[Can't talk, eating] / THU 3-27-25 / Event in a tent / Reflexology setting / Cartoon series about a super robot / "Do you remember the ___, Mr. Frodo?": Sam Gamgee / "Son of the Dragon," in a medieval Romanian sobriquet / Mac platform renamed in 2016 / Onetime talk show whose studio audience was known as the "Dog Pound," familiarly / Request made through a downstairs intercom

Constructor: Brad Lively

Relative difficulty: Medium 

[14x16 grid!]

THEME: pass it on / pass it back — "IT" is transferred from one answer to either the preceding or the following answer, in four different rows

Theme answers:

• CIRCUITS ("circus") / MOJO ("mojito") (17A: Event in a tent / 19A: Minty Cuban cocktail ... Pass it back) 
• GRAVY ("gravity") / TAR PITS ("tarps") (26A: Sir Isaac Newton wrote about this ... Pass it on / 29A: Covers for a rainy day) 
• BRITAIN ("brain") / VISOR ("visitor") (40A: Smart sort / 42A: One signing a guestbook ... Pass it back)
• WHEN ("whiten") / SUBTITLE ("subtle") (52A: What some toothpastes do ... Pass it on / 53A: Not obvious)

Word of the Day: VOLTRON (42D: Cartoon series about a super robot) —

Voltron is an American animated television series franchise that features a team of space explorers who pilot a giant super robot known as "Voltron". Produced by Peter Keefe (executive producer) and Ted Koplar through his production company World Events Productions, Voltron was an adaptation of several Japanese anime television series from Toei Animation. The original television series aired in syndication from September 10, 1984, to November 18, 1985. The first season of Voltron, featuring the "Lion Force Voltron", was adapted from the series Beast King GoLion. The second season, featuring the "Vehicle Team Voltron", was adapted from the unrelated series Armored Fleet Dairugger XV.

Voltron: Defender of the Universe was the top-rated syndicated children's show for two years during its original run, and it spawned three follow-up series, several comic books, and a line of toys. (wikipedia)

• • •

The theme was pretty easy to figure out, but the cluing for some reason felt pretty amped up today, so my overall experience was actually a little slow. At one point early on, I had nearly the entire perimeter of the NW filled in (DISNEY, DISCS, SEE, YES I DO), and no idea what was supposed to go inside. Something similar also happened later in the SW, where I had CENAC and then .... [tumbleweeds]. The theme itself feels stuck in no man's land. You move "it," but you don't have a good revealer phrase, or phrase that makes the theme make sense, so you use ... two different ones? That are unrelated to each other? If all "IT"s had been moved to the right and you had a revealer like "PASS IT ON" (or even "PAY IT FORWARD"), you'd have something. Something coherent. "Pass it on" and "pass it back" don't pair that well. "Pass it back" is always a literal thing, like "here, take this piece of paper and pass it to the person behind you." But "pass it on" is about transferring information. The latter is a much more common / colloquial phrase than the former. The pair are mismatched, and so the theme just isn't as tight as it could/should be.

All the theme answers, as they appear in the grid, are unclued (i.e. there's no explicit clue for CIRCUITS, MOJO, etc.). This is a feature not a bug, but before you figure out the whole "IT"-shifting thing, it definitely makes the puzzle harder. It gets easier when you hit an italicized clue—those are basically screaming "this is the tricky part!" at you. I knew that I wanted MOJITO at 19A, but didn't get what exactly was wrong with MOJO until I hit 29A: Covers for a rainy day, which I instantly saw was gonna be TAR PITS: TARPS + "IT." Somehow TAR PITS was the thing that made me see what was going on with MOJITO. The theme was easy from there on out. Kinda paint-by-numbers. But as I said up front, the cluing stayed pretty tough, so I still had to work to get to the end. That work ... was not always pleasant. I think DROP TROU is one of the dumbest phrases in the world—like, from another era, slangy in an ugly way (24A: Provide a brief glimpse?). It's the reason I see TROU in the grid (as a standalone answer) way way more than I should. I just physically hate the phrase. Personal quirk, what can I say? Not the puzzle's fault, but enjoyment level dropped hard there. ETAPE, though, that is the puzzle's fault (49D: Tour de France stage). I got it easy enough, but man that's an ugly old-school foreign crosswordese word to foist on solvers. Its frequency dropped off hard after Shortz took over in the early/mid '90s, but it still hangs around, sadly.

[xwordinfo dot com]

The only answer that got me legitimately mad at the puzzle, though, was "OM NOM NOM." (43A: [Can't talk, eating]). Thanks, I Hate It. To be clear, I would've loved (or at least liked, or at least abided) "NOM NOM NOM." That dropped first "N," though, ugh. Ugh. "NOM" is often clued [When repeated, sound of eating] or [When repeated, sound effect for Cookie Monster]. "OM," however, is only ever a meditation syllable. I see that there are some GIFs out there that have the eating sound effect as "OM NOM NOM," but that doesn't make me like it. I also see plenty of "NOM NOM NOM." If it's "NOM" in crosswords (it is), and it's "NOM NOM" in crosswords (once, a couple years back), then it should be "NOM NOM NOM." Like so:

I stopped watching cartoons in the early '80s, so VOLTRON (while a very familiar name) did not leap to the front of my brain until I had some crosses in place. There was a decidedly '80s tween boy vibe to this, with the kids' cartoons and the video games and ARCADE and the Tolkien and what not (46D: "Do you remember the ___, Mr. Frodo?": Sam Gamgee). I was an '80s tween boy (for the early '80s, anyway), and yet none of this stuff resonated with me. ARSENIO, that resonated with me (14A: Onetime talk show whose studio audience was known as the "Dog Pound," familiarly). Right on target. I was the right age to experience that phenomenon in real time, with full force. I wish more stuff resonated with me, but sometimes you just don't luck out. The fill on this one seems fine, but its "highlights" were (mostly) not for me. ESTUARY is a fine word (though hard for me to get today, for sure) (5D: Long Island Sound, e.g.). "LET ME UP" sounds more like something you'd say if someone was sitting on top of you than something you'd say through an intercom. Also, if it's really a request made over an intercom, then it's rude. And not really a request. More of a command. 

Explainers etc.:

• 15A: Expressions of contempt (SNORTS) — not sure what you call it when both KEA and LOA show up in your grid, but that's what happened today. Me: "SNEERS! ... ugh, no, it's SNORTS." Me, later: "oh ... SNEERS ... there you are" (62A: Expressions of contempt)
• 21A: Figure for the prosecution, for short (ADA) — Assistant District Attorney. I prefer the Dental Association. Or the Lovelace.
• 39A: Electronic device from which users take "sips" (VAPE) — do you know how impossibly uncool this looks? Just smoke. I mean, don't, you'll get lung cancer or emphysema, but aesthetically, I'd much rather watch you smoke than "sip." There's a reason people smoked like crazy on film in the olden days and hardly anyone vapes on film. And it's not just health-consciousness. Smoking just looks great. Whereas vaping just looks desperate and sad, no matter how hot you are. To be clear, my objection is not moral in any way. It's purely aesthetic. 
• 56D: Feature of some outdoor obstacle courses (MUD) — could've been anything. Or, wasn't clearly MUD, at any rate. Clear as MUD!

• 59A: "Son of the Dragon," in a medieval Romanian sobriquet (DRACULA) — in retrospect, this should've been obvious, maybe, but oof, no. No idea. Thought they were throwing some Game of Thrones crap at me here. "Romanian" should've tipped me. But it didn't.
• 60A: "At the Movies with Ebert and ___" (ROEPER) — as with ARSENIO, I am the right demographic for this as well. None of the spice of the Siskel days. But it was on and it was about movies and it had Ebert, so I watched sometimes.
• 53D: Reflexology setting (SPA) — "setting" is a word that the puzzle uses in confusing ways sometimes. I thought maybe there were "setting"s in reflexology, like maybe you set your foot ... phaser ... to stun or something. But I guess some SPAs just offer "reflexology," so there's your "setting."
  
• 8D: Mac platform renamed in 2016 (OSX) — is it iOS now, then? Nope, that's mobile. It's actually macOS, so ... look for that in your grid sometime soon, I guess, inevitably, sadly. LOL they should have a cereal shaped like old Apple Macintoshes called "MAC O'S!" Would. Buy. (N)OM NOM NOM!

I'm happy to announce (all this week) that a new edition of These Puzzles Fund Abortion is available now (These Puzzles Fund Abortion 5!). Donate to abortion funds, get a collection of 23 top-notch puzzles from some of the best constructors in the business—mostly standard U.S. crossword puzzles, but also some cryptic crosswords, variety puzzles, and even an acrostic. Rachel Fabi and C.L. Rimkus have done such a great job with these collections over the past few years, raising over $300,000 for abortion funds around the country. I support a number of charitable organizations, but hardly any of them give me crosswords in return. So I'm going to give TPFA5 my money today [update: done!], and I hope you do too. Here's the link.

See you next time.

Signed, Rex Parker, King of CrossWorld

P.S. Happy Opening Day to all who celebrate! As always, go Tigers.  

[Follow Rex Parker on BlueSky and Facebook]

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Bootleg booze / WED 3-26-25 / British politico Corbyn / Alternative to a Stella or Sam Adams / Handouts from street preachers / Rave over, metaphorically / Pre-covenant name for a biblical father / Alternative to a Stella or Sam Adams / Fabric that George Costanza said he'd drape himself in if it were socially acceptable / Downward force on earth, informally

Constructor: Nathan Hale

Relative difficulty: Easy-Medium

THEME: COVER ALL THE BASES (40A: Take care of everything ... or a hint to what four squares in this puzzle do) — black squares "cover" all the "bases" on a baseball diamond: 1st, 2nd, 3rd, and home:

Theme answers:

• NOT MY [FIRST] RODEO (19A: "I've done this before")
• HAVING [SECOND] THOUGHTS (25A: Not so sure about a wedding)
• GIVES THE [THIRD] DEGREE (54A: Thoroughly interrogates)
• WRITE [HOME] ABOUT (63A: Rave over, metaphorically)

Word of the Day: SATIVA (3D: Cannabis variety) —

Cannabis sativa is an annual herbaceous flowering plant. The species was first classified by Carl Linnaeus in 1753. The specific epithet sativa means 'cultivated'. Indigenous to Eastern Asia, the plant is now of cosmopolitan distribution due to widespread cultivation. It has been cultivated throughout recorded history and used as a source of industrial fiber, seed oil, food, and medicine. It is also used as a recreational drug and for religious and spiritual purposes. [...] The informal designation sativa and indica may have various, controversial meanings. Morphologically, the name sativa designates tall plants with narrow leaves, while indica refers to short plants with wide leaves. Among the marijuana community however, sativa rather refers to equatorial varieties producing stimulating psychoactive effects, whereas indica-type plants from Central Asia are used for relaxing and sedative drugs (THC:CBD > 1). (wikipedia)

• • •

I feel like you already know what the problem is here. Certainly if you've ever seen a baseball diamond, you know. How in the world do you make this puzzle and *not* put the "bases" in the right place???? Or at least in a "diamond"-type shape? I got the [SECOND] square first, then got the revealer and thought "OK, it's not gonna sit perfectly symmetrically, but that's OK, a rough 'diamond' will do, I guess." But no. I got no diamond. None. Just a squiggly top-to-bottom arrangement of the "bases." It's unfathomable to me that you would bother to do this theme without putting the bases in the right place. Four squares. "Where should I put them? I know... random places!" SMH, what the hell? And on Opening Day, no less. Oh, no, sorry, that's tomorrow, not today—one more thing this "tribute" to baseball gets wrong. I don't mind at all that the "bases" don't work with the Downs, but the non-diamond arrangement is killing me. The concept here is fine—I've thought of it myself, as has virtually any baseball-loving constructor, I guarantee you—but the point is it would be tough to do right because if you don't put those bases in (roughly) baseball-field position (which is a challenge!), your puzzle will look silly—kinda like this puzzle. I love baseball, and I particularly love Opening Day, so this puzzle just makes me sad. Disappointed, really.

So it's a non-starter, in terms of its execution. I do like the way the "bases" are handled, with black squares standing in for (or "covering") missing words in longer phrases, and all the phrases themselves are colorful, particularly NOT MY (1st) RODEO. Aside from the theme, the highlight of the puzzle for me was probably the very end, when I crossed PBR (51A: Alternative to a Stella or Sam Adams) with "BEER ME!" (52D: "I'd like a brewski") to close things out. I've had puzzles end on lowlights far too many times, so it was semi-thrilling to finally do one that went out on top—peak puzzle experience, right at the end. That PBR / "BEER ME!" moment was especially welcome because it followed hard on the heels of the absolute worst moment of the solve—"GOT YA!" The term is "GOTCHA!" You have to strain your mouth hole to say "GOT YA!" Like, you have to try to enunciate, and differentiate the "T" and "Y," because that "T"-to-"Y" shift just comes out "TCH".... which is why we have GOTCHA in the first place! GOT YA, lol, no, what, stop. You coulda just turned the YAMS into TAMS and been done with it. No one blinks, no one balks, no one winces. Some editorial decisions (or non-decisions) are unfathomable to me.

SOAMI remains one of the worst bits of fill on the planet, right up there with its kealoa* counterpart, SODOI (4D: "Likewise"). SLIGHT BIT feels odd to me, as I'd use ONE BIT or THE SLIGHTEST (as in "not in ___") before I'd ever used SLIGHT BIT. "LITTLE" is the adjective that wants to go with "BIT." I never cared for Seinfeld (Julia Louis-Dreyfus was the only one on that show I could stand to look at for very long—I watched every episode of Veep, a far superior show). Since George is such a dip, I figured the "fabric" he would cover himself in was VELCRO (33D: Fabric that George Costanza said he'd drape himself in if it were socially acceptable = VELVET). That's certainly the fabric I would cover him in, if called to do so. 

Bullets:

• 3D: Cannabis variety (SATIVA) — went into a dispensary for the first time in my life earlier this month, in Michigan, a state that screams "WE HAVE LEGAL WEED!" at you the second you cross the border from Ohio. I was with a friend who is far better versed in such matters, far more familiar with the cannabis world. I don't smoke, so I was mostly just a spectator. It was so professional, clean, well organized. The manager could've been the manager of a spa, she was so efficient and friendly. I don't know what I was expecting. Something ... else. Something cornier, honestly. Anyway, I may or may not have left with gummies which I may or may not have tried since and which may or may not have had any effect on me. Can't stand the smell of pot, so I won't be smoking any time soon, but I will admit to being cannabis-curious. Anyway, SATIVA and INDICA are familiar terms to me, as they should be to you by now, if only for xword purposes.
• 69A: Pre-covenant name for a biblical father (ABRAM) — after the covenant: ABRAHAM. I much prefer this clue for ABRAM to the Presidential middle name clue ... I can't even remember whose middle name ABRAM is!!?!? Ah, it's James ABRAM Garfield. Good to remind yourself of these things from time to time.
• 48D: British politico Corbyn (JEREMY) — So weird to me that we get JEREMY Corbyn before we get KEIR Starmer, the actual Primer Minister of the UK, and a guy whose first name (unlike JEREMY) is begging to become crossword-common (RIP, KEIR Dullea, you've done yeoman's work, buddy, but it's time to let someone else take over). Hey, did you know a KIER is a [Large vat for bleaching cloth]? Me neither, probably because the last time it appeared in a crossword was July 12,1992—the fourteenth (!) and final (!!) appearance of KIER. But I have a sneaking suspicion that KIER might be making a comeback very soon ...

[Severance, renewed for a 3rd season, hurrah]

I'm happy to announce (all this week) that a new edition of These Puzzles Fund Abortion is available now (These Puzzles Fund Abortion 5!). Donate to abortion funds, get a collection of 23 top-notch puzzles from some of the best constructors in the business—mostly standard U.S. crossword puzzles, but also some cryptic crosswords, variety puzzles, and even an acrostic. Rachel Fabi and C.L. Rimkus have done such a great job with these collections over the past few years, raising over $300,000 for abortion funds around the country. I support a number of charitable organizations, but hardly any of them give me crosswords in return. So I'm going to give TPFA5 my money today [update: done!], and I hope you do too. Here's the link.

See you next time.

Signed, Rex Parker, King of CrossWorld

*kealoa = a pair of words (normally short, common answers) that can be clued identically and that share at least one letter in common (in the same position). These are answers you can't just fill in quickly because two or more answers are viable, Even With One or More Letters In Place. From the classic [Mauna ___] KEA/LOA conundrum. See also, e.g. [Heaps] => ATON or ALOT, ["Git!"] => "SHOO" or "SCAT," etc.  

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