November 22, 2025

Title: FIRST WORD PROBLEMS

Constructors: Michael Drusedum & Jason Reuben

Editor: Amie Walker

Theme synopsis:

• SPOT REMOVER (17A: Product for carpet stains)
• JAM SESSIONS (35A: Garage band practices)
• PICKLE JUICE (56A: Salty drink used by some athletes to relieve muscle cramps)

FIRST WORD PROBLEMS: The FIRST WORD of each theme answer is a synonym of the word PROBLEM: SPOT, JAM, and PICKLE.

What I learned from today's puzzle:

• EPCOT (40A: Theme park with Test Track) Test Track is a slot car ride at the EPCOT theme park (part of the Walt Disney World Resort in Florida). The ride is sponsored by General Motors, and has gone through several iterations since it opened in 1998. Test Track 3.0 opens in July of this year. Part of the ride includes a speed trial on a track around the exterior of the building, during which cars reach a top speed of 64.9 miles per hour.
• BLUR (61A: "Song 2" British band) "Song 2" is a 1997 song by the English band BLUR. "Song 2" was originally a working title, but then the name stuck. The song is the second track on BLUR's eponymous fifth studio album. It has two verses, two choruses, and is two minutes and two seconds long.
• CNN (38D: Dana Bash's channel) Dana Bash is a CNN journalist. She has hosted the CNN talk show Inside Politics since 2023. She is also the co-anchor of State of the Union with Jake Tapper and Dana Bash. 

Random thoughts and interesting things:

• INCA (14A: ___ Trail (path in the Andes)) The INCA Trail is a 26-mile hiking path in Peru that leads to Machu Picchu. The Peruvian government limits the number of people allowed to hike the trail each season in order to try to limit erosion. INCA is making back-to-back puzzle appearances, as we saw it yesterday clued as [People who made llama figurines].
• LATINO (15A: Like Pedro Pascal) Pedro Pascal portrayed Din Djarin in the TV series The Mandalorian (2019-2023). He currently plays Joel Miller in The Last of Us. Pedro Pascal was born in Santiago, Chile. When he was nine months old, his parents fled the military dictatorship in Chile and immigrated to the United States (via Denmark). 
• YSL (19A: Fashion monogram) YSL is a high-end French fashion house founded in 1961 by Yves St. Laurent (1936-2008) and Pierre Bergé (1930-2017).
• SARAH (20A: "Succession" star Snook) Succession is a TV series that focuses on the Roy family, the owners of a global media and entertainment conglomerate, Waystar RoyCo. Siobhan "Shiv" Roy, portrayed by SARAH Snook, is the youngest child of the Roy family, and the only daughter.
• YIN YOGA (23A: Meditative exercise with asanas that are held for long periods of time) The pace of YIN YOGA is slower than other styles of YOGA as exercise. In this meditative practice, practitioners may stay in a single asana for five minutes or more. 
• NORA (31D: Romance writer Roberts) NORA Roberts has written over 225 romance novels. NORA Roberts is a pen name, shortened from her birth name of Eleanor Marie Robertson, which NORA adopted, she says, because she assumed that all romance authors had pen names. In addition to writing under the name NORA Roberts, she also uses the pseudonyms J.D. Robb, Jill March, and Sarah Hardesty.
• EDIE (42D: "Nurse Jackie" star Falco) EDIE Falco is known fro her portrayals of the title character on Nurse Jackie (2009-2015) and Carmela Soprano on The Sopranos (1999-2007).
• NEPALIS (49A: Many Kathmandu residents) Kathmandu is the capital and largest city of Nepal, a landlocked country in South Asia.
• DES (55A: ___ Moines) DES Moines is the capital and largest city of Iowa, a landlocked state in the central U.S. 
• PICKLE JUICE (56A: Salty drink used by some athletes to relieve muscle cramps) PICKLE JUICE is reputed to have health benefits, including the relief of muscle cramps, but these claims are not medically confirmed.
• SATAY (4D: Skewered dish with peanut sauce) SATAY is a Southeast Asian dish of small pieces of meat skewered and grilled. SATAY is commonly served with a peanut-based sauce.
• OTOH (7D: "Then again…" in a text) OTOH = on the other hand
• DIVERS (8D: Olympians who try not to make a splash?) Olympic DIVERS literally try not to make a splash as they hit the water.
• PIPER (47D: "Imagine Me & You" star Perabo) Imagine Me & You is a 2005 rom-com about a relationship between two women who meet on the day one of the women is getting married (to a man). Lena Headey portrays Luce, and PIPER Perabo plays the role of Rachel.
• ARUBA (51D: The "A" of the ABC islands) ARUBA is the first, alphabetically, of a trio of Caribbean islands known as the ABC islands: ARUBA, Bonaire, and Curaçao.
• A few other clues I especially enjoyed: 
• ONE (59A: "You're ___ to talk!")
• UNPAID (2D: Like most volunteer positions)
• GAY ICONS (11D: Celebs with a strong LGBTQIA+ following)

FIRST WORD PROBLEMS is, of course, a play on the phrase "FIRST world PROBLEMS," and it made me smile as soon as I read it. I am a fan of synonym themes, so I enjoyed uncovering the PROBLEM synonyms (which did not cause PROBLEMS at all!). Thank you Michael and Jason, for this excellent puzzle.