This was a fine crossword to solve, but it must've been a bear to construct. Jeremy Newton was up to the task, though, serving up a perfect midweek puzzle. He had us at 16A, Times noted in Captain Kirk's logs, STARDATES; enthralled us at 11D, Finito or kaput, DUNZO; and endeared us with 13A, Establishment whose name means "lounge" in French, SALON.

Show note imagery: IBIZA, regrettably not our home-away-from-home. 

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Joe Deeney's crosswords always seem to include a little extra spice, a little extra pizzazz: we present today's puzzle as an exemplar, and that's not just because we've been itching to use exemplar in a sentence 😀. 

As evidence, we have 59A, Timeless, to a poet,  ETERNE; our favorite E. C. Segar heroine, 58D, Toondom's Olive, OYL; and the rarely seen 39A, Gets back together, REUNES.

We have a Triplet Tuesday Contest, in which Mike attempts to atone for last time, when he momentarily slipped into his native language, Latin. Will he succeed? Or will he iterum in flammas cadet? Tune in to find out!

Show note imagery: Behold, the TOKYODOME

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This was a not-at-all-MID, nor, for that matter -MEH, Monday crossword: the theme was above average, the clues crisp and clever. We especially want to give a shoutout to 22D, Sch. with a T section, MIT; and the presence of both 10D, Nickname for Dorothy, DOT, and 59A, Play-_____, DOH, in the grid. Kudos to Rena Cohen for this, her 6th NYTimes crossword.

We also are delighted to announce our JAMCOTWA™️ (Jean And Mike Crossword Of The Week Award) winners (yes, plural!) -- deets inside.

Show note imagery: Katrina Gorry, poised to do something extraordinary with a football.

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If you like Shakespeare, and if you like puns, you will be in ecstasy by the time you've finished today's crossword. And even if you are not a huge fan, we predict that you'll find this crossword to be a hoot. What makes it so special, you ask? Check out today's podcast, where all will be revealed!

Show note imagery: The logo of TCM, Turner Classic Movies

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If this crossword were a drink, it would be a chamomile tea. However, it was even better than that: a bliss-inducing, soul-lifting crossword. We certainly feel happier for having solved it, and we hope you'll feel the same for having listened to this podcast!

Show note imagery: PTOWN, aka Provincetown, Cape Cod

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Several clues in today's crossword gave both cohosts reason to pause. Most notably we had a debut at 6D, Aesthetic associated with classical literature and vintage fashion, DARKACADEMIA; we also had the mysterious 1D, Cool, in streaming slang, POG; and we were intrigued to discover 62D, ID whose lowest possibility is 001-01-0001, SSN. 

In addition to these fascinating clues, we have a fascinating fact, in honor of Fun Fact Friday. Ever wonder what happened to telegrams? Tune in, and find out!

Show note imagery: A delicious dirt pudding, featuring, of course, an OREOCOOKIE, yum!

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This was a tricky Thursday crossword and a magnificent debut for Kyle Perkins. Jean struggled and Mike strugggggled, to get to the happy music; both eventually persevered, but not before much gnashing of teeth had taken place. We have all the dental records inside, so have a listen (as one will, to dental records 🙄), and enjoy!

Show note imagery: Awe inspiring downtown La Paz, Bolivia.

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The father and daughter duo of Brad Wiegmann and Nicole Wiegmann have teamed up to create a wonderful connect-the-dots-er-squares puzzle-within-a-puzzle. Elizabeth Gorski, an NYTimes contributor with a whopping 219 crosswords to her credit apparently pioneered this approach: and the Wiegmann opus is a fine addition to the oeuvre.

Besides the crossword, our investigative team is hot on the trail of the mysterious Janus-faced 55A. The answer was BUDICE, but the clue depended on where you read the crossword! We have no idea why, and Word Play does not shed any light on the matter. Where's Sherlock/Enola Holmes when we need him/her?

Show note imagery: The great, great grandfather/mother of today's image-embedded puzzle. Is it a DUCK, or a RABBIT?

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This is the second Christina Iverson - Scott Hogan collaboration, and the first NYTimes crossword ever to include WORCESTERSHIRE as an answer. It usually takes us several takes before we can pronounce the word, and even more before we can spell it. We enjoyed 52A, Copenhagen's "The Little Mermaid", for one, STATUE (which for all the attention it gets, is surprisingly short); we had a blast from the (very recent) past, 53D, "You talkin' _______?", TOME; and finally 33D, "I so did not need to hear that!", EWW (not, as we originally surmised, TMI);

Show note imagery: The Little Mermaid, in all her The-Little-Mermaid-iousness of it all.

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This was an excellent crossword by a prolific cruciverbalist. It was a Monday, and as far as being fun and appropriate for novice puzzle solvers, a smashing success. We enjoyed the challenge of how to spell 9D, Shrub with bright flowers, AZALEA; the reappearance (for the second time in two days) of a by-gone internet pioneer, AOL; and the opportunity to haul out our faux-pirate accent for 9A, Pirate's "Stop!", AVAST.

Show note imagery: Some real FIREBREATHERS!

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