Movies / TV

Quotes and References Many different quotes and references to movies and TV shows occur in these novels. Click here for references by ExForce Novel Click here for references to Books Click here for references to Music

• 2001: A Space Odyssey
• Alien/Aliens
• Barney and Friends
• Battlestar Galactica
• Cheers
• Die Hard
• Enemy Mine
• Frasier
• Full Metal Jacket
• Galaxy Quest
• Impractical Jokers
• John Wick
• Les Miserables
• Mom and Dad Save the World
• Rocky
• Serenity
• Sesame Street
• Star Trek
• Star Wars
• Stargate
• Starship Troopers
• Stripes
• The Blue Brothers
• The Fifth Element
• The Godfather
• The Hitchhiker's Guide To The Galaxy
• The Martian
• The Odd Couple
• The Princess Bride
• THX-1138
• Top Gun
• Toy Story

2001: A Space Odyssey (1968) In, Zero Hour, Skippy scares Joe by saying "I'm afraid I can't do that, Dave.", which is similar to the line "I'm sorry, Dave. I'm afraid I can't do that." HAL 9000 says. (https://youtu.be/97b6FfQbibM?t=12) In, Zero Hour, a number of monolith-looking slabs appear in the tunnels built by the Elders on Gingerbread. (https://youtu.be/cHWs3c3YNs4?t=36), (https://youtu.be/XnTrAjczpv0)

Alien (1979) In Zero Hour, the Thuranin named "Liv-426" is a nod to the planet, LV-426, that the USCSS Nostromo found the Alien. Aliens (1986) In Zero Hour, while on Gingerbread, Joe makes a suggestion: "I say we nuke the entire site from orbit. It's the only way to be sure." in reference to the Thuranin on Gingerbread. This is very similar to a suggestion by Ellen Ripley, who said, "I say we take off and nuke the entire site from orbit. It's the only way to be sure." (https://youtu.be/tyyoaBa7DaE?t=31) In Deathtrap, Jates mentions that one of the people he modeled his training persona on was Sergeant Apone. (https://youtu.be/7R800jPPenI?t=47)

Barney and Friends (1992-2010) In Columbus Day, Joe's nickname (and future Callsign) is "Barney" due to the painting of 'Barney the Dinosaur' on the side of the Super Softie Ice Cream Truck his improvised "[[Factions / Groups#Humans|Barney and the Smurfs" team used to capture the Ruhar, Fuzzy Face.

Battlestar Galactica miniseries (2003) In Breakaway, after finding out that the crew had named the Maxolhx Semi-Automated Servicing Station 17, "Ragnar Anchorage", he says, "So say we all", which is a rallying cry that Commander Adama uses at the Memorial Ceremony. (https://youtu.be/EisvM8F_5PE?t=50) In Breakaway, "Ragnar Anchorage (aka "Ragnar Station")" is a direct reference to Ragnar Anchorage (aka "Ragnar Station" or "Ragnar Station Ammunition Reserve") that the Galactica visited in order to re-arm themselves. (https://youtu.be/PqV2Ncxe8Ak) Battlestar Galactica (2004-2008) In Zero Hour, when the Dutchman is evading the Thuranin, over a two day period, they have to jump every "thirty three minutes" to stay ahead of them. In the first episode of the new series, titled "33", the Galactica has to jump every 33 minutes in a period just over 5 days and 18 hours (238 jumps) in order to avoid the Cylons. (https://youtu.be/KHUVaqkBqhI)

Cheers (1982-1993) Skippy The Magnificent, with his semi-distingushed accent and obnoxious, arrogant attitude is somewhat modeled after the character of Fraiser Crane. (https://youtu.be/o5WNpPruVvs?t=15) In Zero Hour, the stealthed (hidden) gas giant planet, Vera, is named after the oft-mentioned, unseen, or hidden character of Vera Peterson (Norm Peterson's wife). (https://youtu.be/Sip6XkGXlNc)

Die Hard (1988) In Brushfire, shortly after Joe has the Valkyrie descend in Snowcone, he tells Bilby, "Hey, welcome to the party, pal." which is similar to a line that John McClain says. (https://youtu.be/vD94dVu8lqQ)

Enemy Mine (1985) In Breakaway, Jates, while conducting training on FOB Jaguar, counsels Specialist "Will Davidge". Willis E. Davidge is Dennis Quaid's character. (https://youtu.be/q3QHAcPURPA?t=78)

Frasier (1993-2004) Skippy The Magnificent, with his semi-distingushed accent and obnoxious, arrogant attitude is somewhat modeled after the character of Fraiser Crane. (https://youtu.be/o5WNpPruVvs?t=15) In Valkyrie, the stealthed (hidden) gas giant planet, Maris, is named after the oft-mentioned, unseen (hidden) character of Maris Crane (Niles Crane's wife). (https://youtu.be/mriU5oEko-A)

Full Metal Jacket (1987) In Deathtrap, Jates mentions that one of the people he modeled his training persona on was Gunnery Sergeant Hartman. (https://youtu.be/tHxf17yJsKs)

Galaxy Quest (1999) In Mavericks, when the Bosphuraq are attacking the Ruh Tostella (Toaster), Derek Bonsu says, "The red thingies are getting closer to the green thingy!", which is similar to when Guy Fleegman says. "Hey guys, there's a red-thingy moving toward the green-thingy." as Saris is attacking the NSEA Protector. (https://youtu.be/UAyNhy1bLew?t=65)

Impractical Jokers (2011- ) In Breakaway, when the Skippy is explaining to Joe how to hack directly into a validation subroutine, he uses the name "Larry" as part of the example. Skippy yells LARRY every time he says the name. Larry is a fictional friend of Joseph "Joe" Gatto. He is mostly mentioned in Season One. He is an unseen character. In the Season Three Impractical Jokers intro, Joe is seen running for Larry. (https://youtu.be/hlwDQ0EY2vs)

John Wick (2014) In Valkyrie, in order to defeat the Maxolhx, Skippy suggests the Pirates "Get them to kill John Wick's dog", which is what triggered John Wick to go ballistic on the Russian mafia. (https://youtu.be/NUgBmWt6L_c)

Les Miserables (2012) In Breakaway, Skippy says he is "Agog and aghast" which are a reference to two lines ("I am agog. I am ahgast.") in the song "ABC Cafe / Red and Black". (https://youtu.be/hlwDQ0EY2vs)

Mom and Dad Save the World (1992) In Brushfire, Todd the missile thinks to itself, "Todd is a stupid name. How come Skippy calls himself The Magnificent, while I’m stuck with just 'Todd'? Why can’t I be Todd the Fierce, or something really cool like Todd the Destroyer?" This might be a reference to Jon Lovitz' character, Todd the Destroyer. (https://youtu.be/47B0Cj-fgb8)

Rocky (1976) In Spec Ops, while searching for a Comm Node to help Skippy communicate with the AI Collective, Joe asks Skippy about a rocky planets stating that they needn't be lifeless rocks like Mercury. Skippy responded, "Correct. 'Rocky' also does not mean it can beat up other planets in a fight." which is a nod to the main character, Rocky Balboa, who is a boxer. (https://youtu.be/_YYmfM2TfUA)

Serenity (2005) In Armageddon, at the end of the book, Reed asks Joe "What do we do now?", to which he responds, “I don’t know about you, but I aim to misbehave.”. This is what Capt. Mal Reynolds says after they discover the truth about happened on Miranda. (https://youtu.be/1VR3Av9qfZc?t=67)

Sesame Street (1969- ) In Critical Mass, the Maxolhx Joe names Elmo, Bert and Ernie are a nod to muppet characters in Sesame Street. In Breakaway, Skippy makes references to several characters such as Kermit the Frog, Miss Piggy and Oscar the Grouch.

Star Trek [The Original Series] (1966-1969)) In Columbus Day, when Adams is wearing a "red shirt", Joe points it out to her. (https://youtu.be/5sQ4cylk-mE) In Columbus Day, in response to Joe pointing out that she's wearing a red shirt, Adams tells him that she will change out of it before they "beam down" anywhere. (https://youtu.be/HxKJyeCRVek) In Black Ops, Col. Chang is said to compose himself as Capt. James T. Kirk would when Maj. Smythe's teams and most of the crew were on Kobamik. A Captain in the U.S. Navy is equivalent to Chang's PLA rank of Colonel. In Zero Hour, while the Thuranin are investigating the stolen artifacts, the pilot of the Thuranin drop ship is named "Nicc-1701", a clever nod to the USS Enterprise’s registration of NCC-1701. (https://youtu.be/FO7bShcL9Uc) Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country (1991) In Critical Mass, while Valkyrie is running errands, Skippy tells Joe that all the jumping is straining the drives and Valkyrie will fly apart. And Joe responds with, "Fly her apart, then!", Which is an exact quote Capt. Sulu made in Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country when the USS Excelsior was warping to join the USS Enterprise at Khitomer. (https://youtu.be/XSqCJ-UGYns?t=116) Star Trek: The Next Generation (1987-1994) In Breakaway, the Engineer, Singh, is a reference to Assistant Chief Engineer (Lieutenant Junior Grade) Singh from Season 1, Episode 7, "Lonely Among Us". (https://youtu.be/fKxo2tU473k?t=178) Star Trek: Deep Space Nine (1993-1999) In Breakaway, most of the ships in the UNN First Fleet are all named for major rivers on Earth. In particular, the UNS Ganges, UNS Yangtze, UNS Volga, UNS Danube, UNS Orinoco and UNS Yukon are names of Runabouts (although, in DS9, it's the Yangtze Kiang). (https://youtu.be/MRYh8y6qtJw)

Star Wars (1977) In Columbus Day, Joe asks Skippy is the Thuranin, Kristang or Ruhar would be guarding the Gateway wormhole entrance. When Skippy questions this, Joe says that he thought they would have a station like the Death Star, but with Kristang instead of storm troopers. In Black Ops, a moon that previously contained an Elder base is dubbed the "Dead Star" by the Pirates after Staff Sgt. Adams points out its resemblance to the Death Star. In Black Ops, Skippy's first hologram avatar is in a similar form to a Jedi Knight's. In Deathtrap, Admiral Tashallo turns toward his flagship’s captain with a mock scowl and says. "I find your lack of faith… disturbing.", which is what Darth Vader says to Admiral Motti in the Death Star Conference room. (https://youtu.be/m0XuKORufGk) In Critical Mass, when Bishop offers another idea to escape, Skippy says "I have a very bad feeling about this.". Variations of which are mentioned in all of the Star Wars movies. (https://youtu.be/S74rvpc6W60?t=9) In Breakaway, when the Pirates jumped in near the Wurgalan pkanet with the museum that contained Elder Wormhole Controller Modules, there are two moons in orbit. Skippy tells Joe, "Joe, that's no moon.", which is what Obi-Wan Kenobi said as the Millennium Falcon first approached the Death Star. (https://youtu.be/i7eqjiRRIqg) Star Wars: Episode V - The Empire Strikes Back (1980) In Critical Mass, when the The Flying Dutchman is trapped in the "Waterloo" system by the Sentinel, Skippy says he tried to order the Sentinel to stand down, to which Joe responds with "Do or do not. There is no try.", which is what Yoda tells Luke while training him. (https://youtu.be/8rkdYSRoqRM) In Breakaway, when the Pirates jumped in near the Wurgalan planet with the museum that contained Elder Wormhole Controller Modules, there are two moons in orbit. Skippy tells Joe, "Joe, that's no moon.", which is what Obi-Wan Kenobi said as the Millennium Falcon first approached the Death Star. (https://youtu.be/i7eqjiRRIqg) In Breakaway, while dealing with Captain Scorandum on the transfer of the ships stolen from Mardasta, Joe tells him, "I am altering the deal. Pray I do not alter it any further." which is what Darth Vader tells Lando Calrissian in reference to deal he made about Princess Leia and Chewbacca. (https://youtu.be/jsW9MlYu31g) Star Wars: Episode VI - Return of the Jedi (1983) In Zero Hour, when the Pirates jump close to a wormhole in Thuranin space (before Joe come up with the idea jump through a wormhole within a wormhole), Skippy says, "It's a trap" using Admiral Ackbar's voice, which is what Admiral Ackbar said when the Rebel Fleet came out of hyperspace near the Death Star 2. In Deathtrap, when infiltrating a Swift Arrow clan base, the Alien Legion sends stolen clearance codes to the Kristang monitoring a safe flight corridor. When asked by his commanding officer, "do they have a code clearance?" the warrior replies, "It's an older code, sir, but it checks out. I was about to clear them. Should I hold them?.", which is what Admiral Piett tells Darth Vader when the Rebel Ground forces are trying to get past the shield to get to the Forest Moon of Endor. (https://youtu.be/4HJ-Y8YTo8Q) In Critical Mass, when Joe asks Skippy if he was sure he had the correct Elder AI authentication codes, Skippy assures him he does and says "Many Bothans died to bring us this information.", a direct quote by Mon Mothma. (https://youtu.be/350kq0anjq0)

Stargate: Atlantis (2004-2009) In Brushfire, The newly assigned pilot, Major Shepard may be a nod to a main character, Major Sheppard. However, there is a slight difference in the spelling of the last name. (https://youtu.be/jfOOa-fNNPY)

Starship Troopers (1997) In Deathtrap, Jates mentions that one of the people he modeled his training persona on was Sergeant Roger Zim. (https://youtu.be/tK_XxbAcdy4) In Freefall, after Captain Rennul of the Ruhar Assault Carrier, Big Mac, witnessed the Ruhar Assault Carrier, Dal Turnaden, get destroyed above Squidworld, she said, "Somebody made a mistake." And then, later, "Somebody made a BIG Goddamned mistake.", which is what Captain Deladier of the Corvette Rodger Young said after being hit by Bug Plasma while in low orbit of Planet P. (https://youtu.be/8Rx8_vjbXX4?t=135)

Stripes (1981) In Deathtrap, Jates mentions that one of the people he modeled his training persona on was Sergeant Hulka. (https://youtu.be/XEIEoyVBy_0)

The Blues Brothers (1980) In Brushfire, the new pilot, Major Shepard says, "It's a hundred and six lightyears to Ursa Major. We have a full tank of gas, half a pack of chewing gum, it’s dark, and I’m wearing sunglasses." Joe responds with "Hit it!", which is a reference to the Elwood (and Jake) Blues quote(s) in The Blue Brothers (1980), "It's a 106 miles to Chicago, we've got a full tank of gas, half a pack of cigarettes; it's dark and we're wearing sunglasses." and "Hit it!". (https://youtu.be/TbF29c_FpV8)

The Fifth Element (1997) In Trouble on Paradise, while explaining how the trigger on the booby trapped MASER Projector worked, Czajka tells Nert that it will be a "Big bada boom", which is what Korben Dallas says shortly after Leeloo crashes into his cab. (https://youtu.be/j8WLYzA0lCs?t=39) In Black Ops, when Friedlander is explaining to Joe what would happen if he didn't use the correct amount of oils to jump the Dutchman, the ship would go boom... a "Big bada boom", which is what Korben Dallas says shortly after Leeloo crashes into his cab. (https://youtu.be/j8WLYzA0lCs?t=39) In Breakaway, while negotiating a surrender at Klopeth and after the forty fragments of the relativistic darts disabled all but two Maxolhx ships and one Rindhalu ship, Joe asks, Anyone else want to negotiate? which is a direct quote from Korben Dallas after he killed the Mangalore leader, who was holding Vito Cornelius hostage. (https://youtu.be/9TyxxLHfBwE)

The Godfather (1972) In Breakaway, while dealing with Captain Scorandum on the transfer of the ships stolen from Mardasta, Joe tells him, "We can make you an offer you can't refuse." which a reference to a line that Michael Corleone says. (https://youtu.be/tL7TYCT9PGE)

The Hitchhiker's Guide To The Galaxy (2005) In Critical Mass, Skippy says, "Joe, I don’t want to say your homeworld is doomed, but the dolphins just said ‘Thanks for all the fish’.”, which is a reference to the film's opening musical sequence. (https://youtu.be/_zfuU6uLwF8)

The Martian (2015) In Mavericks, while trying to figured out a way to defeat the Energy Depleting Virus, Skippy says, "We’re gonna have to science the shit out of this.", which is what Mark Watney says when he tries to figure out how to stay alive on Mars. (https://youtu.be/L7CJrnaauHM)

The Odd Couple (1970-1975) In Columbus Day, Skippy tells Joe, "When you assume, you make an ass of u and me." This line is from the TV Show The Odd Couple in the 1973 Season 3, Episode 19 titled "My Strife In Court" when Felix Unger is defending himself from ticket scalping charges. (https://youtu.be/KEP1acj29-Y)

The Princess Bride (1987) In Critical Mass, Skippy says "Inconceivable.", to which Bishop responds, "You keep using that word. I do not think that word means what you think it means.", which is a direct quote mirroring the conversation between Vizzini and Inigo Montoya. (https://youtu.be/dTRKCXC0JFg) In Critical Mass, Chang says, "I am the Dread Pirate Roberts. There will be no survivors!", which is a direct quote from Fezzik. (https://youtu.be/MmVkNHFfSi0?t=73)

THX-1138 (1971) In Zero Hour, the Thuranin named Thex-1138 is a nod to the George Lucas movie. (https://youtu.be/rO99j_Ty4Hc)

Top Gun (1986) In Critical Mass, when the Flying Dutchman is trapped in the "Waterloo" system by the Sentinel, Joe asks Skippy if can continue with his idea and Skippy responds with "Negative Ghostrider. The pattern is full.", which is a reference to the response Maverick (Pete Mitchell) receives from the tower when he requests a fly-by. (https://youtu.be/vdHBsWXaHN8?t=11) In Brushfire, when the Maxolhx are closing in on Valkyrie, Skippy says, "I’m gonna hit the brakes, they’ll fly right by us", which is very similar to what Maverick says when in a dogfight with Russian MIGs. (https://youtu.be/kUzvX7wj0Kg)

Toy Story (1995) In Spec Ops, when the crew of the Dutchman are trying out a jump programmed by humans without Skippy's help, he says "To Bed, Bath and Beyond". In response to that, Joe says, "I think you mean 'to infinity and beyond', Skippy.", which is Buzz Lightyear's catch phrase. (https://youtu.be/N7ycqkT2hXo)