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DAAAAA … GUMMY BEARS! I used to love the "Gummi Bears" cartoon as a kid and was glued to NFL PrimeTime in my 20s. I'd totally watch a show about Zummi Gummi rumblin', bumblin', stumblin' … whoop whoop!

I've seen a lot worse on Netflix.

Solid job disguising the NFL squads, the CHARGERS, da BEARS, the BROWNS, and the BILLS integrated into phrases that point away from those teams. It'd be way too obvious if Fiona used MEAT PACKERS, for instance, as that would give away the game completely. Like our hapless Seahawks this year — tough start to the season.

Tough start to the puzzle, too, I KNOW not coming easily, the tough palindromic clue for NOT ON, plus unfamiliar KASHI slowing me down. Perhaps it was the cluing, as "No need to say it again" felt more like DAD STOP REMINDING ME! and [Like a butterfingers] wasn't as much INEPT as HALLOWEEN CANDY EATEN BY DAD WHO THEN BLAMES THE DISAPPEARANCE ON GHOSTS.

I'm not proud of it. He said as he licked his fingers.

I enjoyed much of the bonuses, Fiona making great use of four long Downs: MANHATTAN, WISE GUYS, ARMY BRAT, IRISH STEW excellent. Plus GORGONS and HERALDS! I don't at all mind a bit of SSE for such color. I'm less keen on the aggregation of difficult vocab of KASHI, UMIAK, SCARP, OMSK for newer solvers, but I can see the counterargument that for some folks, an UMIAK their everyday mode of travel.

The lower right corner gave me pause, with ALLAS difficult to parse into ALL AS — I did end up liking that one — and the unfortunate ESSES, an entry I hear newer solvers complain about all the time. I'd love to see what Fiona could do with a black square at the final S of ESSES, then refilling.

It'd have been great to somehow get more tightness — a basketball theme did that extremely well by featuring the complete set of non-pluralized NBA teams — but this theme works. I appreciated that it wasn't blatantly obvious from the get-go, with the teams fairly well disguised.

– puzzle by Fiona Taylor

We've seen a lot of rainbow puzzles over the years, and this one is an excellent addition to the mix. DOUBLE RAINBOW perfectly describes what's going on; the colors in ROY G. BIV all doubled within vertical theme answers. Also, a couple of great phrases. BABY YODA is such a nice way to work in the double-Y.

Perfect use of mirror symmetry, too. Some editors are staunchly set on regular (180-degree rotational) symmetry, only allowing left-right when absolutely necessary. It's hard to imagine how to pull this one off using regular symmetry.

Seven sets of fixed placements is a daunting filling task, and Vaibhav and Matthew did well. There's something pleasing about the regularity of the doubled letters spaced out every other row. Excellent deployment of black squares to separate the themers, too.

Perhaps BOWSAW, HALVA, and YELENA are tough, that last one especially because it crosses NINOS. As a diehard Avengers fan, I recognized Black Widow's given name, but it didn't come easily. I love HALVAh with the final H, although it does look like several sources list it without. Taking a second look, it seems fine either way since it's a transliteration.

Regular readers will have already guessed that Jim Horne burst into cackling laughter when I wondered if the seven pairs of letters could have been more arc-like instead of a caret. Regular readers would also be surprised if I didn't delve in to see if that was possible. After two hours, I did find a way, but only by spreading out the seven pairs so RR and VV were in columns 1 and 15, which destroyed the every-other-column pattern. Arc shape or every-other-column pattern? I prefer the former but can see the merits of the latter.

Overall, a fantastic puzzle. This would have been an easy POW! pick if the rainbow (and my head) hadn't been so pointy.

– puzzle by Vaibhav Srikaran and Matthew Stock

Will Shortz takes few "both words can follow X" themes these days, so it takes an exceptional execution to make one stand out from the crowded pack. Some elements that can help:

Colorful theme phrases. It's hard to come up with two-word phrases where both words work, so much of the time, the themers are dull. Not so with LONG STORY, TIME SAVERS, BLOODLINES.

Great resulting phrases. LIFE is such an interesting starter, that most all of the finds are excellent: LIFELONG, LIFE STORY, LIFE SAVERS, LIFE INSURANCE, LIFE FORM (neat change of meaning, from paperwork to state of being!). LIFETIME isn't as snazzy as LIFE BLOOD, but it does the trick.

Apt revealer. AFTERLIFE does the job nicely, explaining that "each word can follow LIFE." It'd have been great to use DOUBLE LIFE, which would have hinted more strongly that both words follow this pattern, but you can't have both AFTERLIFE and DOUBLE LIFE in the same puzzle. For clarity's sake, AFTERLIFE (plus an "each word") modifier in its clue was the better choice.

So, I can see why Will accepted this one.

It's usually a good idea to make your theme answers stand out through layout — experienced solvers tend to focus on the longest Acrosses. It's also usually a good idea to add some bonuses into the fill, to enhance and elevate the solving experience. These two goals can be at odds, though, as they were today. The clue for AFTERLIFE does call out which Across answers are themers, but I appreciate when the layout helps my eye pick them out immediately. In this case, was LION TAMER a themer? Is LIFE IMAGINEER a thing? Aside from the fact that it should be, there were so many long bonuses that drew attention away from the main act.

It's an audacious grid, at only 72 words. Requiring dabs of BPOE and TGI wasn't worth the extra juice in MANIPULATOR or ENLARGEMENT — not when there's already ARTE EER ESSE FIL — but there's a reasonable argument that having a wide-open grid once in a while on a Wednesday is a welcome change of pace.

Solid addition to the "both words can follow" genre.

– puzzle by Dan Harris

★ Eye-opening finds. I love these space-addition/deletion/shifting discoveries, GOLD INGOT and HOLDING ON sharing that long string of middle letters. Haters tend to say that these themes feel computer-generated, but this one requires a ton of human sifting. It's easy to write code to come up with pairs of entries differing only in their first/last letters. It's much, much harder to identify which of the thousands of finds are interesting.

There are tricks to cutting down possible pairs. You can eliminate terminal Ss, for instance, since things like CISTERN and SISTERS aren't impressive. You can require a space deletion or a space addition or a space shifting, but that will still allow a bunch of bland add-a-preposition phrases through. Then there's the issue of false negatives, i.e., the possibilities you miss by tightening the constraints too much.

There's a lot of artistry in organizing searches like this one. I had the good fortune to do a backyard hangout with David and Jim Horne last month, and I could happily chat for hours about an interesting problem like this.

Neat idea to incorporate the finds into rebus squares, too. Something was clearly odd about GA?AP, so breaking open GA(SC)AP made for a satisfying a-ha.

Great clues throughout, too. Kicking off the puzzle with [Where students might kick their feet up] — as in karate kicks in a DOJO — told me that I'd be in for some fun. It continued all the way to the end, where [Outdated charging device?] baffled me, even with the telltale question mark. Describing a LANCE as a "charging device" in a joust such a terrible pun that I groaned with delight.

It's so hard to come up with novel Thursday ideas, and this one scratched the itch I've been having for months now. Maybe it'll play hard for some solvers, since so much is going on, but the solve felt so worth the effort.

– puzzle by David Steinberg

When our kids were younger, Jill and I sang various songs from Jesus Christ SUPERSTAR to them at bedtime. Why? DON'T OVERTHINK IT; the catchy melodies and lyrics simply made it something fun to sing.

Maybe I shouldn't be surprised that Tess calls Jake "Judas."

Some will wonder, aren't SUPERSTAR and STARDOM egregious dupes? Short answer is no. Will Shortz calls this a "quasi-dupe," where the word STAR is part of other phrases, and he doesn't care that much about quasi-dupes. However, he generally won't allow the offender by itself — in this case, STAR and SUPERSTAR would be a no-no.

That might seem arbitrary, but all "dupe rules" are arbitrary. Some solvers have complained to me about things like MOVIESTAR crossing START ME UP. This seems ludicrous, as there's no shared etymology. People feel how they feel, though. So much of crosswording is subjective.

Having a third star in ONSTAR should be grounds for a revision, but then again, this isn't the first time Will has let this sort of thing slide. Only a few solvers kvetched to me about the three BASEs; I imagine it'll be the same today.

DON'T OVERTHINK IT is right.

I enjoyed much of Joseph's mid-length material, rarely an easy task to squeeze a ton of juice out of these slots. ODD DUCK features the interesting triple D, Jake wants to be Optimus Prime of the AUTOBOTs when he grows up (Tess is his Megatron), and YALE LAW / RAGTOPS are both sparkly entries.

If it hadn't been for his picture, I'd have guessed Joseph was much older, what with MAKE LOVE NOT WAR and CASSETTE PLAYER, but it's neat to see younger folks embracing interests of different generations. I wasn't as keen as all the EINS ESTE HWYS ICI glue required to hold the longer material together, but there was enough color here and there to make it a worthwhile solve.

– puzzle by Joseph Greenbaum

I love the "Wallace and Gromit" shorts, "The Wrong Trousers" capturing this mechanical engineer's imagination decades ago. I haven't seen Aardman's longer features, but I look forward to watching them with my kids some day — "The Curse of the WERE-RABBIT" sounds delightful.

TAKES FOR GRANTED is apt today, solvers likely to take for granted how far triple-stacks have come over the years. Ten years ago, most of them had to be held together with paper-clips-and-bubble-gum short fill. Today's is beautifully clean, every cross and surrounding entry immaculate. Love it; how times have changed.

I did find TAKES FOR GRANTED a bit dull, though, especially since its clue was so straightforward; no playfulness at all. Thanks to the pre-Shortzian project, we can see that this entry debuted way back in 1969! I can only imagine what a triple-stack built around it would have looked like.

PROPELLER BEANIE made me smile. I've never seen one in real life, but I wouldn't put it past some Seattle hipster doofus to wear one. And make me want one.

Jim Horne and I debated how strong STARBUCKS ORDERS felt. Is MCDONALDS ORDERS equally valid? Would we enjoy seeing IHOP BREAKFAST in a themeless? Ultimately, Jim convinced me that Starbucks has made a cultural statement about tall, grande, venti, and I did enjoy the misdirection in the clue, making me think about Ariana Grande. Excellent use of the "hidden capital" trick.

Some great cluing today, Facebook offering 50 different choices for GENDERS? Maybe they're not all bad! (Only 99.7%.) And what a great way to make a shortie like EMU stand out. Won't defecate for 50+ days during egg incubation? So many questions …

Grid-spanning triple-stacks can be so amazing when all three entries feel like fist-pumpers. This one didn't get there, but much of the other material added zing — STORE BRAND, I OWE YOU ONE, MERCEDES BENZ, ON BROADWAY.

– puzzle by Brooke Husic and Will Nediger

Themeless Sunday, with a fresh Sid-southeastern feel to it — how often do you see the words "bhikkhunis " and "bhindi masala" in a crossword? Some great entries, too, like CANDY COUNTERS, HOLODECKS, ELIMINATION DIET / KEYNOTE ADDRESSES. Themelesses are usually limited to 15-letter entries, so the 16+ length is ripe for fresh additions. I dislike THE LITTLE MERMAID because it's made my daughter want to lose four waist sizes (and grow a tail) so she can attract a prince — but it is nice not to get the shortened title.

Speaking of PRINTS, what a fantastic clue! They get left in the (literal) dust. Many of the Sunday themelesses have relied on sloggy 6-letter answers, so clues like this immensely elevate the solve.

Similarly, "Employees who work a lot" made me think of my first job when I was regularly working 80-hour weeks for The Man. Great shift to a smile when I realized it meant a (parking) lot.

I would have liked a greater quantity of clever cluing, though. Jim Horne and I chatted about the Sunday themeless series — he's more pro while I'm more con — and he reminded me of the delights within Patrick Berry's inaugural Sunday themeless. In particular, FOREST GREEN was a meh entry, but innocently misdirecting with "Shade in the woods" made it shine. As much as I like the novelty of VAPE SHOPS, it's hard to clue something like this cleverly, given that not everyone will recognize what vape shops are.

We also chatted about the word SCRIED, which I love because it reminds me of "Jonathan Strange and Mr. Norrell" and the "Bartimaeus" trilogy. So many solvers have complained to me about SCRY over the years, but it gave Jim and me a reason to chat about some of our favorite recent reads.

I haven't changed my mind about the past three years of occasional themeless Sundays, too many of them feeling like giving up on attracting fresh themes. If they are here to stay, I'd at least like to see further innovation. There's so much possibility in using 21-letter grid-spanners, triple-stacks, intersecting 16+ letter answers, grid art, long stair sticks, etc.

– puzzle by Sid Sivakumar

I fell into the Wikipedia rabbit hole, perusing the list of honorifics. My first impression was that QUEEN of Disco, Soul, Jazz and Country was a tight set, but there are so many more: Queen of Pop, Salsa, Power Ballads, Emotions, Halloween, Daring Style, even Queen of Memes. You can't make this stuff up!

I enjoyed Carl's set, easily recognizing three of them and being able to pull up LORETTA LYNN with some effort. It might have been nice to get artists from a wider generational spectrum, like more current ones — MISSY ELLIOT (Queen of Hip Hop), LADY GAGA (Queen of Pop), ALICIA KEYS (Queen of R&B) or SELENA GOMEZ (Queen of Breakup Songs) — but there's only so much you can do when limited to four names.

The clue for CEREAL BOWL made me laugh. Why is it that General Mills has never sponsored a bowl game? Delightful to get a terrible pun on a Monday. Also, a treat to see one of my favorite superheroes, THE FLASH, make an appearance, along with EINSTEIN and a ROPE LADDER. Well worth the minor costs of HIE OER.

QUEEN as 1-Across gave the game away much too quickly for me, but I can see how it would make the puzzle more solvable for newbs — especially those who aren't familiar with 1970s-1980s music. John Dunn used an excellent approach in his equivalent "King of" puzzle for the WSJ, which I would prefer for this puzzle too.

– puzzle by Carl Larson

★ I'm only vaguely familiar with OGDEN Nash's poetry — most through crosswords — but what a treat, these kooky animal rhymes. I have huge admiration for works that I couldn't imagine creating, and even with eight million limbs, there's no way I'd compose "Tell me, O Octopus, I begs, / Is those things arms," OR IS THEY LEGS? Bravo!

Nash is prolific, so how could you possibly pick only four of his best lines? Jenny and Victor did a fantastic job, narrowing it down to animals. I also appreciated that they stayed away from the popularized ones: Candy is dandy, but LIQUOR IS QUICKER, for example. I'd only heard the kitten/CAT line before, so I was treated to experiencing the rest for the first time.

My solve was much longer than usual, partially because of the thematic novelty, but the fill felt harder than a typical Tuesday. Starting with tough vocab in PARSE — crossed by ROTI — I stumbled out of the gate. EDUCE is another SAT prep word, and if you don't follow the Transformers (the AUTOBOTs vs. the Decepticons), that crossing could be deceptive. Given that the theme was on the difficult side, it'd have been nice to ease up the short fill. Perhaps blander but putting up less of a fight.

Great bonuses, the four long downs placed perfectly for smart spacing, and used to full potential: NOW SEE HERE, STEP ON IT, MOCKTAIL, NEW RELEASE all excellent.

It's neat that an older poet (born in 1902) gave me such amusement. I bet Nash fans might find this one too easy, but they might also appreciate one of their favorites being featured.

– puzzle by Jennifer Lee and Victor Galson

ONE PERCENT is a catchphrase in today's world, income inequality headlined by Jeff Bezos and Elon Musk. It's amusing — in a sad way — how out of touch they are.

I wouldn't go out of my way to include THE ULTRARICH in another crossword, partially because it has the power to raise hackles but also because it feels a touch arbitrary. Not as arbitrary as DYING BATTERY, though. Especially considering that 5% or 7% is also a dying battery.

LOWFAT MILK is much better; a fine phrase. I did enter TWO PERCENT immediately after uncovering this, though, which confused me as I went. One study of milk drinkers had 30% consuming two-percent, with one-percenters at only 10%.

I like UNFAVORABLE ODDS as a phrase. It didn't fit well in this puzzle, though. I can imagine a gambler using percentages instead of odds, but a bettor saying that 1% is UNFAVORABLE ODDS? Isn't 33% unfavorable while 1% is fuggedaboudit?

Interesting debut in ZADDY. I wasn't positive about KATZ's Deli since KATS felt plausible, but a SADDY hardly feels like it describes an "attractive, fashionable man." I'm glad to learn this term. Sadly, only SADDY can accurately be used in my hardly deli-cate household.

Fun concept to apply ONE PERCENT to four different walks of life. I wish they had all been as apt and powerful as the We are the 99% definition, though.

– puzzle by Max Chen Lauring and Benjamin Chen Lauring

Seasoned solvers spotting four unchecked squares can fill in the letters N E W S immediately. The puzzle is done!

Or is it?

I loved the secondary realization that this tried and true rule-breaker was only to hint at the real show, N E W S hidden in the four plus-sign COMPASSes. We've added the letters in (below) to make things clear.

Why don't the added N E W S letters work with other surrounding answers? Like, why isn't HATS actually HATSN?

Because reasons.

There's a software trick to make filling easier: you can put in a thin black line between HATS and N, and another one between N and HEATS. Insert an N into that dead-ended space, and you can fill the grid normally.

That doesn't mean that it's easy, though. I appreciate that Mark took on the challenge of filling huge corners chock full of 7-letter slots, giving this one a themeless feel. Some beautiful results, CAPTCHA CASH CAB, PUP TENT all elevating the solve.

Ding for AQUEOUS crossing AQUARIA, since they're shared etymology, but I'd bet less than 10% of solvers notice it. Great clue for AQUARIA, anyway, playing on "schoolhouse."

Jim Horne is no fan of so many entries from "The Simpsons," so I wondered if the prank call HUGH Jass might amuse him.

We are not amused, but I am.

Difficult to uncover those N E W S-worthy words, especially the double-acting ones like (E)NDO(W) and (E)LBO(W), but it was well worth the effort.

– puzzle by Mark MacLachlan

Funny that Patrick called BEER KOOZIE super-recognizable — it was the one entry I didn't recognize. Not by name, at least (Googling jogged my memory).

I was much more enamored with PATROL CARS. It's a fine entry, but the [Copper container?] clue elevates it sky-high. I initially thought this might be a mini-theme echoing back to BEER KOOZIE, hinting at COPPER MUG for a Moscow Mule. Thankfully, the telltale question mark made me think twice. That's COPPER, as in slang for a police officer.

GAY MECCA didn't ring a bell, but it's a fantastic entry that allowed Patrick's voice to shine through. It's two recognizable words, making it easy to recognize as correct, and it's such an interesting juxtaposition, given the problems some religions have around LGBTQ+. Great way to pique my interest in reading up on Fire Island.

Not as much juice as I seek out of a themeless, only 10 long entries (8+ letters), with some of them not stellar. SEA EAGLE is much less interesting than EQUAL PAY, for example.

However, there are a half-dozen genius-level clues, which helped make up for it. I enjoyed the repurposing of "lift one's spirits" for IMBIBE, and [C, for one] made no sense for ARC. That is, until I finally thought about the shape of the letter C!

Similarly, I had to think long and hard about why [Shrimp in a shell] might fit TACO. Glad I didn't gloss over it, because it's such a magical way to misdirect from delicious shrimp TACOs.

– puzzle by Patrick John Duggan

Great quantity of long slots, and even better utilization. With 16 long slots (8+ letters), it seemed like I was uncovering goodies everywhere I went. Almost every one of these entries was excellent to memorable, too. The CLEAN PLATE CLUB has one member in my household — hey, don't throw away that perfectly good apple core! I didn't know STRANGER THINGS, but now I want to try it out because of the clue. Why would it spur on a surge in Eggo sales? I can't wait to find out.

DEBATE TEAMS is a strong entry in its own right, and [Groups with lots of issues to talk through] had me thinking about support groups. There's so much potential for clever cluing, and Aaron took full advantage of it.

I found the TIMOTHEE / EDIE cross challenging, but Chalamet is potentially the brightest male star of his generation? No pressure there! I'm glad the clue referenced the upcoming "Dune," as I'll have even more reason to see it.

A couple more not-so-familiar words in DILI and DURAG. World capitals ought to be all fair game, and although East Timor isn't the largest country, it's still relevant. I ended up loving the clue for DURAG. I enjoyed the article. Spelling it DORAG always seemed odd, too, given its pronunciation.

Great Saturday themelesses are marked by stellar fill and, even more so, by stellar cluing. Wordplay like [Not-so-big shot] is magic. Not only do you mislead toward a singular instead of plural BBS, but it's such a creative way to repurpose "big shot."

– puzzle by Adam Aaronson

MIND OVER MATTER, literally represented four times in the grid. Elegant that Aimee and Ella listed the four states of matter in proper progression: SOLID, LIQUID, GAS, PLASMA. Also elegant that their four MIND synonyms exactly match their respective states of matter in length. Tidy picture — see below, where we've highlighted the key answers.

A feat of construction; pairs of stacked answers difficult to work with. Not to mention requiring rotational symmetry! LIQUID ___ must match length with ___ NOODLE, and ___ SMARTS must also match length with PLASMA ___. It's a wonder that Aimee and Ella managed to find matching sets at all.

It's a mark of technical excellence that I barely noticed minor AFR ALII ANIN glue.

Jim Horne mentioned that he solved this mostly as a themeless, and I did as well. While the technician in me appreciates the extremely difficult construction, it felt like a one-liner, not far enough away from the rest of the states of matter crosswords, to make the theme alone worth a 21x21 solve.

Thankfully, Aimee and Ella did a great job incorporating enough bonuses to elevate the experience. Ironically, I couldn't figure out IGNORATI, but I got such a laugh out of the word. PATOOTIE similarly brought a smile to my face, and this wannabe-Jedi loved MAY THE FOURTH (be with you).

Some great thematic phrases also helped elevate, like STREET SMARTS and PREGNANCY BRAIN, which somehow I caught while my wife was pregnant (and haven't shaken since).

– puzzle by Aimee Lucido and Ella Dershowitz

A theme I've never encountered? Slap me around and call me Susan! This child of the '80s grew up rocking to ROCK ME AMADEUS and mocking his first-generation Chinese father's love of Beach Boys music.

And suddenly, I realized that what went around came around. In the form of seven-year-old eyes rolled at dad rocking out, Carlton-style.

Unusual pattern to riff on: X ME, NAME. Piqued my curiosity; were there others? All I could come up with was KISS ME, KATE. Others were close, but BEAM ME UP SCOTTY has an extraneous UP, and CALL ME ISHMAEL doesn't have the comma. Impressive to uncover four exactly-patterned themers — that exhibit crossword symmetry!

I wasn't sold on FEED ME SEYMOUR, as it felt like "random movie line." Not nearly as strong as a song title, for example. However, it is a repeated line from Little Shop of Horrors, so it works.

Great bonuses. Since all the themers are long and fit that distinctive pattern, long Acrosses in ANCHOR LEG and I FEEL SICK didn't risk muddying the theme. SECRETLY and SLED RIDE flesh things out nicely, too. I'm all for trade-offs that exact only minor prices, like Ian called out.

Rare treat to experience something new, albeit a bit of an oddball pattern to highlight. Fun debut.

– puzzle by Ian Rathkey

A friend asked me about this theme two years ago, and I hemmed and hawed, wondering if it was worth the effort of creating a full, clued grid, as Will Shortz requires. Something didn't sit well with me, as SYLVIA PLATH, MARGARET MITCHELL, and EMILY BRONTE (our theme set) wrote other things in their lives — all writers do.

We ended up querying the theme with Mike Shenk at the WSJ, who said no thanks, because although these writers are best known for their single novel, they all wrote short stories, essays, etc.

I'm a genius!

Then I did today's puzzle.

Okay, maybe not.

This is why everyone should listen to me. Also, no one.

It's a fun concept, playing on THAT'S ALL / SHE WROTE. I knew ANNA SEWELL off the top because my friend and I discussed extensively whether or not she was fair game. (I think so. Mostly.)

I'm not a fan of revealers that give away the game too quickly. Perhaps a mirror layout, with all the themers vertically oriented, would have been better. That way, THAT'S ALL SHE WROTE could be experienced much later in the solving process.

Still, a novel (sorry) concept to most non-OCD constructor types. Fun debut.

– puzzle by Drew Schmenner

The iconic yoga pose, DOWNWARD DOG, is represented perfectly in the grid. I love crossword art that features shapes made of circles — Joanne Sullivan's inspired me to collaborate on one about National Parks.

Having tried yoga twice and failing both times — it's too slow-paced for my taste; yes I know that that's part of the point — I didn't recognize any of the other poses. CHAIR in particular got me wondering, how is it possible to contort the human body like that? Led to an entire rabbit hole of yoga pose investigation. Aptly, there's even a rabbit pose!

The other poses besides DOWNWARD DOG didn't seem like the Wikipedia entry pictures. Perhaps COBRA pose varies from a 45 degree angle to 90, depending on ability?

So many circles in fixed patterns cause a ton of constraints. Anne did well to fill carefully around poses. Deft gridwork around CH/AIR, for example, the offset chunks potentially perilous. RODAN might be tricksy for non-sci-fi fans, and OBDURATE isn't an everyday word, but I like this set of trade-offs, given that this is a mid-week puzzle.

I love grid art circles, but it'd have been great if more of the arrangements gave me a stronger visual link to the actual poses.

– puzzle by Anne Grae Martin

Literal wordplay in the clues, arrows pointing to Di in Di Gaga Godiva = FIRST LADY.

At first, the sequence of FIRST, SECOND, MIDDLE, THIRD, LAST didn't make sense — MIDDLE between SECOND and THIRD was jarring — but it turns out to be a tight set.

Consider this: With exactly three items in each list, what words would you use to describe each item? Besides Ari's five, perhaps FINAL or BEGINNING, but those are duplicative to LAST and FIRST. There's elegance in constrained sets.

Excellent gridwork, as I've come to expect from Ori. I appreciate that he worked hard to juice up his long slots — SNAKE OIL and SEMI-NUDE make for a vivid pair — while squeezing even more out of his mid-lengthers (LAB RAT, AD REPS). And such a smooth product, with no glue dabs showing through.

This genre is so developed that it takes a lot to make one shine, like this more complex clue playing on MODE. I enjoyed thinking about the set tightness, though.

– puzzle by Ori Brian

SHIVER ME TIMBERS! Now that's a way to headline a triple-stack themeless. Bursting with imagery.

Even better is HATERS GONNA HATE — both as a marquee entry, and as a Zen life philosophy.

I was baffled by GARDEN ___. There had to be some kind of wordplay with both "digs" and "bed." GARDEN … APATHETIC? As in, someone who digs lazing in bed all day?

Turns out, I was equally flummoxed the first time this entry showed up. They say that short-term memory ... what was I saying?

I also had difficulty uncovering ETHNIC RELATIONS because I couldn't wrap my brain around that as a solid phrase. RACE RELATIONS, yes. ETHNIC STUDIES, sure. I did find "ethnic relations" in a Wikipedia article, but as part of race and ethnic relations.

A lot of strong material connecting the triple-stacks to the rest of the puzzle. I amused myself imagining IT HAPPENS started at 1-Across. Admit it, Long John Hawksley, that was on purpose! Completely worth the high price of HOT TO.

Triple-stacks have been so ubiquitous through the years that all three entries of each set have to shine. These didn't quite measure up, but there was enough elsewhere to keep my attention.

– puzzle by John Hawksley

What, you saw a mini-theme in KAMALA HARRIS to YOU'VE GOT THIS to NOT AFRAID?

Seeing as I try to keep politics out of crosswords, you must have consumed one too many SAKE BOMBs.

While working with Mary Lou on this grid, I wondered if A LA MAISON would be interesting enough to include in the bottom-left corner. I thought it was funny as a foreign equivalent to something like Ali G IN DA HOUSE!

My French friends said, "Mais oui!"

While test solving, Jim Horne said, "Hmm … I SEE." (Meaning, not so much.)

Curious how that corner treats the Saturday solving population.

.

– puzzle by Mary Lou Guizzo and Jeff Chen

★ Fantastic finds! As if I wasn't already wowed by FRIDA spaced out through FROM DUSK TILL DAWN, SEVEN through OCEANS ELEVEN was doubly interesting because both movies are number-related.

And then the coup de grace, HEAT found twice throughout THE GODFATHER PART II. At first, I wondered if that double-vision was strange? But the duality of the themers echoed by two HEATs — as well as THE GODFATHER, Part II! — made it such a captivating finale.

I hadn't heard of INHERENT VICE, and HER all together (instead of spaced out like the others) made it less impactful. However, I admire Joaquin Phoenix's body of work so much that this entry cued me to add these movies onto my long to-be-watched list.

When a theme concept is this strong, the best thing to do with your grid is to make sure it doesn't get in the way. Work in a few bonuses if you can — EXOTIC FISH, NO SIREE BOB, NEED A LIFT, REN FAIRE, LOW LIFES more than do the trick — and keep your short fill unnoticeable. Adam did an impeccable job, not only keeping his quantity of gluey bits to way less than Sunday average but limiting them to gettable entries like ELLS, PHS (think PH paper), TO BE.

Sunday puzzles ought to have themes that captivate solvers all the way through the large canvas, and this did exactly that. I'd pay a premium if every Sunday NYT were half as entertaining.

– puzzle by Adam Wagner

I used to spend hours at my local Barnes & Noble, cozied up in an overstuffed chair with a page-turner. When the final "Harry Potter" book came out, I took the day off work and lounged there from open until close!

Not surprisingly, that branch is now closed. I did buy drip coffee there, but that might not have been their preferred business model. Ahem.

I appreciated how well Stella hid the book GENREs. For example, FANTASY BASEBALL misdirects away from books much more than FANTASY WORLD or FANTASY SERIES would. Even with as much time I spend around books — a new library book is the one sure way to soothe either of my kids when they break down — I was still stumped on "Name That Theme" after WESTERN WALL. (ROMANCE LANGUAGE finally made things click.)

Tough as nails themelesses are such a different GENRE than Mondays. I'm a big believer in the philosophy of your opening corner setting the tone for your solvers. SOLE as a 1-Across gimme is perfect. ESTAB is not. Even LUNK and ALKALI could slow newer solvers down.

Stella's themeless experience showed through in her long bonuses. I loved getting BUTTON UP and COIFFEUR in unusual locations. A shame that AWFULLY and PILE INTO weren't awfully sparkly, but they're perfectly fine.

My one eyebrow-raiser: I don't know that crossing AOC and TYCO is fair on a Monday.

It'd have been great to open up the grid more in the center — it's too close to a separated top and bottom half — but a great theme for this book lover.

– puzzle by Stella Zawistowski

I love PERSONAL FINANCE. I help some friends and family manage their finances, taking delight in freeing them from 1% annual asset management fees. Sometimes it's comforting to pay a professional to assume responsibility, but 1% annually — often, upwards of 2%! — is such a burden on long-term returns.

Great theme idea, highlighting people whose names involve an asset class. BONDS, definitely. CASH, yes. A shame that John STOCKton doesn't quite work.

Also, a shame that SILVER is rarely seen in PERSONAL FINANCE discussions. It's a reasonable idea to allocate a small percentage of assets to "alternatives," which include real estate, private equity, hedge funds, collectibles, commodities. And if someone's insistent on allocating a portion to commodities, it's almost always gold.

Eric's point is well-taken. Would ARI GOLD have been a good addition? ANDREW GOLD, the guy who wrote the "Golden Girls" theme song? Probably no and no.

If you have to accept a trade-off in themers, relaxing consistency might have been interesting. (Get it? Interest-ing? As in, interest on an investment ... fine, I'll stop.) Jeff GOLDblum? Singular James BOND? Brian CASHman? Feels like there's some solution.

I'd have also loved the revealer lower in the puzzle, to not give away the game so early. While some folks adore themer interlock, generating a bigger a-ha moment is more important. This could have been achieved by putting all the people at the top of the puzzle, and PERSONAL FINANCE in row 12.

Smooth grid, though, which can be difficult given the interlocking themers.

– puzzle by Eric Bornstein

This recipe worked a lot better than my attempt at making MARINARA. Not only is the "chopping" better represented by separating the letters, but there's a fun change of pace with the LIME aptly squeezed into a rebus square. Yum, PICO DE GALLO!

It is a shame that Brandon wasn't able to include cilantro. Using the search pattern *C*I*L*A*N*T*R*O* (the stars represent "search for anything here"), the only option that was even remotely close was SOCIAL ANTHRO(POLOGY). Some people have a hatred of cilantro, anyway.

It is a tough layout, with all five themers grid-spanners or nearly so. Additionally, Brandon had to make the LIME rebus work with its Down answer. EBOAT definitely gets the stink-eye, but there's also enough DERM PORC PSA SSE that I'd have given thought to rework. I love SUPEREGOS and SPORTS BRA as bonus fill, but breaking up the latter would clean things up to where EBOAT might be more forgivable on the whole.

I felt so obtuse trying to figure out what [More than right … or seldom correct?] meant. Brilliant clue! (An OBTUSE angle is greater than a right angle's 90 degrees.)

Creativity is often finding unusual ways to combine disparate-seeming ideas, and this is a great example of that. Excellent decision to circle LIME, too, which helped me feel like the pattern being broken was fun, not jarring.

– puzzle by Brandon Koppy

Chase! He recently moved up to Seattle, not too far away from me. I've enjoyed working with him on several puzzles, including a NYT Sunday coming out soon.

Today's plays on TRUE and FALSE, with T or F changing different pairs of answers. TREE SPIRIT to FREE spirit was the highlight, both perfectly reasonable crossword fill. TEED OFF / FEED OFF are fine answers, too, if not as sparkly as FREE SPIRIT.

FIRE SALE is fantastic. TIRE SALE is … not.

Are there such things as FEAR GLANDS? My doctor wife's TEAR GLANDS activated when I asked her that.

Gridding around five pairs of threaded answers is a bear. Chase did a great job laying things out so only two theme answers had to cross: (T/F)EAR GLANDS and (T/F)ANGS. He did have to go up to 80 words to do this, but I don't mind that at all. David Steinberg over at Universal has relaxed his maximum word count standards, which makes sense since few solvers care.

Solvers do care about quality of fill, though. I loved Chase's PARSECS inclusion (and clue), and that "Family Guy" video is hilarious! KOALA BEAR is squee-worthy.

ORIEL and REALES … are not. Knowing Chase's current skill level, I bet he'd try a cheater square at the F of ASK OF and revise.

I like my Thursdays trickier, plus it felt too easy to come up with pairs of entries where T or F would work. An interesting middle ground, though, sort of a baby steps introduction to the magical world of Schrödingers.

– puzzle by Chase Dittrich

One's personal experiences have such a drastic effect on one's themeless enjoyment level. This one is perfect example. These days, Jim Horne and I tend to agree about puzzles more than ever, but I love it when I get a chance to appreciate our differences.

RADIO SHACK was a dingy, disorganized chain where I could never find the capacitor I needed. Jim, however, was an ardent member of the Free Battery Club in his youth, so it brought back great memories.

I loved POOL SHARKS, as one of my career goals was to be one. (Turns out you have to be good, sadly.) Jim had heard many plays on "English" (pool term for spin put on the cue ball) before, though, so it didn't do much for him. Now, if this had been an ice hockey term …

Jim highlighted FRESH MEAT as a fantastic entry, as it brought back fond memories of The Shawshank Redemption and he wasn't aware of any negative connotations. I also loved that movie, but I've heard FRESH MEAT in a horrible sense too many times, so I cringed.

Apt that the puzzle features EASY-A and OFFAL in opposite spots. Vive la différence!

Delightful thoughts behind Katie's extra clues. STRIKE PAY is a fantastic entry, and playing on "rising up" and "dough" is clever. It doesn't quite work all together, but this is the type of creative wordplay that all themeless constructors ought to be employing.

– puzzle by Kate Hawkins

I enjoy seeing Trenton's byline because it's nearly a guarantee that I'll feel smug as I solve — my knowledge of Trenton's love for rare letters speeds me through.

Today was no different than usual. Six-letter author? Has to be SUN TZU. Jazz musician? Stan GETZ, easy. I was stuck on ???PLANKTON, but then I asked myself, WWTD? Didn't take long to run through JQXZ, and ZOOPLANKTON it was.

Double smugness when I recalled the XERI- start from another of Trenton's puzzles!

Sometimes I think Trenton has become too much of a predictable one-note constructor, but I loved the extra element he included today. Did you notice the XYZ stairstep in the center left? I'm a sucker for mini-themes, and this one reminded me of a delightful P/Q puzzle and a recent IGHT one.

YELLOW PAGES is a dull entry, given that it's a relic of the past, but that clue, repurposing Book of Numbers, is brilliant.

– puzzle by Trenton Charlson