| 100% | MAHABHARATA | 11 | Ancient Indian epic by Sage Vyasa that tells the tale of the Pandava and Kaurava brothers |
| 45% | LOST | 4 | "Paradise ___," English epic by John Milton that tells the tale of the Fall of Man |
| 44% | ILIAD | 5 | Ancient Greek epic by Homer that tells the tale of the Trojan War |
| 44% | ODYSSEY | 7 | Ancient Greek epic by Homer that tells the tale of the king of Ithaca's journey |
| 39% | MANAS | 5 | Epic of ___, ancient Turkish epic that tells the tale of the Kyrgyz people |
| 38% | SAGA | 4 | "Grettir's ___," ancient Icelandic epic that tells the tale of the outlaw Grettir |
| 37% | BEOWULF | 7 | Old English epic that tells the tale of the eponymous hero of the Geats |
| 36% | HIGHWAY | 7 | "___ Patrolman," 1982 song by Bruce Springsteen that tells the story of two brothers |
| 31% | LAND | 4 | "___ of the Pharaohs," 1955 epic film starring Jack Hawkins that is inspired by ancient Egypt |
| 31% | SHOEMAKER | 9 | "The Elves and the ___," set of fairy tales collected by the Brothers Grimm |
| 31% | WURSTSIDESTORY | 14 | Musical drama that tells the tale of a sausage casing? |
| 31% | OTHER | 5 | "Of Love and ___ Demons," 1994 novel by Gabriel Garcia Marquez that tells the story of a 12 year old girl who is bitten by a dog |
| 31% | ELVES | 5 | "The ___ and the Shoemaker," set of fairy tales collected by the Grimm Brothers |
| 30% | ONYOURFEET | 10 | Jukebox musical that tells the story of musicians Emilio and Gloria Estefan (3 wds.) |
| 29% | MYTHS | 5 | "Great Greek ___," French TV series that tells the story of Ancient Greek entities |
| 29% | JACKFROST | 9 | Famed 1979 stop motion animated Christmas TV special that tells the tale of a winter sprite: 2 wds. |
| 29% | SILENTSPRING | 12 | Book by 19-Across that challenged the use of chemical pesticides and sparked environmentalism: 2 wds. |
| 29% | WORLDPEACE | 10 | Ancient dream of humanity that's hinted at by the starts of 17-, 24-, 37- and 53-Across (in Hawaiian, Hebrew, Latin and Russian, respectively) |
| 28% | SURVIVES | 8 | Gets out of danger and lives to tell the tale |
| 28% | HOMECOMING | 10 | 2023 novel by 37-Across that tells the story of a journalist who uncovers secrets from the past |
| 28% | CASTLE | 6 | "The ___ of Otranto," gothic novel by Horace Walpole which tells the story of Manfred and his family |
| 28% | SNL | 3 | Show that was the source of "The Blues Brothers" and "Wayne's World": Abbr. |
| 28% | ONE | 3 | Number that's the title of hit songs by Metallica and U2 |
| 27% | MOUNTAIN | 8 | "The King of the Golden ___," German fairy tale by the Brothers Grimm |
| 27% | BEARD | 5 | "Santa's ___," 1964 song by The Beach Boys that tells the story of Santa's iconic facial hair |
| 27% | LAST | 4 | "The ___ Picture Show," 1971 film starring Timothy Bottoms and Jeff Bridges that tells the story of two high school seniors |
| 27% | PET | 3 | "What ___ Should I Get?," 2015 book by Dr. Seuss that chronicles the adventures of Jay and Kay |
| 27% | HANSEL | 6 | ___ and Gretel (fairy tale by the Brothers Grimm) |
| 27% | NAME | 4 | "Call Me By Your ___," Oscar-winning film that depicts the love story of Elio and Oliver |
| 26% | SON | 3 | "The Good ___," 1993 psychological thriller directed by Joseph Ruben that follows the story of a 12-year-old and his psychopathic cousin |