Today's Los Angeles Times crossword did not really have a theme but the four long answers are TEENAGEWEREWOLF (title of a 1957 horror film starring Michael Landon), MENSWEARHOUSE, HARDWARESTORE and ANYWHEREBUTHERE ("Not in my backyard"). WERE, WEAR and WARE are homonyms; WHERE does not fit...unless you don't pronounce the H. The crossword also includes THEBIBLE. Don't most crossword puzzle editors object to answers containing the word "the"? Today, at least, one editor allowed such an answer.
The 13x13 NEA puzzle had the usual high number of over-used three- and four-letter words: ACRE, ADD, ANTI, ECRU, ESS, EVIL, ORCA, OSLO, RENO, TEE.....and NOG, which is seldom used without the prefix EGG, except in crosswords. The puzzle also included SAREK. I had to look that one up. Sarek was a Vulcan astrophysicist on Star Trek, a show I have never watched. I am not a fan of science fiction. No, I've never seen any of the Star Wars movies either.
The Universal crossword included the over-used words ACE, ARE, ATE, CEDE, EMU, ETA, ETE, SPA and UKE and two (only two?) theme answers, REDCRESCENT and REDHOTPOKER. The center word was REDID, which can be read as "re-did" or, in keeping with the mini-theme, "Red ID."
