Saturday, May 30, 2026

LAT 2:32 (Stella) [3.50 avg; 7 ratings] rate it
Newsday 16:35 (pannonica) [3.80 avg; 5 ratings] rate it
NYT untimed (Amy) [3.53 avg; 15 ratings] rate it
Universal 4:45 (Adam S) [4.25 avg; 2 ratings] rate it
USA Today untimed (ZEB) rate it
WSJ untimed (pannonica) [3.50 avg; 2 ratings] rate it

Malaika Handa & Erik Agard’s New York Times crossword—Amy’s recap

NY Times crossword solution, 5/30/26 – no. 0530

Good puzzle, but I’m not up to reviewing it tonight. (Gastric mayhem.) Four stars from me.

I don’t at all mind if another member of Team Fiend adds their two cents.

Kareem Ayas and Geoffrey Schorkopf’s Universal Crossword “Universal Freestyle 225” – Adam S’s write-up

Kareem Ayas and Geoffrey Schorkopf’s Universal Crossword “Universal Freestyle 225” – 5/30/26

There’s a lot to unpack here. This is, by some distance, the most structurally ambitious Universal freestyle grid I’ve encountered in 2 months reviewing them. Not just regular symmetry but also 90-degree symmetry! Only 70 words, compared to a more typical 72 or 74 for Universal (as a rough rule of thumb, every 2 words removed from a themeless roughly doubles construction difficulty)! 16 10-letter entries, when Universal specs call for at least 9 9-letter+ entries! Plus, the grid shape looks cool, with a KINDA SORTA ball in the middle.

And there were some great entries included. I loved ROYAL JELLY, MATCHA CAKE, AND STAY OUT, MEMORY LEAK, and the aforementioned KINDA SORTA.

On the debit side, the strain shows in places. LIVE DEBATE does not feel like an in-the-language phrase (and does not Google well either). Nor can I imagine anyone saying OPERA SOLOS rather than “arias”. And neither ATOMIC UNIT nor NANOMETERS did much for me. While I agree with the Universal specs that, all things being equal, “Multi-word answers tend to feel livelier than single-word ones,” I wonder if this grid would have been improved with some solid single-word answers that two strong cluers like Kareem and Geoffrey could have elevated.

In the end, my constructor brain admired this puzzle more than my solver heart loved it. Since Universal tends to the other direction, it nevertheless made for a nice change of pace.

A few notes:

• 19A NANOMETERS [What molecules are measured in] This felt vague and tough. I had “moles” in mind from high school science, and the actual answer landed with an “I guess, maybe.” Perhaps not helped by the fact that 17A’s [“Part of some measurements in physics”] for ATOMIC UNIT felt similarly vague and tough.
• 31A ROYAL JELLY [Food fit for a queen?] Nice clue! Just the right level of gentle misdirect for Universal.
• 47A YEAH SO [“OK…and your point is?”] This answer will probably divide opinion, with some seeing it as colloquially interesting and others as contrived. Put me down as weakly in the latter camp.
• e4D HERE WE COME [“Look out for us, world”]. This was a nice, original entry. too. As far as I can tell from the Crosseville database, it appears to be a debut across all outlets.

Alan Levin’s Los Angeles Times crossword — Stella’s write-up

Los Angeles Times 5/30/26 by Alan Levin

I’d call this puzzle fine if unexceptional (and a bit too easy). Notable points:

• 19A [Rogers Centre team] is the TORONTO BLUE JAYS. Mostly notable to me because my heart is still broken from 1993.
• 39A [Diamond who went platinum] is NEIL. Nice clue that I didn’t notice while solving.
• 42A [Intel providers] is ASSETS, as in espionage assets. This is a nice clue that I did notice while solving.
• 52A [Major achievement?] is BACHELOR’S DEGREE. I would like this clue better if the entry MINORED IN weren’t directly underneath.
• 13D [“30 Rock” page] is KENNETH. I was not a 30 Rock watcher (other than one or two episodes that my husband wanted me to see), and yet KENNETH is a strongly drawn enough character that this clue was immediately evocative. Good choice of which KENNETH to clue IMO.
• 43D [Something to prove] is THESIS, another nice clue that I didn’t notice while solving because the puzzle overall was easy.

David P Williams’ Newsday crossword, Saturday Stumper — pannonica’s write-up

Newsday • 5/30/26 • Saturday Stumper • Williams • solution • 20260530

Found many of the clues to be quite devilish, but persevered and was surprised that my solve time was so quick.

Started off rather promisingly by getting both 1-across and 1-down, and then making respectable headway in that general northwest section—but soon after things slowed quite dramatically. Was only able to fill in a few desultory entries throughout the rest of the grid, and need to sweat a little to make progress.

• 1a [Breath-taking effort] GASP. Note the clue hyphenates ‘breath-taking’ rather than presenting it as a compound word. I immediately thought of GASP as the main contender, and 1d [Gift you’ll hear about] GAB readily confirmed it.
• 5a [Bed topper] SEA. oof. 36d [Heavyweight in the water] OILER. The latter clue had me thinking about organisms rather than constructions, and in fact it was my last entry filled, resolving 36a [Cashiers] from possibly-BUSTS to OUSTS, and decided 48a [Makes space] between CLEANS OUT and CLEARS OUT.
• 12a [What’s past prologue] ACT I. Easy enough.
• 14a [Promissory note?] SHALL. oof
• 15a [Refusal to return] BEEN THERE. It isn’t entirely clear to me how this works.
• 17a [Slow movement] LENTO, but duh I tried LARGO first. 11d [Slow motions] PLODS.
• 18a [Inaugurated] SWORE IN, but I neglected to see this as a possibility and had SWORN IN for quite a while. This was resolved by following through on my hunch about 13a [No joke] REAL and then considering that 13d [What the Museum der Kulturen overlooks] could be the RHEIN River,
• 20a [Raised figure] CAIN. 26a [Raised figure] ADULT. Side-eye for the second one.
• 21a [Moves back and forth a bit] QUIVERS, not SHIVERS.
• 22a [Triviality] NOTHING BURGER. Got NOTHING early but needed to wait for crossings on the second part.
• 27a [Address line] SLASH, as in a URL. 35a [27-Across direction] SLANT—hey I’m just now appreciating how many cross-references there were in this puzzle; that can often be a hindrance for solvers. By the way, not sure how to interpret ‘direction’ here to have the clue work for the entry.
• 31a [Barreled] TORE. Another instance where I was quite certain of the answer but still needed to wait for at least one crossing. See also: 47a [Emerged] AROSE, 55a [Give up] CEDE, and 19d [Brat, e.g.] WURST.
• 32a [Check in progress] STUNT. Fiendish.
• 33a [Capital-sounding queen] JUNO, cf Juneau.
• 40a [West Indies isle taking euros] ST BARTS. First thought was BAHAMAS, but then with the T from 32d [Open positions] SLOTS I thought it might be ST KITTS.
• 42a [Ecdysis, in ornithology] MOLT. Helps if you happen to know the story of the word ecdysiast, coined by HL Mencken when prompted by Georgia Sothern for a classier word to describe her profession.
• 44a [Really receptive] ALL EARS. Sideways dupe for 13-across, but noticeable only when one 38d [Picks apart] PARSES the crossword—say, for a write-up on a venue such as this.
• 51a [Color of cattle, cats, etc.] ROAN. Never have I heard a cat described as ROAN.
• 7d [What comes in rounds] ALES. eh, ok.
• 9d [Inertia antonym, sort of] WANDERLUST.
  
• 10d [Cut down to size] ALTER, as a tailor might.
• 14d [Present-day mover] SLEIGH. Was wise to the deception early, but limited my thinking to a birthday rather than Christmas.
• 21d [Major breakthrough] QUANTUM LEAP. It’s weird how quantum can refer to a very large amount and also to a very, very tiny physical measurement.
• 23d [Trail guide] ODOR. Now there’s a different approach to cluing the word.
• 29d [Counter top] ANTI-.
• 30d [Poaching target] BOSC. Oh right, people poach pears.
  
• 33d [Stall of a sort] JUST A SEC. Suspecting CEDE at 59a hastened my answer here.
• 35d [Extreme sports] SPREES. Huh?
  
• 39d [Filipino language’s name] NOLAN. The cryptic-style clue, a hidden word.
• 40d [Break the law, by one’s own admission] SCALP. Clever, but perhaps too clever? Isn’t it the one who sells tickets who’s the SCALPer?
• 48d [Break down] CRY.
  

Gary Larson and Amy Ensz’s Wall Street Journal crossword, “Bread Shtick” — pannonica’s write-up

WSJ • 5/30/26 • Sat • “Bread Shtick” • Larson, Ensz • solution • 20260530

Okay, sandwich puns: go!

• 21a. [Sandwich made from wild rabbit meat?] WARREN BURGER. Bit of watership downer to start things off.
• 23a. [Sandwich that’s on the house] GIFT WRAP.
• 42a. [Poorly made sandwich?] MICKEY MOUSE CLUB. Yes, Mickey Mouse was an adjective long before he entered the public domain.
• 69a. [Sandwich that’s extra spicy?] NUCLEAR SUB.
• 72a. [Small sandwich not on the regular menu?] BACKSLIDER.
• 93a. [Sandwich made exclusively with processed cheese?] ALL-AMERICAN HERO. >shudder<
• 120a. [Sandwich whose ingredients are prepared in a crockpot?] SLOW ROLL.
• 122a. [Sandwich that is just offal?] ORGAN GRINDER. >eesh<

It’s certainly a theme.

• 1d [Predator with a mask, e.g.] GOALIE, referring to the Nashville Predators NHL team. Before seeing the misdirection, I wondered if GOBLIN might be the answer.
  
  19a [Marine predator] ORCA.
• 7d [Tuna for sushi] TORO. That’s the belly cut.
• 11d [Plant pollinated by wasps] FIG TREE.
• 14d [Brand for those hoping to conceive] EPT. Crossing with 11a [Capitalist species in the “Star Trek” universe] FERENGI might be tough.
• 17d [Lake that’s the source of the Mississippi] ITASCA. A good piece of knowledge to keep tucked away in your arsenal.
• 24d [Easter treat] PEEP. “treat”
• 35d [Sight for sore eyes?] MIRAGE. >squints<
  
• 53d [Crust container] PIE DISH. I’ll allow it.
• 59d [Sea that’s largely parted] ARAL. More like departed.
• 62d [Spender’s benders] SPREES.
  
• 71d [One living high on the hog, perhaps] BIKER. If your ride is a Harley-Davidson.
• 94d [Sleeveless garments] MANTLES.
  
• 107d [It may reduce a yard to an inch] MOWER. Nice one.
• 30a [“Non, Je Ne Regrette __” (Edith Piaf song)] RIEN. Perhaps her most famous.
• 51a [Private dinner] MESS. This I’ve heard of, but 64a [Cleaning for inspection, in military slang] GI-ING was new to me. Maybe it’s GI’ING?
• 56a [Bravo preceder] ALFA. In the NATO alphabet.
• 58a [Stern with a bow] ISAAC. Nice clue. Seen it before, but it’s still nice.
• 76a [Finch related to the canary] SERIN. I’m going to go ahead and speculate that this is the least-known word in the grid.
  

  Serinus serinus
  ©Santiago Caballo Carrera

• 80a [Loses it] PANICS. 1a [Flip] GO GAGA.
• 86a [“Sprechen __ Deutsch?”] SIE. Können Sie Deutsch sprechen?
• 125a [Winter fishing spot] ICE HOLE. Hey! Language!
• 127a [Mercury and Mars, for two] SINGERS. Freddy and Bruno.
• 130a [Past, present and future] TENSES.
  

Amie Walker and Brian Callahan’s USA Today Crossword “Teenagers With Attitude” – Zachary Edward-Brown’s write-up

Amie Walker and Brian Callahan’s USA Today Crossword “Teenagers With Attitude” – 5/30/26

I’m not going to lie, I didn’t get the theme after I solved the puzzle. We get a revealer today, which is a bit different – usually, the hint is in the title. It seems the title is only a hint to the “Power Rangers” reference in the revealer clue.

15A – [*Slices topped with eggs and bacon, e.g.] = BREAKFAST PIZZA
30A – [*”Imagine with me . . .”] = LETS PRETEND
48A – [*Aggressive debt-buying equity firm] = VULTURE FUND
65A – [“Power Rangers” catchphrase . . . or what could be said about each starred clue’s answer] = ITS MORPHIN TIME

It must be anagrams, but anagrams of what? Anagram the word “time,” or maybe anagrams of pieces of time, like “second” and “minute.” No – today it’s “past,” “present,” and “future.” Clever, but tricky, especially without circles and a pretty vague revealer hint.

This is the third puzzle by Amie Walker I’ve solved in four weeks covering the weekend USA Today puzzle (although two, including this one, were collabs). In all three, I’ve enjoyed the fill but been particularly impressed by the cluing. In this puzzle – rapper ICE SPICE, villain GRU, POP-TART near a scrabbly section of Z’s (IZZY, OZONE, OUZO, BREAKFAST PIZZA), and three video game references right next to each other: LOOTS [Steals treasures, in Skyrim], NPCS, and MII. I loved it!

Favorite clue: 2D [___ points] AURA Wow, I was really not expecting this to be the answer, and I was surprised and delighted when I got it. Fantastic clue, so glad that USA Today ran this angle! Also, shout-out to NIN at 27A, my dad loves that band.

4.75 stars