite right] — CLOSE, BUT NO CIGAR (35A). And it also tells us what’s going on with the circled letters: They’re never arranged in the right order to spell “cigar.”We are having trouble retrieving the article content.Please enable JavaScript in your browser settings.Thank you for your patience while we verify access. If you are in Reader mode please exit and log into your Times account, or subscribe for all of The Times.Thank you for your patience while we verify access.Already a subscriber? Log in.Want all of The Times? Subscribe. More