Rachel Fabi and Emet Ozar’s Inkubator crossword, “Up, Up, Up and Away!”—Jenni’s writeup

It took me a bit to determine what was occurring right here. I bounced across the grid for a bit and when the sunshine lastly dawned it was a satisfying “aha!” second. The theme entries are two-word phrases the place the second phrase is above and to the correct of the primary. There’s an ellipsis to inform us to maintain going and a caret to inform us to search for. Plus there’s one thing high-minded about every clue.

Inkubator, September 1, 2022, Rachel Fabi and Emet Ozar, “Up, Up, Up and Away!” answer grid

• 20a [Seat to *hoist* a tot into for dining…^] and 18a are HIGH/CHAIR.
• 30a [Utensil used to *raise* a bite of kale…^] and 27a are SALAD/FORK.
• 52a [Actor’s ability to *elevate* a film…^] and 49a are STAR/POWER.

There’s additionally a revealer pair. 60d [With 68-Across, words at the end of a countdown…or a hint to solving 20-/18-, 30-/27-, and 52-/49-Across] is LIFT/OFF. It’s a posh, multi-layered, elegant theme and it was a number of enjoyable to unravel,

A couple of different issues:

• 5d [“Gotcha,” old-style] is I‘M HIP. I used to be pondering extra Victorian than beatnik.
• 36a [Unnamed local figure in a headline for “The Onion”] is AREA MAN. Not to be confused with “Florida man” or “Florida, man.”
• Does anybody really say AROAR? Anyone? Bueller?
• We have [Pilfer] for FILCH and [Pilfers] for STEALS.
• Cat Cora is a chef and her alma mater is the Culinary Institute of America, not the CIA chances are you’ll be pondering of.

What I didn’t know earlier than I did this puzzle: that OGRES are the smallest of the D&D giants. I additionally didn’t know that Millie Small performs SKA or that Celia Cruz is a RUMBA musician.