Monday, August 28, 2023, Brian Callahan

Quite a fUN puzzle today. The theme revealer was "Disconnects ... or what's found in the answers to the four starred clues?" or UNCOUPLES, but, of course, the UN couples in each answer rather serve to connect the two parts of each theme answer rather than separate them. That's why it's funny, get it? Of course you get it, dear Readers. 

I coUNt many other good clue-answer pairs throughout the grid, plus some UN-fun fill. I enjoyed "'Hop to it!'" for ASAP, "Feature of an Uber ride ... or an Uber East order" (FARE), "Motto for a devil-may-care type" (YOLO), and CARP for complain. I especially liked "Chicken's counterpart in a causality dilemma" for EGG - ha!

Another nice couple is NYUK and NOOKS in parallel Down answers. And how about the theme-adjacent USHAPED ("Like some bike locks and magnets"). 

The RESULTS of my solving efforts (5:43) were nice numerically, if not personal-bestly. 

~Frannie.