Rex Parker Does the NYT Crossword Puzzle: February 2026

Constructor: LANCE ENFINGER and JOHN KUGELMAN

Relative difficulty: EASY

THEME: COMICAL MUTATION — Words and phrases have have the sound "ICKLE" added to them to make new wacky phrases (for example, the title adds "ICAL" COMMUTATION).

Word of the Day: RED EARTH (40D - Iron-rich variety of fertile soul) —There is no Wikipedia entry for Red Earth, so this is from Red Soil:

Red soil is a type of soil that typically develops in warm, temperate, and humid climates and comprises approximately 13% of Earth's soil and^[1] it contains thin organic and organic-mineral layers of highly leached soil resting on a red layer of alluvium. Red soils contain large amounts of clay and are generally derived from the weathering of ancient crystalline and metamorphic rock. They are named after their rich red color, varying from reddish brown to reddish yellow due to their high iron content.^[2] Red soil can be good or poor growing soil depending on how it is managed. It is usually low in nutrients and humus and can be difficult to cultivate due to its low water holding capacity; however, the fertility of these soils can be optimized with liming and other farming techniques.

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Hey everyone, it's your third or fourth favorite Jeopardy runner up, Eli!* Excited to be bringing you this first Sunday puzzle in February, marking the turning of the page from the January That Would Never End. Let's jump right in!

*Speaking of Jeopardy and crosswords, retroactive good luck to Paolo Pasco! I hope you keep crushing the Tournament of Champions!

Theme answers:

CLASSICAL CLOWN (23A: Canio in "Pagliacci," e.g.?) (From "class clown")
TOPICAL DOG (37A: News hound?) (From "top dog")
TWO PARTICLE HARMONY (40A: Atomic bond, essentially) (From "two part harmony")
FOLLICLES ON ONE'S FACE (65A: Some electrolysis targets?) (From "Falls on one's face")
WE'RE NAUTICAL WORTHY (88A: "Mainsail hoisted, check! Hatches battened, check!"?) (From "we're not worthy")
LYRICAL JET (94A: Shark's singing rival in "West Side Story"?) (From "Lear jet")
BOSTON POPSICLE (113A: Frozen trerat for Bruins fans?) (From "Boston Pops")

Classical Clown (23A)

This theme is pretty simple, which means it has to execute at a high level to be successful. Thankfully, I think this one largely pulls it off! There's 7 theme answers, most of which take up a lot of real estate, and both the original phrases and the ensuing silliness are pretty sparkly. I especially liked TWO PARTICLE HARMONY (as a barbershop singer, I'm required to highlight any mention of harmony), FOLLICLES ON ONE'S FACE, and WE'RE NAUTICAL WORTHY. BOSTON POPSICLE got a giggle, as well. I do have to say, I'm glad my DOG is not TOPICAL. His sweet, goofy face is a nice respite from the news of the day. I guess it might have been nice to stick with either "ICAL" or "ICKLE," but the sound is identical and the puzzle splits the two options as evenly as possible. Truly an enjoyable set of themers for me.

Two Part(icle) Harmony (40A, at 55 seconds). One of my favorites from The Muppet Show

If the puzzle has a downside, I suppose it's that the fill doesn't really stand out in many places. To be fair, nothing stood out egregiously bad, either, but the standouts were a little sparse. The clue at 35A - "Grab the chips and dip?" (CASH IN) - made me pause the puzzle and make a big star in my notebook. Really fantastic clue with modern-ish phrasing for a less-than-interesting answer ("dip" in this sense is slang for "leave," if you didn't get it). Conversely, the clue for AMNESIA (105A - Never mind?) doesn't really make sense to me. Amnesia is memory loss, right? How does that translate to "never mind"? It feels obtuse, at best. As a musical theater major, it took me waaaaaay too long to get SIAM (60D - Rodgers and Hammerstein musical setting), but The King and I isn't one of my favorites, so I'm going to forgive myself. For the record, I had no problem getting SIR (54A - "Aaron Burr, ___" ("Hamilton" show tune)).

I suppose it could be considered a dupe to have both ONO (114D: Co-producer of the documentary "The Beatles: Get Back") and IN MONO (18D - Not stereo) in the same puzzle, but it didn't bother me. Maybe I like the thought of ONO IN MONO enough to assume that it was intentional. The pairing of WILD FIRE (41D - Metaphor for a runaway success) and OK BOOMER (42D - Gen Z put-dwon of an elder) is probably the strongest block of fill, even if Ok, Boomer is already feeling a little dated. I also don't like to think about the physical reaction that got OLESTRA (20A) "named one of Time's 50 Worst Inventions," but I liked that trivia in the clue. Seeing BLACK ART (48D - Arcane technique) in the singular feels weird, and being next to the bland and possibly-not-a-thing RED EARTH (see word of the day above) isn't doing either any favors. I wasn't familiar with the concept of a NASTYGRAM (100A - Very rude e-mail, informally), but it helped liven up the grid. All things considered, I liked this one a lot more than I didn't, which feels like a win on a Sunday, lately.

We're Nautical worthy

Stray Thoughts:

40D: Mother of Helios, in myth (THEA) — I'm reading Madeline Miller's Circe right now, so the Titans are very much on my mind.

122A: Embarrassing items to have revealed on an airport X-ray (SEX TOYS) — Only embarrassing if you let it be! How about a little sex positivity, puzzle?
95D: Crack open? (YO MAMA) — A nice misdirect clue here, but I'm highlighting it for a today's real lesson. This is Yo Mama:
This is Yo-Yo Ma:
Thank you for your time.