New York Times, Monday, January 4, 2016

This crossword comes almost one full year after my debut yet it was accepted just two weeks after. One clue from that puzzle ("Perfect night for a pillow fight") provided the seed for this one. I scribbled it down in my crossword ideas book and came up with a couple of dozen more P__F__ entries. By having a large selection to pick from, it made building and filling the grid easier — for the most part.

I realize that FARON might not be Monday fill but he was a big country music star in his day and is a nod to my dad who enjoyed country music. I can remember hearing Faron Young's songs on some "Decades of Country Music" collection that my dad had on 8-track. My music taste leans more to PINK FLOYD so I just had to include them to balance things out.

Here is what Joel had to say: "This sort of theme type can often be underwhelming, but your version of it works for a couple reasons. First, you have six theme examples, some of them interlocking, which is very impressive. Even better, though, you've chosen lively and fresh theme answers. The fill was very clean and easy, which was another reason we said yes."

Hope you agree with Will and Joel. Happy New Year!

Six P- F- phrases today. Nice choice of themers, POPPIN' FRESH my favorite, PILLOW FIGHTS and PARTY FAVORS also colorful. I almost didn't notice PINK FLOYD and PETIT FOUR hiding in the corners, but they're zingy too.

POUND FOOLISH does sound a bit like a partial to me, but I can see the argument that it's fine. I can much more buy PENNY WISE, as I can imagine someone tilting their head, saying "Penny wise ...", and walking away, clucking their tongue as they imply the remainder. (I swear, I don't do this. Much.) I like it when a crossword entry has hidden punctuation.

Interesting short fill today; some entries we don't often see in early-week puzzles:

• FARON. Anyone with a #1 country hit seems legit to me, as long as the crossings are easy and fair. Thumbs-up from me.
• EPOS. Pretty tough piece of vocab. I might have balked at that EPOS/SETH crossing, but the clue for EPOS indicates pluralization. Thumbs-up.
• SADA. Would she be "important" enough to be in a crossword, if her name wasn't so crossword-friendly with its common letters and alternating vowel consonant pattern? Tough to say.
• NEGS. Not being a photographer, it's tough to figure out if this is a common abbreviation for "negatives." In any case, it's not a pervasive abbreviation. I vote Gluey.
• IDEO. Prefixes are called out as undesirable by most editors. Gluey.
• REARMS. Tough call. Is this a MYOW (make-up-your-own-word)? The RE- addition seems iffy.

So on a case by case basis, I think Herre's fill is pretty good. As a whole, it left me with a bit of an esoteric feel.

I like high theme density — six themers is no joke — but I'm not as taken by it as Will and Joel. The feat is also muted for me since it's easy to come up with all sorts of P- F- phrases.

It would have been nice to get a little something extra, perhaps a revealer. Hmm, PERSONAL FOUL, PHOTO FINISH, PICKET FENCE, POLICE FORCE? Dang it, nothing nicely describes the concept. Ah well.

Pretty fun start to the week.