The drama over 38 Down: The New York Times crossword declares ‘The Bear’ a ‘TV drama’
The ongoing debate over whether The Bear should be considered a comedy has even reached the crossword pages of The New York Times.
The clue: "The Boys and The Bear, for two"
Spoiler alert: The answer: "TVDRAMAS"
Keen-eyed puzzle solvers were quick to note the category (mis)classification.
"I do need to point out that every single genre-specific award The Bear has won — Emmy, Golden Globe, Critics Choice, even the NAACP Image Award — has been an award for comedy, not TVDRAMA," wrote JGinDC in the forum posts for the crossword, which appeared in Monday's New York Times.
Added Austin, "I think most would agree that it’s been one of the most egregious cases of 'category fraud' in recent memory. The show belongs in Drama, not Comedy. Kudos to the constructor for calling them out!"
That said the puzzle's author, college student Victor Schmitt, who was making his crossword debut, says he didn't realize he was stepping into an awards firestorm.
"Tbh, having seen The Bear I definitely consider it more of a drama than comedy, I actually didn’t know it was submitted as a comedy to the Emmys," Schmitt told Gold Derby via email. "The main thought process behind the clue was to have alliteration with Bear and Boys. I liked two shows having 'The B' as their names."
His claims of innocence aside, the subtle slight churned up plenty of debate for awards purists:
"Happy to see The Bear classified as a drama, as it should be," wrote Amy.
"Who on earth decided it should compete for an award in the Comedy category?" echoed sotto voce. "And two years in a row! Mind-boggling."
Added Wesley, "I mean, I usually laugh my tuches off watching it, but it is hardly a comedy. But I suppose with drama and comedy being two sides of the same coin, it kinda works."