Rex Parker Does the NYT Crossword Puzzle: Hannah Margolin

Constructor: Ruth Bloomfield Margolin and Hannah Margolin

Relative difficulty: Medium

THEME: Bringing a Plus One — Theme answers are wedding-related things with one letter added, clued wackily

Theme answers:

S(H)AVE THE DATE (23A Make a partner's beard presentable for all the photos?)
CASH BAR(D) (25A Poet hired to write the couple's vows in flowery verse?)
WEDDING D(U)RESS (34A Cause of many headaches while planning the big day?)
G(R)IFT REGISTRY (54A Tool for a couple who intend to return everything and keep the money?)
F(E)ATHER OF THE BRIDE (68A Fancy headpiece garment?)
SOMETHING (B)OLD (86A Colorful sequined jacket that the groom chose to wear?)
PAR(I)TY PLANNER (101A One ensuring that each family can invite the same number of guests?)
BE(A)ST MAN (115A Animal's escort down the aisle?)
MOTHER IN LAW(N) (117A Parent who foolishly wore stiletto heels to a garden event?)

Word of the Day: HADRON (1A: [Large ___ Collider (facility in Geneva, Switzerland)]) —

In particle physics, a hadron is a composite subatomic particle made of two or more quarks held together by the strong nuclear force. Pronounced /ˈhædrɒn/ ^ⓘ, the name is derived from Ancient Greek ἁδρός (hadrós) 'stout, thick'. They are analogous to molecules, which are held together by the electric force. Most of the mass of ordinary matter comes from two hadrons: the proton and the neutron, while most of the mass of the protons and neutrons is in turn due to the binding energy of their constituent quarks, due to the strong force.

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Um ... hello, again. It's Rafa here blogging the Sunday puzzle. I somehow blogged the wrong puzzle last night. I'm just a silly goose like that, I guess. But hopefully it was fun to have two different write-ups? And see how the solving experience can be very alike or very different. But today you are stuck with just me. No agreeing or dissenting opinions! Just little old me on my little computer telling all of you about this puzzle.

This puzzle was ... a puzzle, for sure. We have some wedding-related puns where we add a letter to the answer. But overall the puns felt a bit forced to me. It's certainly neat that there are enough wedding-related phrases to pull this theme off, but I was hoping for some additional twist, or for the added letters to spell some meta answer that tied everything nicely. But as it was I was mostly just ... *shrug*. When I say forced, I mean things like BEAST MAN. Like, this doesn't really feel like even a semi-realistic situation at a wedding? Whereas a MOTHER-IN-LAWN felt funnier and more realistic to me. Pun puzzles in general are very hit-or-miss based on your specific type of humor, but this one didn't totally tickle my sense of whimsy.

It's a SAGO palm

I had also never heard of SOMETHING OLD, which apparently is a rhyme for what a bride should wear to bring good luck. I think I'm excused because my wedding (though currently very far from being a thing) will not feature a bride. (Eligible gentlemen in their mid-20s to mid-30s in the Bay Area -- please inquire within if you are interested in changing this situation!) ... alright, now I've shot my shot, so let's get back into the puzzle. I don't think I have much more to say about the theme. They are puns. They are about weddings. Some people might find them funny. Oh, I didn't mention the title -- "Bringing a Plus One". It's a good title, but it doesn't quite give the puzzle enough of a raison d'être IMO. Also, why is the title for Sunday puzzles so buried in the app? (You have to click the "i" icon to see it.)

Oh, also, WEDDING DURESS. Does "duress" mean "headaches"? The dictionaries I consulted define duress as "threats, violence, constraints, or other action brought to bear on someone to do something against their will or better judgment" or "forcible restraint or restriction" ... both of which are obviously *very* bad vibes when it comes to a wedding. So, that whole entry just felt ... off. Ok, I'll stop complaining about this theme. Let's go complain about something else! (Remember when I said I had nothing left to say about the theme?)

Some MELTED cheese in fondue

The fill had its ups and downs. Some icky partials in A ROW and O WOE, and things like ORANG (nobody has ever said this) and MNO (don't feel like I need to explain why this is bad) and ONER (nobody has ever said this). I've probably already mentioned this here but I became an EELER convert after reading an article in the New Yorker last year about EELERs in Maine. So, don't come for EELER. But also some great stuff here! I enjoyed: ANGOLA, COCONUT, ABUELA, LEGALESE, ALL-SEASON, KAHLUA (a "mudslide" is a cocktail), TAX FORM, I SURE DO, SASHAY. Funny how sometimes entries that might seem "boring" like the one-word COCONUT can be evocative during a solve. Speaking of things I've read, Patrick Radden Keefe's "Rogues" has a great article about WINE FRAUD that I read a few months ago. Last year I would maybe have complained that WINE FRAUD was "not a thing" but I have been enlightened in time!

This is just my cat. She is perfect. Please say hi to her.

Alright, I think that's all from me. Hope you all stay safe and happy and healthy and all the other good things. Until next time!

Bullets:

10D: RATED E [Like the Mario Kart games] — the new game in the franchise (Mario Kart World) just came out on the Switch 2. I haven't had a chance to play yet, but hoping to get to it eventually.
4D: REVEAL [Gender ___ (prebirth event)] — this cluing angle is ... a choice
69D: HURON [The "H" in HOMES] — You always love to see non-Erie Great Lake representation!
55D: TAX FORM [1099, e.g.] — I miss the days when I knew nothing about TAX FORMs. The number 1099 was just a number like any other. (Apropos of nothing, 1099 is not prime. Its prime factors are 7 and 157, which feels ... cursed somehow?!)

Signed, Rafa

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