Tuesday, February 4, 2025

Matt Jones’s Jonesin’ Crossword, “We’re Golden” — at least, hiding in the long answers. – Erin’s write-up

Jonesin’ solution 2/4/25

Hello lovelies! Grab your cheesecake because this week Matt is celebrating those four lovely Florida ladies, the Golden Girls!

• 17a. [Easter egg found within a subway system?] METRO SECRET (ROSE)
• 26a. [Herb specifically designated for a tomato sauce?] POMODORO THYME (DOROTHY)
• 43a. [Atypically sunny weather at the highest peak of the Alps?] MONT BLANC HEAT (BLANCHE)
• 57a. [Short break from reading fables?] AESOP HIATUS (SOPHIA)

Other things:

• 22a. [Bashful coworker?] HAPPY. It’s referencing Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs.
• 38d. [“It ___ laugh”] IS TO. This is a calque of the French “c’est à rire.”

Until next week!

Justin Werfel’s Los Angeles Times crossword — Jenni’s write-up

Took me a minute to parse the revealer, which is more interesting than I first thought. The puzzle was fun to solve and the fill was smooth, so I’ll take it.

Each of the theme answers has circles.

Los Angeles Times, Tuesday, February 4, 2025, Justin Werfel, solution grid

• 17a [Serialized daytime dramas] are SOAP OPERAS.
• 26a [“Anything could happen”] is ALL BETS ARE OFF.
• 43a [Writer and illustrator of Caldecott Medal winner “A Snowy Day”] is EZRA JACK KEATS.

And the revealer: 58a [“Road narrows” sign, or when read as three words, an apt description of what 17-, 26-, and 43-Across do] is MERGE AHEAD. The three words, I presume, are MERGE A HEAD. Each set of circles has the head of something. At first I thought that meant the “heads” were “merged” into the phrases. Once I typed them out, I realized that each “head” spans two words and therefore has to be “merged.” Now that’s interesting.

One comment on fill: 18a [Hurdles for would-be doctors] are ORALS. This is a fun clue and a little trickier than I’d expect on a Tuesday. Doctors like me take the MCATS, which would also fit. PhD doctors like my husband take ORALS.

What I didn’t know before I did this puzzle: that I can effectively blog with my iPad (we’re traveling and I didn’t bring my laptop).

Glenn Cook’s Wall Street Journal crossword, “Parliamentary Procedure”—Jim’s review

Wall St Journal crossword solution · “Parliamentary Procedure” · Glenn Cook · Tue., 2.4.25

Our theme is based on the HOUSE OF / COMMONS (68a, [With 69-Across, half of Parliament, and a hint to the circled words]), that legislative body of the UK and Canada which is comprised of elected MPs (Members of Parliament). Groups of circled letters spell out words that can follow COMMON in other phrases, and the circled letters form the rough shape of a HOUSE (more like a tent, but close enough). The COMMON words are COLD, GOOD, SENSE, and AREA.

Nice theme. I solved the puzzle as a themeless and enjoyed my aha moment at the end. Nothing too complicated here, but solid all around, and grid art is usually fun, as is the case here. Looking forward to a HOUSE OF LORDS theme someday.

In the fill, I may have vaguely been aware of the word CORIOLIS [Effect resulting from the Earth’s rotation], but I’ve certainly never heard of FRISKET [Hand press part that holds the paper], so I balked where the two crossed. Thankfully, the only letter that made realistic sense was the R, which turned out to be correct. The rest of the grid is filled smoothly with highlights GOES NUTS, LIP BALM, ICE FLOE, and REAPERS.

Clue of note: 7a. [ROTC driller]. SGT. This isn’t correct, unless things changed since I went through the program. The ones doing the drilling are senior cadets (or midshipmen for the Navy) instructing the younger ones. An ROTC staff only has a few officers and NCOs, and their jobs are more administrative or actual classroom instruction.

3.25 stars.

Adam Aaronson’s New York Times crossword–Amy’s recap

NY Times crossword solution, 2/4/25 – no. 0204

Lovely theme! Pairs of 5-letter words that differ only in the reversal of the last 2 letters are combined into a goofy phrase clued accordingly. The revealer is BACKFLIPS, [Gymnastic feats … or what the two halves of the answers to 17-, 25-, 49- and 58-Across do?].

• 17A. [Noiseless?], QUITE QUIET.
• 25A. [Earth from heaven?], ANGEL ANGLE.
• 49A. [“There are ways to leave”?], EXITS EXIST.
• 58A. [Spite over an incomplete mobile payment?], VENMO VENOM. I’m guessing this was the seed for the theme.

Fave fill: IONIQS crossing EQUINOX, NIQAB, THE DUDE, VAPE PEN.

I don’t have much to say about the puzzle, but I do like it. Four stars from me.

Elizabeth C. Gorski’s Cr♥ssw♥rd Nation puzzle (Week 714), “Why Not! “—Ade’s take

Crossword Nation puzzle solution, Week 714: “Why Not!”

Hello there, everyone! Hope all is well with you as we make our way through Super Bowl week! 

The whys definitely have it in this grid, as each of the theme answers are puns in which the only difference in spelling between the first and second word is the addition of the letter “Y” to one of the words. 

• • • • KYOTO KOTO (17A: [Plucked instrument made in Japan’s former capital city??])
      • PAPAL PAYPAL (24A: [The Vatican’s online purchasing option?])
      • NEO NEYO (38A: [Modern “So Sick” singer?])
      • MAO MAYO (40A: [Chairman’s deli spread?])
      • FLYING FLING (47A: [Brief affair in the air?])
      • CAGEY CAGE (60A: [Shrewd actor Nicolas?])

In a puzzle where the themes were just one letter off from repeating words, it’s fitting that we also have homophones as well with CENT (27D: [Euro fraction]) and SENT (57D: [Dispatched]). Unless you are the vain sort, having an earworm resulting from the CARLY SIMON entry isn’t such a bad thing at all (9D: [“You’re So Vain” singer]). Given everything going on in the past few days and what orders are or aren’t being enacted, definitely fitting to see both ALLIES (31A: [Friends in battle]) and ELON in the puzzle, though I definitely am glad that the latter refers to the school that used to be nicknamed the Fightin’ Christians (64A: [University near Greensboro]). (Elon’s sports teams are now nicknamed the Phoenix, by the way.) If you can have your Fighting Irish, we can have our Fightin’ Christians, I always say! 

“Sports will make you smarter” moment of the day: MCCOY (8A: [“Star Trek” doctor]) – We lost one of the legendary voices in NBA history late last year, when Al McCoy passed away at the age of 91 in September. McCoy was the radio voice of the Phoenix Suns from 1972 to 2023, and was on the mic for all three of the Suns’ NBA Finals appearances in 1976, 1993 and 2021. McCoy was inducted into the Naismith Hall of Fame, via the Curt Gowdy Media Award, in 2007.

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