Matt Jones’s Jonesin’ Crossword, “Say Less” — utterly deserted. – Erin’s write-up
Jonesin’ solution 3/25/25
Hello lovelies! This week we have common phrases missing the word SAY.
- 20a. [“Provided the whole thing’s a solo effort”?] IF I DO SO MYSELF (If I do say so myself)
- 36a. [What happens when the first preservation doesn’t seal?] YOU CAN THAT AGAIN (You can say that again)
- 51a. [Horror movie where the clown trades a balloon for a bouquet?] IT WITH FLOWERS (Say it with flowers)
Other things:
Venn diagram about dweebs, dorks, geeks, and nerds
- 29a. [Gargamel’s cat] AZRAEL. Love the Smurfs.
- 11a. [Birds of a given region] AVIFAUNA. I didn’t know there was further classification of fauna like this. Ichthyofauna refers to fish, and there are a bunch classifying fauna by size and environment.
- 48d. [Dorky person] DWEEB. There are a billion versions of this Venn diagram online that break down the distinction between dweeb, dork, geek, and nerd.
Until next week!
Joe Deeney’s Wall Street Journal crossword, “Fashion Basics”—Jim’s review
Theme answers are familiar two-word phrases whose final words could also be synonyms of “stylish.” Not only that, but the first words are the classical Greek elements that comprise the universe. The revealer is ELEMENTS OF STYLE (36a, [With “The,” classic guide for writers, and this puzzle’s theme]).
Wall St Journal crossword solution · “Fashion Basics” · Joe Deeney · Tue., 3.25.25
- 16a. [*Weather-proof, in a way] WATER TIGHT.
- 24a. [*Insect that can be seen in the dark] FIREFLY.
- 46a. [*Keep from overheating with a fan] AIR COOL.
- 56a. [*Eco-friendly] EARTH SMART.
Really nifty double-layered theme! I only caught on to the style synonyms at first but then had a second aha moment when looking at the first words. Very cool and a mightily impressive theme set! (And count me in as a fan of the Strunk and White book. It really opened my eyes back in senior year of high school.)
The long fill is beautiful as well with “GOOD FOR YOU!”, ANGEL FALLS, CALAMITIES, THE TURTLES, EYE CREAM, and TWO-TIMED. That’s an unexpected amount of quality long fill given that the theme is so tightly put together. My first impression was wrong when encountering NITE, EBAY, I-BAR, and TATA in that NW corner. RIAS, A AND E, and ODESA aren’t great either. But I’d say the good stuff vastly outshines these clunkers.
Clue of note: 5a. [Eschew zone defense, in hoops lingo]. MAN UP. Didn’t know this phrase was also used in basketball. It’s a nice alternative cluing angle to the usual.
Excellent theme and lovely long fill. 4.25 stars.
Elizabeth C. Gorski’s Cr♥ssw♥rd Nation puzzle (Week 721), “Hail, Yes!”—Ade’s take
Crossword Nation puzzle solution, Week 721: “Hail, Yes!”
Hello there, everyone! Hope you all are doing well as we get ready to put March to bed and await the arrival of the Easter Bunny!
Most people just wait for a cab to arrive if they’re out and about, and those cabs arrive just in time in today’s puzzle. In the grid, puns are created when the letters CAB are inserted consecutively in an already-existing word/phrase to create wackiness.
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- SANTA CABANA (17A: [Changing environment for a famed North Pole resident?]) – Santa Ana
- CABO PIONEERS (26A: [Willa Cather novel about the first guests at a Baja resort?]) – O Pioneers!
- PEDICAB CURES (45: [Healing aspects of foot-powered vehicles?]) – Pedicures
- CABAL CAPONE (59A: [Plotting ring created by a notorious crime boss?])
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Definitely am hungry right now as I’m waiting for my flight from Seattle to board and take off, but, even in my hungriest moments, I don’t think seeing/smelling/thinking of MISO SOUP will ever do the trick in making me feel excited to eat (23D: [Sushi bar selection]). Then again, I’ve never had it before, but since I’ve had tofu twice in my life and haven’t loved it, don’t think I would look forward to some miso. Initially wanted AGATE/S where STEELIE ended up being the answer (48A: [Playing marble]). Played a lot of playground games growing up, yet despite being a kid in an era where seeing marbles being played on the streets was still a thing, I never played. I’m sure there are some adult marbles league out there for those who long for the days of mashers and shooting at dead ducks.
“Sports will make you smarter” moment of the day: REBS (7D: [Soldiers in gray]) – Currently in the throes of March Madness, so fitting that we shout out the University of Mississippi Rebels’ (Rebs, for short) men’s and women’s basketball teams for both making the Sweet 16. While the men defeated North Carolina and Iowa State in Milwaukee to make its way to the South Regional in Atlanta, the women did it the hard way, defeating Ball State in the first round before winning in Waco against Baylor in the second round. The women are coached by one of the most dynamic personalities in coaching, Yolett McPhee-McCuin, and “Coach Yo” has turned around the women’s basketball program in Oxford since her hiring in 2018.
Thank you so much for the time, everybody! Have a wonderful and safe rest of your day and, as always, keep solving!
Take care!
Ade/AOK
Bob Benson’s New York Times crossword—Evan M’s review
Bob Benson’s Tuesday 3/25/25 NYT Crossword Solution
Alright folks, I’m a bit tired tonight from working overnight yesterday (don’t ask…). Today’s trickier-than-a-typical-Tuesday puzzle highlights 4 punny interpretations of various movies/TV shows. No revealer here, so I had to parse it out after.
- 17A [“The Lego Movie”?] — PLASTIC FILM
- 23A [“Star Trek”?] — SPACE PROGRAM
- 52A [“Finding Nemo”?] — WATER FEATURE
- 62A [“Planet Earth”?] — WORLD SERIES
It’s a debut puzzle for Bob Benson, and I liked it. It’s a very classic crossword type theme, nothing too fancy or modern, just some fun wordplay. I like the distance between the compared objects for PLASTIC FILM and WORLD SERIES, but I’d argue SPACE PROGRAM already has a lot to do with intergalactic exploration. WATER FEATURE fell somewhere in middle to me.
The non-theme fill is decent, but not spectacular. FRIARS CLUB is a cute reference, DEPARTMENT, especially clued as “Cabinet division,” is a bit of a yawn. I’ve never heard of VOLARE, and I’m not so sure songs that are almost 70 years old should pass muster in a puzzle these days. Would’ve been nice to have a nod to the “flying” meaning of it instead of some nod to the even more obscure official title.
I know I said I’d introduce myself this week, but I’m too tired. Next week! XOXO, Evan M.
Michael B. Berg’s Los Angeles Times crossword — Jenni’s write-up
This one was a bit harder for me than most Tuesdays even though the theme made filling in those answers very easy. Maybe I’m just tired.
There’s an echo in here and it’s making me hungry.
Los Angeles Times, March 25, 2025, Michael B. Berg, solution grid
- 17a [*Japanese hot-pot meal] is SHABU SHABU.
- 26a [*French chocolate confection] is a BON–BON.
- 28a [*North African dish made with semolina] is COUSCOUS.
- 48a [*Portuguese hot pepper sauce] is PERI–PERI.
- 50a [*Sichuan noodles] are DAN–DAN.
And the revealer: 64a [Event with two headliners, or a description of a restaurant check that includes any of the answers to the starred clues?] is DOUBLE BILL. I’m raising an eyebrow at that. Those dishes may have double-barreled names but they’re still each only one dish and would have only one bill. I liked the theme better than the revealer.
What I didn’t know before I did this puzzle: that NASA has simulated MARS on Mauna Loa.
Wyna Liu’s New Yorker crossword — pannonica’s write-up
New Yorker • 3/25/25 • Tue • Liu • solution • 20250325
For the second week in a row, I feel the New Yorker puzzle is actually ‘moderately challenging’. Too soon to say, but perhaps they’ve perfected the formula (to accord with my nonspecific criteria).
I was stymied at first in the northwest, but then my first filled-in entry was the longish 9-down [Ad mascot with a British accent] GEICO GECKO. From there my solve emanated steadily and pervasively, until it was all done.
- 1a [Generic term for a scrunchie or ponytail holder] HAIR THING. Very generic.
- 14a [Unprincipled principals] ANTIHEROES. Nicely turned.
- 30a [What empty promises might inspire] FALSE HOPES. Second word was obvious but had to wait for crossings on the first.
- 38a [The game Werewolf, by another name] MAFIA. I’m unfamiliar with either name in this context.
- 42a [“Severance” executive producer Ben] STILLER. I learned that bit of trivia recently and it served me well here. Although I haven’t seen the show, I’ve been to the real-life location of the offices (Bell Works in Holmdel, NJ) both before and after the show premiered. They also call it a ‘Metroburb’.
- 54a [Dish] SPILL. Verb, as with gossip.
- 57a [Word coined to refer to the fear of being without one’s cellphone] NOMOPHOBIA. I’m presuming that this is a portmanteau of no-mobile-phobia.
- 62a [Beams over, say] TELEPORTS. Tried TELEVISES first.
- 6d [A cuff is a folded one] HEM. I actually, ha, thought for a sec that I could fit CYLINDER here.
- 23d [Sentence-ending word in the creole language Singlish] LAH. New to me. It’s spoken in Singapore.
- 26d [Let the dogs out?] GO BAREFOOT. Despite the question mark, I wasn’t expecting that.
- 30d [Newton’s elements?] FIGS. I might have opted to make it slightly more obvious and written the clue as [Newtons’ elements?].
- 38d [Place for floats and splits] MALT SHOP. I had the right idea but was stuck on ICE CREAM PARLOR.
- 53d [“Hahahahaha,” in textspeak] ROFL. 55d [Big name in chips] LAYS, sister company of Ruffles since 1961.
[Debut] Walker Griggs’ Universal Crossword, “Spring Themeless Week, Puzzle 2” (ed. Taylor Johnson) — Matt F’s Review
Universal Solution 03.25.2025
I believe this is the print debut for Walter Griggs, so congratulations on that accomplishment and welcome to the club! In today’s puzzle we have some fun stacks built around a central spanner, and a nice scattershot block layout. The shorter crossing answers helped me get a firm hold in every section, which made the longer stuff fall in place with little effort. The spanner, YOU SHALL NOT PASS, has some cultural staying power due to the broad appeal of Lord of the Rings – I wonder if this is still required reading in middle school. It was definitely my first exposure to the fantasy genre. The sets of 10’s that cross this answer are pretty fun – POOH CORNER | POUR ONE OUT + I DO DECLARE | CON ARTISTS. And the corner 3×9’s are solid – MANSCAPES | OBAMACARE | SUPERSTAR + RIDE OR DIE | BEAST MODE | SLYTHERIN. From the clues I learned about bryology (1D) which seems like a pretty niche career (although I suppose most career choices are niche in their own way). I also learned that EELs (11D) only breed in the Bermuda Triangle – interesting! Overall this was a solid puzzle, fun to solve, and a great debut!
NYT: Objection! A cocktail menu is a “spirit guide,” but a BAR MENU is a list of *food* you can order and eat at the bar (usually more limited than the menu you get when you’re at a table).
It was gettable from the crosses, I believe, and a big kick for me! As long as a proper noun can be figured out that way, I think that all generations should be served sometimes.
Did you mean to reply to my comment? BAR MENU is neither a proper noun nor generational.
Ethan, your objection is correct! I did not mean to reply to your comment. Thank you for asking in order to sort things out. I’m sorry! I was tired, and I thought you had made a comment that was actually made by the reviewer, Evan M. That’s why I didn’t identify my comment as referring to 9 down. My bad!
Google bar menu. The first page of hits is all drinks menus. This is the first hit that I get.
Yes, a bar menu might list food items but it’s not wrong to refer to a drinks menu as a bar menu.
Ethan, I had exactly the same reaction. I can’t ever recall seeing BAR MENU used to mean anything other than the food menu at the bar.
Other than that, I found the puzzle to be smooth, clean and cute, but very easy even for a Monday. The ease starts to feel like a trend: my time has been well below average on every puzzle for more than a week now.
But I can google as well as the next guy, and lo and behold, there are apparently quite a few bars that do, in fact, call their drinks list a “bar menu.” I have been in more than a few bars and restaurants in my long life, and I can honestly say I’ve never encountered this use of the term. I wonder how widespread it really is (or how generational).
Clever theme in the NYT.
I found the TNY very easy. I figured 1A was HAIRsomething, and filled in the first four downs accordingly. I was glad to see the GEICOGECKO clued as having a British accent, not the non-existent Cockney accent that is often used in clues.
I put in FIGS for “Newton’s elements” but don’t understand it (and yes, I know all about fig newtons). How does ‘elements’ enter into it?
I found it a worthy challenge for a change. Very nice. My last to fall should have come sooner, seeing that both SPILL and “dish” can mean gossip, although I also had “snarled” for GNARLED, slowing me up on what should have been the obvious GECKO.
So Jenni, you found the LAT revealer only SOSO (18D)?
You’ve got to be kidding me! “Hair thing” is a thing?!!! What?! I grew my hair out in adolescence and never looked back and for four decades I’ve been unfairly chastising myself when several times a week I say to myself, “Where did I leave my stupid hair thing?”, to which I respond, “POH-KNEE-TAIL-HOL-DER. How hard is to remember the right name for it?! Come on!”, but, hey, I was right all along! Yeah, uh huh. So suck it, brain. Think you’re so damn smart.
As to the NYT puzzle….criticizing the song “Volare” as a “70 year old song” is a case of someone showing their age….in this case, a “young-un”. “Volare” might be from the 1950s, but it was such a standard for a couple more decades in Italian restaurants, and weddings, and gatherings of those around for a while (and it still is). Not that obscure a song for a crossword. (Similarly, though director Ava Duvernay seems to be the favorite “Ava” lately instead of Ava Gardner for puzzles, what’s wrong with knowing highpoints of 20th Century culture? It’s one of the reasons to do Crosswords.)
I’ve known the song ‘volare’ for most of my life. I learned that there is a song ‘nel blu, dipinto de blu’ much more recently, from crosswords. What I learned today is that they are the same song. Amazing!
Also, the crosses were helpful for this clue.
Ade,
Maybe consider trying miso soup. It’s totally unlike tofu, except that it might contain a few tiny cubes of tofu. But where tofu is pretty bland, miso soup is bursting with umami and savory goodness. Miso is more related to soy sauce (but much richer and complex) than tofu, so the soup made with a spoon of it is pretty tasty.
I hope to never see MMHMM in a xword ever again.
New Yorker: I thought it was pretty much as advertised. But it made me sad to fill in 13D CHAIRLIFT. I went skiing today for probably the last time this season. It was a gorgeous day but way too warm (40°s, I’m guessing). It’s hard to ski in slush! (On the other hand, the afternoon skin show was entertaining.)