May 7, 2023

Title: SIDES OF FRIES

Constructor: Amanda Rafkin

Editor: Amanda Rafkin

Theme Answers:

FRUIT FLIES (17A: Pests that might congregate around a bowl of bananas)

FROZEN VEGGIES (41A: Produce that has to be thawed before eating)

FRENEMIES (65A: People you like despite your rivalry)

Theme synopsis: The word FRIES is split and appears at the SIDES OF each theme answer.

Things I learned:

• ALEX (19A: "Shucked" star Newell) and ACT (4D: One of two in the musical "Shucked") Shucked is a musical (with two ACTS) that opened on Broadway in 2022. I was going to try to summarize the story of Shucked for you, but instead, I recommend you take a few moments to watch the trailer on the Shucked website. I'll wait... Welcome back. ALEX Newell plays the role of Lula, the owner of the local whiskey distillery. If you watch this video (sometimes a video is worth a thousand words), you may understand why ALEX Newell has been nominated for a 2023 Tony Award for Best Performance by an Actor in a Featured Role in a Musical. (Award winners will be announced next month.) 
• GIGI (25A: Sepideh Moafi's character in "The L Word: Generation Q") The TV series The L Word: Generation Q, which aired from 2019-2023, is a sequel of The L Word, which originally aired from 2004-2009. Sepideh Moafi portrays GIGI Ghorbani on the show. You can also see Sepideh Moafi in the FX on Hulu miniseries, Class of '09, which is scheduled to be released in a few days, on May 10.
• THE (57A: ___ Museum of Broken Relationships) THE Museum of Broken Relationships is located in Zagreb, Croatia. As the name suggests, THE museum is dedicated to failed relationships. Its exhibits are items donated after THE breakup of a relationship, and a story accompanies each item. There is also a Museum of Broken Relationships in Los Angeles. THE physical LA museum has closed, but it maintains an online presence.

Random thoughts and interesting things:

• FRUIT FLIES (17A: Pests that might congregate around a bowl of bananas) Ugh - FRUIT FLIES! There are many sites online that will tell you how to make a simple trap to take care of FRUIT FLIES that appear in your kitchen. I've gotten good at this. My trap of choice involves red wine vinegar and a little sugar.
• FROZEN VEGGIES (41A: Produce that has to be thawed before eating) There's no doubt about it, FROZEN VEGGIES are convenient. The good news is they are just as good for you as fresh VEGGIES. 
• SOCCER (43A: Megan Rapinoe's sport) I have previously written about SOCCER star Megan Rapinoe.
• FRENEMIES (65A: People you like despite your rivalry) Ah, FRENEMIES. This is a fun theme answer. Do you have FRENEMIES? 
• BELLA (67A: "The Last of Us" star Ramsey) It's been just a few weeks since I wrote about The Last of Us, a TV series based on a video game of the same name. In that puzzle we saw PEDRO clued in reference to PEDRO Pascal, the actor who portrays Joel, a smuggler tasked with escorting a teenager across the country. That teenager, whose name is Ellie, is portrayed by BELLA Ramsey.
• SEX (13D: Activity that requires consent) and SIM (40D: Video game character that might WooHoo) WooHoo is an interaction in The SIMs video games that is a euphemism for SEX. This SIMsWiki article goes into detail about how to add WooHoo to the life of your SIM. I couldn't confirm that consent is necessary for WooHoo, but it appears WooHoo can be rejected, so I'm hopeful. (Update: I just read in a footnote of the linked article that "If two SIMs WooHoo in a closet, the interaction will always be accepted even if the relationship between the two SIMs is not mutual." Ick - why?!)
• KIRIGAMI (22D: Paper-folding art that also involves cutting) I knew this answer, though it took a couple of tries to remember how to spell it. KIRIGAMI is a variation of origami in which the paper is cut in specific ways in addition to being folded. 
• FOMO (41D: "I wanna be there!" angst (Abbr.)) FOMO = fear of missing out
• LEE (64D: "...and Jamie ___, you are all of us!") This is a line from a rap that Ariana DeBose did at the BAFTA Awards earlier this year, which celebrated female nominees.

Geography review:

• ARABIA (4A: Saudi ___) Saudi ARABIA is a country in Western Asia. It is located on, and covers the majority of, the Arabian Peninsula. Saudi ARABIA's neighbors are Jordan, Iraq, Kuwait, Qatar, the United Arab Emirates, Oman, and Yemen. The country has coastline along the Red Sea to the west, and the Persian Gulf to the east. The capital of Saudi ARABIA is Riyadh.

Why, yes, I will happily take my crossword's theme answers with SIDES OF FRIES. This puzzle features some great down answers: YOU NEVER CAN TELL, SEIZE THE DAY, and I'LL DO THE TALKING. Thank you, Amanda, for this puzzle that was a super way to start my Sunday.