Saturday, July 11, 2026, Jim Quinlan

I found today's puzzle to be an easier solve than yesterday's. I have often wondered how our friends at the NYT determine which puzzles should go on which days. I expect that Fridays and Saturdays should be the most challenging to figure out as they are both themeless, and so you don't have a simple metric like how difficult the theme is to help you out. There is also the dial of how tricky the cluing is, which can take the same grid from straightforward to infernally mind-twisting, which we see in the final puzzle at the ACPT, with its three levels of clues.

But then, at the same time, I enter into solving Saturday's puzzle with the mindset that the clues are going to be misleading and surprising. So I might be undermining the editors' classification through putting on my "Saturday clue" solving hat (metaphorically. I don't actually have such a hat. Just to be perfectly clear).

With all that out of the way, I still think this was easier than yesterday. 1D: Features of many M. Night Shyamalan films (PLOTTWISTS) is really a gimme, as is at least the start of 2D: Home to Pearl Harbor (OAHUHAWAII) - I initially had OAHUisland, but it wasn't hard to correct. 4D gave me 12D. 

JOSS statue - the word comes from the Portuguese "deos" 

I like the clue at 5A: Eschews English, say (SKIPCLASS) - a very nice non-QMC. But LEGALLIMIT was also straightforward. 

I suppose that my "Saturday clue" solving hat (again I don't actually own one. Really) helped with 28D: Some ports, for short (USBS). 48A: Metaphorical beginning or ending (ASHES) is a good clue, if depressing. I also chuckled at 58A: What's kraken? (SEAMONSTER), but then I have a calendar of just Dad jokes, so that's me.

Well, I've finished a week of blogging, so IGUESSTHATSTHAT. Time to put away my "Saturday clue" solving hat and turn the reviewing duties over to Philbo.

- Colum