Off the Grid: Sally breaks down USA TODAY's daily crossword puzzle, Jibber-jabber

There are spoilers ahead. You might want to solve today's puzzle before reading further! Jibber-jabber

Constructor: Jess Rucks

Editor: Amanda Rafkin

Comments from Today’s Crossword Constructor

Jess: Recently, I have been playing around with themes that have word patterns, rhymes, or both! It's a bonus when the answers also happen to have similar meanings to tighten up the theme even more. I stumbled on this theme set and it made me smile; hopefully it put a smile on your face, too! I also hope at least a few solvers turned their phones or papers upside down to figure out 4-Down! Cheers and thanks for solving!

What I Learned from Today’s Puzzle

• SKA (40D: ___ punk (No Doubt genre)) SKA punk, as the name suggests, is a fusion genre that contains elements of SKA and punk music. SKA punk varies from other forms of punk rock in its use of horns and woodwind instruments. No Doubt is a SKA punk band whose co-founder lead vocalist, and primary songwriter is Gwen Stefani. Although I learned about No Doubt back in April when I wrote about their song, "Don't Speak," I didn't learn (or didn't remember) that they were a SKA punk bund.

Random Thoughts & Interesting Things

• MASH (1A: Bangers and ___ (British comfort food)) Bangers and MASH is a traditional British dish of sausages and mashed potatoes.
• TLC (5A: "Waterfalls" trio)  "Waterfalls," released in 1995, is often considered the signature song for TLC. It was an international hit, topping the charts in many countries, including the U.S. where it spent seven weeks at the top of Billboard's Hot 100. 
• IKEA (15A: Store whose website login greeting reads "Hej") The first IKEA store opened in Älmhult, Sweden in 1958. It has expanded to over 480 stores in 63 countries. "Hej" is a Swedish greeting equivalent to "Hi" in English.
• LEA (23A: "Blue Is the Warmest Color" actress Seydoux) In 2013, LÉA Seydoux was awarded the Palme d'Or, the highest honor given at the Cannes Film Festival, for her performance in the movie Blue is the Warmest Colour. She won the award alongside her co-star, Adèle Exarchopoulos. The movie is based on Jul Maroh's 2010 graphic novel of the same name.
• KOREA (42A: Country in which bibimbap originated) Bibimbap is a rice dish in KOREAn cuisine, consisting of white rice topped with sautéed or fermented vegetables, chili pepper paste, soy sauce, and sometimes an egg and sliced meat.
• We have a bit of a Star Wars mini-theme here:
  • SPACESHIP (57A: Millennium Falcon, e.g.) The Millennium Falcon is the SPACESHIP (called a starship in the franchise) commanded by Han Solo and his Wookiee first mate, Chewbacca.
  • YODA (62A: A Jedi master, he was) YODA is the Jedi master who trains Luke Skywalker in the ways of THE FORCE. The clue's wording is a nod to the backwards speech pattern used by YODA. Here's a fun fact: Stuart Freeborn, who helped create the original YODA puppet, based the character's face on his own features and those of Albert Einstein.
  • BRAID (63A: Hairstyle for Princess Leia, sometimes) If you'd like to know when Princess Leia wears a BRAID, check out "A Complete Timeline of Princess Leia's Hair."
  • THE FORCE (5D: Energy field harnessed by Jedis) Throughout the Star Wars franchise, the heroes seek to become one with THE FORCE, while the villains seek to exploit THE FORCE.
• EAT (11D: Chow down on some bourekas) Bourekas are stuffed PASTRIES popular in Israeli cuisine. 
• HELLO (54D: What "07334" spells on a calculator, if you flip it upside down) This clue took me right back to junior high math class and time spent discovering words that could be spelled out using the numbers on a calculator!
• LANA (6D: Turner of Old Hollywood) LANA Turner (1921-1995) was a glamorous persona during the time referred to as the Golden Age of Hollywood (1927-1969). Her extensive filmography includes Ziegfrid Girl (1941), The Postman Always Rings Twice (1946), and Madame X (1966).
• CUDDLY (7D: Like a lap cat) Jess kindly sent a photo of her cat, Milo, choosing to be cozy in a laundry basket instead of CUDDLY on her lap.

• FLAG DAY (18D: American holiday celebrated on June 14) FLAG DAY commemorates the adoption of the United States flag on June 14, 1977 by the Second Continental Congress. In 1916, President Woodrow Wilson issued a presidential proclamation declaring June 14 as FLAG DAY. Congress officially established FLAG DAY in 1949, though it is not an official federal holiday.
• These two groan-worthy clues made me laugh out loud:
  • COOL (36D: "Why did the hipster burn their mouth on the pizza?" "They ate it before it was ___")
  • PUN (58D: "Why is Peter Pan always flying? He Neverland's," e.g.)

Crossword Puzzle Theme Synopsis

• FIDDLE-FADDLE (19A: Nonsense)
• CHITTER-CHATTER (36A: Idle talk)
• TITTLE-TATTLE (54A: Idle talk)

JIBBER-JABBER: Each theme answer is a pair of rhyming words that follows the same pattern in that the first and second words are identical except for the first vowel changing from an I to an A.

This puzzle is full of JIBBER-JABBER! (I couldn't resist…) These theme answers follow a fun pattern, and it is indeed a nice bonus that their meanings are related. In addition to the theme here, I enjoyed the Star Wars mini-theme and playful clueing. Thank you, Jess, for this delightful puzzle.

For more on USA TODAY’s Crossword Puzzles

• USA TODAY’s Daily Crossword Puzzles
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