Jean & Mike Do The New York Times Crossword

We do not know if this was planned or by chance, but today's crossword happens to be an ideal choice for National Repeat Day, which, we have been reliably assured, is a real thing . While today's debut by Jiahe Men (woo-hoo!) was not overly difficult, grokking the theme did make solving it easier and more fun. We liked it a bunch, and therefore bestow upon it a meter-pegging 5 squares on...

Rich Katz has scored again with a winning theme and a strong supporting cast of clues. We've covered most of those in the podcast, but we would also like to doff our hats in honor of the fun-to-say 31D, Sea sight in black and white, ORCA; the good-to-know 12D, About 8,100 square feet, for a baseball infield, AREA; and an even better-to-know-in-NE-Wisconsin, 52A, Wash with a glycol spray, as a...

This was Kenneth Cortes' third NYTimes crossword , and it was splendid. The theme was memorable and unique, and there were some other gems among the rest of the clues. These include  a clue that has is making its second appearance in about two weeks, welcome back 42D, Shiba ___ (Japanese hunting dog), INU;  a university that, alas, its namesake hasn't deigned to donate to, 50A, North Car...

Today's crossword was by Jeffrey Martinovic and Evan Park, students at Western University in London, Ontario (go, Mustangs!). It was inspired in part because at Jeffrey's high school they played the William Tell Overture before the school day commenced (very classy!). It was constructed as a result of months worth of brainstorming sessions, and all that effort really paid off. We loved i...

Since this was Saturday, we expected a tough crossword, and Malaika Handa and Erik Agard did not disappoint . Some of the clues were straightforward-ish, but others were definitely not for the faint of heart. We salute the constructors for their ingenuity, and our K-12 teachers for reminding us that, one day, what we'd learn would help us finish an NYTimes crossword 😀 😀  Show note imagery:...

Hemant Mehta is adept at writing challenging but highly entertaining Friday crosswords, and we cherish every one of the seven that he has constructed. Today's had some awesome clues, including 55A, Time of day either way, NOON (🌞); 52A, Fictional manufacturer of a Do-It Yourself Tornado Kit, ACME (🧨); and 8D, "Yowzers!", HOLYMOSES (🧺). There were more — of course — so check out t...

This marks John Kugelman's fifth NYTimes crossword of the year , and it's only May! The man is clearly the embodiment of prolific, but it's not just quantity, it's quality , as today's crossword clearly illustrates. We have all the deets inside, so have a listen, and don't forget to leave us a 5 star review on your favorite podcast app. Show note imagery: The Houston...

This was a clever mid-week crossword by Dario Salvucci. The theme was fun, there was just the right number of "huh, who knew?" clues for a Wednesday, and Dario deserves bonus points for throwing in one of our favorite words —Rapscallion — into the mix. Bravo! Show note imagery: The Chrysler Building, which for 11 months reigned as the tallest building in the world. We love feedback! Send...

Today's crossword is by Brad Lively, who now has one crossword in each of the Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday slots. We're placing our bets that his fourth crossword will be a Friday (but we have absolutely no inside knowledge, promise!). We found Brad's puzzle to be straightforward, but replete with several fascinating factoids that we detail in today's podcast (no spoilers he...

Timed just perfectly to match the mini-heatwave about to ravage NE Wisconsin (temperatures might get up to 90°F😱), Anthony V. Grubb has shown up with a crossword that is, in its own way, on fire — thanks to clues like 68A, Back of a car or front of an elephant, TRUNK (nice one!); 45D, Gimmicky routines, SCHTICKS (oy vey!); and the terrific 70A, Place of buzziness?, HIVE (BEEauty 😀). Besides toda...

David Steinberg is definitely a child prodigy when it comes to crosswords. His first NYTimes crossword was published in 2011, when he was (does some math) approximately 14 years old. Constructing any crossword is a challenge — constructing one, while a teen, that can get into the NYTimes ... is extraordinary . David didn't rest on his laurels, though: this is his 113th(!) NYTimes crossword. S...

Kameron Austin Collins specializes in end-of-the-week-and-nigh-well-impossible crosswords. His talents are on full display today , a crossword with very few black squares, a lot of longish-answers, and a whole host of highly cryptic clues designed to obfuscate and bamboozle. We may need some time to recover before tackling our next KAC puzzle, but we look immensely forward to it whenever it shows...

This was Gene Louise De Vera's sixth NYTimes Crossword , and his Friday debut. Both cohosts found the clues to be quite lively — fun but not fraught, as far as streaks are concerned. Apart from those clues covered in the podcast, we would like to draw your attention to a very NYTime-ish sort of clue, 17D, Carnivora or Lagomorpha, ORDER; the retro 33A, "Neato!", OHCOOL; and the impli...

This was a good mid-week crossword by Kathleen Duncan — her second for the NYTimes. We liked many of the clues in today's puzzle, but our favorites had to be 28D, Big to-do, HOOHA; the old-timey 63A, "Seems right," folksily, RECKONSO; and a debut, 38D, Epitome of slowness, MOLASSES. Show note imagery: CLARA Bow, silent movie star in, among other works, Wings, which in 1929 won the v...

For those of you keeping track, Brad Wiegmann, author of today's very fine puzzle , has as of today published an NYTimes crossword every day of the week except ... Saturday! So, he's just one acceptance letter away from "hitting for the cycle", and we imagine that, at this very moment, Brad is trying to think up some dastardly difficult clues. In the meantime, the clues that he...

How she does it remains a mystery, but Rena Cohen has a definite knack for crafting wonderfully clever and gentle themes, embedded in a grid with some fine answers — today's crossword being an excellent case in point. We were shocked by 54D, Marsupial often mistermed a "bear", KOALA (wait: you mean all those zoo signs are lying to us?!); inspired by the phlegmatic 46A, "___ Cal...

This was an excellent Sunday crossword by Derrick Niederman, a man who heretofore has only published on Sundays, a precedent that he laid down when he first started, in 1983! The crossword was terrific, the theme novel, and there was a plethora of crunchier than usual clues. It made for a fun solve, and is therefore definitely in the running for tomorrow's JAMCOTWA™️ (Jean And Mike Crossword...

This was a highly  challenging crossword by Byron Walden, each clue a masterpiece of misdirection, with a dash of obscurity thrown in for good measure. Both cohosts had to fight mightily for each answer in a grid that contained an incredible 13 debuts. There were so many amazing clues that while we squeezed as many as we could into the podcast, we regretted having to omit 2A, They're hard to...

This was Maddy Ziegler's second NYTimes crossword . Her first appeared on Saturday, so it will very interesting to see on what day her third (which, based on her second, we are sure is going to appear sooner or later) pops up. With absolutely no insider information, we're betting on another Saturday.  This was a pleasing Friday crossword — no theme to bedazzle, all the clues had to pull...

While we didn't have too much difficulty with today's crossword, there were a few clues that made us pause and wonder. We were intrigued by 42D, Seven-stringed instrument that gave the guitar its name, KITHARA; awed by the memorable 11D, Prolifically posting about one's kids online, in a neologism, SHARENTING; and dutifully impressed by 4D, September to April, in the oyster industry...

Today's crossword — the second by Brian Keller — had a plethora of pleasing clues. We enjoyed 13D, Criminally good deal, STEAL; the on-the-nose 26D, Opposite of "nah", YEAH; and the somewhat Yoda-sounding 34D, Avoids injury, say, ISOK. The theme was, needless to say, fabulous. We have all the deets inside, so we cordially invite you to download, listen up, and ... enjoy! Show note i...

Today's crossword was an homage to "this sceptered isle", which just happens to be one of our favorite tourist destinations. In short, there's no way we can be unbiased, we loved this puzzle!  Other than the crossword, we have another Triplet Tuesday™️ segment for your enjoyment, and Mike's performance was ... a surprise. To keep you in suspense, we won't reveal, at t...

After the excitement of the last few days, we confess a certain pleasure in tackling a more laid-back crossword , one that did not require all neurons on deck, and what some might term an excessive amount of gnashing of teeth, to get the job done. We were anticipating that this might be the case, but appreciated the confirmation nonetheless. Hats off to Joel Woodford (this is his second NYTimes cr...

Today's crossword was — depending on which cohost you ask — a slightly crunchier than usual Sunday, or a puzzle just a shade less difficult than decrypting the Rosetta Stone in the dark while wearing gloves. Regardless, the puzzle could be solved, and the payoff was extraordinary, with the AHA! moment in the center of the grid being particularly epic. Deets inside. Show note imagery: Feng Wan...

This was an awe-droppingly good Saturday crossword by Katie Hoody. Each clue, individually, is a work of art in miniature, and collectively, this crossword is simply a work of art. This was, make no mistake about it, a tough crossword: but it was fair, with little to no use of pop culture (Mike's nemesis), just inspiring plays on words. This definitely, positively, pegs the meter on the JAMCR...