New York Times, Monday, April 23, 2018

This was an exceedingly rare, once-in-a-blue-moon puzzle for me: Once the phrase "go first" popped into my head, the theme idea and all four theme entries were a done deal within, say,15 minutes. And within an hour, the grid was finished. That just never happens.

I submitted the puzzle close to a year ago, without the circles. I thought the revealer would make everything obvious enough without them, and that people would have a nicer aha moment by seeing it on their own. But yeah, it's Monday.

Only a pair of clue changes to note—the Michael Jackson ones at 11- and 12-Down. I could never have written them, never having heard of the song. But then, you all probably knew that!

GO FIRST! Because the theme answers start with synonyms for GO. As in DEPART, EXIT …

Er, more like synonyms for "GO!" SCAT! SCRAM already! Kind of a pushy Monday puzzle, sheesh! Trying to tell us something, hmm, Lynn?

Some neat finds, most of the themers snazzy. I wasn't sure what a SCATTER RUG was (another term for a throw rug apparently), but I like the sound of it.

I hitched slightly on LEAVENED BREAD, as it's the only one where the GO! synonym changes pronunciation. It would have been nice for all of them to have a pronunciation change, or none of them, for consistency's sake. Ah well. The crossword gods can be cruel.

Are GITANO JEANS still a thing?

Now, this is the way to execute on a simple Monday theme. Go up to 78 words if you need to, but make sure to weave in at least a couple of long bonuses — WEARS THIN, INSIDIOUS, MCQUEEN, even ATTACHE — while keeping your short stuff from getting noticed. Lynn is so good about using those longer slots to her advantage, elevating the solving experience.

Although, there was one area I felt was subpar for her: the DDE / ALEE / DUNNE region. It would have been fine if it had been any other constructor, but a little-used Presidential monogram, a nautical term, and an actress from "old Hollywood"? Not quite up to Lynn's bar.

I liked MCQUEEN and the YOUNG / THING pairing. I'd personally have chosen to smoothify the grid by taking one or more of those out. But I can respect Lynn's choice.

Overall, a fine Monday puzzle. I liked the theme enough that I considered it for the POW! If the revealer had packed more punch, creating a sharper a-ha moment, it might well have been my pick.