Today’s Saturday Stumper

Today’s Newsday Saturday Stumper is by “Anna Stiga,” or Stan Again, Stanley Newman, the puzzle’s editor. It looks intimidating, with stacks of fourteen-, fifteen-, and fifteen-letter answers top and bottom. But look, there’s an opening: 18-A, three letters, “Lentil cousin.” And another: 22-A, four letters, “Internal motivation.” And things began to fall into place. I found some moments of difficulty in the southeast quarter. For instance, 44-D, three letters, “Restraining order”? That’s tricky, especially if you’re uncertain how to spell 51-A, five letters, “Asia’s highest major city.”

Some clue-and-answer pairs I especially liked:

7-D, six letters, “Cause precipitation.” Nice misdirection, Ms. Stiga.

33-A, eight letters, “OK to drive.” Is it clever, really? I think it’s clever.

50-D, six letters, “Put to the test.” Aah, put. Present tense, or past? And what kind of test?

55-A, four letters, “Up.” AWAK —? No.

58-A, three letters, “Get close to, in quantity.” I think that should be in number, but I still like the twist.

The funnest fifteen-letter clue in today’s puzzle: 61-A, “Secret thing since the ’50s.” But my favorite clue in today’s puzzle is 54-D, five letters, “Late spring/early summer tag phrase.” So simple once you see it, though it may take a while to see it.

No spoilers: the answers are in the comments.