Paolo Pasco’s New York Times crossword, “Terminal Connections” —Nate’s write-up

Hello from stop-and-go site visitors exterior of Palm Springs, due to my cellphone’s private hotspot. While my expensive husband drives, I couldn’t wait to submit about immediately’s superior puzzle. Let’s dive in!

10.16.22 Sunday New York Times Crossword

– 6D: SIDEARM [Baseball pitching style … or a weapon]
– 14D: RAMADA [Big name in hotels]
– 24A: DEAR MADAM [Old-fashioned letter opener]

– 36D: BITE MARK [Indentation on a chew toy]
– 38D: REIGNITE [Light again]
– 53A: E-MARKETING [Online promotions, collectively]

– 40D: LESTRADE [Whom Holmes tells “You do find it very hard to tackle the facts”]
– 43D: NORSEMAN [Many a Viking]
– 56A: TRADE NAMES [What businesses go by]

– 62D: THOUSAND [Grand]
– 65D: HUGUENOTS [Early French Protestants]
– 89A: SANDSTONE [Rock commonly used in asphalt]

– 67D: US VS THEM [Basic rivalry]
– 70D: DEMI MOORE [“G.I. Jane” star, 1997]
– 91A: THEME ROOM [Part of a hotel with decor fitting a certain motif]

– 100D: ANOTHER ONE [“Encore!”]
– 106D: BASSETTE [Actress Angela]
– 122A: THE RONETTES [“Be My Baby” group, 1963]

Circled letters (terminal connections): MA KE   EN DS   ME ET

Wow! For every set of theme entries, two down entries flip inward at an angle to type / overlap with a 3rd throughout entry, the place their terminals (endings) join. To assemble a puzzle the place every thing is clear and checked each within the throughout and down instructions is hard sufficient; to have a puzzle the place so most of the squares are triple checked is unbelievable! AND to have the connecting terminals of all these symmetrically-placed theme units spell an ideal revealer phrase is simply ::chef’s kiss:: What a joyful remedy, even in spite of some sections (particularly the SW nook) that took me slightly additional time to determine. Bravo, Paolo! COWABUNGA!

Other notes:
– 20A: EBOOK [Volume on an iPad, say] – Cute!
– I liked what number of girls of colour have been highlighted within the entries of this puzzle, together with LEONA Lewis, Naomi OSAKA, THE RONETTES, PARK SO-DAM, Angela BASSETTE, Michelle Yeoh, and extra!
– 112A: SCARIES [Sunday ___ (end-of-week anxiety, casually)] – I used to be glad to see this within the NYT puzzle. It feels fairly validating for my Sunday night time experiences!
– 88D: AOL [“Have ___ make my email stop” (Destiny’s Child lyric) – The moment I filled this in, I messaged Paolo to gush. You buggin’ what, you buggin’ who?

What did you enjoy about the puzzle? Let us know in the comments section. Until then, I hope you have a great week!