Constructor: Kenneth Cortes

Relative issue: Straightforward (Downs-only, no bother)

THEME: BRIGHT IDEA (56A: Stroke of genius … or the theme of this puzzle)  — “IDEA” seems hidden inside three theme solutions; the grid has been weirdly dimmed, in order that the “IDEA”s (which seem in common outdated white squares) seem “BRIGHT”:

Theme solutions:

• STUPID EASY (18A: Not troublesome in any respect, in slang)
• GUIDE ANIMAL (26A: Seeing Eye canine, e.g.)
• HIDE-AND-SEEK (44A: Recreation wherein one would possibly shout, “Prepared or not, right here I come!”)

Phrase of the Day: TOSTONES (39D: Crispy plantain chips) —

Tostones (Spanish pronunciation: [tosˈtones], from the Spanish verb tostar which suggests “to toast“) are twice-fried plantain slices generally present in Latin American delicacies and Caribbean delicacies. Mostly generally known as tostones in Puerto Rico, Mexico, Nicaragua, Cuba, Florida, Honduras and Venezuela, they’re often known as tachinos or chatinos (Cuba), platano frito or frito verde (Dominican Republic), bannann peze (Haiti), patacones (in Panama, Venezuela, Colombia, Costa Rica, Peru, and Ecuador) and, generally, patacón pisao in Colombia. (wikipedia)

• • •

Wait, is “Seeing Eye canine” a model identify? Why is “Eye” capitalized? I’d’ve written it with no capital “E,” and probably with a hyphen. Wow, sure, it is trademarked. Effectively, you study one thing new each day. Or perhaps not each day, however sometimes, anyway. I did not have any drawback with the capitalization, however I do have an issue with the reply, GUIDE ANIMAL, which … are there Seeing Eye warthogs? The one GUIDE ANIMAL I’ve ever seen or heard of is a Seeing Eye canine. I assume the canine that do not study the trademark methodology cannot be known as that, is that the deal? Anyway, GUIDE ANIMAL feels … off. The web is telling me {that a} “miniature horse” may also function a GUIDE ANIMAL, however I resolutely refuse to imagine this. Thumbs right down to GUIDE ANIMAL.

Additionally thumbs-down to this ridiculous grid-dimming gimmick. Any theme that depends on making the grid look this horrible is not price it. Anyway, it isn’t that the IDEAS are BRIGHT a lot as that the remainder of the dang grid has been miserably benighted. I assumed there was a glitch in my software program. Not less than the puzzle was STUPID EASY, so I did not should spend an excessive amount of time observing this grey monstrosity. STUPID EASY was, the truth is, the puzzle’s one massive spotlight—a pleasant burst of colloquial freshness, and a really intelligent means of hiding your IDEA. Paradoxically, the theme reply with the phrase HIDE in it did not “disguise” the IDEA practically so properly. At all times disenchanted when “hidden” phrases do not contact each phrase within the themer, and the IDEA in HIDE AND SEEK can solely wave at close by SEEK, who sits there chilly, lonely, and basically uninvolved. A darkish day, certainly, for SEEK.

My Downs-only clear up was fairly triumphant at this time. I flattened this one, with a giant help from the theme, which allowed me to go forward and fill in all of the “brilliant” areas with IDEA very early:

The one potential pitfalls I might see, from a Downs-only perspective, had been each meals associated. UNAGI got here to me fairly simply (27A: Freshwater eel of Japanese tradition), however I will admit I needed to assume a bit about these TOSTONES (39D: Crispy plantain chips). I learn the clue and thought “Oh, come on … I do know these … I’ve had these … what are these?” However I did not sweat it, I simply saved fixing, knocking over one Down after one other till the one Down I had left was the [Crispy plantain chips]. I had each “S”s and the second “O,” however each different letter was indeterminate—that’s, it might’ve been a number of issues. TORO might’ve been BORO, BONDS might’ve been BINDS or BENDS or BANDS, and many others. Finally I simply began from the highest and began plugging in believable letters to see in the event that they rang any bells, and, properly, that meant I began with the “T” in TORO, and that was all I wanted. I virtually shouted “TOSTONES!” And that … was that. Recreation over.