List of allusions

The following is a list of allusions to works of fiction, people, places, events, and other cultural touchstones in the series Gravity Falls .

The allusions, references, similarities, homages, and other items on this list should be specific, detailed, unique, or identifying. Avoid adding incidental, broad, general, or tangential similarities.

Multiple episodes

 * Characters frequently drink "Pitt" soda. Given the similarity in the name and color of the can, this is a reference to Mr. Pibb soda. Joe Pitt was one of the directors of the series.

Opening

 * When Dipper is exploring the cave, there are characters that look like runes. However, one of them does not match a known rune and the other do not translate into anything understandable in English.
 * Mabel and Dipper walk past a taxidermied Jackalope.
 * For one frame, an image of Bigfoot flashes in the same pose as the alleged Bigfoot in the Patterson-Gimlin film.
 * Among the Polaroids are photos of Jackalopes, a Fiji mermaid, flying saucers, and the tabloid character Bat Boy.
 * The pyramid character in the last few frames is a reference to the Eye of Providence.Gravity_Falls_Opening_Ending.PNG
 * In the ending, it shows a photo with the logo on it, and if you look on the top right corner, you see 2 UFO's, and the position is an allusion to the fake photo of two UFO's over the Eiffel Tower in Paris.
 * The Konami Code is also visible.
 * Paul Bunyan appears in the first few seconds of the theme song.

Tourist Trapped
See also: List of items in the Mystery Shack for allusions made by specific items.
 * The mask Grunkle Stan wears to scare Dipper is an allusion to the Gill-man from the 1954 film Creature from the Black Lagoon.
 * When Mabel is tied down by the gnomes, the scene references when Gulliver is tied down by the Lilliputians in the book Gulliver's Travels by Jonathan Swift.
 * Mabel's pose with the Grappling hook is a nod to The Legend of Zelda.
 * Mabel hoping Norman is a vampire is an allusion to the character Edward Cullen from the series Twilight.

The Legend of the Gobblewonker

 * The Gobblewonker is an allusion to the Loch Ness Monster.
 * Soos' pose when he was on the boat is an allusion of the famous film of Bigfoot.
 * Scuttlebutt in Scuttlebutt Island is Navy jargon for a rumor or gossip.

Headhunters

 * When lamenting Wax Lincoln's death, Grunkle Stan references the assassination of Abraham Lincoln by John Wilkes Booth.
 * Mabel makes a "wree wree wree" noise while swinging the ax. This is a reference to the musical score The Murder played during the shower scene in the film Psycho.
 * The nickname "Mabelangelo" is a clear reference to the famous sculptor and painter Michelangelo.
 * Wax Sherlock Holmes falling off the Mystery Shack to his death while dueling Dipper may be an allusion to Holmes's original death in the Arthur Conan Doyle book series; falling of the Reichenbach Falls while dueling his nemesis, Professor Moriarty.
 * Wax Groucho Marx asks "Why is there nothing in my hand?" Groucho Marx is known iconically for holding a cigar; however by television content regulations, US children's shows cannot have tobacco products unless it is integral to the plot (such as a "Drug Free" special).

The Hand That Rocks the Mabel

 * The name of the episode "The Hand That Rocks the Mabel" is a play on words of a 1992 movie title, The Hand That Rocks the Cradle. It could also be an allusion of the somewhat commonly said phrase "The hand that rocks the cradle is the hand that rules the world."
 * Mabel "bezazzles" her face; a reference to the real product, the Bedazzler.
 * 'Lil Gideon's appearance is based off of Benny Hinn, a famous Christian televangelist who claims to be a prophet.
 * While watching Gideon's commercial on TV, Mabel makes the same noise Scooby-Doo makes when questioning something.
 * The Club where Dipper confronts Gideon is a direct reference to the "Red Room" in the Black and White Lodge from the TV series Twin Peaks.
 * When Lil' Gideon's tour bus is parked in Grunkle Stan's parking space, he says to himself loudly "Gideon!" it is a reference to The Fairly Oddparents because how Timmy's dad says loudly "Dinkelberg!"

The Inconveniencing

 * The newspaper Dipper reads has a similar title and logo to USA Today.
 * Some of the snacks appear similar to Ho Hos, Hostess Fruit Pies, and Hostess CupCakes.
 * The kids putting mints in the soda is an allusion to the Diet Coke and Mentos eruption.
 * The mints packaging is very similar to Mentos.
 * Thompson plays a game called Dancy Pants Revolution. This is a reference to the game Dance Dance Revolution.
 * Mabel being possessed by a ghost is a reference to Regan being possessed by a demon in The Exorcist.
 * Lee is put in a cereal box similar to Froot Loops with a blue toucan similar to Toucan Sam on it. The toucan says, "I'm bonkers for eating you alive!" in the same way Sonny the Cuckoo Bird says "I'm cuckoo for Cocoa Puffs!"
 * The name of the haunted mini-mart "Dusk 2 Dawn" is an allusion to the 1996 Quentin Tarantino movie From Dusk Till Dawn.
 * When Wendy told Dipper that he was "surprisingly mature for his age", he replied "Yes, yes I am", which may be an allusion of the "Too Young Line" gag of the animated television show Phineas and Ferb.
 * The candy "Smile Dip" is a reference to "Fun Dip".
 * The two dogs on the bag look a bit like Pluto, Mickey Mouse's dog.
 * When Mabel "runs sideways" on the ground after she went over the fence, it's similar to what Curly Howard does in The Three Stooges.
 * When the ghost lifts everything on the ceiling, music plays that sounds similar to the Ghostbusters theme.

Dipper vs. Manliness

 * The song Disco Girl by Icelandic pop group BABBA is a reference to the song Dancing Queen by the Swedish pop group ABBA.
 * The BABBA CD cover style is similar to BAYER LOGO style.
 * Lazy Susan's name is a reference to a rotating tray by the same name.
 * The Manotaurs are a reference to the mythological creature Minotaur.
 * The Manotaur "Chutzpar" references Orthodox Judaism is multiple ways. Unlike the other Manotaurs, he wears a head covering akin to a Kippah (i.e., yarmulke) and has hair similar to payot (sidecurls). Moreover, his name is a play on the Yiddish word Chutzpah
 * The song that plays while Dipper is riding on Chutzpar is an allusion to the music that plays in Crisis City Act 1 in Sonic Generations.
 * The jerky that Dipper is eating in the forest references Hulk Hogan.

Double Dipper

 * The song that Mabel sings, "Don't Start Un-Believing", is an allusion to the song "Don't Stop Believin'" by Journey.
 * Pacifica Northwest's name is a pun on the U.S. region "Pacific Northwest", the region containing Oregon state.
 * Paper-Jam Dipper (and much of the rest of the episode's plot) may be a reference to the plot of the film Multiplicity, where a man creates a series of clones of himself and the 4th is very badly disabled.
 * The cracker pack is an allusion to the the Handi-Pak.
 * The scene where Dipper copies his arm and it crawls towards him and Mabel is a reference to the 1981 horror film The Hand.

Irrational Treasure

 * The title of the episode is an allusion to National Treasure. Dipper's "We're in" line is also inspired by this.
 * The Depants-ipation Proclamation is an allusion to the Emancipation Proclamation made by United States President Abraham Lincoln.
 * Footage of Quentin Trembley's speech makes an allusions to the famous line, "The only thing we have to fear is fear itself" made by former president Franklin D. Roosevelt in his first inaugural speech.
 * This may also be an allusion to the "First president conspiracy" that holds there was a president before George Washington, who was erased from history as he was not a member of the free masons.
 * The cryptogram decodes as "E PLURIBUS TREMBLEY" (Latin for "From Many, Trembley), a play on the phrase "E PLURIBUS UNUM" (Latin for "From Many, One") found on the Great Seal of the United States.

The Time Traveler's Pig

 * The title of the episode is an allusion to the novel The Time Traveler's Wife.
 * The cryptogram at the end of the episode says "NOT H.G. WELLS APPROVED". This references the science fiction novella, The Time Machine, by H. G. Wells.
 * At the end of the episode, Dipper quotes the line, "That'll do pig. That'll do." from the film "Babe."
 * The two Time Police are named Lolph and Dundgren, as a reference to the actor Dolph Lundgren.
 * The episode also makes direct references to the video game The Oregon Trail, including a joke about common cause of death in the game, dysentery.
 * Mabel and Waddles eating the same slice of pizza from different ends is a reference to the Disney animated film, Lady and the Tramp.

Little Dipper

 * The title of the episode refers to the constellation, Ursa Minor. It's often referred to as the Little Dipper.
 * The crystal that grows or shrinks things when a beam of light pass through it may be a reference to The Adventures of Teddy Ruxpin, where a similar crystal was a key tool for the heroes.
 * Gummy Koalas are a spoof of Haribo.
 * Mabel shouts into the closet "Expecto Wizardo!", a reference to the Harry Potter spell "Expecto Patronum!"
 * After Dipper won the chess match he yelled "OH!" which is a reference to Cartoon Network's Regular Show.

Summerween

 * When Waddles jumps out of Grunkle Stan's stomach, it is a reference to the Ridley Scott film Alien, in which the aliens impregnate the humans by laying their eggs in the human's mouths. When the eggs hatch, they pop out of the human's chest, killing them.
 * The Summerween Trickster is a reference to Spirited Away's No Face.
 * At the end of the episode, the pictures of Waddles with text are a reference to the I Can Haz Cheezburger meme pictures.
 * The sword and shield that Dipper fights the Summerween Trickster with is a reference to the Master Sword and Hyrulian Shield that Link uses in The Legend of Zelda.
 * The same shield also has the Eye of Providence on it.Untitled.png
 * Dipper sliding between the Summerween Tricksters legs and attacking his back is a reference to the final boss in The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time, where Link must roll between Ganondorf's legs and attack his back to defeat him.
 * At the credits, the phrase "I hate Mondays" is a reference to the famous comic "Garfield".
 * The Summerween Trickster being made of candy is an allusion to the The Nightmare Before Christmas villain Oogie Boogie, who was made of bugs.
 * Waddles' costume is similar to Animal Farm where, at the very end, the pigs start wearing suits.
 * Grunkle Stan calling himself the "Master of Fright," along with the little hand motion, is another reference to The Nightmare Before Christmas in the song "Jack's Lament"
 * A candy called Blorch makes several cameoes. This sweet shares the same name as a planet in Nickelodeon's Invader Zim. The planet is home to slaughtering rat people.