Jean & Mike Do The New York Times Crossword

This was a relatively easy Friday puzzle, but it was filled with sparkling cluing that made it a delight to tackle. As exhibit A, we present 16A, Digital color presentation?, NAILPOLISH, 20D, Dining with one's child?, EATINGFORTWO, and 33A, What may be found between  X and Z?, GENERATIONGAP. There were also some nice juxtapositions, EFT and AFT on the same row; and OOZE intersecting OUZO. Kudos to Robyn Weintraub for creating such a fine piece of work.

It's Friday, and to find out the Fun Fact Friday fact, download and listen up!

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A fun Thursday crossword from Michael Lieberman, with a clever theme - a series of vertical answers, each two words - and they make sense only if you observe that the word on the bottom is under the word on top. For instance, 24D, Give a sworn statement in court, is OATHTESTIFY, and reading this (vertically), the phrase is, literally, TESTIFY under OATH.  We also had 3D, Clueless about current trends, AROCKLIVING, 17D, Choke, PRESSURECRACK, and 8D, Take more shots than, THETABLEDRINK. Clever, and the theme is instrumental in readily solving the puzzle. There were a few other very amusing clues, 27A, Things you saw while asleep?, LOGS (oh, that kind of saw), 33A, Noodle container?, SKULL (ha!), and even 52A. It may be used to get away from a bank, OAR, was amusing. In short, a great puzzle, we give it a 5 squares on the JAMCR scale.

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Today's crossword was a big BESO from the constructor, David W. Tuffs, with an interesting theme revolving around comparisons. Both Jean & Mike were taken in by 23A,  One, in Berlin, EINS (they both thought it would be EINE), and while Jean immediately knew that was incorrect because of the cross, 15D, Root beer brand, DADS, it took Mike about 17 minutes longer to figure that out... A fine crossword, we give it a 5 squares on the JAMCR scale.

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Ross Trudeau steps up to the plate, swings, and it's a hit -- because Ross Trudeaus' crosswords are always a hit. This is a more high-brow crossword than is typical for the New York Times, as there were 3 clues that tied in to 28D, Literary trio found in the answers to this puzzle's starred clues, THEBRONTES. Those clues -- 6D, Chain known for its soft pretzels, AUNTIEANNES; 25D, Prominent left-leaning political action committee, EMILYSLIST;  and the rather lengthy 19A, Children's book whose title character says, "If I can fool a bug, I can surely fool a man. People are not as smart as bugs", CHARLOTTESWEB; all contained the name of one of THEBRONTES. Outstanding!

In other news, it's Triplet Tuesday, and Jean makes it look easy. To hear the blow-by-blow, download and listen up.

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Freddie Cheng has provided a very ARTistic start to the crossword week, with a series of clues that include multiple spellings of the word ART, e.g., 17A, Athlete who rarely gets sacked or has a pass intercepted, STARQUARTERBACK. Both Jean and Mike had a skosh of difficulty with this puzzle, because, even though solving independently, they were both taken in by 50A, Woman's name derived from the Greek for "peace", IRENA (not IRENE), crossing 46D, Super-miniature dog breed size, TEACUP (not TEECUP). Mike also was momentarily flummoxed by 23A, Classic cinema name,  ODEON. (not, ORSON). Today's podcast also has a tasty discussion of PEARTARTs, so for all the deets, download and listen up!

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A splendid Sunday crossword from the pen of Jeff Chen, who overlays the main grid with 5 diagonal answers - it has to be seen to be believed. Fortuitously, you can indeed see that by going over to Jeff Chen's web site - xwordinfo.com - tell 'em Jean & Mike sent you.

Beyond the diagonal clues, the rest of the grid was a master class in crossword construction, as you would expect from Mr. Chen. For all the details, just download and listen up!

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A well crafted crossword from Caitlin Reid and Erik Agard, not too soul-crushingly difficult, and not too fall-off-a-log easy, either. There was only one pop culture reference -- 17A, Pop music nickname, RIRI -- but it has been in the grid multiple times in recent months. Some other clues worth highlighting -- 6D, Check for bugs, INSECTREPELLENT (the old verb-for-noun. switcheroo), 55A, Having trouble making a call, ONTHEFENCE, and 14D, Life lines?, BIOS -- are just a few of the gems that await the crossword solver. A great effort, we give this 5 squares on the JAMCR scale.

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Today's crossword had mixed reviews. Jean thought it was relatively straightforward, Mike found it a bit more of a slog, no BIGSURPRISE. They both agree, however, that 30A, Cutesy "I beg your pardon", EXSQUEEZEME, was fun to say, and that 39D, Joint application?, BENGAY, was just funny.

It's Fun Fact Friday, and in today's episode Jean and Mike discuss the architect who is almost never called by his full name, Ieoh Ming Pei.

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An unexpectedly gentle Thursday offering, but filed with some joyously LOL answers. Who could not break a smile at 58A, Stand by the pool, maybe, TIKIBAR, 45D, Balls in a pocket, FALAFEL (nice!), and marvel at the epic 12D, Glass elevator?, TOASTER? The author of today's mirthfest, Matt Fuchs, definitely knows how to write an entertaining crossword, hence our JAMCR scale rating of 5 squares, with 5 smirks on the associated Chortle Meter™️.

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Today's crossword was a real EYE opener - with the names of 4 persons whose first named started with, and last name ended with, the letter I. It was ingenious, intriguing and ... tough! Jean ran into some thorns in the bottom-right corner, and Mike had to cope with the intersection of 5D, Cover for the bed of a pickup truck, TONNEAU, and 32A, "Red Cube" sculptor with an eponymous museum in New York, ISAMUNOGUCHI - yikes! 

Remember that if you're not a subscriber to the New York Times, the best way to follow along with this podcast is to check out the completed grid at xwordinfo.com -- tell them Jean & Mike sent you 😀 

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