Jean & Mike Do The New York Times Crossword

We are philosophical about today's crossword (a debut by Amanda Winter), mainly because today's crossword -- particularly the theme -- contained a large dollop of philosophy. We will leave you in mild suspense as to the exact nature of that philosophy, but you may assuage that suspense by checking out today's episode!

Show note imagery: Yesterday, a DERBY; today, FEDORAS; tomorrow's forecast ... TAMs!

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A crunchier than usual Sunday crossword by John Rippe and Jeff Chen, a side-effect, perhaps, of a brilliant theme that had Jeff Chen's fingerprints all over it. There were many clever clues - 35A, Something you might break into, SONG (ha!); 9D, Game with annoying pop-ups, WHACAMOLE (raising again, that epic question, where'd the K go?); and 97A, Outstanding, OVERDUE (like Lucy v. Charlie Brown, we always fall for that clue!). But the pièce-de-résistance of the entire puzzle had to be the theme, timely, epic, and elegant. Deets await inside, so have a listen, and please tell others about us on social media!

Show note imagery: Don't fret, it's just a FRETSAW

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A challenging debut (!) crossword by Jess Rucks. Our intrepid cohosts found said challenge in different areas of the grid, Jean in the mid east, Mike in the northwest. But, after exploring their respective mind palaces - Jean's approximately the size of Green Bay, Wisconsin, and Mike's approximately the size of a pup tent you can find for sale at the REI in Green Bay, Wisconsin - they were able to seal the deal.

We have all the deets inside, as well as the big reveal - this week's JAMCOTWA (Jean And Mike Crossword Of The Week Award). So, for all that and more, please subscribe,  download, listen up and ... enjoy!

Show note imagery: Your basic DERBY, all felt, all the time

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A challenging Friday crossword by Evan Kalish, although not as difficult as some crosswords, it did take at least one of our cohosts a while to get any traction. But once they did, ..., well, it still took them a tranche of time to solve, and they enjoyed every minute of it! Although we covered most of the peg-the-awesomeness-meter clues in today's episode, another that deserves mention is 11D, Misidentification in the DC Universe, ITSAPLANE, very nice!

Show note imagery: TIBET, roof of the world

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A delightful Thursday crossword by reliably delightful crossword constructor Dan Caprera, today's puzzle has much to commend it. The theme is spot on, and while the rest of the puzzle is based on tougher than usual clues, it is all for a good cause -- as you will hear in today's exciting episode!

Show note imagery: Some of the many OLIVETREES painted by Vincent Van Gogh

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Today's crossword was Bill Thompson's 10th NYTimes publication, and based on this, we can't wait for his 11th. The theme was extremely clever, and there were OCEANS of great clues, including 55D, "Gee, I wish I was back in the _______" (song from "White Christmas"), ARMY; an APPLEBETTY alternative, perhaps, 30D, Linzer _________ (pastry); and 42D, 1965 film starring George Segal that was set in a P.O.W. camp, KINGRAT.

So, even though this crossword was a tad crunchier than usual, we found it adorbs, most definitely worthy of a full 5 squares on the JAMCR scale.

Show note imagery: Mel TORME, no relation whatsoever to his daughter Marissa TOMEI.

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Today's crossword had a fine theme -- discussed herein -- but the rest of the clues also did their part. We particularly enjoyed 4D, Lady Gaga hit included on Rolling Stone's "500 Greatest Songs of All Time" list, BADROMANCE (BADROMANCE, but great song!); 59A, Occam's _________, RAZOR (when you need to trim a conspiracy theory down to size); and the slightly perplexing 25D, Field for a voice major, maybe OPERA (🎶)

Beyond the crossword, we also have a grand Triplet Tuesday segment, so do have a listen.

Just a reminder, that the NYTimes crossword is an excellent way to keep those gray cells in the pink of health. For a year's subscription -- approximately as cheap as borscht -- just wander over to nytimes.com/crosswords, and tell 'em Jean & Mike sent ya!

Show note imagery: The sitar, an excellent instrument for playing RAGA

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A fine and timely crossword by Peter Gordon (his 128th!!) , celebrating that rare celestial event, an incoming asteroid that only Bruce Willis can ... no, scratch that, the juxtaposition of the sun and moon causing much confusion among animals and consternation among newscasters. We are speaking, of course, of today's eclipse, and Peter Gordon, the author of today's fine crossword, also has something to say on the subject. To find out what that was, we cordially invite you to have a listen to today's podcast.

Show note imagery:The Farm, by Joan MIRO

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Depending on which cohost you ask, today's crossword was  either a) a delicious piece o' cake, or b) the inspiration for Edvard Munch's The Scream. Both agreed that it was an intriguing crossword, thanks to a clever theme that exploited the observation that duplicate letters can form homonyms -- YYs (wise), EEs (ease), PPs (peas), etc., etc. Deets inside, so please have a listen, and feel free (no pressure!) to leave us a 5 star review from wherever you happen to get your podcasts.

Show note imagery: Masks, by James ENSOR

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Today's crossword was  jaw-droppingly difficult, each clue handcrafted to be more devious than the one that preceded it. From 44A, Notably circular formations on Mars, DUNES (they have dunes on Mars? cool!), to 48A, Flowers that are a a source of the anti-inflammatory drug colchicine, CROCI (woah!), to even 45A, Cup alternative, PINT (gasp!), it is clear that the intent of this puzzle was to puzzle, and it does so in spades. We have all the deets inside, as well as our JAMCOTWA - Jean And Mike Crossword Of The Week Award - so for all that and more, have a listen!

Show note imagery: LAPIS, or to give it its full name, LAPIS Lazuli

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