October 18, 2025

Title: MAKING PROMISES

Constructor: Marshal Herrmann

Editor: Amie Walker

Theme synopsis:

• WHY I OUGHTA (17A: Humorous "threat" of retaliation)
• OHIO UNIVERSITY (38A: State school southeast of Columbus)
• HDMI OUTPUT (62A: Port that transmits a signal from a PS5 to a TV)

MAKING PROMISES: The letter string I-O-U is found in each theme answer: WHY I OUGHTA, OHIO UNIVERSITY, and HDMI OUTPUT.

What I learned from today's puzzle:

• RED (69A: Color of La Tomatina Festival debris) La Tomatina is a festival in Buñol, Spain. Festival goers throw tomatoes at each other; it's essentially the world's biggest food fight. Since 2013, the Festival has been limited to 20,000 ticketed participants. When I looked up La Tomatina Festival, I realized I've heard of this tomato-tossing festival before, but I didn't remember its name. RED is making back-to-back puzzle appearances. We saw it yesterday clued as [Traditional bridal color in India].

Random thoughts and interesting things:

• SANTA (5A: Buddy's boss, in "Elf") The 2003 movie Elf stars Will Ferrell as Buddy, a human who grows up as an elf working in SANTA's workshop at the North Pole. Ed Asner portrays SANTA.
• LORI (16A: "Orange is the New Black" actor Petty) Orange is the New Black is a TV series that originally aired on Netflix from 2013 to 2019. It was based on Piper Kerman's memoir about her year in a women's prison. LORI Petty played the recurring role of inmate Lolly Whitehill.
• BIOPIC (20A: "Oppenheimer" genre) Oppenheimer is a 2023 BIOPIC (biographical movie) about theoretical physicist J. Robert Oppenheimer, who helped develop nuclear weapons during World War I.
• BANH MI (33A: It means "bread" in Vietnamese) A BANH MI sandwich is served on a baguette, and often contains pork and vegetables such as cucumber, pickled carrots, and daikon radishes, with chili sauce and mayo.
• O CANADA (34A: Anthem heard at the BC Place) BC Place is a stadium in Vancouver, British Columbia, CANADA. BC Place was the main stadium for the 2010 Winter Olympics and 2010 Winter Paralympics. Several soccer matches of the 2026 FIFA World Cup will be played at BC Place. Being located in CANADA, the country's national anthem, "O, CANADA" is certainly heard at BC Place.
• OHIO UNIVERSITY (38A: State school southeast of Columbus) OHIO UNIVERSITY is located in Athens, OHIO, which is in the southeast corner of the state. Not to be confused with OHIO State UNIVERSITY, located in Columbus, OHIO. 
• SIS (50A: Maggie or Lisa, to Bart, for example) This is a reference to the TV series The Simpsons, on which Bart, Lisa, and Maggie are the children of Homer and Marge. That makes Marge and Lisa the sisters of Bart.
• SIMU (51A: "Atlas" star Liu) Atlas is a sci-fi movie released on Netflix in 2024. The movie is set in 2071, 28 years after Harlan, a humanoid artificial intelligence (AI) terrorist, is forced to flee into outer space. Jennifer Lopez stars as the title character, Atlas Shepherd, the daughter of Harlan's creator who has a deep distrust of AI. SIMU Liu portrays the humanoid Harlan.
• BAGS (67A: Another name for cornhole) Cornhole, also known as BAGS, is a game where teams throw beanbags at a slanted board with a hole in it. The American Cornhole League (yes, there is an official league) is headquartered in Rock Hill, South Carolina and hosts over 25,000 tournaments a year.
• SAUCEPAN (5D: It might hang around in the kitchen?) My SAUCEPANs live in a cupboard, so it took me a bit to catch on to the meaning of this clue. Hanging SAUCEPANs from hooks is one storage option. In that case, the SAUCEPAN would indeed hang around the kitchen.
• ANG (6D: "Brokeback Mountain" director Lee) ANG Lee won an Academy Award for Best Director for the 2005 movie, Brokeback Mountain. The movie has received acclaim for helping move queer cinema into the mainstream.
• EMMY (28D: Award for which Ayo Edebiri has received four nominations) All of Ayo Edibiri's EMMY nominations – one for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series, two for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Comedy Series, and one for Outstanding Directing for a Comedy Series – have been for her work on the TV series The Bear (2022-present). One of those four nominations resulted in a win. In 2023, Ayo Edebiri won an EMMY Award for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series. 
• BARBIE (33D: Top-grossing film of 2023) The 2023 movie, BARBIE, directed by Greta Gerwig, grossed over $1.4 billion. I thought it was interesting that we have mentions of both BARBIE and Oppenheimer in today's puzzle, as the movies opened on the same weekend in 2023. Oppenheimer is the third-highest grossing film of 2023; number two is The Super Mario Bros. Movie.
• DEBT (36D: Money that needs to be repaid) and OWES (38D: Carries a balance) A couple of nice bonus answers for this IOU-themed puzzle.
• HOLI (39D: Hindu festival of colors) HOLI is a Hindu festival celebrating the end of winter and the arrival of spring. The date of HOLI varies, as it is determined by the lunar calendar. In 2026, HOLI will be celebrated on March 3rd and 4th. 
• IRISH JIG (40D: "Riverdance" number) Riverdance is a touring theater show that features traditional IRISH music and dance. If you go to a Riverdance show, you are sure to see an IRISH JIG.
• SLAM DUNK (41D: Iconic "Air Jordan" move) "Air Jordan" is a nickname for former professional basketball player Michael Jordan. The nickname is a recognition of his leaping ability as he performed SLAM DUNKs. Michael Jordan won NBA's SLAM DUNK Contest in 1987 and 1988.
• DIPPER (47D: Double-___ (person you might not want to share an appetizer with)) This clue made me chuckle. It's okay to be a double-DIPPER if you're the only one snacking and you're not sharing your dip. In social settings, however, it's best not to be a double-DIPPER.
• U.S. MAP (53D: Diagram with HI and MA) Just three days ago we saw U.S. MAP clued as [Diagram with AK and HI insets]. 
• PET (55D: Furry pal) My furry pal, Willow, is the perfect PET for me.

• A few other clues I especially enjoyed:
• COPY THAT (11D; "Heard you loud and clear")
• ERA (12D: "I'm in my boundaries ___")
• OAR (63D: Something to row, row, row your boat with)

I like themes that require me to do a little extra work (but not too much!) to figure them out. In this case, the title doesn't specifically denote what PROMISES the puzzle is MAKING. It turns out those PROMISES are IOUs. That's quite nice. Thank you, Marshal, for this excellent puzzle.