Wednesday, June 21, 2017, Bruce Haight

14:19

Today's theme features a quartet of butterflies formed from the black squares in the middle of the puzzle and a set of four words, one in each corner of the puzzle, that when paired with the word butterfly, complete the answers. The revealer at 35A. explains it all and puts, BUTTERFLY, smack dab in the center of the puzzle. I thought it might have been funny if the clue for 8A. were Puccini Optera. Too much?

I was all aflutter over some of the quality fill today. :) My favorite might be 15A. Add salt to the wound (RUBITIN). Apt! I also enjoyed 29D. Pole workers' creations (TOYS) - clever mislead! - 26A. OK summer hrs. (CDT) - amusing - and, perhaps oddly, 16A. Prepare for a physical (DISROBE) - ha! (but not really). The anagramaticity of ERA at 24A followed immediately by EAR at 25A was cool. I also enjoyed the new school/old school means of connectivity at 59 and 61 across: GOVIRAL / HOTLINE.

It took me too long to parse the clue at 4D. (Wounds at Pamplona, say - GORES). I kept trying to think of the Spanish word for wound. Ai ai ai!

Only two answers didn't exactly take wing for me: 44D. Pertaining to aircraft technology (AVIONIC) and 60A. Stephen of "Citizen X" but otherwise I thought the puzzle was FAB.

~Frannie.