Index to Annotations

About the Annotations

The primary author of this material is Jerry Boyajian, aka jayembee, who notes:

Dedicated to the Lord High Chancellor of Pop Culture Annotations, Jess Nevins. For examples of the amazing Jess at work, check out his comic book annotations, particularly those for THE LEAGUE OF EXTRAORDINARY GENTLEMEN.

Additional credit for their comments and contributions goes to (in alphabetical order) Alison, Kevin Alan, Angela, Ariana, Mark Blunden, Penni Brough, T. Erik Browne, Steve Clark, Exatron, Tom Francis, Paul Frankenstein, GutPageant, Mat Harold, Joan Hedman, InsAnimal, John Iwaniszek, Christa Jonkergouw, Dan Kelly, Lee Kelly, Gareth Kitchener, Jim Larson, Bronwyn Lewis, Ken McElhaney, William McNee, Alex Moon, Mark Morrison, Matt Morrison, Captain Nerd, Katherine Ramsey, Luc Schots, John Sergent, Hank Shiffman, Nick Simino, stefaan.dc, catherine summers, Adam Thorp, and Graham Thurwell.

Season One

101: Premiere

D.K.: "Uh, oh -- one small step, bud."

D.K. is using the famous line, spoken by Neil Armstrong as he made the first human step out onto the Moon's surface, "That's one small step for man...one giant leap for mankind," to indicate that John's astronaut-hero father (who also walked on the moon) has entered the room.

John: "Oh, no, that's your good luck charm. Yuri Gagarin gave you that."

Yuri Gagarin (see also http://www.allstar.fiu.edu/aerojava/gagarin.htm) was the Soviet Cosmonaut who, aboard Vostok 1 in 1961, became the first human being to reach outer space.

John: "Boy, was Spielberg ever wrong. Close Encounters, my ass."

Refers to Steven Spielberg's 1977 film CLOSE ENCOUNTERS OF THE THIRD KIND.

(see also www.crichtonisms.com)

102: I, E.T.

The title is a play on Steven Spielberg's 1982 film E.T., and possibly Robert Graves's I, CLAUDIUS or Isaac Asimov's I, ROBOT (or some similar title).

John: "Kinda like Louisiana. Or Dagobah. Dagobah -- where Yoda lives."
Aeryn: "Who's Yoda?"
John: "Just a little green guy. Trains warriors."
Aeryn: "Oh."

Refers to the Jedi Master who first appears in 1980's THE EMPIRE STRIKES BACK.

John: "Pilot said you press this, this, and...this. What? It's just like a VCR...except easier."

Refers to the classic frustration of otherwise intelligent people, whose VCRs perpetually are blinking "12:00".

(see also www.crichtonisms.com)

103: Exodus from Genesis

The title is, of course, a play on the titles of the first two books of the Old Testament.

John: [after using the dentic] "It's kinda minty."

A reference to various American television commercials for toothpaste, which promised to leave users with minty fresh breath.

John: "How fast can they go?"
Aeryn: "Hetch seven.
John: "Hetch seven? [That] thing's a Hyundai -- why don't we stop playing hide and seek and just smoke 'em?

Hyundai is a Korean manufacturer of economy automobiles, which are marketed in the United States. Whatever their product's actual quality may be, they have frequently been the target of derisive humor.

John: "D'Argo, the giant ouija board says, uh...optimum plus 3."

Ouija boards have been available since 1890, and are used as either (depending on your viewpoint) a parlor game or a method of communicating with the spirit world. John may have chosen the term in this case because Moya's controls still seem somewhat mysterious to him.

John: "Oh, I am trying, but you know, with Aeryn and D'Argo, it's like everything's a test. It's like I'm in some never ending frat hazing at Alien U."
Zhaan: "Frat...hazing?"
John: "Next planet, I'll rent you a copy of ANIMAL HOUSE."

John Landis's ANIMAL HOUSE, the ultimate frat movie.

(The part of the above quote following "everything's a test" appears only in the longer version of the episode available on DVD/VHS.)

(see also www.crichtonisms.com)

104: Throne for a Loss

John: "We do know that they'll pay us to haul cargo, which they're not gonna do if you go in there doing your John Wayne impression."
Aeryn: "John Wayne. Who's that? A relative?"
John: "John Wayne? No. The big guy. TRUE GRIT, THE SEARCHERS, THE COWBOYS, GENGHIS KHAN. No, look, forget about GENGHIS KHAN. Everybody makes a bad movie..."

Sterling examples of how a mediocre actor can make some of the best films in the Western genre. Henry Hathaway's TRUE GRIT, Mark Rydell's THE COWBOYS, and especially John Ford's THE SEARCHERS are classic Westerns. THE SEARCHERS, in particular, is considered by many to be one of the best Westerns ever made.

As for that last one, well, actually, this is an error. Crichton is mixing up the film title with the character. In what is generally considered the worst piece of casting in movie history, Wayne plays Temujin in THE CONQUEROR, directed by actor Dick Powell. The film is also notorious for being the death (literally) of a large number of its cast and crew: it was filmed in the desert near the sites of the atom bomb tests, and the bulk of the cast and crew (including Powell, Wayne, Susan Hayward, and Agnes Moorhead) ended up dying from cancer.

John: "Kung Fu. Kung Fu never carried a gun."

Once again, he's mixing up the character with the title. What he's referring to is Kwai Chang Caine, hero of the 1970s TV series KUNG FU.

John: "Pilot, get a tractor beam on that shuttle."
Pilot: "Tractor beam? What's that?"

The first of many references to STAR TREK.

Tractor beams actually pre-date Star Trek (E. E. 'Doc' Smith's Lensman novels from around 1950, for instance, feature both tractor and pressor beams), though Star Trek popularized the concept. Then again, John might have been thinking of Star Wars.

John: "Good night, sweet prince."

Quote from Shakespeare's HAMLET, Act V, Scene 2:

Now cracks a noble heart. Good night, sweet prince,
And flights of angels sing thee to thy rest!

John: "That's your plan? Wile E. Coyote would come up with a better plan than that!"

Wile E. Coyote (Canis Nervous Rex) is, of course, the Warner Bros. cartoon character created by Chuck Jones and Michael Maltese. Despite being a self-styled Super Genius, his overly elaborate plans to catch the Road Runner for dinner always went awry.

John: "Willpower. Like the Green Lantern's ring."

Green Lantern is a DC Comics superhero. There have been various incarnations of the character, but the best known is Hal Jordan, a test pilot recruited by the Guardians of the Universe to be a member of their interstellar police force, the Green Lantern Corps. Green Lantern's "weapon" was his ring, powered by his willpower, which enabled him to create energy constructs in the form of whatever his imagination conjured up. For everything you could want to know about the Green Lanterns, go to http://www.glcorps.org/ or http://www.emeraldwarriors.com/

John: "I'm sorry...I don't feel anything. In fact, I feel pretty good. I feel real good. Oh, right. It's working."

This probably isn't an intentional allusion, but it reminds me of an exchange between Jack Burton (Kurt Russell) and Wang Chi (Dennis Dun) in John Carpenter's BIG TROUBLE IN LITTLE CHINA. After they and their companions drink a mystical potion prior to descending into the villain's lair, Burton says: "Feel pretty good. I mean I'm not...uh...I'm not scared at all. I just feel kind of...I feel kind of invincible."

(see also www.crichtonisms.com)

105: Back and Back and Back to the Future

The title is a reference to Robert Zemeckis's popular time travel movie BACK TO THE FUTURE. The episode itself could be seen as inspired by GROUNDHOG DAY or 12:01 P.M..

John: "How about...how about mental abilities? Do they have, like, telepathic powers of seduction? Psychic Spanish Fly. You know, that?"

At various points in history, pulverized Spanish Fly has been considered an aphrodisiac.

While we have seen the Peacekeeper logo prior to this (in the Command Carrier scenes in "Premiere"), this episode gives us our first really good look at it, in the Aeryn/Matala sparring scene. The logo is taken right from the piece of Russian Constructivist art "Beat the Whites with the Red Wedge" by El Lissitzky.

Here's a relevant quote from FARSCAPE: THE ILLUSTRATED COMPANION, by Paul Simpson and David Hughes (London: Titan Books, 2000), pp 27-28:

"There were other artistic influences on the fight scene. Ricky Eyres explains: 'Russian constructivism was a form of art that developed before the revolution. There was a famous painting called "Beat the Whites with the Red Witch" [sic], and there's one blatant piece of it in this episode, which you see when Aeryn's fighting with Matala. It starts with an overhead crane shot, and it's actually that painting, broken down as a carpet. It just seemed to fit, and from a visual point of view it was very strong.'"

The mural to the side of Aeryn and Matala was created by production designer Ricky Eyres in the same style as Lissitzky's work.

(see also www.crichtonisms.com)

106: Thank God It's Friday. Again.

John: "Oh, yeah, I think I've seen this one. Mel Gibson, Tina Turner...cage match."
Rygel: "What?"
John: "Oh, don't worry. Nobody saw the third one anyway."

He's referring, of course, to the 1985 film MAD MAX BEYOND THUNDERDOME. For an interesting analysis of the film, check out http://www.transparencynow.com/maxintro.htm or for a mythological analysis of the series as a whole, http://web.1earth.net/~postmodm/m/text/madmax.html

John: "My boy D'Argo, into the Promised Land..."

A reference to the Biblical concept of a "land of milk and honey".

John: "Look, Woodstock has done something to his head..."

Reference to the 1969 Woodstock Music Festival, using it as a metaphor to describe Volmae's drugged-out, "hippy"-like personality.

Aeryn: "Where's Zhaan?"
John: "Look, she's with D'Argo, OK? Dancing with the Grateful Dead."

Another metaphor, referring to the rock band that's generally perceived as a favorite with druggies.

John: "I know -- and we're all grateful that you did the Madame Curie thing, but..."
Aeryn: "What? Who?"
John: "Madame Curie. She's...she's a scientist."

And discoverer of radium. An excellent biographical drama about her was filmed in 1943, starring Greer Garson as Marie and Walter Pidgeon as her husband Pierre. See also http://www.physics.purdue.edu/wip/herstory/curie.html

John: "Oh, give it a rest, Snow White."

The famous character, from the fairy tales of the Brothers Grimm, who played Den Mother to a bunch of vertically challenged working class guys.

(see also www.crichtonisms.com)

107: PK Tech Girl

John: "Like, shouldn't we be doing Warp a thousand by now?"

Another Star Trek reference.

D'Argo: "This ship is legendary even in my culture. It was thought invincible."
John: "Yeah, well just ask Leonardo DiCaprio. Even the big ones go down."

Reference to James Cameron's 1997 film TITANIC.

Ben Browder reportedly has said he wanted to change this line to "...ask Leonardo DiCaprio, Bill Clinton...". Fortunately, saner heads prevailed. ;-)

Aeryn: "Well, be that as it may, we can't stall them for eight arns."
John: "Four. Four. I'll...um...uh...I'll do half the work. What? There some kind of union thing I don't know about?"
Gilina: "No, it's just this wiring is very...sophisticated."
John: "Yep. And I love opera."

John's alluding to the commonly held attitude that liking opera is a sign of sophisticated taste.

(The part of the above quote following "half the work" appears only in the longer version of the episode available on DVD/VHS.)

John: "And so it's red wire, blue wire, red wire, blue wire, and at the last possible second [clicks tongue] he cuts the wrong wire."
Gilina: "And the bomb never goes off."
John: "No no no. He cuts the wrong wire. That's the whole point. Fifteen seconds later, they're running out of the building. Everything blows all to hell."
Gilina: "And you call this entertainment?"

Here John is describing the opening scene to the 1992 Mel Gibson/Danny Glover film LETHAL WEAPON 3.

Aeryn: [shoots the Sheyang, who explodes] "Sorry about the mess."

From STAR WARS, spoken by Han Solo as he nonchalantly strolls out of the Mos Eisley cantina after shooting Greedo.

John: "I had a poster of Clint Eastwood." [Aeryn looks puzzled] "THE GOOD, THE BAD AND THE UGLY."

Sergio Leone's most popular "Spaghetti Western", and the film that established Eastwood as a major film star.

(This particular bit of dialog only appears in the longer version of the episode available on DVD/VHS.)

(see also www.crichtonisms.com)

108: That Old Black Magic

The title is taken from an old jazz song.

Maldis: "I got a lot o' names, John-boy, call me whatever pops your cork."
John: "Yeah. Right. You're a regular Laurence Olivier."

The late Laurence Olivier, whose career spanned almost six decades, is one of the most esteemed actors of British theatre and film, and considered by many to be the greatest actor of the 20th Century. He was knighted in 1947, and made a baron in 1970.

John: "Oh, it's not Kansas. And you're way too homely to be Auntie Em. But...come here, Toto."

Several references to the film version of THE WIZARD OF OZ.

(see also www.crichtonisms.com)

109: DNA Mad Scientist

"NamTar" is "Rat Man" spelled backwards. Additionally, "Namtar" was the name of a minor Sumerian god associated with disease and pestilence. "It is fate, destiny in its evil aspect, pictured as a demon of the underworld."

John: "The map thing? NamTar's magic crystal? Well, Larry, Curly, and Moe just found out that they can only use one of the maps. Two of them ain't going nowhere. I tell you, it's a regular FAMILY FEUD up there."

Two references for the price of one. Larry [Fine], Curly [Howard], and Moe [Howard] are the classic Three Stooges. Which of the Stooges maps to which of D'Argo, Zhaan, and Rygel is left as an exercise for the reader.

FAMILY FEUD is the inexplicably popular American (former) game show hosted by ex-Hogan's Hero Richard Dawson.

John: "No, believe it or not, we've had men like you on my planet. Educated men. Men of science and medicine. Men who were searching for some self-described ideal, and willing to maim and murder untold thousands to find it. There was one...his name was Mengele. To him, anyone was fair game as a subject of his experiments: the weak, the handicapped, men, women, children..."

Crichton is referring to Josef Mengele, the infamous Nazi doctor. Known primarily for comitting atrocities at the Auschwitz concentration camp during WWII, Mengele was referred to as "the Angel of Death".

John: "It's a happy face."
Aeryn: "They're food cubes."
John: "No, see, the pattern forms a...never mind."

Apparently, the Uncharted Territories have not yet discovered the ubiquitous yellow smiley face.

(see also www.crichtonisms.com)

110: They've Got A Secret

The title is a play on another American TV game show, I'VE GOT A SECRET, hosted by Garry Moore, which ran from 1952 to 1967. Two later 1970s incarnations were hosted by Steve Allen.

John: "Look, Moya's a living being, right? And there are viruses galore out here in the galaxy. I mean, hell, what are our chances that we're gonna catch the Corrubian Plague or something?"

It feels as though "Corrubian Plague" could be another Trek reference, but so far the search for a source (under a variety of spellings) has not been successful.

John: "Uh oh. Eyes."
Aeryn: "Eyes?"
John: "Yeah, like a cave scene in a Yosemite Sam cartoon."

Another character from Warner Bros's Looney Tunes.

John: "You missed that Hitchcock picture playing back there a little while ago, but a flock of these little guys just tried to kill me."

A reference to the famous Alfred Hitchcock thriller THE BIRDS (see also http://www.filmsite.org/bird.html).

John: "Yeah, is there some kind of 'What to Expect When You're Expecting a Baby Leviathan' book? Dr. Spock...Mr. Spock..."

A play on the name similarity between the notable "baby doctor" (Benjamin Spock) and the Star Trek character.

"What to Expect When You're Expecting" is the title of a very popular book for pregnant women that covers each stage of pregnancy in a very reader friendly format, and describes all of the various changes that are occurring to the fetus and the mother's body.

(see also www.crichtonisms.com)

111: Till the Blood Runs Clear

John: "I'm Butch. This is Sundance. We're the Hole in the Sky Gang."
Rorf: "Butch. And Sundance. I am Rorf."
John: "Worf?"
Rorf: "RORF!"

Three references in one. John is, of course, referring to the title characters played by Paul Newman and Robert Redford in 1969's BUTCH CASSIDY AND THE SUNDANCE KID.

Hole In The Wall was a popular hideout (in Johnson County, Wyoming) used by Butch & Sundance, Jesse James and others. Hole In The Wall the place led to the name "Hole In The Wall Gang" for the outlaws who hid out there. John's version, "Hole in the Sky", perhaps is drawn from the fact that he's looking for a wormhole.

"Worf" is YASTR (Yet Another Star Trek Reference), to the character portrayed by Michael Dorn.

(The part of the above quote following "This is Sundance" appears only in the longer version of the episode available on DVD/VHS.)

John: "Who's calling the shots here, Pluto?"

A reference to Mickey Mouse's faithful canine companion.

Furlow: "Must be hard for someone as, ah...invulnerable as you to have to rely on the kindness of strangers."

An allusion to a line by Blanche DuBois in A STREETCAR NAMED DESIRE (see also http://www.filmsite.org/stre.html), from the play by Tennessee Williams:

"Whoever you are, I have always depended on the kindness of strangers."

(The above episode quote appears only in the longer version of the episode available on DVD/VHS.)

(see also www.crichtonisms.com)

112: Rhapsody In Blue

The title is taken from what is arguably George Gershwin's most famous composition.

The painting in the archway of the Delvian Temple is taken from "The Old Glen Mill", by Maxfield Parrish.

John: "That's my underwear."
Aeryn: "What does this say?"
John: "Calvin."
Aeryn: "Well, then, they're not yours."

John evidently was wearing Calvin Klein boxers when he left Earth; Aeryn is looking at the tag in the back of the waistband, which carries the brand name.

Jenn & Alex's Crichtonisms site also suggests that this may be a "fantastic, subtle reference on the part of the writers to a scene in the 1985 movie BACK TO THE FUTURE."

John: "Is that what happened to Grandpa Looney Tunes?"

"Looney Tunes" is the series of cartoons from Warner Bros., successor to "Merrie Melodies". More recently, it's become an idiomatic expression to describe someone who's crazy, and that's undoubtedly the case here, rather than a direct reference to the cartoons.

John: "So what are you supposed to do? Serve as the poster child for the revolution?"

John is referring to the practice of selecting a representative client of a charity, whose image is then used on posters promoting the charity's work.

John: "The part of Tahleen in tonight's Unity will be played by John Crichton."

The standard practice in live theater, when an actor in a major role cannot appear, is to announce the name of the actor who will be portraying the character in his or her stead.

John: "It's like...Disney on acid."

John highlights the strange, contradicting duality of Unity, by describing it as a combination of the "squeaky clean" maker of animated films & amusement parks, and the powerful hallucinogenic drug LSD.

(see also www.crichtonisms.com)

113: The Flax

John: "Oh, I don't know how you're supposed to have fun, but this is fun. This is Top Gun. This is the need for speed."

Top Gun is a special school established by the U.S Navy in 1969 at Miramar Naval Air Station in San Diego to train its elite pilots in advanced aerial combat tactics.

It came into the popular American consciousness through the 1986 Tony Scott film starring Tom Cruise and Val Kilmer (see also http://www.geocities.com/SiliconValley/Hills/6698/topgun.html).

(This particular bit of dialog only appears in the longer version of the episode available on DVD/VHS.)

(see also www.crichtonisms.com)

114: Jeremiah Crichton

The title is taken from the 1972 Robert Redford film JEREMIAH JOHNSON, directed by Sydney Pollack.

Aeryn: "Look, this is hardly the time for human nonsense, Crichton."
John: "Oh, God, that is it -- you are so damn smart. There's no time for any stupid human anything. And I'm sick of it, Aeryn. I'm sick of Napoleon the Fourteenth, I'm sick of Blue, I'm sick of Tentacle Boy. And guess what? I'm sick of you. I'm sick of this whole turd-burp end of the universe."

Our favorite Dominar is actually Rygel the 16th. Napoleon XIV was the stage name of Jerry Samuels, known best for his 1966 hit song, "They're Coming To Take Me Away, Ha-Haaa!".

John: "Well, hakuna matata, Masata."

"Hakuna matata" is the phrase (and song) from Disney's THE LION KING.

John: "The slug who would be king."

A reference to the Rudyard Kipling story, "The Man Who Would Be King", made into an excellent movie by John Huston, starring Sean Connery and Michael Caine.

(see also www.crichtonisms.com)

115: Durka Returns

John: "I guess we can turn off the 'fasten-seatbelt' sign now."

Reference to the turbulent nature of Moya's movement. Federal regulations in the United States require that seatbelts be worn by all aircraft passengers during takeoff and landing, when the Fasten Seatbelt sign is illuminated. (The sign may be switched off at the pilot's discretion, indicating that passengers may safely leave their seats, but is generally switched back on if the aircraft encounters turbulence.)

John: "I don't give a damn if she's an ax-murderer, Elvis. She was just talking to me."

Elvis Presley. The King. John probably thought that Salis's funky sideburns made him look like Elvis.

In the "inside joke" department, the make-up for Salis was reportedly based on Craig Barden (the Director of Photography for season one), who resembled Elvis.

John: "Nebari mental cleansing doesn't get the tough stains out."

A reference to various American television commercials for laundry detergents.

John: "He's a psychopath -- legendary -- and nobody knows what a 100 years of eating Happy Meals have done to him."

"Happy Meals" are a menu item at the McDonald's fast food chain. Intended for kids, they come in fun boxes, and include a toy of some sort, typically a licensed product that promotes something (like, say, a Disney movie). Here's an interesting site -- it's commercial (they're trying to sell these items), but it shows some of the toys that have been included with Happy Meals over the years.

John: "Look, I don't have time to play this game. Durka's gone Hannibal Lecter on us."
Chiana: "I don't know what that means."

It means that he's turned into a psycho killer, a la "Hannibal the Cannibal", the popular character created by Thomas Harris for his novel RED DRAGON (filmed as MANHUNTER and to be remade under the original title). Hannibal then appeared in two sequels: THE SILENCE OF THE LAMBS and HANNIBAL. For the books: http://www.randomhouse.com/features/thomasharris/home.html

(see also www.crichtonisms.com)

116: A Human Reaction

John: "Who won the Super Bowl, Cobb?"
Cobb: "I don't know."
John: "I know you're Australian, Cobb, but you gotta know who won the Super Bowl. You know who Ty Cobb is, Cobb? No? How 'bout...how 'bout Babe Ruth? You know who Babe Ruth is?"
Cobb: "Some fat guy that played for the Yankees."
John: "Good. Fat guy. At least you know something."

The Super Bowl is the big game of the American football season, played in January to determine the National Football League championship team.

Ty Cobb (see also fan site) and Babe Ruth were two of baseball's greatest players. They were the subjects, respectively, of the films COBB, starring Tommy Lee Jones as Cobb, and THE BABE, starring John Goodman as Ruth.

Wilson: "Who is it?"
John: "Who's on first? What's on second? I don't know! I can't see 'em!"

"Who's on first?" is probably the best known vaudeville routine of the comic duo Bud Abbott and Lou Costello. The complete routine, as done in the 1945 film THE NAUGHTY NINETIES, can be found at http://us.imdb.com/Quotes?0037939

(see also www.crichtonisms.com)

117: Through the Looking Glass

John: "Salmonella...what the hell is that?"

Salmonella is a variety of food poisoning.

Pilot: "Quantify 'disappeared'."
John: "Here one second, gone the next. Dis-a-Elvis-has-left-the-building-appeared."

(By the way, that's a "[sic]". Crichton actually does say the "a" in both places.)

"Elvis has left the building" was a signature phrase used at Elvis's concerts to indicate to the audience that the show was over and that they should go home.

(The part of John's line in the above quote before "these readings" appears only in the longer version of the episode available on DVD/VHS.)

John: "OK, Alice, once more through the looking glass."

A reference, of course (and from whence the episode's title comes) to THROUGH THE LOOKING GLASS, Lewis Carroll's sequel to ALICE IN WONDERLAND.

Zhaan: "Then why can't we see them?"
Pilot: "Because..."
John: "Because you don't have X-ray vision...do you?

X-ray vision is one of Superman's better known powers.

John: "Still auditioning for STAR SEARCH, I see."

Hosted by the ever-smiling Ed McMahon, STAR SEARCH was a notable televised talent show that ran from 1983 to 1995. Several successful stars got their start on this show, including the infamous Britney Spears and the 400 pound Gorilla, comedian Dennis Miller.

(On his HBO show, DENNIS MILLER LIVE, Miller is listed in the closing credits as "400 Pound Gorilla", from the old joke "What does a 400 pound gorilla say?" "Anything it wants to.")

(see also www.crichtonisms.com)

118: A Bug's Life

The title is taken from the Disney-released film from Pixar Studios.

John: "Rygel has been possessed by some Mensa-member virus..."

John is playing on the term "intellivirus", by comparing it to the Mensa society, which describes itself as a group of "people from every walk of life whose IQ is in the top 2% of the population".

John: "And what if you don't? You might kill Rygel. You might think your magic pill worked, and then Rygel's up, walkin' around the ship, coughin' up spores, cats and dogs living together..."

From a line by Bill Murray in the film GHOSTBUSTERS, during the scene in the New York City Mayor's office:

Venkman: "Or you could accept the fact that this city is headed for a disaster of Biblical proportions."
Mayor: "What do you mean, Biblical?
Ray: "What he means is Old Testament, Mr. Mayor. Real wrath-of-God type stuff. Fire and brimstone coming down from the sky. Rivers and seas boiling."
Egon: "Forty years of darkness, earthquakes, volcanoes."
Winston: "The dead rising from the grave."
Venkman: "Human sacrifice, dogs and cats living together, mass hysteria."

(Rockne S. O'Bannon confirms this line was added by Ben Browder, and is one of his favorites of Ben's ad libs.)

John: "Look, as soon as I leave here, I'm goin' straight to Hot Lips."

John's nickname for Lt. Hassan is a reference to Major Margaret "Hot Lips" Houlihan of M*A*S*H fame, played by Sally Kellerman in the original 1970 Robert Altman film, and Loretta Swit in the later TV series.

(see also www.crichtonisms.com)

119: Nerve

John: "Because a little while ago a commando skewered you with his Swiss Peacekeeper Army knife."

Reference to the universal tool/knife (in many respects, the predecessor to today's Leatherman tools) which was popularized during WWII.

John: "Oh, yeah. You should see my Immelmann. Check this out."

An aerial maneuver (named for a WWI flying ace) in which the aircraft loops up and over, then rolls back into a right side up position, resulting in it flying at a slower speed, but at a higher altitude and in the reverse direction. Both filmed and animated demonstrations are available online.

Chiana: "The more they look at me, the less they look at you."
John: "Do you think that, before they elect you centerfold of the year, we could get on with the business of saving Aeryn?"

John is commenting on Chiana's sexual mores by referring to the practice of including a two-page photograph of an attractive woman in the exact middle of a magazine (literally, on the center fold); while such pictures in the past were merely suggestive "pin-ups", the current style depends on models who are generally nude, and often in explicit poses. Playboy magazine is known for designating one nude model per issue as the "playmate of the month", and one model annually as the "playmate of the year".

Scorpius: "I'm Scorpius."
John: "But of course you are."

John is mimicking Sean Connery's line (and accent) from 1971's James Bond installment, DIAMONDS ARE FOREVER:

Plenty O'Toole: "Hi, I'm Plenty."
James Bond: "But of course you are."
Plenty O'Toole: "Plenty O'Toole."
James Bond: "Named after your father, perhaps?"

John: "For the ninth time, Nosferatu, I'm not a spy."

Nosferatu ("undead") was the title given to F.W. Murnau's unauthorized silent film adaptation of Bram Stoker's DRACULA after Stoker's estate sued. One can watch the film via Real Player at http://tlc.discovery.com/tlcpages/specialeffects/nosferatu.html

There was also a remake by Werner Herzog in 1979, and 2000's SHADOW OF THE VAMPIRE, starring John Malkovich and Willem Dafoe, was about the making of Murnau's film.

John: "Danger, danger, Will Robinson. Beware the chair. Beware the chair."

"Danger, danger, Will Robinson" was a frequent utterance by the Robot to Billy Mumy's character in TV's LOST IN SPACE, and made reference to in the 1998 film version.

John: "Fetch the comfy chair."

From Monty Python's famous "Spanish Inquisition" sketch.

John: "I got my mind right, boss. Be nice."

A quasi-quote from the 1967 film COOL HAND LUKE, starring Paul Newman (see also http://www.filmsite.org/cool3.html):

Boss Paul: "You got your mind right, Luke?"
Luke: "Yeah. I got it right. I got it right, boss."

John: "It's deja vu all over again."

A paraphrase of one of baseball great Yogi Berra's famous yogi-isms, "It's like deja-vu, all over again."

(see also www.crichtonisms.com)

120: The Hidden Memory

Stark: "If you don't stop, I'm going to have to kill you."
John: "Give it a coupla days, and I think Scorpy and Peacekeeper Barbie will do it for you."

A tip of the hat to that great American institution, the Barbie Doll, in all of its infinite variations.

John: "Well, thanks for the family tree, Crais, but frankly, I don't give a damn."

The famous quote by Rhett Butler (Clark Gable) to Scarlett O'Hara (Vivien Leigh) in the 1939 Civil War epic film GONE WITH THE WIND (see also http://www.filmsite.org/gone.html):

Scarlett: "Rhett... If you go ... where shall I go? What shall I do?"
Rhett: "Frankly, my dear, I don't give a damn."

Scorpy: "What is that, mmmmm?
John: "I don't know. Kinda looks like an episode of MELROSE PLACE."

The infamous primetime soaper.

John: "Aeryn. Did you bag yourself a senior officer?"
Aeryn: "Ran into an old friend. Let's go."

A nod to STAR WARS, paraphrasing an exchange between Han Solo and Princess Leia (when they meet up again after being separately chased through the Death Star by Stormtroopers):

Han: "What kept you?"
Leia: "We, uh, ran into some old friends."

At approximately 37 minutes into the episode (sans commercials), there's a visual reference to the sex scene between Jack (Leonardo Di Caprio) and Rose (Kate Winslet) in TITANIC. Rygel's hand streaking down the fogged up portal of the pressure tank mimics that of Rose's streaking down the fogged up window of the automobile in the cargo hold.

(see also www.crichtonisms.com)

121: Bone To Be Wild

The title is a play on the phrase "born to be wild", which could be a reference to several different things, including the classic rock'n'roll tune by 1960s rock band Steppenwolf.

John: "One, two, three, four to beam down, Pilot."

YASTR.

John: "Swamp Thing here ain't the Mr. Rogers scientist we thought he was."

Dr. Alec Holland was a scientist who was killed while working on a "bio-restorative" formula in his lab out in the Louisiana bayous. The formula combined with muck from the swamp turned him into...Swamp Thing. This DC Comics character was created by Len Wein and Berni Wrightson, but later achieved notice for a highly regarded run in the early 1980s by British writer Alan Moore.

The character was also the basis for two films (http://us.imdb.com/Title?0084745 and http://us.imdb.com/Title?0098193) and a TV series (http://us.imdb.com/Title?0098919).

"Mr. Rogers" is Fred Rogers, host of the PBS children's show MR. ROGER'S NEIGHBORHOOD. He's been both praised and satirized for his mellow demeanor.

(see also www.crichtonisms.com)

122: Family Ties

John: "Yeah, but what if one of us did the same thing, but at the last second veered off straight into the bridge? A Trojan Horse."

The legendary method of disguising an attack as a gift, as described in one 4th century account, The Fall of Troy.

John: "Well, it's a...Jerry Springer kinda family. But for what it's worth, Zhaan, you are family."

Jerry Springer is the king of syndicated dysfunctional relationships. His show is the TV equivalent of the freak show at the circus.

John: "Never before the big game. Hm? But thanks."

It was a long-held popular belief that athletes should abstain from sex prior to a major game or event, to avoid prematurely draining their strength. More recent research (as described in, for example, AskMen.com, TheAge.com.au, and Ultramarathon World) appears to debunk this concept.

John: "Sparky, Spanky, Fluffy, Buckwheat the 16th..."

Four of the most common (the only one missing is "Guido") nicknames that John has given Rygel. This isn't the first time John has used these, but here he mentions all four in one fell swoop. I don't know if "Sparky" or "Fluffy" (or "Guido") are specific references, but "Spanky" and "Buckwheat" are two of the best known of the Little Rascals (a.k.a. Our Gang), stars of many well-loved short films.

John: "Leader bogeys on the way. Fly faster, Rasta-man."

A comparison of D'Argo's braids and tentas to the dreadlocks favored by practitioners of Rastifarianism.

John: "Kirk and Spock. Heh heh heh. Abbott and Costello."

Comparing himself and D'Argo to two other popular duos, the leads of STAR TREK, and one of the most famous comedy teams.

John: "Hey, you bastards. John Crichton was here."

Recalls the WWII American soldiers' habit of scrawling "Kilroy was here" (often with an accompanying cartoon) wherever they went overseas, which came to be seen as a sort of nose-thumbing at enemy forces.

(see also www.crichtonisms.com)

Season Two

201: Dream A Little Dream

The title comes from the song of the same name. "Dream a Little Dream of Me" is an old standard (lyrics, sound clip) written in 1931 by Gus Kahn, Wilbur Schwandt, and Fabian Andre. It's been recorded by numerous artists, most notably the 1960s group The Mamas and the Papas.

Zhaan: "The last 15 solar days have been unbearable."
John: "It hasn't exactly been a trip to Disneyland for us, either."

Another reference to the Magic Kingdom (see "Crackers Don't Matter").

John: "You're a 10th Level Pa'u. You get to 11, and we get a TV ministry."

It's likely that he's referring to the plethora of evangelists who sermonize to TV audiences.

However, a few viewers felt that it might also be a tip of the hat to THIS IS SPINAL TAP, and a scene between Christopher Guest & Rob Reiner. Guest is the lead guitarist ("Nigel") of Spinal Tap and Reiner is the director ("Marty") of the documentary that's being shot; Nigel is explaining that his guitar amp goes to eleven, rather than the standard ten:

Nigel: The numbers all go to eleven. Look, right across the board, eleven, eleven, eleven and -
Marty: Oh, I see. And most amps go up to ten?
Nigel: Exactly.
Marty: Does that mean it's louder? Is it any louder?
Nigel: Well, it's one louder, isn't it? It's not ten. You see, most blokes, you know, will be playing at ten. You're on ten here, all the way up, all the way up, all the way up, you're on ten on your guitar. Where can you go from there? Where?
Marty: I don't know.
Nigel: Nowhere. Exactly. What we do is, if we need that extra push over the cliff, you know what we do?
Marty: Put it up to eleven.
Nigel: Eleven. Exactly. One louder.
Marty: Why don't you just make ten louder and make ten be the top number and make that a little louder?
Nigel: [Pause] These go to eleven.

(see also www.crichtonisms.com)

202: Mind the Baby

John: "D'Argo, shake it off. Come on, Rock, get off the canvas! You can do it. Rise and shine, up and at 'em. Break through. Man, this is getting old..."

There are split opinions on this one. A number of viewers took it as a reference to the professional wrestler known as The Rock. Others felt it was more likely a reference to the film series that began in 1976 with ROCKY, in which Sylvester Stallone plays Rocky Balboa, a no-name boxer with a shot at the title.

The argument between John and D'Argo during their rock-paper-scissors match, about whether or not paper beats rock, echoes a scene in TREMORS 2: AFTERSHOCKS, where the lead character asserts that rocks breaks through paper.

John: "You got a frog in your throat? You need a Hynerian Heimlich?"

Reference to the technique of clearing an airway obstruction, as introduced in 1974 by Dr. Henry J. Heimlich.

John: "Well, let's get that boy some guidance before he turns into a full-blown Menendez Brother."

After Talyn takes a shot at Moya in an effort to have Crais returned to him, John likens him to one of the Menendez Brothers, Lyle and Erik, who in 1996 were tried, convicted, and sentenced to life imprisonment for the 1989 murder of their parents.

(see also www.crichtonisms.com)

203: Vitas Mortis

John: "Take a number, have a seat, no magazines...typical. [servant returns] Number 78?"

A common method of managing large groups of customers in the U.S. is to give each of them a number as they enter the premises, then serve each in turn by calling out the numbers in sequence.

John: "So, you...uh...you got the barcodes of a General, but you aren't one."

While barcodes are used for many different purposes, John is probably thinking of UPC codes, which are unique by specific product and package.

John: "So, let's get back to Moya and heat up some Irish coffees."

Irish coffee is a combination of Irish whiskey and hot, sweetened coffee, topped with cream.

John: "So, if she wants to rip out your liver, snack on it with a chianti, she can do that?"

Another reference (see "Durka Returns") to Dr. Hannibal "the Cannibal" Lecter, from THE SILENCE OF THE LAMBS:

"A census taker once tried to test me. I ate his liver with some fava beans and a nice chianti."

(see also www.crichtonisms.com)

204: Taking the Stone

John: "Yo! Bob! Marley! You seen Molnon?"

Reference to the late (1945-1981) Bob Marley, considered by many to be the King of Reggae.

John: "Are we having a failure to communicate here?"

Another quasi-quote (see "Nerve") from the film COOL HAND LUKE (see also http://www.filmsite.org/cool3.html):

Captain (Strother Martin): "What we've got here is failure to communicate. Some men you just can't reach. So you get what we had here last week, which is the way he wants it. Well, he gets it. I don't like it any more than you men."

While tripping on Molnon's magic mushroom, John does an impression of Curly [Howard] of the Three Stooges.

Aeryn: "Wait...where are you going?"
John: "To see if this Excedrin headache was worth it."

A reference to the ad campaign by Excedrin for their pain reliever, which would refer to "Excedrin headache #__", implying that these were such that they could only be truly relieved with Excedrin.

John: "Aeryn, what the hell is wrong with you? You are the pin-up girl for frontal assault!"

Reference to the practice of selecting a specific female model to promote a cause or product, popular particularly during WWII, when aircraft crews often painted a pin-up's image on the nose of their plane for inspiration. (See also "Nerve".)

John: "Well, let's get her on the dog and bone."
Aeryn: "Whatever that means."

The Phrase Finder says that "dog and bone" is Cockney rhyming slang for telephone.

John: "Yes, and somebody has to do the bungee without the rope, except this time it's our friend jumping."

John is referring to the sport (sometimes known as "suicide practice") in which a participant attaches themself to a long elasticized rope, then jumps off a high bridge or platform; the rope catches them short of impact with the surface below, springing them back several times until the energy of their fall has been fully released. The modern sport is descended from a rite of passage for tribesmen in the South Pacific.

(see also www.crichtonisms.com)

205: Crackers Don't Matter

John: "Oh, great, so he's like one of those mechanics on 60 MINUTES who says he's gonna help, and then he screws us."

60 MINUTES is the notable news magazine show that's been airing on CBS since 1968, and which excels at investigative reportage. Among the reporters who've made their names on this show are Mike Wallace, Dan Rather, Morley Safer, Harry Reasoner, Ed Bradley, and Diane Sawyer.

John: "You know, I once bought a set of knives from this guy on TV. Cat swore to me that...that they could...they could cut through bone, metal, shoes... Hell, he could cut through my damn car, and still dice tomatoes. You know what? He was lyin'."
T'raltixx: "I...I don't understand. If...if you don't wish my...my services..."
John: "Bingo! Give Brainiac the fluffy doll."

John is alluding to the television commercials for Ginsu Knives, which very definitely implied that the knives in question could cut through anything, including sheet metal, and still be sharp enough to easily slice a tomato.

"Brainiac" is slang for a genius. According to Bartleby.com, it probably comes from the comic book supervillain who was one of Superman's primary nemeses. The original version of Brainiac, an evil humanoid robot, first appeared in 1958. In the mid-1980s, DC Comics revamped all of their characters in varying degrees, and the new Brainiac was said to be an alien scientist whose mind took over that of a human circus mentalist, the Amazing Brainiac.

The "fluffy doll" references carnival games, in which successful contestants are awarded a toy, commonly a stuffed animal or doll.

John: "You seen him? He's blind. He's got a big head, but he's blind. Barring the Yoda factor, if he gives us any trouble, we lock him up."

Another reference (see "I, E.T.") to the Jedi Master of the STAR WARS series.

D'Argo: "What's going on in here?"
John: "Go back to your mountain, Grizzly. You're not wanted here."

A reference to the huge "mountain man" Grizzly Adams, played by Dan Haggerty, first in a 1975 film, THE LIFE AND TIMES OF GRIZZLY ADAMS, and then a 1977 TV series. Other theatrical and made-for-TV movies followed, some starring Haggerty, some not.

John: "I scream, you scream, we all scream for ice cream. Baskin Robbins, Ben & Jerry's, Good Humor. What's your favorite? Creamsicle or fudgsicle?"

"I scream..." is a favorite kids' rhyme. Baskin Robbins and Ben & Jerry's are two of the more popular brands of ice cream. Good Humor is a old time ice cream company now owned by Breyer's that created a number of ice cream novelties, known as Good Humor Bars sold by trucks that would travel through neighborhoods. Creamsicles and fudgsicles are two popular forms of ice cream bar.

John: "Gilligan and Mary Ann. Maybe you're Ginger. I'd have to, ah, see you in a Wonder Bra to know. Where are you guys taking the Minnow?"

GILLIGAN'S ISLAND (see also http://www.gilligansisle.com/) was the classic American TV sitcom that has become a landmark of popular culture. Gilligan, played by Bob Denver was first mate of the S.S. Minnow, which was to take five passengers (plus Gilligan and the Skipper) on an ill-fated "three hour tour". Mary Ann [Summers] (Dawn Wells) was the sweet young thing from the Midwest, while Ginger [Grant] (Tina Louise) the hot movie starlet. "Who do you prefer, Ginger or Mary Ann?" became a popular "game" among many American men who grew up watching the series. The series spawned three TV-movie sequels in the late 70s and early 80s.

As for Wonder Bras, well...you can find out about them at http://www.wonderbrausa.com/.

John: "Heeeerrrrre's Johnny! Hiya, Honey!"
Aeryn: "Go away!"
John: "Hiya, kids. What's goin' on? This a...French Revolution type of thing?"

John's first line is a reference to a scene in Stanley Kubrick's THE SHINING (see also filmsite.org), based on the Stephen King novel, in which Jack Torrence (Jack Nicholson), in the grip of madness, goes after his wife Wendy (Shelly Duvall) with a fire-axe. He sticks his face through a hole he's chopped in the door to the room she's hiding in, and says, "Heeeerrrrre's Johnny!"

This is, itself, a reference to Ed McMahon's traditional introduction of Johnny Carson each night on THE TONIGHT SHOW.

The "French Revolution type of thing" refers to Aeryn having set up a barricade at the door to Command. While participants in the French Revolution of 1789 (see also http://www.woodberry.org/acad/hist/FRWEB/) did not actually make use of that form of defense, barricades did serve a prominent role in the 1832 Paris uprising immortalized in Victor Hugo's novel LES MISERABLES. John is likely thinking of the later musical of the same name.

Pilot: [in a slow, measured cadence] "I'm sorry, John. I cannot do that."

A sly reference to Stanley Kubrick's 1968 film 2001: A SPACE ODYSSEY:

Bowman: "Hello, HAL. Do you read me, HAL?"
HAL: "Affirmative, Dave. I read you."
Bowman: "Open the pod bay doors, HAL."
HAL: "I'm sorry Dave, I'm afraid I can't do that."

Scorpius: "Revenge is a dish best served cold, and you like revenge, don't you?"
John: "Shut up! I hate it when villains quote Shakespeare."

This is likely YASTR (villains quote Shakespeare in both THE WRATH OF KAHN and THE UNDISCOVERED COUNTRY). Contrary to popular belief, however, "Revenge is a dish best served cold" is not an old Klingon proverb. :-)

Nor is it, in fact, a quote from William Shakespeare. It's actually from the 1782 French novel LES LIAISONS DANGEREUSES by Pierre Ambroise Francois Choderios de LaClos. The original quote is: "La vengeance est un plat qui se mange froid." The novel has been filmed four times:

1. in 1989 by Roger Vadim as LES LIAISONS DANGEREUSES
2. in 1988 by Stephen Frears as DANGEROUS LIAISONS (actually a film version of a play by Christopher Hampton, adapted from the novel)
3. in 1989 by Milos Forman as VALMONT
4. in 1999 by Roger Kumble as CRUEL INTENTIONS

John and Aeryn's gun battle is reminiscent of the type of gunplay choreography that occurs in Hong Kong action films, particular those of John Woo.

John: "Try it, Medusa, try it. Down boy...roll over."

The first comment is a reference to the mythological character Medusa, whose face could turn men to stone; in place of hair, she had a mass of writhing snakes, to which John might be comparing D'Argo's tentas.

The second comment is a pair of commands frequently given to dogs, to demonstrate their level of training and obedience.

John: "My little black book...is all full."

A "black book" is technically defined as a book containing the names of people or organizations to blacklist, or a list of people who are out of favor. Modern social connotation, however, has given "little black book" an alternate meaning: a collection of contact information for romantic or sexual partners.

John: "Oh, no one's goin' anywhere. Not even to Disneyland. Not before we all have the breakfast of...losers. Oh, look, everybody, Sunshine's awake. Reynaldo! [kicks D'Argo] Even on a flesh wound!"

Disneyland: The Magic Kingdom. The sun, to which all other theme parks are but shadows. A popular TV marketing campaign of Disneyland/Disneyworld, that ran in the late '80s or early '90s, featured top athletes being asked by a "reporter" what they were going to do now that they had won the Super Bowl/World Series/Olympic gold medal, etc. ("Katarina Witt, you just won a gold medal! What are you going to do next?!", and they would reply enthusiastically, "I'm going to Disneyland!") This slogan, "I'm going to Disneyland," is now commonly used as a flippant response to someone asking what one is going to do next.

"Breakfast of losers" is a swipe at the slogan for the cereal Wheaties, which advertised itself as "the breakfast of champions".

The meaning of the remainder of Crichton's comments is unclear. Mark Morrison suggests that John actually says "Ronaldo", in reference to an astonishingly gifted Brazilian soccer player (hence the kick to D'Argo's knee), currently playing in Italy; this would not be recognizable to most Americans, however.

John: "Have I got your attention now? Good. So, class, today's assignment is...anyone? anyone? anyone? anyone? A brand new car! No, it's...T'raltixx..."

The first part is possibly a reference to the 1986 film FERRIS BUELLER'S DAY OFF, the relevant quote being the one by the Economics teacher.

The way that Crichton says "A brand new car!" is imitative of the announcers on game shows describing the grand prize.

John: "Now, I've been acting twisted as well. Still am. Been seeing Scorpius like he's guest-starring on HAWAII FIVE-O..."

HAWAII FIVE-O is the long-running (12 years) TV crime drama starring Jack Lord as Police Detective Steve McGarrett. It's the source of the common quote "Book 'em, Danno", said by McGarrett to his partner, Detective Danny Williams (James McArthur). The Main Title Theme by Morton Stevens is one of the best known themes in TV history. It was recently used, to hilarious effect, in the Aussie film, THE DISH.

John: "Look at you two bozos."

Contrary to popular belief, the word "bozo" (meaning a foolish person) does not derive from the character Bozo the Clown, as the word predates the character by several decades. Bozo the Clown was the host of a syndicated children's program produced by individual TV stations across the country, with different people playing Bozo in different markets. Perhaps the most well known Bozo was Willard Scott, who played Bozo in the Washington, DC area circa 1960, and later came to prominence as the weatherman on NBC's THE TODAY SHOW during the 80s and early 90s.

John: [hums "The Ride of the Valkyries"]
Aeryn: "We are going to die."

"The Ride of the Valkyries" is a well-known tune from the German opera DER RING DES NIBELUNGEN by Richard Wagner. It's most recognizable to many people from its use in Francis Ford Coppola's film APOCALYPSE NOW.

Aeryn's comment (ad libbed by Claudia Black during filming) is reminiscent of a scene in ANIMAL HOUSE in which several of the frat boys take dates to an all-black roadhouse. After coming in the door, and seeing that they are the only Whites in the place, one of them says in a calm, matter-of-fact manner, "We are going to die."

The comment is also similar to that from Indiana Jones to Willie Scott in INDIANA JONES AND THE TEMPLE OF DOOM (1984), when he and Short Round are trapped in the shrinking room.

John: "Humpty Dumpty sat on a wall...And all the king's horses and all the king's men..."

A rhyme found in Lewis Carroll's ALICE IN WONDERLAND sequel, THROUGH THE LOOKING GLASS. The full rhyme goes:

Humpty Dumpty sat on a wall.
Humpty Dumpty had a great fall.
All the king's horses and all the king's men
Couldn't put Humpty Dumpty in his place again.

In a deleted scene found on the R2 (British) DVD, Scorpius (and later John) sings "99 Bottles of Beer on the Wall".

"99 Bottles of Beer on the Wall" is a common tune usually sung by masochists and/or people who are bored to death or want to be annoying. It goes:

99 bottles of beer on the wall.
99 bottles of beer.
You take one down and pass it around.
98 bottles of beer on the wall.

And then the same verse gets repeated, with the number of bottles being reduced by one with each round.

Scorpius: "All work and no play makes John a dull boy."

An old adage (but substituting "Jack" for "John").

(see also www.crichtonisms.com)

206: Picture If You Will

The title is likely a nod to Rod Serling. Whether or not he ever actually used the phrase on a frequent basis, it has come to be popularly associated with him and two of his anthology television series: THE TWILIGHT ZONE (1959-65), and NIGHT GALLERY (1969-70). The IMDb describes the former as "A collection of tales which range from comic to tragic, but often have a wicked sense of humor and an unexpected twist." Hmmm...what other television show do we know like that? ;-)

John: "C'mon...Zhaan...this magical mystery crap is your specialty, not mine. Just tell me what to do, and I'll do it."

An allusion to the Beatles' 1967 album, song, and movie, MAGICAL MYSTERY TOUR.

John: "Maldis! Come on down!"

John says this in a manner that recalls the long-running American game show The Price is Right, where selected members of the audience are invited to "Come on down!" and play the game. This signature phrase, made famous by the original announcer for the show, Johnny Olson, has endured for thirty years.

John: "Haven't you read the supervillain's handbook? This is where you're supposed to twirl your moustache and gloat."

A mixed reference to the villains in numerous movies. Often in the silent films, the villain would sport a handlebar moustache that he would occasionally twirl. And both older and more recent villains (in comic books, as well as in movies) would often gloat over the captured hero, revealing the details of their plans.

Maldis: "Have you forgotten? Fear makes me stronger. Fear, and the terror of helplessness. These are a few of my favorite things."
John: "Oh. Could you do that farewell/goodbye song the kids sing? It's one of my favorites."
Maldis: "I don't do requests!"

This refers to two songs from the Rodgers & Hammerstein musical -- and 1965 Robert Wise film -- THE SOUND OF MUSIC: "My Favorite Things" and "So Long, Farewell".

John: "Zhaan...this would've been a really good opportunity to lie to me. You know... 'Sure, John, he's toast. Strike him off your Christmas list. Stick a fork in him, he's done. He's over. The fat lady is singing.' It does not have to be true, Zhaan...but I certainly would have slept better."

The expression "the fat lady is singing" derives from the stereotypical opera finale, in which the leading lady (stereotypically corpulent) blasts out a last aria. When the fat lady sings, you know they're near the end.

(see also www.crichtonisms.com)

207: The Way We Weren't

The title is probably a play on the title of the Barbara Streisand/Robert Redford film, THE WAY WE WERE.

John: "We all have things in our past that we'd rather not have on instant replay."

"Instant replay" refers to the use of video cameras during sporting events to capture the details of a play, such as a touchdown, so that it could be played back immediately for the benefit of a TV audience who want to see it in close-up or from different angles.

John: "Pilot, we have to talk. Let's hash this out, right here, right now. Five cents, the Doctor is IN."

In the popular comic strip "Peanuts", the character Lucy occasionally put up a "The Doctor is IN" sign at her "Psychiatric Help 5¢" booth, and dispensed questionable answers to all of life's (or at least, Charlie Brown's) questions.

John: "Kids -- save it for after school. Right now, how do we fix this thing so we stop bobbing about like three men in a tub?"

From a Mother Goose nursery rhyme:

Rub-a-dub-dub,
Three men in a tub,
And how do you think they got there?
The butcher, the baker, the candlestick-maker --
They all jumped out of a rotten potato!
'Twas enough to make a fish stare.

John: "Yeah, well I don't think Pilot's in a 'Leviathan for Dummies' kinda mood right now."

Refers to the popular series of helpful guides on numerous subjects.

John: "Aeryn...no-no-no-no. Pilot's Etch-a-Sketch isn't operating with all its knobs right now."

A popular toy used to create pictures by turning knobs, which cause lines to appear on the screen. Since the official site isn't intuitively easy to navigate, http://www.etch-a-sketch.com/html/history.htm is a specific page that describes the history of the Etch-a-Sketch and a not-very-detailed description of how it works.

(see also www.crichtonisms.com)

208: Home On The Remains

The title comes from "Home on the Range", the Official State Song of Kansas and a popular folksong known by most children in America.

Aeryn: "I'll pass."
John: "Suit yourself, Jenny Craig, but I'm hungry."

Aeryn's preference to go hungry rather than eat a dentic reminds John of the queen of weight-loss programs, Jenny Craig.

John: "Aeryn, we are out of supplies. We're gonna become the Donner Party of the Uncharted Territories if we don't get some food soon."

The Donner Party (see also http://members.aol.com/DanMRosen/donner/index.htm) was a wagon train travelling from Illinois to California in 1846-1847. Several tragic incidents depleted their numbers, and finally, passing through the Sierra Nevada Mountains, the party was trapped by a blizzard, and many resorted to cannibalism to survive.

Rygel: "What the dren are we waiting for?"
Chiana: "Me."
Rygel: "Yotz."
John: "Shazam!
D'Argo: "That's nice."

John's expression was a favorite of Gomer Pyle, native of Mayberry, North Carolina on THE ANDY GRIFFITH SHOW, and played by Jim Nabors. Gomer later joined the Marines, and got his own spin-off series, GOMER PYLE, USMC.

Gomer probably got the expression from the comic book adventures of Captain Marvel, which began in 1940 in WHIZ COMICS #2. Newspaper boy Billy Batson encountered the ancient wizard Shazam, who invested Billy with Solomon's wisdom, Hercules's strength, Atlas's stamina, Zeus's power, Achilles's courage, and Mercury's speed, as Captain Marvel, whenever Billy said "Shazam!" (saying it again as Captain Marvel would change him back to Billy).

Rygel: "What are those men doing?"
B'Sogg: "Deemo. Do you play?"
Rygel: "I'm about to."
John: "We're here for Zhaan, Maverick, not games."

John's referring to the gambling brother heroes of the classic 1950s Western TV series, MAVERICK (see also http://home.talkcity.com/chaplinct/mavericktv/gotopage.html or the IMDb), specifically the irrepressible lead character, Bret Maverick, played by James Garner. Jack Kelly played Bret's brother Bart. In later years, future James Bond Roger Moore played British cousin Beau, and for a measly two episodes, Robert Colbert played another brother, Brent. The series took a downturn when Garner left it after the third season.

The first attempt at a revival was the 1978 TV movie, THE NEW MAVERICK, which reunited Garner and Kelly, and introduced cousin Beau's son, Ben Maverick (Charles Frank), who became the lead in a series YOUNG MAVERICK the next year.

A couple of years after that, Garner returned to play the lead in another short-lived revival, BRET MAVERICK. Last, but not least, was a 1994 theatrical film, MAVERICK, starring Mel Gibson, and directed by his LETHAL WEAPON director, Robert Donner.

John: "Hey, Blue. Delivery. It's not exactly Domino's, but it got here in less than 30 minutes."

Domino's is a world-wide chain of pizza shops whose ads at one time guaranteed delivery to your door within 30 minutes.

John: "No more Captain Kirk chit-chat."

Captain of the Enterprise from STAR TREK, of course.

(see also www.crichtonisms.com)

209: Out Of Their Minds

[The characters are listed below with the first name designating the mind, and the second name designating the body.]

John/Aeryn: "Oh, that's great. It's the Three freakin' Stooges! I'm hitting myself."

Another reference to John's favorite comedy team, the Three Stooges.

Rygel/John: "Are these really necessary? Can't you remember who we are?"
John/Aeryn: "No, I can't, Einstein. If these guys attack again, I gotta know who I'm talking to."

Famed mathematician Albert Einstein has long been thought of as one of the world's greatest geniuses; his name is sometimes used to refer to someone who displays genius, but more often used ironically to refer to someone who displays stupidity.

John/Aeryn: "Show us."
Rygel/John: "What?"
John/Aeryn: "Show me the pavement pizza."
Rygel/John: "You want to see vomit, Crichton? Nobody wants to see vomit."

To Americans ears this is an odd use of the colloquialism; in the U.S., "pavement pizza" is typically used to describe the remains of animals on the road who've been run over, and sometimes, macabrely, the remains of someone who's leaped or fallen from an upper floor or roof of a tall building. However, in the U.K., the phrase is quite commonly used to refer to vomit on the pavement, usually deposited on a Saturday night after the pubs have shut.

John/Rygel: "All right, let's try this: we power the screen to 62%, get in the same position we were in the first time the beam hit. Then we moon the Halosians and hope they'll shoot us again."

Mooning is the practice of pulling down your pants, and flashing your backside at someone as a sign of contempt.

(see also www.crichtonisms.com)

210: A Kiss Is But A Kiss (Look At The Princess 1)

The title comes from the song made popular by the film CASABLANCA (see also http://www.cyberblanca.com/sams.html), "As Time Goes By", as performed by Dooley Wilson:

You must remember this,
A kiss is just a kiss,
A sigh is just a sigh.
The fundamental things apply
As time goes by.

It's the "it" of the well-known misquote, "Play it again, Sam".

John: "I am the reverse King Arthur. I'm the one who can put the sword into the stone."

A reference to the story of how the boy Arthur became King of England, by drawing the sword Excalibur from the stone in which it was embedded (in some versions of the legend, Excalibur was a different sword than the one in the stone).

Although it dates back to Geoffrey of Monmouth's HISTORIA REGUM BRITANNIAE, this particular element of the Arthurian legend is best known from T.H. White's novel THE SWORD IN THE STONE, part of his tetralogy THE ONCE AND FUTURE KING.

John: "Better wed than dead."

A play on the phrase "better dead than Red", popular during the Cold War, especially the anti-Communist hysteria of the 1950s.

John: "Well, on Earth we have this queen. She...ah... she's got this wave. I'll do that."

He's referring to Queen Elizabeth II, whose wave is often satirized. As one usenet poster wrote, "She has a knack of waving with her forearm, so her hand and the rest of her body don't have to move. She just flexes her elbow, and that's the wave. I guess it's more energy efficient than shaking your whole arm the way the rest of us do."

John: "Eighty cycles. My college loans will be delinquent. I'll miss the strippers on my hundredth birthday. I'll get a utility bill for three trillion dollars for a single porch light that I left on. And everybody I know will be dead. [...] When I get back...everyone...my dad, D.K., my sisters, Cameron Diaz, Buffy the Vampire Slayer, will be dead."

Cameron Diaz is, of course, the well-known actress. Buffy the Vampire Slayer is, equally of course, the undead-ass-kicker from the show of the same name.

John: "Welcome to Barbie World."

Another reference (see "The Hidden Memory") to the famous doll.

(see also www.crichtonisms.com)

211: The Maltese Crichton (Look At The Princess 3)

The title is a reference to the 1941 John Huston film noir, THE MALTESE FALCON, in which private detective Sam Spade (Humphrey Bogart) gets involved in a hunt for a valuable statuette. The film was based on a novel by pulp writer Dashiell Hammett, and was actually the third filmed version of Hammett's book (so much for remakes being inferior), the previous two being THE MALTESE FALCON (1931) and 1936's SATAN MET A LADY.

John: "How Batman was that!?"

D'Argo's leap to catch the falling Chiana before she hit the pool of acid obviously reminded John of the way the comic book hero Batman would swing by to catch people falling from Gotham City rooftops.

(see also www.crichtonisms.com)

212: My Three Crichtons

The title is a reference to the long-running sitcom MY THREE SONS, about widower Steve Douglas (Fred MacMurray) and his boys.

Chiana: "What happened to you?"
John: "Ah, that's the $64,000 question."

A reference to the famous 1950s quiz show THE $64,000 QUESTION.

John: "Chiana, I'm sick of it. It's bad enough being spat out of some green blob, now I got Quasimodo here saying he's me."

Quasimodo is the deformed bellringer from Victor Hugo's famous 1831 novel, NOTRE-DAME DE PARIS, a.k.a. THE HUNCHBACK OF NOTRE DAME.

John: "I'm in Bill & Ted land here, so I'm open to suggestion."

He's referring to the movie BILL AND TED'S EXCELLENT ADVENTURE and its sequel BILL AND TED'S BOGUS JOURNEY.

John: "Good. Now let's see if we can get a message to these body snatchers."

John is likely referring to the 1956 film INVASION OF THE BODY SNATCHERS or one of its two remakes, the 1978 version of the same title and the 1993 BODY SNATCHERS, all based on a novel, THE BODY SNATCHERS, by Jack Finney. The story concerns alien pods that duplicate human beings in order to replace them. John makes another reference to the same book/film(s) in the very next episode, "Beware of Dog".

(see also www.crichtonisms.com)

213: Beware of Dog

John: [singing] "He's a Cinderella Boy... [whispering] Oh, my, Bob...this is a...this is a big chance for the kid from the Uncharted Territories...he's about two feet off the green, here on the eighteenth, two strokes off the lead...question is...will he chip or will he use the putter?"

This is a reference to a bit of dialogue by Carl Spackler (Bill Murray) in the film CADDYSHACK:

"He's a Cinderella boy. Tears in his eyes, I guess, as he... as he lines up this last shot. He's got about a hundred ninety-five yards left, and he's got a...looks like he's got about an eight-iron. This crowd has gone deadly silent. Cinderella story... outta nowhere, a former greenskeeper now about to become the Masters champion."

John: "Hey, maybe that's what I saw -- a Vorc."
Aeryn: "It's about this size, naked, with a face like this."
John: "No, it was more like Tandoori Chicken."

Tandoori Chicken is a popular baked chicken dish from India.

John: "Dammit, Chiana! I don't trust Aeryn to wing that thing, and she's a good shot. We have to get it into a confined space where the gas grenade can do some good."
Chiana: "What did you expect me to use, harsh language?"

A reference to a bit of dialogue in James Cameron's 1986 film ALIENS":

Gorman: "Look...ah...Apone. Look. We can't have any firing in there. I...ah...I want you to collect magazines from everybody."
Hudson: "Is he fuckin' crazy?"
Frost: "What the hell are we supposed to use, man, harsh language?"

John: "Pilot, open sesame."

The magic phrase that opens the cave containing a treasure trove, in the story of "Ali Baba and the Forty Thieves" from the collection of tales told by Sheherezade, most often called THE THOUSAND AND ONE NIGHTS or ARABIAN NIGHTS' ENTERTAINMENT.

John: "All right, riddle me this. Because we think we may have parasites on board, we get a Vorc, because someone tells us that Vorcs kill parasites. And all of a sudden, this other critter shows up -- this Ewok gone bad -- bites D'Argo, poisons him. Yeah? So we capture the parasite. And... surprise...the parasite and the Vorc are the same thing, but neither one of them is poisonous. So, for $10,000 and the Caribbean cruise...what poisoned D'Argo?"

"Riddle me this" was a catchphrase used by Batman's archvillain The Riddler.

Ewoks are the nauseatingly cute critters from the Star Wars movie RETURN OF THE JEDI, who got their own made-for-TV spin-off movies (THE EWOK ADVENTURE and EWOKS: THE BATTLE FOR ENDOR), as well as a Saturday morning cartoon show.

"So, for $10,000 and the Caribbean cruise" recalls the motivations given on game shows for the contestant to give the right answer.

John: "No, Aeryn, this is a good idea. Why don't we see if we can get the Incredible Vorc here to understand us?"

A reference to the Marvel comic book character Dr. Bruce Banner, who after exposure to intense gamma radiation, would change -- usually at the most inconvenient times -- into The Incredible Hulk. Just as the Vorc had a mild-mannered form which would turn into a fiercer form for attack.

John: "Look, Lassie here is trying to communicate with us."

Lassie is the beloved canine character created by Eric Knight for a short story "Lassie Come Home", published in THE SATURDAY EVENING POST in 1938, and expanded into a novel two years later. Several movies, a radio show, and a couple of TV series followed.

John: "Holy body snatchers. Start talking."

Another reference (see "My Three Crichtons") to the pods that replicated human beings in INVASION OF THE BODY SNATCHERS.

Chiana: "What the frell is that?"
John & Aeryn [in unison]: "Sorry about the mess."

Another reference (see "PK Tech Girl") to Han Solo's line in STAR WARS as he leaves the cantina after shooting Greedo.

(see also www.crichtonisms.com)

214: Won't Get Fooled Again

Australia is commonly referred to by its nickname, "Oz" -- which lends additional humorous significance to the Oz references throughout this episode.

Jack: Hey, how you feelin'?
John: Hot...dizzy...kinda feel like I've been hit by a house.

The first of six references in this episode to the 1939 film THE WIZARD OF OZ, in which Dorothy Gale's arrival in Oz is marked by her house falling on the Wicked Witch.

John [whistles, then says]: "Won't get fooled again."

This is from the song "Won't Get Fooled Again" (lyrics, mp3 clip) by The Who, from their album WHO'S NEXT:

"I'll tip my hat to the new constitution,
Take a bow for the new revolution.
Smile and grin at the change all around.
Pick up my guitar and play
Just like yesterday.
Then I'll get on my knees and pray
We don't get fooled again."

John: "The Ancients? Nah, they picked my brain already. Maldis? Uh uh. Not his style. Not Gothic enough. Delvians. Mmm...yeah, Occam's Razor. Tahleen and her wacky bunch. Come out, come out, wherever you are, and see the young man who fell from the star."

The last sentence above is the second of the Oz references in this episode. It's the beginning of a song by Glinda, the Good Witch of the North, to introduce the Munchkins to Dorothy:

Come out, come out, wherever you are
And meet the young lady who fell from a star.
She fell from the sky, she fell very far,
And Kansas, she says, is the name of the star.

Occam's Razor is a principle of logic by which the most likely answer is the one with the fewest assumptions.

John: "Dig your style, Ringo."
Scorpy-chip: "John, we haven't got much time."

John is confusing the Scorpy-chip with the faux Scorpius character in the virtual scenario. Since the latter plays a drummer in the lounge band, John is referring to him by the name of the drummer in The Beatles, Ringo Starr.

John: "Scorpy. You don't fit the pattern. You got no Halloween costume, got no assumed name, you're not playing a role. That suggests something to me...suggests that you are the man behind the curtain!"

Oz reference #3 herein. When Dorothy and her companions spot the real Wizard controlling the phony "Great and Powerful Oz" from a curtained booth, the phony Oz thunders: "Pay no attention to that man behind the curtain."

John: "Look, somebody is gaslighting me."

A reference George Cukor's 1944 film GASLIGHT -- itself a remake of a 1940 British film, both based upon ANGEL STREET, a play by Patrick Hamilton. The 1944 version, starring Charles Boyer and Ingrid Bergman, is the best known. In it, Boyer plots to drive his wife Bergman insane.

The above-linked web site says: "Its title is derived from two items: the frequent dimming and flickering of the gaslights, and the phrase 'to gaslight' someone." The first is true, but the second is not. The term "to gaslight" comes from the film (or play), not the other way around.

John: "Ho, hey, fellas. Meet the new boss. Not the same as the old boss."

A slight twist on the last line of the Who song "Won't Get Fooled Again", which goes: "Meet the new boss, same as the old boss."

John: "So that's the play? The play. The play, the play is the thing."

From Shakespeare's HAMLET, PRINCE OF DENMARK, Act II, Scene 2:

"[...] I'll have these players
Play something like the murder of my father
Before mine uncle: I'll observe his looks;
I'll tent him to the quick: if he but blench,
I know my course. The spirit that I have seen
May be the devil: and the devil hath power
To assume a pleasing shape; yea, and perhaps
Out of my weakness and my melancholy,
As he is very potent with such spirits,
Abuses me to damn me: I'll have grounds
More relative than this: the play's the thing
Wherein I'll catch the conscience of the king."

John: "I reenact my initial mission. I show you how I create the giant blue twister that sucks me down to Oz."

John's description of the wormhole is Oz reference #4, this time to the fact that Dorothy was brought from Kansas to Oz via tornado.

When John enters D. Logan's office for the second time, one of the pictures he looks at depicts Gary Ragle riding astride the space shuttle. This is possibly a nod to the 1964 film DR. STRANGELOVE OR: HOW I LEARNED TO STOP WORRYING AND LOVE THE BOMB, in which a character rides a missile to its destination.

Officer Crais [holding a dog]: "I like your style hombre, but this is no laughing matter. Assault on a police officer. Theft of police property. Illegal possession of a firearm. Five counts of attempted murder. That comes to...$29.40. Cash, check, or credit card?" [hands John a citation, then speaks to dog] "Toto."

Oz reference #5. Toto, of course, being Dorothy's dog.

John: "You're Harvey. Or is it Clarence? Guardian Angel? Invisible rabbit? Harvey? Harvey. Does the Scarran know you're here?"

"Harvey" is the six-foot invisible rabbit companion of Elwood P. Dowd (Jimmy Stewart) in the 1950 film HARVEY. "Clarence" is Clarence Oddbody (Henry Travers), guardian angel to George Bailey (Stewart, again) in Frank Capra's 1946 film IT'S A WONDERFUL LIFE.

Officer Crais: "Freeze! You're under arrest. You have the right to the remains of a silent attorney. If you cannot afford one...tough noogies. You can make one phone call. I recommend Trixie: 976-Triple 5-LOVE. Do you understand these rights as I have explained them to you? Well, do you, punk?!"

Crais initially gives Crichton a rather twisted version of the Miranda Rights; the actual rights, which must be read to any individual being placed under arrest in the United States, are:

1. You have the right to remain silent and refuse to answer questions. Do you understand?
2. Anything you do say may be used against you in a court of law. Do you understand?
3. You have the right to consult an attorney before speaking to the police and to have an attorney present during questioning now or in the future. Do you understand?
4. If you cannot afford an attorney, one will be appointed for you before any questioning if you wish. Do you understand?
5. If you decide to answer questions now without an attorney present you will still have the right to stop answering at any time until you talk to an attorney. Do you understand?
6. Knowing and understanding your rights as I have explained them to you, are you willing to answer my questions without an attorney present?

Next is a pair of telephone references. The "976" area code is used in the United States by various companies offering phone sex, 'psychic' readings, or other services for which callers pay by the minute. And, television and film productions in the U.S. typically use the "555" exchange in order to avoid sparking a flurry of calls to unsuspecting individuals who happen to have the same number as that mentioned in a teleplay; that exchange is not used for subscribing customers, but rather for phone companies' internal communications.

The last sentence in the above quote is from a speech in the 1971 film DIRTY HARRY. Detective Harry Callahan (Clint Eastwood) holds a felon at gunpoint and says:

"I know what you're thinking. Did he fire six shots or only five? Well, to tell you the truth, in all this excitement, I've kinda lost track myself. But being as this is a .44 Magnum, the most powerful handgun in the world, and would blow your head clean off, you've got to ask yourself one question: 'Do I feel lucky?' Well, do ya, punk?"

Finally, during this sequence, "Officer Crais" is wearing red pumps, as Oz reference #6 ("ruby slippers").

Leslie Crichton [dressed in negligee and acting seductive]: "Such a fascinating library you have. Such wonderful, informative books. THE OEDIPUS COMPLEX? I'm not sure...I...grasp that concept. Could you, ah...explain it to me, Johnny?"

Sigmund Freud devised the concept of the Oedipus Complex to explain how certain neuroses were the result of unresolved sexual feelings of a child toward the parent of the opposite sex.

It's named after the title character in the play OEDIPUS REX (synopsis, entire play) who, unknowingly, marries his mother Jocasta after killing his father.

(see also www.crichtonisms.com)