Talk to Me!

YEGwords No. 019

Author

Brandon Cathcart
June 20, 2025

Don’t worry - this crossword title isn’t a cry of exasperation. Some might say it’s a cry for attention (I need to be careful about overusing exclamation points in titles) but ultimately, I would say it’s a cry for you to set aside whatever you’re working on and enjoy a little time with me. A good crossword can be like a conversation - let’s exchange ideas, references, jokes, and have little “aha” moments together :)

After you’re done listening to a-ha - Take On Me, I hope you say “aha! Talk to Me!” when the puzzle reaches that satisfying click.

Discussion (and spoilers!) below the break.

Play

Talk to Me! by Brandon Cathcart

Play Online

Print & Play

Puzzle Solution

Thanks to our generous patrons!

Thanks to this month’s donors, who help cover YEGwords costs like printing and web hosting.

Russell, Ana and Ken (crossword extraordinaires), Aadil, Ellen, and Zayn, Comet, Tony M, Aidan L, Imogene, C&T, Julia loves Chris, Rémy, Morty the cat, Dallas Bartel, Steph M, Ulrika, Carson, Sylvie, 604catreviews, and MAA

YEGwords is free for everyone! However, if you’d support us with a tip, you can give a one-time donation or monthly donation. Donors get a bonus full-size puzzle as a thank you. Thanks for your support!

Discussion

Okay, the puzzle had nothing to do with the above 80’s song, but there’s never a moment where that song feels wrong. I was also recently reminded that Rick Astley has more than one good song, but that’s not relevant right now. Instead, I’m going to give Rogers some free TV AD real estate.

Today’s Theme

The four italicized clues are theme-related - and it has to do with the title, “Talk to Me!”. The answer to each somewhat strangely-worded clue is a phrase related to starting a conversation with someone:

Own the world's most exclusive dictionary? HAVE A WORD

Bad actor action? DROP A LINE

Batter’s goal? TOUCH BASE

Recreate The Creation of Adam? REACH OUT

Tricky Clues

4A/4D. I realized close to posting that 4A [Web programming language, with HTML and JS] crossed with 4D [Guitar accessory for changing keys] might have been a bit trivia-heavy, but the guitar/coding Venn diagram probably includes most people, right? 4A is a Cascading Style Sheet or CSS, and the accessory (which I once fetched for Dan the man Mangan himself at Folk Fest) is a CAPO.

15A. [Bourbon in WEM and Sesame on TV, for two] is STS, which you probably got, but did you know that Bourbon Street in West Edmonton Mall was renamed to BRBN St. at some point? We need to stop trying to make things that aren’t cool, cool. There has to be aword for how modernizing designs keep sucking the fun out of things. Bourbon Street, West Edmonton Mall used to be absolutely iconic back before they made it lame.

18A/19A. This is one of the stranger clues I’ve written lmao. [If the black square was an N, I'd clue this + 19-Across as "Good at fixing things"] combines HA + black square (N) + DY into HANDY. I’ve gotten into solving some cryptic crosswords lately and I’m worried they’re becoming a bad influence.

35A. Pride lives on! [Some transitions, shortly] is referring to Female-to-male transitions, or FTM.

26D. SEA is the answer here, to ["___ Thieves" (Pirate video game my friend Tony was really into)]. Unfortunately, I never got on this boat (😎) but I can’t say pirating sounds outside my definition of fun.

I hope you enjoyed this puzzle!

Until next Friday,

Brandon

Reply

or to participate.