June 22, 2026

Title: ON REFLECTION...

Constructor: Brian Callahan

Editor: Amanda Rafkin

Theme synopsis:

• UDON NOODLES (17A: They might be served in a kakejiru broth)
• SOLOMON NORTHUP (31A: "Twelve Years a Slave" memoirist)
• BUTTON NOSE (51A: Facial feature for Frosty)

ON REFLECTION: Each theme answer contains the letter string O-N followed by a REFLECTION of those letters, N-O: UDON NOODLES, SOLOMON NORTHUP, and BUTTON NOSE.

And now a word from our constructor:

Brian: In addition to SOLOMON NORTHUP, my initial pitch for this puzzle had SARAH CONNOR [“The Terminator” heroine] and WINE CONNOISSEUR [Port authority?] as theme entries. I did present COMMON NOUN(S) and UDON NOODLES as alts that “reflected” the ON between words. Amanda preferred that mechanic and even suggested BUTTON NOSE. Her alliterative clue is great!

Unrelated to the theme, but this is the third time that I’ve put NAME DROP in a puzzle, and it probably won’t be the last. The entry lends itself to silly clues. Here are my previous two: [Casually mention that you know Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson, e.g.] and [Mention that you and the Pope used to chat during White Sox games, e.g.]. Hope you enjoyed solving!

Random thoughts and interesting things:

• CROC (11A: Clog-style shoe the might be adorned with Jibbitz) A Jibbitz (which spell checker keeps wanting to change to kibbutz!) is a decorative accessory that snaps into the holes of a CROC.
• HOME ALONE (14A: 1990 film with the tagline "A family comedy without the family") I hope the person that came up with the tagline "A family comedy without the family" for Home Alone was given a raise. It's brilliant and funny.
• OBAMA (17A: "The Look" author Michelle) The Look, which is Michelle OBAMA's third book, was published in November of last year. The Look discusses the evolution of Michelle OBAMA's personal style. 
• DO I (29A: "___ Wanna Know?" (Arctic Monkeys song)) The Arctic Monkeys are an English rock band. They released their song, "DO I Wanna Know?" in 2013. The song is considered their breakthrough moment in the U.S. It was the first of their songs to chart on Billboard's Hot 100.
• SOLOMON NORTHUP (31A: "Twelve Years a Slave" memoirist) SOLOMON NORTHUP (c. 1807-1808 - c. 1863-1864) was a Black man who was offered a job as a traveling musician in 1841. When he went to Washington, D.C. to accept the job, he was drugged and kidnapped into slavery. He spent 12 years enslaved before he was able to secretly get word to his family, who were then able to help him regain his freedom. Twelve Years a Slave is SOLOMON NORTHUP's memoir, as told to David Wilson. The book was published in 1853, eight years before the U.S. Civil War. The book was the basis for the 1984 TV movie SOLOMON NORTHUP's Odyssey and the Oscar-winning 2013 movie 12 Years a Slave.
• SHAG (38A: 1970s carpet style) Ah, SHAG carpet – what a choice! When I was in college in the '80s, my first apartment featured SHAG carpet in a color my roommate and I referred to as "vomit." It was hideous, but on the plus side, it was amazing at hiding dirt.
• SHED (39A: Lose fur) I'm sure you realize that I love my cat, Willow, dearly. But, oh my goodness, she does SHED! So much cat hair everywhere.

• OMELET (45A: Dish with a "Denver" variety) A Denver OMELET is traditionally filled with ham, green peppers, and onions.
• BUTTON NOSE (51A: Facial feature for Frosty) "Frosty the Snowman was a jolly happy soul / With a corncob pipe and a BUTTON NOSE / And two eyes made out of coal..." Yes, I did have to sing the song to fill in this answer. 
• MOREL (55A: Prized mushroom) Two days ago we saw the plural MORELS clued as [Mushrooms with an earthy flavor]. At that time I mentioned that efforts to cultivate MORELs on a large-scale, commercial basis have been unsuccessful. Due to this fact (and because they are delicious), MORELs are highly prized. 
• DANTE (46A: "Inferno" author) DANTE (c. 1265-1321) was an Italian writer and philosopher. Inferno is the first part of The Divine Comedy, a narrative poem DANTE wrote between 1308 and 1321. It is followed by Purgatorio and Paradiso. In Inferno, hell is depicted as nine concentric circles of torment. A fictionalized version of DANTE journeys through hell, guided by the Roman poet Virgil.
• SCENES (3D: "___ From a Hat" ("Whose Line Is It Anyway?" improv game) Whose Line Is It Anyway? is an improvisational comedy show. There have been British and American versions of the TV show. The most recent American version of the show is hosted by Aisha Tyler. In the game SCENES From a Hat, the audience submits written suggestions for improv SCENES, which are drawn from a hat and acted out by the performers.
• ALOO (4D: Potatoes, in Indian cuisine) Occasionally I will remind you that ALOO is a South Asian term for potatoes. I hope that reminder served you well today.
• AMELIA (6D: Kid-lit's "___ Bedelia") AMELIA Bedelia is the title character of a series of children's books written first by Peggy Parish (from 1963 until her death in 1988) and then by Peggy Parish's nephew Herman S. Parish III (from 1995 to 2022). In the books, AMELIA Bedelia repeatedly misunderstands directions given to her and takes figures of speech literally, which results in humorous situations. If you ask AMELIA Bedelia to "put out the lights," you might find the light bulbs placed outside.
• NAME DROP (9D: Casually mention that you and Zendaya text each other, say) I always enjoy the creativity of a fun NAME DROP clue!.
• ROOTS (24D: Umbrella term that encompasses styles like blues, gospel and zydeco) The 2026 Grammy Award for Best American ROOTS Performance was won by Mavis Staples for "Beautiful Strangers."
• OMAHA (45D: ___ Steaks (Nebraska-based meat retailer)) and T-BONE (46D: Pricey steak) As its name suggests, OMAHA Steaks is based in OMAHA, Nebraska. The company was founded in OMAHA in 1917. You can order two Private Reserve T-BONE steaks from OMAHA Steaks for $149.99.
• MAT (55D: Step on it!) An exclamation point at the end of a clue alerts solvers to interpret the clue literally. A MAT is something one literally steps on.
• Other clues and answers I especially enjoyed:
• ETC (20A: "Yada, yada, yada" letters)
• ATTRACT (36A: What opposites do, in a phrase)
• CHU (11D: "Wicked" director Jon M. ___)
• CASA (23D: Mojo Dojo ___ House (Ken's abode in "Barbie"))

I appreciate the fact that the ON REFLECTION happens at the word break in each theme answer; I'm glad that ended up being the choice that was made. It's almost as if the word break is acting as a mirror, and that's fun. Thank you, Brian, for this delightful puzzle.

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