Fairy tale monster / TUES 3-26-24 / Simplifies, as a fraction / "Harrumph!," to Scrooge / Mama's hermana

Hi, everyone! It’s Clare, back for the last Tuesday in March. I’m coming off of a third-place finish in trivia, which I’ll accept given that it was our first time back in a while. This month, I’ve been watching a lot of March Madness (particularly the women) and getting way too invested in my teams winning (and in Caitlin Clark). It’s also a rather busy time at work — USCIS has decided to increase filing fees on April 1, which means my firm is trying to get a whole lot of filings out before then. And all this has been happening while I’ve been dying a bit from this second winter that made me nearly freeze to death (before getting some hot cocoa) at a Washington Spirit NWSL game. (We won in dramatic fashion with an extra-time goal.)

Constructors: Laura Dershewitz and Katherine Baicker

Relative difficulty: Challenging (for a Tuesday)

THEME: AD HOMINEM (34A: Kind of fallacious argument … or, phonetically, a hint to the answers to the starred clues) — Add a homonym at the end of the word/phrase that sounds like the prior word or syllable

Theme answers:

• HOTEL SUITE SWEET (17A: Mint on a pillow, maybe?) 
• PIGTAIL TALE (27A: "Pippi Longstocking," for one?) 
• MR RIGHT RITE (46A: Marriage ceremony for the perfect guy?) 
• SECOND TO NONE NUN (57A: Mother superior?)

Word of the Day: LARS (20A: "___ and the Real Girl" (Ryan Gosling film)) —

Lars and the Real Girl is a 2007 American comedy-drama film written by Nancy Oliver and directed by Craig Gillespie. The film stars Ryan Gosling, Emily Mortimer, Paul Schneider, Kelli Garner, and Patricia Clarkson. Its plot follows Lars, a kind-hearted but socially awkward young man who develops a romantic yet nonsexual relationship with an anatomically correct sex doll, a RealDoll named Bianca. Though a commercial failure, the film was positively received by critics, receiving an Academy Award nomination for Best Original Screenplay. (Wiki)

• • •

I thought the theme was quite fun and inventive. As a result, I enjoyed the solve more than I often do. Who doesn’t like a SUITE SWEET or a TAIL TALE or a RIGHT RITE or especially a SECOND TO NONE NUN — though I had to puzzle out that final one for a while. I realize three of the four final words are homonyms of the previous word, while the fourth (PIGTAIL TALE) uses a homonym of the previous syllable, but that doesn’t take away from the fact that this was one of the more clever themes I’ve seen on a Tuesday. And I rather enjoyed it. 

The rest of the fill surrounding the theme was on the tougher side, which contributed to my slower-than-usual time. SUI (57D: ___ generis (unique)) and MIEN (46D: Appearance) felt like words for puzzles later in the week. I wanted AEON (31A: Many millennia) to be eons, even though I knew the answer had to be singular. 

Some of the downs were nice — I Iiked having CROATIA (2D: Country that adopted the euro in 2023), OUTRAGE (3D: Indignation), STATURE (44D: Reputation), and REDUCES (40D: Simplifies, as a fraction) in the puzzle, although I thought TIE IT UP (12D: Force a game into extra innings, say) was pretty meh. And THE SUNS (11D: Phoenix basketball team, familiarly) isn’t really a nickname for the team. The name of the city’s men's basketball team is just “the Phoenix Suns.” I suppose you could make the argument that by adding “the” you’ve turned it into a nickname, but then you could claim almost any sports team is a familiar name if you just add “the” (such as “the Steelers,” “the Warriors,” “the Giants,” “the Penguins,” etc.) The team nickname is part of the name — there’s nothing familiar about it. 

There were a couple of mini themes in the puzzle — with 1A: Get moving (SCOOT) and 6A: Get moving? (PROD), along with 36D: Fairy tale monster (OGRE) and 47D: Fairy tale monsters (GIANTS) — which I thought added to the puzzle and the theme especially.

Misc.:

• I knew the answer to OHIO (16A: Dayton’s state) because my cousin is an assistant coach at Dayton for the men’s soccer team! 
• I absolutely love The Sports BRA (24A: (Portland bar dedicated to women's athletics) and have been following along ever since it opened. It’s unique and lovely and amazing, and I love that it was in the puzzle. I’m jealous of everyone who can go. 
• I distinctly remember wanting to be like Pippi Longstocking (27A) when I was younger; one time I slept upside down on my bed with my head where my feet were supposed to be. I was also Pippi Longstocking for Halloween one year with a wig and everything — including pipe cleaners to make my pigtails stick out. I now have red hair… maybe she was the basis for my dying it that color. 
• BEDSIDE manner (50A: (doctor's demeanor)) makes me think of Cristina Yang from “Grey’s Anatomy,” especially because I’ve seen a million and one promotions for the show’s 21st season. (Cristina’s BEDSIDE manner was notoriously awful.) The fact that the show has been around for that long is simply wild. 
• Fun fact: Something I learned tonight at trivia about “Shrek” (which features a famous OGRE) is that it doesn’t pass the Bechdel Test (i.e., do two women talk in a film about anything other than a man?). 
• I’ve seen “My Cousin Vinny” with Marisa TOMEI (29D: Marisa who played herself in a "Seinfeld" cameo) more times than I should probably admit. I remember having a sleepover with my friend when I was younger, and we watched the movie three times over two days because it was just that good. If I ever have the chance to give my Letterboxd four favorites, that movie is definitely in there.

Signed, Clare Carroll, a not so bare bear

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Big name in electric toothbrushes / TUE 5-16-23 / Tech site since 1994 / Biblical patriarch who had "ha" added to his name when he was 99 years old / Result of complete sound cancellation / Actress Fisher of Eighth Grade / Tex-Mex snack named after their inventor Ignacio Anaya / Zen garden tools

Constructor: Katherine Baicker and Adam Wagner

Relative difficulty: Medium

THEME: mal-prefixed — words that have negating prefixes even though the "word" that follows the prefix is not actually being negated:

Theme answers:

• NONCHALANCE (17A: Casualness ... even though 18-Across [CHALANCE] doesn't mean urgency)
• INDOLENT (24A: Lazy ... even though 26-Across [DOLENT] doesn't mean active)
• DISCOMBOBULATED (36A: Flustered ... even though 39-Across [COMBOBULATED] doesn't mean poised)
• MISNOMER (50A: Wrong name ... even though 51-Across [NOMER] doesn't mean the right name)
• UNBEKNOWNST (59A: Not yet discovered ... even though 60-Across [BEKNOWNST] doesn't mean discovered)

Word of the Day: Mike POSNER (44D: Mike with the 2015 hit "I Took a Pill in Ibiza") —

Michael Robert Henrion Posner (/ˈpoʊznər/ POHZ-nər; born February 12, 1988) is an American rapper, singer, songwriter, and record producer. He released his debut album, 31 Minutes to Takeoff, in 2010. The album includes the US Billboard Hot 100 top 10 single "Cooler than Me" as well as the top 20 single "Please Don't Go". In 2016, he released his second album, At Night, Alone. A remix of his 2015 single "I Took a Pill in Ibiza" from the album peaked in the top 10 on the charts in 27 countries around the world, including hitting number one in many and the top five on the Billboard Hot 100 in the United States. [...] He attended Duke University, where he was a member of Sigma Nu fraternity. He graduated with a B.A. in Sociology with a 3.6 GPA. (wikipedia)

• • •

 

As with yesterday, I was enjoying this one pretty well until the theme showed up. The problem with the "words that don't mean things" in the themers is they aren't really words at all (Merriam-Webster: "There is no word chalant in English"). Sort of disingenuous to say a word "doesn't mean" something when in fact it doesn't mean *anything* (as a standalone answer). Actually, "CHALANCE" derives from Old French chaloir, "to concern," so the NON- prefix isn't inappropriate at all to NONCHALANCE's meaning. It's just that the thing being negated is not an English word on its own. Is that the joke? I guess it's supposed to be cute or clever that the clues refer to those "words" as separate "Across" answers even though they are not, in fact, Across answers—just "words" that start at the number that appears mid-answer (the number that belongs to a Down clue, actually). So ... not "words," not Across answers, but clued as such anyway. That is the little song and dance being performed here. Silly, but harmless, I guess. The answers themselves (with prefixes attached) are ... fine. Well, DISCOMBOBULATED is actually good, so it's nice that it fits in the marquee, grid-spanning position. I could take or leave the others. But as I say, I was enjoying the grid before I ran into the theme, which means holy cow the NW was good? Good-ish? I enjoyed seeing the SENECA Falls Convention here, and I didn't mind hearing the grating BOO-YAH even though I wasn't really sure about spelling (terminal "H"? yes, that looks OK). Loved EYEROLL and SOCIALS and OPEN NET. Had no idea that AP NEWS had anything to do with "nonprofit" so that definitely slowed me down a bit, but overall, I was breezing along and enjoying myself. And then ... theme. I will say that at least the theme is *trying* to do something original / weird / out of the ordinary. Points for that.

The downgrid fill is not as good as the stuff up top. Love love love the "BE HONEST" / "I CAN'T LIE" juxtaposition, but the fill peaks there. UEY is always unwelcome and NONOISE seems quite forced and POSNER, yeesh, you stumped me there. I'd've definitely changed that to New Yorker food writer Helen ROSNER (mostly because she's a solver and I know it would please her, but also because the Duke fratboy-turned-rapper was a total mystery to me—ah well, not every puzzle proper noun is gonna resonate with my particular life experience, so ... I learned a name? That's theoretically a plus. I think). Anyway, you go from NO NOISE through POSNER to NO USE, which is ... a journey. The NOs! THA NOS. Come On, Feel THA NOS! That is my alternate name for this puzzle now. No kidding. (No, kidding)

My experience with CRUSHes for most of my young life was no no no they were not "prospective sweethearts" (39D: Prospective sweetheart, say). They were pains in the middle of my chest that wouldn't go away, yearnings, completely detached from the realm of possibility let alone actuality. Very happy for y'all who actually turned your CRUSHes into sweethearts on the regular. I guess I had CRUSHes on some of the people I dated before I started dating them. Yes ... OK, maybe the clue is more apt than it felt. I just associate CRUSH with youth and (relative) innocence. Also, unattainability. It's definitely a state of unrequited desire. Anyway, it's a word I associate with my pre-adult life, where there were CRUSHes galore but no "sweethearts" to be found. Adulthood was somewhat kinder to me. I'm sure there's more to say here, but I'll save the rest for my therapist. See you tomorrow.

Signed, Rex Parker, King of CrossWorld 

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Small houses in Spain / MON 4-17-23 / Chip Beauty and the Beast teacup / Professional office-seeker, informally

Constructor: Katherine Baicker and Scott Earl

Relative difficulty: Normal? Easy side? I don't know ...

THEME: "THERE ARE NO WORDS" (57A: "I can't even!" ... or a hint to the answers to the starred clues) — things that lack words:

Theme answers:

• SILENT TREATMENT (17A: *Cold shoulder)
• EMOJI KEYBOARD (27A: *Texter's option for sending faces and symbols)
• ELEVATOR MUSIC (44A: *Easy-listening background tunes)

Word of the Day: Chip POTTS (12D: Chip ___ ("Beauty and the Beast" teacup)) —

Chip Potts is the son of Mrs. Potts and a supporting character in Disney's 1991 animated feature film, Beauty and the Beast. (disney.fandom.com)

[Annie POTTS in Crimes of Passion (d. Ken Russell, 1984), which I finished right before solving; the Criterion Channel's "Erotic Thrillers" collection this month is a real gift!]

• • •

See, now, this, I like. I watched those themers come into view as I descended the grid (solving Downs-only, as Monday-usual), and I wondered what the hell they could have to do with each other. Cool answers in their own right, but what's the connection? And then the revealer started to fill itself in via the Down crosses and all of a sudden I could parse it: "THERE ARE NO WORDS"! The answer was correct, and it was a perfect revealer, a perfect expression of the theme. You get a familiar colloquial expression that is also an original puzzle answer *and* an apt description of the theme answers. Cleverly literalizing a familiar phrase for puzzle purposes—this is a basic theme concept that can yield fantastic results. Today's grid kept it simple and tight—just three themers, but each one colorful and unforced, and each one lacking words in a different way. Turns out you don't really need the pesky Across clues to have a very satisfying "aha" moment with the revealer. And unlike last week's insanely easy puzzle, this one had enough bite in it that I had to work for it a little, had to use inference and pattern-recognition skills and all the tools in my Downs-only bag of tricks to make it to the bottom. Never got very hung up, but I had to work my way through and around a number of those longer Downs, which didn't come right away, so the overall experience still provided the kind of satisfying (if still brief) workout I look for in a Monday Downs-only solve. I have no real complaints. I see a number of short answers that are well-worn and not particularly thrilling, but who cares when most of the grid is strong and clean and the theme is snappy? Hurray for a solid and non-boring Monday.

Absolutely blanked on 4D: Final movement of Beethoven's Ninth ("ODE TO JOY"). I knew it was gonna start with an "O," but all I could think of, musically, was OPERETTA ... which fit! But was obviously wrong. After I inferred ADIDAS and SILENT TREATMENT, I emitted a large "D'oh!" as I sheepishly typed in "ODE TO JOY." Felt less bad about struggling (a bit) with SPEED DATES, since it was actively trying to misdirect me with its "?" clue (10D: Participates in some singles matches?). Totally blanked on Chip POTTS. Could picture his "mom" but still couldn't remember the family name. Once I got SEE IT, I was able to, well, see it. (note: SEE IT was one of those answers that had me wondering "how did they clue that??" I guess ["Understand now?"] is OK. Since I couldn't look at the clue, I didn't know it was supposed to be a question; thought the clue might be a partial, à la ["Now you ___, now you don't"]. The actual clue is better). I hesitated writing in CASITAS, since it seemed unlikely you'd see such a long foreign word on a Monday, but I couldn't make anything else out of CA-I-AS, so CASITAS it was. Wanted ON THE SCENT at 29D: Following a trail, as a bloodhound, but also had this eerie (though not EELY) feeling of "... is that the expression? ON THE SCENT? ON THE TRAIL, sure, but TRAIL is in the clue so ... SCENT?" Yes, SCENT. Alright then. IRON(ON)-ically, I finished up with GO ASTRAY—the answer that means "err" was my final and unerrant answer—that's what makes it IRON(ON)-ic!

My only other thoughts about this one are: it's weird to call it an EMOJI KEYBOARD since it's more of a giant menu and doesn't really mimic a "keyboard" much at all; I mean, that *is* what it's called, but it's just weirdly inapt, I think. And then I was thinking "Glad I had the 'T' in place and so didn't fall into the FIRMA trap at 47D: Terra ___ (COTTA). See you next time. LET'S SAY, tomorrow, OK? OK. Bye now.

Signed, Rex Parker, King of CrossWorld

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