Off the Grid: Sally breaks down USA TODAY's daily crossword puzzle, Going Deeper

There are spoilers ahead. You might want to solve today's puzzle before reading further! Going Deeper

Constructors: Sally Hoelscher & Olivia Mitra Framke

Editor: Amanda Rafkin

Comments from Today’s Crossword Constructors

Sally: I enjoy a good progression theme, and it's always a joy to work with Olivia!

Olivia: I really love this theme! I'm a total water baby (I like to say I'm an aspiring mermaid) so this set feels really special to me. It brings to mind a lovely day at the beach, with bonuses REEF and FOAM bringing the picture together. Thanks Sally for a delightful collab as always! As someone who recently joined a pro-Palestine protest on the campus of my employer, I love that this puzzle starts out with [Picket line crosser] for SCAB... I find it much more important and relevant than a clue about a healing wound! I also like the clue for ARCS [Plotlines across multiple episodes]. I'm currently rewatching the animated Star Wars show "The Clone Wars" with a friend who hasn't seen it before, and there are some really amazing arcs I can't wait to get to!

Random Thoughts & Interesting Things

• BAR (5A: Place to order a gimlet) A gimlet is a simple cocktail made of gin, lime juice, and sugar. Although there are a couple of theories about the origin of the cocktail's name, the most likely is that it was named after the hand tool of the same name. The tool known as a gimlet is used to drill small holes. It can be used to tap casks. The theory is that the gimlet cocktail was named for its "penetrating" effects on the drinker.
• ROOT BEER FLOAT (19A: Treat that can be made with A&W and ice cream) Our original theme set for this puzzle consisted of the words WADE, SWIM, and DIVE. I was delighted when Olivia had the idea to add the word FLOAT into the mix. Not only because it rounded out our theme set nicely, but because it allowed us to include ROOT BEER FLOAT in the grid. In our family, pizza and ROOT BEER FLOATs are the way we celebrate beginnings, transitions, and endings. When our kids were younger, we had pizza and ROOT BEER FLOATs on the first day of school and the last day of school. My kids continued this tradition when they went to college and were out on their own. Most recently, my husband and I had pizza and ROOT BEER FLOATs on March 11, when my blog transitioned to the USA TODAY site.
• FAR (30A: "Near, ___, wherever you are...") "Near, FAR, wherever you are / I believe that the heart does go on..." This earworm is brought to you by Celine Dion, who sang the song "My Heart Will Go On." It is the theme song for the 1997 movie, Titanic, and was also included on Celine Dion's 1997 album, Let's Talk About Love.
• ROE V WADE (33A: 1973 Supreme Court case overturned in 2022) The 1973 Supreme Court decision ROE V WADE protected the right to have an abortion. In 2022, ROE V. WADE was overturned by the Supreme Court ruling in Dobbs v. Jackson Women's Health Organization. Olivia and I specifically wanted to highlight in this clue the fact that ROE V. WADE has been overturned, because we find that disheartening. Many folks have strong opinions about abortion rights, and I don't want to get into that in any more detail here. I do want to mention something new I learned about this case as I read up on ROE V. WADE. In addition to its legal ramifications, the ROE V. WADE hearing included what is widely considered to be one of the "worst jokes in legal history." It was made by Texas assistant attorney general Jay Floyd, who referenced his opposing counsel (Sarah Weddington and Linda Coffee) by saying, "It's an old joke, but when a man argues against two beautiful ladies like this,they are going to have the last word." The sexist joke fell flat, and was apparently met with visible resentment from Chief Justice Warren E. Burger. I was young at the time ROE V. WADE came before the Supreme Court, and hadn't heard this particular anecdote before.
• ADULT SWIM (39A: Late-night Cartoon Network block) Since 2001, ADULT SWIM has been the late-night programming block on Cartoon Network.
• NAMES (41A: Olivia and Sally, for two) As you might have guessed, this is one of my favorite clues in this puzzle. When we proposed this clue, we weren't sure it would make it through editing, but we are delighted that it did. (Thank you, Amanda!)
• DOSA (42A: Pancake in Indian cuisine) A DOSA is a thin pancake made from a fermented batter of lentils and rice.
• SIERRA (45A: ___ Nevada) The SIERRA Nevada mountain range is located in the western part of the United States. The SIERRA Nevada is primarily in California, though part of the range extends into Nevada. The SIERRA Nevada is home to three National Parks: Yosemite, Sequoia, and Kings Canyon. I've been to all three of these parks, and each is spectacular in its own way. 
• DUMPSTER DIVE (51A: Look for treasure in someone else's trash) The term DUMPSTER DIVE is fairly self-explanatory. If you want to learn more, I noticed that wikiHow has an article on "How to DUMPSTER DIVE."
• SAGAS (55A: "Dune" and "Star Wars," e.g.) According to Merriam-Webster, SAGAS are "long detailed accounts." I think the stories in the science fiction franchises, Dune, and Star Wars, definitely qualify as SAGAS. I've mentioned before that when Olivia and I collaborate, we try (not always successfully) to include a Star Wars reference for Olivia and a cat reference for me. This one's for Olivia...
• TAIL (61A: A cat's may twitch while playing) ...and here's the cat reference for me. My cat, Willow, has a fluffy TAIL, and when she twitches it, it sometime knocks things off of my desk, goes in my face, or lands in my cup of tea.

• SAY SO (63A: "If I do ___ myself") When I write about puzzles I constructed, it is definitely an example of, "This is a fun puzzle, if I do SAY SO myself!"
• KEYS (65A: "Ring of ___" ("Fun Home" song)) Fun Home is a 2006 graphic novel by Alison Bechdel. In the memoir, Bechdel looks at her childhood and youth, and her relationship with her dad. "Ring of KEYS" is a song from the stage musical adaptation of Fun Home. I've seen the musical, and the song "Ring of KEYS" occasionally gets stuck in my head as an earworm.
• BO PEEP (5D: "Toy Story 4" character whose updated look features capris) Disney's first animated Toy Story movie was released in 1995 (29 years ago!). In Toy Story 4, the character of BO PEEP got a makeover to match her independent adventurous spirit. Her new look features capris instead of a full skirt – her skirt is upcyled into a cape.
• AMER (6D: Mo ___ (Palestinian American comedian)) Mo AMER is a stand-up comedian, and the star of the Netflix TV series, Mo, which premiered in 2022. Mo is loosely based on Mo AMER's life as a Palestinian refugee living in Houston, Texas. Mo AMER also appeared on the Hulu TV series, Ramy, portraying Ramy's cousin Mo.
• REEF (7D: Great Barrier ___) The Great Barrier REEF is the world's largest coral REEF system. Located off the coast of Queensland, Australia, the Great Barrier REEF stretches over an area of approximately 133,000 square miles, and is large enough to be visible from space.
• SADIE (25D: "Stranger Things" actress Sink) Stranger Things is a Netflix TV series about a small town dealing with a hostile alternate dimension. Beginning with the show's second season, SADIE Sink portrays the character Max Mayfield.
• RUSSO (46D: "Thor" actress Rene) RENE Russo portrays Frigga, the mother of Thor, in the movies Thor(2011), Thor: The Dark World (2013), and Avengers: Endgame (2019).
• SOS (55D: Hit song by ABBA or Rihanna) ABBA's song titled "SOS" was released in 1975. The song reached the Top Ten in many countries. Rihanna's song titled "SOS" was released in 2006. It reached the top of Billboard's Hot 100 chart. 
• GAY (57D: Like characters in a yaoi manga) Manga are graphic novels originating from Japan The genres of yaoi manga (female) and yuri manga (male) focus on intimate relationships (emotional, spiritual, and/or sexual) between characters of the same sex.

Crossword Puzzle Theme Synopsis

• ROOT BEER FLOAT (19A: Treat that can be made with A&W and ice cream)
• ROE V WADE (33A: 1973 Supreme Court case overturned in 2022)
• ADULT SWIM (39A: Late-night Cartoon Network block)
• DUMPSTER DIVE (51A: Look for treasure in someone else's trash)

The last word of each theme answer can be a verb used to describe a water activity. Progressing through the puzzle from top to bottom, the words describe GOING DEEPER: FLOAT, WADE, SWIM, DIVE.

As I mentioned in my note above, I enjoy a progression theme – one that references steps in a process. The time period between coming up with a theme for a puzzle and the puzzle being published can span several months (and sometimes even years). It's always fun for me to go back and remember how Olivia and I came up with a particular theme. In this case, Olivia was working on filling the grid for a different puzzle we were collaborated on, when the phrase CAGE DIVING popped up as possible fill. (As a side note, I wrote about cage diving earlier this year.) We ended up not using that phrase in the previous puzzle, but the mention of it put the idea for this puzzle into my head. We went with DUMPSTER DIVE instead of CAGE DIVE for our DIVE entry because we wanted the original theme answers to have meanings unassociated with water. Thank you for solving this puzzle. I hope you enjoyed it! Thanks to Olivia for collaborating, and thanks to Amanda for being an amazing editor.

For more on USA TODAY’s Crossword Puzzles

• USA TODAY’s Daily Crossword Puzzles
• Sudoku & Crossword Puzzle Answers