Friday, September 18, 2026 — A Splendiferous Way to Wrap Up the Workweek

Ryan Mathiason's third NYTimes crossword, and his first Friday, was an elegant piece of cruciverbial magic. We like clues that educate —13A, Modern tech aid whose design was inspired by a Go board, QRCODE; clues that make us think — 31D, Act like yourself, perhaps?, DOACAMEO, and especially clues that allow us revel in the joys of English — 40A, Two in a row?, FOES. There were, manifestly, many such clues in today's puzzle. For that reason we are proud to give Ryan's oeuvre a full 5 squares o...