Since I know there's been a lot of discussion about it already, I felt that I should address the new online crossword format. The short story is that I don't have many definitive answers for you at this time. What I can encourage you to do is, first, to remain patient. Second, if you feel particularly strongly about things you would like to see implemented or changed on the crossword page, please let The Post know by emailing games@washpost.com.
Today's puzzle has four revealers, with each one pointing to words on the border of the grid:
- 32A: [Kitchen surface, and a hint to the words in the first row] is COUNTERTOP. The words in the first row: 1A: [Resist] is DEFY, 5A: [Direct opposite] is INVERSE, and 12A: [Calculating tool] is ABACUS. These are different forms of "counter" found at the top edge of the puzzle.
- 60A: [Certain theater space, and a hint to the words in the first column] is STAGE LEFT. The words meaning "stage" on the left side of the puzzle: 18D: [Raised surface] is PLATFORM, 66D: [Present dramatically] is ENACT, and 105D: [Phase] is STEP.
- 77A: [Absolutely, and a hint to the words in the last column] is DOWNRIGHT. The words meaning "down" on the right side of the puzzle, aptly facing down: 21D: [Up for it] is GAME, 49D: [Throw one back, say] is DRINK, and 87D: [Glum] is SADDENED.
- 108A: [Lowest point, and a hint to the words in the last row] is ROCK BOTTOM. The words meaning "rock" on the bottom edge of the puzzle: 127A: [Wobble] is TEETER, 128A: [Ring stone, perhaps] is DIAMOND, and 129A: [Leave astonished] is STUN.
I considered this puzzle a bit like a spiritual successor to my December 2017 crossword "Places, Please," which featured five revealers that hinted at circled words touching all edges of the grid (as well as a sneaky rebus square in the center). I had hoped to use thematic words that could lend themselves to widely different definitions but could essentially be clued with the same single word. For instance, the top-row words DEFY and INVERSE and ABACUS could all potentially be clued as [Counter], the bottom-row words TEETER and DIAMOND and STUN could all be clued as [Rock], and so on.
As with all crosswords featuring theme answers on the perimeter, the real trouble was dealing with the corners of the grid, especially the northwest and southeast corners with their vertical stacks of 8- and 9-letter answers. It's ironic that SADDENED ended up being a happy find while I was building the puzzle; its friendly letters came to the rescue in that lower-left corner since DEJECTED was proving to be much tougher to deal with.
Some other answers and clues:
- 24A: ["Masters of the Universe" planet] is ETERNIA. I think this is actually the first time this is appearing as an answer in a mainstream crossword. Given its letters, I'm surprised I hadn't used it before. The next step is to one day use the similarly named planet INFINITA, which is Skeletor's homeworld.
- 55A: [Oh, it's hue] is COLOR. This clue is a little silly, I know, but it amused me more than the tried and true "X or Y" clue where you simply list two examples of whatever the answer is, as I did for RODENT at 78D: [Beaver or squirrel, e.g.]. This type of "X or Y" clue is also common in clues for the answer HUE, appropriately enough.
- 99A: ["Two all-beef patties, special sauce, lettuce, cheese, pickles, onions, on a sesame seed ___" (old jingle for a Big Mac)] is BUN. A long way to go for a three-letter answer, but it reminded me of this old "Simpsons" gag which made it worth it.