NYT Strands hints and answers for Thursday, September 17 (game #928)

(Image credit: New York Times) Strands is the NYT's latest word game after the likes of Wordle, Spelling Bee and Connections – and it's great fun. It can be difficult, though, so read on for my Strands hints.Want more word-based fun? Then check out my NYT Connections today and Quordle today pages for hints and answers for those games, and Marc's Wordle today page for the original viral word game.SPOILER WARNING: Information about NYT Strands today is below, so don't read on if you don't want to know the answers.NYT Strands today (game #928) - hint #1 - today's themeWhat is the theme of today's NYT Strands?• Today's NYT Strands theme is… A little comic reliefNYT Strands today (game #928) - hint #2 - clue wordsPlay any of these words to unlock the in-game hints system.MUSTTUNENECKSTICKPUPPYBLOCKNYT Strands today (game #928) - hint #3 - spangram lettersHow many letters are in today's spangram?• Spangram has 13 lettersNYT Strands today (game #928) - hint #4 - spangram positionWhat are two sides of the board that today's spangram touches?• First side: top, 1st column• Last side: bottom, 6th columnRight, the answers are below, so DO NOT SCROLL ANY FURTHER IF YOU DON'T WANT TO SEE THEM.NYT Strands today (game #928) - the answers (Image credit: New York Times)The answers to today's Strands, game #928, are…PEANUTSZIPPYMUTTSPICKLESZITSBLONDIESPANGRAM: THEFUNNYPAGESMy rating: HardMy score: 3 hintsAfter missing out on getting an easy Spangram-first yesterday I was on a mission to spot it today and it ended up being far easier than I thought.Sign up for breaking news, reviews, opinion, top tech deals, and more.I was unsure exactly what the theme meant, but seeing the word 'funny' in the middle of the board and then the word 'the' in the top-left-hand corner helped me connect THEFUNNYPAGES.This, though, was where my good fortune ended, as I needed three hints to find all of the comic strip names, being familiar with only Peanuts.Comic strips were less of a big deal in the UK, where I grew up, although the cartoon strips on the back page along with the TV listings section were the only parts of the newspaper I read as a kid. Ours, though, were the adventures of a world-weary viking called Hägar.Yesterday's NYT Strands answers (Wednesday, September 16, game #927)JAZZYVIVIDBRIGHTFLASHYSTRIKINGVIBRANTSPANGRAM: EYECATCHINGWhat is NYT Strands?Strands is the NYT's not-so-new-any-more word game, following Wordle and Connections. It's now a fully fledged member of the NYT's games stable that has been running for a year and which can be played on the NYT Games site on desktop or mobile.I've got a full guide to how to play NYT Strands, complete with tips for solving it, so check that out if you're struggling to beat it each day. Johnny is a freelance pop culture journalist who has been writing about the internet, music, football and famous people since the iPhone was just a twinkle in Steve Jobs' eye. Previously known by the pseudonym the Pop Detective, his journalistic career began making up stories about Madonna's addiction to sausage rolls (this is not true by the way). A man of few talents, his career is rich and various and includes the highs of interviewing Elton John and Blur; and the lows of interviewing Right Said Fred, appearing on a Channel 5 documentary about Peter Kay, and fact-checking the instruction manual for a German cooker. Somehow still affording to live in North London he is at his happiest riding his bicycle and shouting at pigeons.