Rich Katz author page

Our final contestant in this week's Next Level Constructor is an up-and-comer who I've had the pleasure to work with. Rich is always digging for new ideas, and what I most admire is that for him, good enough is simply not. That applies to both ideas as well as craftsmanship, never willing to let something pass to the next level unless it approaches extraordinary.

Extraordinary is a nearly impossible ask from the done-to-death "initialisms" category, though. Occasionally one rises out of the mire, but a great majority of the time it's an SOS. Home cooks have relied upon varieties of gruel throughout the centuries, and although that has put food into bellies, it too often leaves you wanting more.

There are many ways to elevate gruel from a caloric necessity to a flavor sensation: toppings like dried cuttlefish, a delicate chili oil, a saucy preparation. I enjoyed Rich's plating, hiding the initialisms theme until after my first few bites, making for an unexpected and tasty treat. Riffing on "depose" as a "D pose" = DOWNWARD DOG is dynamite. I wouldn't have guessed that there could be so much variety in an alphabet soup, ending with my favorite, "embosses" cleverly hinting at MIDDLE MANAGEMENT.

Just as any cook beginning with gruel must work miracles with it, someone starting with initialisms must achieve nouvelle construction. This was enough to make me dip in for seconds, and the effort (are there any F forts?) was much appreciated.

And now for the moment we've all been waiting for. Congratulations to every contestant — so many worthy entries, elevating tired themes into modern offerings. But there can only be one victor. The winner of Next Level Constructor is …

Adrian Johnson!

SPACE TRAVEL gives me such warm feelings, remembering the last great book I read. It's a great rationale for "phrases that become new, kooky ones when you shift the position of the space."

Although some of the finds were commonplace to us old-timers — SUPERB OWL has been used many a time, all the way back to 2005 (see 14-Across in that one) and even 2001 — some of them amused me to no end. (LOO M)OVER vibed with my juvenile sense of humor, (ASP EN)TRÉE is a neat find, and MOAN(A BOUT) gave a sense of freshness. A lot of entertainment for this solver!

Focusing on short(ish) themers for a 21x21 can work if you 1.) pack a ton in, and 2.) make them stand out. The problem is that if you stick at the 140-word maximum, something has to be long, and that ends up being much of the fill. All sorts of challenges arise, including how to not lose the themers among the long grass of the forest. We've highlighted them below.

There's no doubt that SPACE TRAVEL is a themer, given its length and central Across location. Is ASPEN TREE or HORSE SENSE a themer? Or both? Or neither? A tiny asterisk is so easy to overlook.

One layout that tends to alleviate this problem is to lay out all your themers Across — and in the same rows. That leaves a lot of long Down filling, but that can create a bigger distinction between theme and fill.

I've had the pleasure of working with Rich for a while now, and I've found him to be open-minded, quick to learn, and unafraid to put in the time. Well-deserved debut — time to go celebrate with some teaser vices!