Saturday, May 24, 2025, Gene Louise De Vera

Fifteen extra squares and a mini-theme today in this 16x15 Saturday grid. 

All starts well in the NW with PSYCH (Course on behavior, for short), HEIR (Mary 1, to Henry VIII), PECOS (River that once marked the boundary of the Wild West), and SPAWNPOINT (Location where a video game character starts (or restarts) a level). All solid. And on the other side, there's RIGAMAROLE (Song and dance), which makes me think of a co-worker who likes to call out "rigamaroo."

Having eaten out yesterday (and split the bill) I smiled when I got MYTREAT (Nice thing to hear from one's dining partner). And speaking of money, I enjoyed the slightly anachronistic PURSES (Places for change). I was surprised when I finally got SHAQ (Magic center, familiarly) - Gotta get that brain a little more plastic! And speaking of - I'm not sure I fully understand ALIENQUEEN (Xenomorph who can produce humanoid offspring). Is that just general fantasy, or is it referring to a specific sci-fi book or movie? 

The mini-theme involves CAUTIOUSOPTIMISM (Feeling described as "hoping for the best, but fearing for the worst") and PLEASANTSURPRISE (Positive result of having 18-Across, perhaps). Nice. And there are loads of other solid C/APs today: "Shelters from the heat?" (SAFEHOUSES); "Not recommended" (ILLADVISED); and "Exposed" (OUTED), to name just three.

Solid Saturday.

- Horace