A Shorter Cut

by Rob Evans

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• Difficulty: easy

It's disappointing that there's no wordplay in today's theme, but hey, it's my first sub 10 minute solve this week so I can't complain. This is the first time I remember seeing a Tribute Theme in a Puzzmo crossword and I can't say I'm a huge fan. I get the idea but crosswords already have so much trivia inside them that it doesn't feel like the theme needs to be involved. Then again, here I am listening to Wayne Shorter while I type up this post. Working as intended?

The fill in this puzzle is excellent, especially for a debut. Lots of interesting words and very little crosswordese. My only stumbling block was the top-right corner, where I had filled CLAM for "type of juice in a Michelada". I'm definitely showing my California bias here but I still can't believe that the go-to tomato juice brand for Micheladas is made with clam broth. How is that a thing?

MAUI clued as "Demigod in 'Moana'" makes me chuckle because I've reached the point where all of my Moana knowledge has been acquired from crosswords. Those vowel-packed Polynesian names are just too appetizing for constructors. I'll have to watch that movie at some point, at the very least to prepare myself for future puzzles.

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