New York Times, Friday, July 1, 2022

CHRISTINA: I'm thrilled to be sharing a byline with one of the best themeless constructors in the business! Caitlin and I connected three years ago when I reached out because we were both stay-at-home mom constructors at the time. We bounced ideas around relating to nursery rhymes, but never ended up making a themed puzzle. About a year and a half later, we reconnected and made this puzzle, with I'M A LITTLE TEAPOT as a seed. As the grid evolved, only the TEAPOT remained, but I think the puzzle is better for it.

I learned so much from Caitlin about themeless construction. Her puzzles are always so sparkly and clean, which I always strive for in any puzzle. She pushed me with this one to keep reworking it until we were 100% satisfied with every section.

CAITLIN: As Christina mentioned, we've been looking to collaborate on a puzzle together for a while now. I'm excited that that time has finally come!

Christina is a pleasure to work with and diligently aims for clean, fun fill. It's no wonder the LA Times wanted her for an assistant editor! A lot of my favorite fill and clues we submitted were hers like 57-Across and several other cute ones that sadly ended up on the cutting room floor. I also loved the editing team's clue for 18-Across. Hope you enjoy the puzzle!

YOU GO, GIRL is right! What a one-two combo of crossword stars. OH, HELL NO, I didn't NEED HELP to enjoy today's solving experience.

I loved the sheer quantity of clever cluing. Such creativity behind [Meter reader?]; a next-level repurposing of a common phrase. (Some POETs focus on their meter.)

Staying along the lines of artistic license, ORIGAMI is so ripe for a delightful clue. [Enterprise that's folding] innocently misdirects toward a business that's going under. Maybe a bit tortured grammatically, but it didn't take much away from the fun.

I'm currently rewatching "Game of THRONEs," so it didn't take long to figure out [Courtside seats?] That repurposing — a literal seat by the royal court — might be my favorite of the bunch.

Only one debut grid entry: ATE FOR TWO. It's a great phrase, but EATS FOR TWO debuted decades ago and EATING FOR TWO showed up recently, so it didn't feel that fresh. I would have loved some GOAT RODEO or SAY THE MAGIC WORD magic. Entries like RODE SHOTGUN and YOU GO GIRL are excellent, although they trend toward old hat for regular themeless solvers.

These days, the competition for themeless slots is brutal. Tons of constructors can produce spotless themeless grids without many (or any) gluey short entries, so you have to have some way of distinguishing yourself to gain serious consideration. Although there wasn't enough new material in the grid, the cluing kept this one entertaining.