Jean & Mike Do The New York Times Crossword

A (surprising) crossword by Simeon Siegel, most noteworthy for a profusion of parentheses in the grid, all part of an intricate theme that we delve into in today's episode. We covered quite a few clues in the podcast, but alas, did not quite have room for 36A, Shrunken snack item, PRUNE; 15A, Like 80% of the Arabian Peninsula, SAUDI; and the (for Mike, at least) relatively obscure 43A, Dried version of the almost-ripe poblano, ANCHO -- at least until now!

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A slightly crunchier-than-usual Wednesday, but a wry theme and memorable clues made it all worth while. Beyond those noted in the podcast, we'd like to give a shoutout to 3 answers that are just fun to contemplate and say -- 2D, Enthusiastic response to a bro, MYMAN; 46A, Replica, informally, DUPE; and a word that's as calming to say as the item is to wear, 65D, Comfy shoe, informally, MOC.

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As the episode title almost surely gave away -- it was a bit of a ttttttteaser, one might say -- today's theme involved the 20th letter of the alphabet (as well a supporting cast of the other 25). Beyond the theme there were several other amusing clues, such as 20A, Torus shaped treat, DONUT; 49A, One of 5 in a Shakespeare play, ACT (confirming, definitively, our strong suspicion expressed earlier this week that Shakespeare plays do indeed all have 5 acts); and (warning, possible ear-worm ahead), 28A, "Her name is ______ and she dances on the sand" (Duran, Duran lyric), RIO.

Finally, it's Tuesday, and Mike's on the Triplet Tuesday Contest hot-seat, so to speak. To find out how he did, all you need to do is subscribe/follow (so you don't miss another episode), download, listen up, and enjoy!

P.S. Here's the original Zoom, Zoom commercial mentioned in today's podcast.

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Today's crossword was crunchy - the clues were just a tad more difficult than usual, a consequence, perhaps, of a particularly demanding theme (deets inside) - and timely, in the sense that there were numerous references to time in today's grid, from 6D, "Anytime", WHENEVER, to 52A, Back in time, AGO, to 61A, Ages, AEONS. And, of course, we should not forget that all of these were appearing in the New York Times 😀.

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Jean ACED today's crossword, but Mike just DIDOK, although if it is true that you learn from your mistakes, he is now officially a super genius thanks in no small part to Rich Katz, author of today's fine puzzle (his third for the NYTimes). We have all the deets inside, so please download, listen up, and ... enjoy!

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A  just-the-right-level-of-almost-impossible crossword to wrap up our crossword solving week, one of those where the solving rate seems to follow an S curve -- tough and slow-going at the beginning and at the end, but with a glorious middle section where the clues come relatively rapidly. We liked this crossword so much that we awarded it this week's JAMCOTWA -- Jean And Mike Crossword Of The Week Award -- for numerous reasons that will become apparent once you checkout today's podcast. Have a listen, and let us know what you think.

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Robyn Weintraub's puzzles are legendary, and today's effort shows just why: the clues are awesome, the crosswordese is non-existent, and the difficulty level is juuuuuust right. We approve, whole-heartedly, 5 squares on the JAMCR scale! Deets inside, so download, listen up, and enjoy right now!

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Today's crossword featured a h--hly entert--ng th--e, and if you can't suss out what it was from what we just wrote, then download today's episode, where all will be revealed! 

A reminder to check out xwordinfo.com, a fabulous resource for crossword aficionados, with the solution and meta information on the day's crossword. Highly recommended!

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A nice Wednesday crossword and a debut (yay!) by Steve Weyer, with an inspired theme, some very funny clues, and as a bonus a reference to a fascinating 16th century algebra text, ARSMAGNA (The Great Art). The theme is covered in the episode; some of the more intriguing clues not mentioned there include 51D, Bunyan's ox or Hoggett's pig, BABE 🐷; 57D, Swear to mend things, DARN 😀 ; Manilow's "hottest spot north of Havana", COPA 🎶; and (Mike's favorite), Sierra runners, MACS 😀 😀.

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A scary Tuesday crossword, thanks to a slash of scary movie titles in the grid. Neither cohost had seen any of them, but fortunately the answers were either almost gimmes (17A, Horror film franchise named after a holiday, HALLOWEEN (BOXINGDAY wouldn't fit 😀)) or easy to guess with some judicious help from the crosses (60A, 2011 dark comedy slasher film that takes place during a family reunion), YOURENEXT (an awesomely scary title)). Overall, this was a great crossword, and we award it a chilling 5 squares on the JAMCR scale.

In other news,  it's Triplet Tuesday - play along (get ready to hit pause after you hear the clue), and let us know how you did!

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