John Hawksley author page

I've tried my hand at this "four pyramids" themeless style, but I've always kept the center relatively small. That way, it's not that difficult to come up with a center that pleased me, and from there, you can tackle each corner (mostly) independently.

I once considered starting with a center as big as today's — for a few milliseconds, that is. I'm not a fan of the brute force approach, and that's the only way it seemed even remotely possible. I'm sure the usual haters will come out, complaining that a computer-heavy process goes against the human touch that gives crosswords distinction and life, but there's something to be said for all the technical work that goes into tackling specific filling challenges like this. The raw amount of data entry hours that John put in … I love seeing hard work pay off.

An entry like TELESCOPIUM can be divisive — ZUGZWANG and CHICXULUB elicited strong reactions from both lovers and haters. At the time, I grumbled about how these were tacklers on my way toward the goal line, but looking back now, I appreciate them. I've taken up chess more seriously recently, so it was a thrill to read up on ZUGZWANG and realize that I already knew what it meant.

With TELESCOPIUM, CINNCINATUS, CAWCAWED, the Triple ENTENTE (and MAIA and ARAM to a lesser degree), there's even more potential for evoking all sorts of powerful feelings. CAWCAWED is my least favorite of the bunch, although, in a few years, when the crows have broken their entente with the resource-depleted Earth, I'll be retracting that statement.

The eye-popping middle region is a sight to behold, though it wasn't as much fun to solve as others we've had.

We have a feature called "topologically similar grids," which shows you grid layouts that exhibit similar measurements. (Hit "Analyze" at the bottom of the page and scroll down.) Given John's comments, it's no surprise that two of Patrick Berry's puzzles show up! Perusing Patrick's constructor page, I picked out another one that looks similar to today's.

4x9 stacks are rare because it's the rare constructor that can get the most out of each long slot while maintaining top-notch cleanliness. That bottom right corner is so solid. IT WASN'T ME, EPIC POEMS, and especially CAN'T UNSEE are so sizzly. Some editors won't give ENGINEERS a check mark, counting it more neutral, but this engineer loved the clue relating to MIT's sports team name. I imagine there's a lot of licking of chops in anticipation of a game vs. the Engineers …

The opposite corner is just as clean, but there's not as much color. AMERICANO is both a basic drink and grid entry. There might be something artsy about ARTSINESS, though it takes a lot to make a one-worder stand out. I like that MARACAS and GESTALT jazz things up, and HAKEEM the Dream was so awesome to watch during his prime.

Impressive that John didn't resort to ugly RE- or -ER entries, which so often are needed to gloop a corner together (think RECOLORER). I'd much rather eat some everyday PPS PSA, even if those come along with ENERO ETHNO. Interesting that three of those four dings came in the two corners that should be easiest to fill … makes me curious if more iteration would have achieved an overall improvement in either.

Solid example of this type of LIMit-pushing grid design.

SHIVER ME TIMBERS! Now that's a way to headline a triple-stack themeless. Bursting with imagery.

Even better is HATERS GONNA HATE — both as a marquee entry, and as a Zen life philosophy.

I was baffled by GARDEN ___. There had to be some kind of wordplay with both "digs" and "bed." GARDEN … APATHETIC? As in, someone who digs lazing in bed all day?

Turns out, I was equally flummoxed the first time this entry showed up. They say that short-term memory ... what was I saying?

I also had difficulty uncovering ETHNIC RELATIONS because I couldn't wrap my brain around that as a solid phrase. RACE RELATIONS, yes. ETHNIC STUDIES, sure. I did find "ethnic relations" in a Wikipedia article, but as part of race and ethnic relations.

A lot of strong material connecting the triple-stacks to the rest of the puzzle. I amused myself imagining IT HAPPENS started at 1-Across. Admit it, Long John Hawksley, that was on purpose! Completely worth the high price of HOT TO.

Triple-stacks have been so ubiquitous through the years that all three entries of each set have to shine. These didn't quite measure up, but there was enough elsewhere to keep my attention.