11/20/19 "Talk Circles" by Erik Agard

Really fun idea with a cutesy revealer that seems more Monday or Tuesday appropriate. But the number of theme entries and the really impressive crossing of all six theme entries with the revealer made the execution a little shaky. I didn't like the long separations between the bunched circles, the stacking of PRATE and ORATE in a way that felt repetitive, or the choice of abbreviated OP (opine would have made more sense). Fill like UPN, ENO and ANA made the puzzle feel glue-y and detracted from the simple fun of TALK IN CIRCLES. But, considering how complicated and ambitious the grid/theme design is, this is only surprising in that it's not much worse.

All that being said, some really great entries made their way into the puzzle: EMPANADA, BLACK PANTHER, and WHAT CAN I DO, to name a few. And despite a couple tricky spots, 'twas overall a fast solve. The cluing was on the easy side for a Wednesday. Only because I normally love Erik's puzzles so much was this puzzle particularly disappointing.

Tricky spots for me:

• Had TEVYE in for TOPOL at 19A. Oops. I can read, I promise.
• For 13D (Tyro, in a modern credence) I had no idea what tyro meant, so even though I totally know the word NOOB I needed the crossings to figure it out. NW was my worst corner.
• Could not for the life of me figure out 47D SICS ON (Sends after) even after I had the last four letters from the crosses. 
• 66A SPINY EEL: Animal trivia is definitely a weak point for me.

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