April 22, 2026

Title: THAT'S SO OP!

Constructors: Olivia Mitra Framke & Will Eisenberg

Editor: Amanda Rafkin

Theme synopsis:

• OLIVIA POPE (18A: D.C. fixer on "Scandal")
• ORCHESTRA PIT (37A: Broadway musician's workplace)
• ORANGE PEEL (57A: Old Fashioned garnish)

THAT'S SO OP!: Each theme answer has the initials OP: OLIVIA POPE, ORCHESTRA PIT, and ORANGE PEEL.

And now a word from today's constructors:

Olivia: Will and I have worked together at Lil AVCX for a few years now, but haven’t collaborated on a 15x puzzle yet! As two avid gamers, we figured a theme centered on a gaming term would be the way to go. Hope you enjoyed!

Will: It was a joy to collaborate with Olivia after working together with her on crosswords for so long. Hopefully the first of many!

What I learned from today's puzzle:

• ARIA (60A: Bizet's "Habanera," for one) Carmen is an 1875 opera by French composer Georges Bizet. "Habanera" is the popular title for one of the opera's most well-known ARIAs. The official title of the ARIA is "L'amour est un oiseau rebelle," or "Love is a rebellious bird." "Habanera" is the entrance ARIA for Carmen.

Random thoughts and interesting things:

• SPF (1A: Cover letters?) The question mark at the end of the clue alerts solvers to expect trickiness and word play. These are not the cover letters one would send with a resume, but rather SPF, the letters indicating the coverage sunscreen provides.
• OMAR (17A: Minnesota representative Ilhan) Ilhan OMAR is the U.S. representative for Minnesota's 5th congressional district. Ilhan OMAR was born in Somalia, and immigrated to the United States with her family when Somalia was in the midst of a civil war. Her 2020 memoir is titled, This is What America Looks Like: My Journey from Refugee to Congresswoman.
• OLIVIA POPE (18A: D.C. fixer on "Scandal") The TV series, Scandal (2012-2018), focuses on the crisis management firm, OLIVIA POPE & Associates. Kerry Washington portrays OLIVIA Carolyn POPE. It always makes me happy when constructors find a way to work their name into the puzzle. It's a small thing, but I like it. Congrats to OLIVIA for doing so here. 
• ABED (36A: Danny Pudi's "Community" character) Community is a TV series that originally aired from 2009 to 2015. The show featured an ensemble cast of characters that were part of a college study group. Danny Pudi played the role of ABED Nabir, a film student who becomes best friends with former high school star quarterback Troy Barnes, played by Donald Glover.
• CAPE (39A: Accessory for Storm or Hit-Girl) Storm is a Marvel Comics superhero. She was the first major female comics character of African descent. Hit-Girl is an antihero, a young vigilante who stops crime in violent ways. She is one of the main characters of the Kick-Ass franchise. And yes, both Storm and Hit-Girl wear CAPEs. (Apparently Edna Mode didn't design their costumes, but I digress...)
• SEAHAWK (41A: Athlete on the 2026 Super Bowl-winning team) When I first read this clue I thought, "I don't know," because normally I can't keep track of whose playing in the Super Bowl, let alone who won. However, this year was different. On Super Bowl Sunday, my husband and I happened to get on a plane that was traveling from Seattle to Hawaii. Although we weren't watching the game, many people around us were. And folks (including our son who lives in Seattle) were happy about the outcome. Well, what do you know, I did actually know the Seattle SEAHAWKs won the 2026 Super Bowl.
• CHEST (42A: Exciting find in a Zelda dungeon) This is a reference to The Legend of Zelda video game franchise.  The original Legend of Zelda was released by Nintendo in 1986. In the game, various useful things can be found in CHESTs. This is a nice bonus of a gaming reference to go along with the theme.
• SIN (48A: One of seven in "Se7en") Se7en is a 1995 crime thriller. The movie follows the crimes of a serial killer who is committing a series of murders based on the seven deadly SINs.
• ADS (49A: Show stoppers?) The question mark in this clue means it's not referring to a big, audience-pleasing number, but to the ADS that interrupt a show.
• SENORA (51A: Title for Peggy Hill, when substitute-teaching Spanish) King of the Hill is an animated sitcom that originally aired from 1997-2010. The show is centered on the lives of the Hill family – Hank and Peggy and their son Bobby – who live in the fictional town of Arlen, Texas. SEÑORA Peggy Hill occasionally substitute-teaches Spanish, though her skills in that role are questionable. This is a nice clue, because the answer is inferable even for solvers who have not watched King of the Hill (and have perhaps only written about it before...).
• ORANGE PEEL (57A: Old Fashioned garnish) The key here is to notice that Old Fashioned is not hyphenated in the clue. An ORANGE PEEL isn't necessarily an old-fashioned garnish, but it is a garnish commonly used for the cocktail known as an Old Fashioned. An Old Fashioned is a cocktail made by muddling sugar with bitters, adding whiskey, and garnishing with an ORANGE PEEL.
• TESS (63A: Model Holliday) TESS Holliday is a model, author, and self-described "body-positive activist." She originated the hashtag #EffYourBeautyStandards after strangers left cruel comments on her Instagram account.
• PAMELA (2D: ___ Lillian Isley aka Poison Ivy) PAMELA Lillian Isley, PhD aka Poison Ivy is a supervillain who first appeared in Batman comics in 1966. Poison Ivy has supernatural control over plant life and the power to transfer poison through touch. Although a supervillain, Poison Ivy has at times worked with Batman to achieve common goals, and has even been portrayed as a romantic interest of Batman's.
• PAPA (8D: "___ Don't Preach") "PAPA Don't Preach" is a song by Madonna. It was released in 1986 (when I was a senior in college). I am a preacher's kid, so I've always found the title of this song particularly amusing.
• ALOO GOBI (9D: Indian vegetarian dish) ALOO GOBI is a dish in Indian and Pakistani cuisines made of potatoes, cauliflower, and spices. Turmeric makes the dish yellow in color. "ALOO" is a South Asian word for "potatoes," and "GOBI" means "cauliflower."
• RICE (15D: Bed for Persian stews) That's a bed of RICE. Probably not comfortable for sleeping, but delicious as a base for Persian stews.
• NSYNC (21D: "No Strings Attached" band) No Strings Attached is NSYNC's third studio album, released in 2000. It was the best-selling album that year.
• WORTHY (24D: Able to lift Mjolnir, say) Thor is the Norse god associated with storms, thunder, and lightning. Mjölnir is Thor's hammer, depicted in Norse mythology as one of the most powerful weapons in existence. Mjölnir can only be lifted by those deemed WORTHY, which is typically defined as having a noble heart and a warrior spirit.
• LSD (27D: Drug synthesized by Albert Hofmann) Albert Hofmann (1906-2008) was a Swiss chemist. He was the first to synthesize and ingest lysergic acid diethlamide (LSD), and thus the first to learn of its psychedelic effects. Albert Hofmann first synthesized LSD in 1938. Several years later, on April 19, 1943, Albert Hofmann took a dose of LSD and experienced the first documented acid trip. The day is referred to as "Bicycle Day," in reference to Albert Hofmann riding a bicycle home from the lab (accompanied by his lab assistant).
• NAPKIN MATH (32D: Back-of-the-envelope calculations) NAPKIN MATH is such a fun term. It encompasses rough calculations jotted down on any available scrap paper.
• AHS (34D: FX anthology series) AHS here stands for American Horror Story, a TV series (on the cable network FX) that first aired in 2011. Each season of AHS is a self-contained miniseries with a different set of characters and story lines. There have been 12 seasons of AHS so far.
• ERA (35D: "I've entered my villain ___) "I've entered my villain ERA," or "I'm in my villain ERA," are phrases that started making the rounds on TikTok sometime in 2022. These phrases are generally used to refer to making a decision to do what's right for you, by setting healthy boundaries and advocating for what you need. The "villain ERA" isn't about becoming an actual villain, but is so named because sticking up for oneself (particularly if you are a woman) may result in other people viewing you as a villain in their story.
• DEEP (50D: Like Lake Superior) Lake Superior is the largest of the five Great Lakes. It is also the DEEPest of the Great Lakes, with a maximum depth of 1,333 feet.
• INKY (54D: Teal Pac-Man ghost) The Pac-Man ghosts are Inky, Blinky, Pinky, and Clyde. Did you know these names are their nicknames? Blinky, the red ghost, is considered the leader. His real name is listed as Shadow. Pinky, or Speedy, is appropriately Pink. INKY, aka Bashful, is cyan or teal. Clyde, whose real name is listed as Pokey, is orange.
• REAP (56D: Sow ... it's come to this) This clue made me laugh out loud! The key here is to notice the spelling of the word "sow" (not "so"). After one sows, eventually one will (hopefully) REAP. 
• OBO (57D: "The price is flexible") OBO = or best offer
• PEZ (59D: Candy you must head back to get more of?) This is my favorite question mark clue in this puzzle. PEZ candy has been around since 1927. The first PEZ dispensers were similar in shape to a cigarette lighter, and dispensed mints marketed as an alternative to tobacco. It wasn't until 1955 that PEZ placed heads on the dispensers and began marketing them to children. Since that time, over 1500 different PEZ dispenser designs have been created. To get more candy, you have to tilt the head of the dispenser back.
• A few other clues I especially enjoyed:
• STOMPS (1D: Walks like King Kong)
• NASAL (30D: Like Bob Dylan's vocals)
• TRUISM (47D: "It is what it is," for one)

In gaming, "THAT'S SO OP!" is a phrase used to indicate something is overpowered – that is, too strong, unbalanced, or unfair. I am not a gamer, so yes, I did have to look that up. Fortunately, I didn't need to know the meaning of the title to understand how it works as a theme mechanism. As Olivia and Will mentioned, they work together at Lil AVCX. Lil AVCX is the midi branch of the indie puzzle publication AVCX. If you enjoy crosswords and don't have an AVCX subscription, I recommend checking it out. The subscription is a good deal for the number and variety of high quality puzzles it gets you. I also work with Olivia and Will at Lil AVCX, and I was delighted to see this collaboration today. Thank you, Olivia and Will, for this delightful puzzle.

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