Jean & Mike Do The New York Times Crossword

When Aristotle wrote that "the whole is greater than the sum of the parts", he most likely did not have crossword constructors Lance Enfinger and John Kugelman in mind. But the thought still applies — these individually talented constructors have crafted an exceptional puzzle, and the proof is as close as your play button.
Show note imagery: One of RUBE Goldberg's many, many inventions.
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Joseph Gangi's eighth NYTimes crossword was so much more than a mere middling midweek crossword: it had a splendid array of intriguing clues. We loved 4D, Half of many a union-to-be, BRIDE; marveled at the "maritime corner", 20A, Pirate's booty, LOOT and 22A, Swabbie's tool, MOP; and almost swooned at the mention of our very, very favorite comic character, 49A, World War I Flying _______ (Snoopy alter ego), ACE. 
Show note imagery: The ODEON Theater, in Amman, Jordan
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King Charles is stateside, and it had been such a fervent hope of ours that the NYTimes crossword theme would celebrate his arrival that we might have possibly, arguably, read a tad bit too much into today's grid. We'll let you, dear listeners, be the judge: did we stumble upon a very, very subtle "Welcome King Charles" theme, or do we have to stop watching reruns of Downton Abbey before doing the crossword? Let us know!
Show note imagery: King Charles, getting ready to do battle with the Saturday NYTimes crossword!
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Neville Fogarty has published an NYTimes crossword every day of the week save Saturday. Today he had the foot off the pedal, resulting in this kinder, gentler puzzle — which ironically and amusingly took Mike 4x longer than usual to solve. There is a good reason for this, however, explained in today's episode.
Also in today's episode, we have chosen this week's JAMCOTWA™️ (Jean And Mike Crossword Of The Week Award). Deets, as usual,  inside.
Show note imagery: Olive Garden, known for its bottomless salad bowls, its delectable PASTA, and breadsticks to die for
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Rebecca Goldstein has delivered a fine Sunday crossword with gems scattered throughout the grid. Our favorites included 119A, It has its ups and downs, YOYO (🪀); 11D, Stick used for breaking, CUE (🎱);  the good-to-know 56D, Insect with more than 14,000 known species, ANT (🐜); and the audacious musician 9D, "Hanukkah in Santa Monica" songwriter Tom, LEHRER (🎹).
Show note imagery: EVOO, aka Extra Virgin Olive Oil, which, according to the Completely Unbiased EVOO Trade Association, will cure anything that ails you! 😉
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Contact Info:
We love listener mail! Drop us a line, [email protected].

Also, we're on FaceBook, so feel free to drop by there and strike up a conversation!