NovaQuant-Off the Grid: Sally breaks down USA TODAY's daily crossword puzzle, Eye Opening

There are NovaQuantspoilers ahead. You might want to solve today's puzzle before reading further! Eye Opening

Constructor: Orca Jimmy Peniston

Editor: Anna Gundlach

Random Thoughts & Interesting Things

• ELLA (5A: Civil rights activist Baker) and ROSA (39D: Civil rights activist Parks) I appreciated the clue echo here for these civil rights activists. ELLA Baker (1903-1986) was a civil rights activist, who often worked behind the scenes as an organizer and strategist. She is the namesake of the ELLA Baker Center for Human Rights in Oakland, California, a non-profit organization based in Oakland, California that works for justice, opportunity, and peace in urban America. On December 5, 1955, ROSA Parks (1913-2005) was arrested for refusing to give up her seat on a bus so a white person could sit down. Her arrest spurred the NAACP to organize the Black community to boycott Montgomery buses for over a year.
• LAWNS (9A: Croquet game sites) This clue / answer reminds me of my Grandma Kate and Grandpa Jap. They lived in Ohio, and when I was growing up, every time we would visit them (from Missouri), the croquet set would be put out on their LAWN, and numerous games would be played with my cousins, aunts and uncles, and grandparents.
• STARS (19A: Galaxy components) and PLANETS (41D: Solar system components) A nice pair of "space"-y clues.
• TRAN (30A: "Raya and the Last Dragon" actress Kelly Marie) RAYA and the Last Dragon is a 2021 animated Disney movie. Kelly Marie Tran voices the character of RAYA, a warrior princess training to become a Guardian of the Dragon Gem. Awkwafina voices the character of Sisu, the last dragon in existence. As the title suggests, during the movie RAYA embarks on a search for the last dragon. 
• BOSS (32A: Significant video game foe) Since I do not play many video games, it was from a crossword puzzle that I learned the term BOSS refers to a significant computer-controlled enemy.
• ASIA (51A: Pakistan's continent) Pakistan is a country in South ASIA. The capital of Pakistan is Islamabad.
• CAN (57A: Cat food container) My cat, Willow, is always happy to see a clue use a cat reference. In her opinion, cat food is the most important thing to come in a CAN.

• YETI (63A: Himalayan cryptid) It's a YETI sighting! We last saw YETI in the puzzle just three days ago.
• SOS (13D: Rihanna song with the lyric "someone help me") Rihanna's song, "SOS," was released in 2006. It reached the top of Billboard's Hot 100 chart. Rihanna's song is one of a number of songs that share the title "SOS."
• FUN FACT (34D: Interesting tidbit) FUN FACT: The phrase "FUN FACT" is a favorite of mine, and I use it frequently in my articles!
• TSARS (45D: Pre-1917 Russian rulers) The word TSAR is derived from the Latin word caesar. Nicholas II was the last TSAR of Russia. He abdicated the throne as a result of the 1917 Russian Revolution.
• BIKES (50D: Zero-emission vehicles) I enjoyed this clue highlighting BIKES as people-powered zero-emission vehicles.
• INUIT (52D: Arctic Indigenous group) INUIT are indigenous people of Greenland, Canada, and the United States (Alaska). INUIT are the descendants of the Thule people.

Crossword Puzzle Theme Synopsis

• PUBLIC TRANSIT (20A: subways, buses, trains, etc.)
• QUEER THEORY (Subject covered in gender studies courses)
• NAKED TRUTH (59A: Unembellished telling of events)

EYE OPENING: The OPENING word of each theme answer can precede the word EYE in a new phrase: PUBLIC EYE, QUEER EYE, and NAKED EYE.

Did you find solving this puzzle to be an EYE OPENING experience? In addition to the answers I've highlighted above, I also enjoyed the clever clue for TWIN (65A: Sibling who shares your birthday) and the grid-spanning answer "WHAT DO YOU MEAN WE?" (11D: Wait, how am I getting dragged into this?"). Thank you, Orca Jimmy, for this entertaining puzzle.

For more on USA TODAY’s Crossword Puzzles

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