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This page exists for archival purposes. To contribute to this article, see: List of allusions
Contents
Episodes

Scary-okeInto the BunkerThe Golf WarSock OperaSoos and the Real GirlLittle Gift Shop of HorrorsSociety of the Blind EyeBlendin's GameThe Love GodNorthwest Mansion MysteryNot What He SeemsA Tale of Two StansDungeons, Dungeons, and More DungeonsThe Stanchurian CandidateThe Last MabelcornRoadside AttractionDipper and Mabel vs. the FutureWeirdmageddon Part 1Weirdmageddon 2: Escape From RealityWeirdmageddon 3: Take Back the Falls

Episodes

See also: List of items in the Mystery Shack for allusions made by specific items.

Scary-oke

Into the Bunker

  • Using the symbol substitution cipher, one of the journal's pages says "ICE" "ICE" "BABY," which is a famous hip hop song from 1990, "Ice Ice Baby" by rapper Vanilla Ice.
  • Smez is a spoof of Pez.
  • When the Shape Shifter first reveals itself to Dipper and Wendy, it takes the form of an upside-down spider-like creature with a long worm-like neck attached to man's snarling head. This is a reference to the 1982 science fiction horror film The Thing, where the titular shape-shifting alien adopts a very similar appearance in a scene.
  • When the Shape Shifter transforms to demonstrate the different forms he can take from the Journal, he briefly transforms into Groot from the Guardians of the Galaxy.
  • The layout of the bunker and its entrance are a reference to the video game Myst. [1]

The Golf War

Sock Opera

  • The entire episode is an allusion to Faust. In the tale of Faust, Faust makes a deal with the Mephistopheles (The Devil) in which he gains all the knowledge of the world, but he will lose his soul in ten years to Mephistopheles. Faust with the help of a maiden, outsmarts Mephistopheles. In the episode Dipper makes a deal with Bill Cipher in which he has to give up a puppet for a hint to the laptop, and in the end Dipper and Mabel both outsmart Bill.
  • The screaming head that Bill conjures is based on Khal Drogo from HBO's Game of Thrones.[2]
  • The outfit Candy wears during the show is based off of the outfit worn by David Bowie during the music video for his song "Ziggy Stardust."[3]
  • The face made by Dipper in puppet form to show his aggravation is similar to the aggravated face of Muppet Kermit the Frog, particularly based on a meme of that face during a sketch from Sesame Street where he gets frustrated as a girl keeps trying to add "Cookie Monster" to the alphabet.
  • The preacher outfit that Bill wears during the show is based on the character Harry Powell from The Night of the Hunter.[4]
  • Franz Schubert's "Ave Maria" is heard when the Stan puppet falls in slow motion.
  • The Stan and Old Man McGucket puppets in the balcony during the credits are modeled after Statler and Waldorf from The Muppet Show.
  • The cryptogram in the end credits references Reptilian conspiracies.

Soos and the Real Girl

  • The title is a spoof of the film Lars and the Real Girl, in which a man deals with his shyness by treating a life-sized doll he ordered off the internet as his girlfriend.
  • A number of stores at Gravity Malls are parodies of popular stores:
  • Soos' bedroom has a number of items that reference toys and pop culture:
  • The cardboard cutout that Soos knocks over is a parody of Lara Croft of the Tomb Raider series.
  • The restaurant Hoo-Ha Owl's Pizzamatronic Jamboree is based off of ShowBiz Pizza Place and the Rock-afire Explosion.[5]
  • Will E. Badger's name is a parody of Chuck E. Cheese's.
  • Stan saying "I'm gonna get that badger," is a reference to the famous, recurring line said by Elmer Fudd about Bugs Bunny: "I'm gonna get that wabbit (rabbit)."
  • The fact that Giffany killed her creators after becoming sentient is a nod to GLaDOS from the Portal series. Giffany's animation depicting a bunch of stick figures at computers greatly resembles similar animations played in Portal 2.
  • On Giffany's screen, the binary code translates to "SPACEJAMTWO." This is a reference to the film Space Jam and it's then-announced 2021 sequel, starring LeBron James.
  • Soos not knowing how to pronounce Giffany's name is a nod to the arguments online on how to pronounce the file type .GIF.
    File:Latula Pyrope in GF.png

    Homestuck reference.

  • One of the girls shown by Giffany is a reference to Latula Pyrope from the webcomic Homestuck.
  • The cryptogram at the end slide is a parody of the theme song of the DiC/CWi dub of the anime Sailor Moon. "WINNING HEARTS BY DAYLIGHT! / POSSESSING ROBOTS BY MOONLIGHT! / HER EMOTIONAL BAGGAGE IS A REAL FRIGHT! / SHE HAS THE ONE NAME GIFFANY." Similarly, the first four lines of the DiC/CWi's Sailor Moon theme song are "Fighting evil by moonlight / Winning love by daylight / Never running from a real fight! (or 'With her Sailor Scouts to help fight' in a later verse) / She is the one named Sailor Moon!"
  • The idea of Giffany being a stalker and obsessed with Soos is a reference to the "yandere" trait in Japanese animes, giving in the fact that the director, Matt Braly and his girlfriend are being joked as "weeaboos."
  • In a promotional art picture, Soos is holding a Fire Flower from Super Mario Bros.

Little Gift Shop of Horrors

Society of the Blind Eye

  • McGucket's middle name is a nod to the Large Hadron Collider.
  • The statue inside The Hall of the Forgotten looks very similar to the Christ the Redeemer statue in Rio De Janeiro.
  • When Mabel and Wendy discuss Mabel's failed romances, a Triforce is visible on the wall.
  • The cryptogram on the journal page is a parody of the song "My Favorite Things" from the musical The Sound of Music.
  • During the ending credits, Stan's coffee mug, notepad, and pen are sucked into the Universe portal. During an episode of Rick and Morty titled "Close Rick-counters of the Rick Kind," the same items appear falling out of a portal.
  • The poster of Gabe reads "Master of Puppets: He'll Pull You're Heartstrings!" This is a reference to the song Master of Puppets by Metallica, which contains the lyric "Master of Puppets! I'm pulling your strings!"

Blendin's Game

  • The episode's title is a reference to the book Ender's Game.
  • When Dipper and Mabel enter the Globnar arena, a man can be seen falling infinitly through two portals. This is a reference to an internet meme from the Portal video games in which the player can use a portal gun to place to portals directly above and below each other and jump into them, falling infintely until one portal is moved.
  • Some signs in the background in the future say "Time Baby is Watching," a reference to George Orwell's book 1984, in which numerous signs say "Big Brother is watching".
  • Lolph and Dundgren are based on the actor Dolph Lundgren, and their uniforms are similar to the outfit worn by Lundgren's character Andrew Scott (aka GR13) in the film Universal Soldier.
  • Soos had a poster of Michael Jackson's 1988 film Moonwalker in his room as a child.
  • Some games of Globnar trials are references to: TRON (glowing cycle races), American Gladiators (the joust), Jenga, etc.[citation needed]
  • The cipher key "capacitor" is an allusion to the "flux capacitor," which made time travel possible in the Back to the Future movie trilogy.
  • The reference to the "Digi-cod" codpiece is an allusion to Deckard’s Ajax model Mountibank Codpiece from Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?, the novel which was the basis for Blade Runner.
  • When Dipper and Mabel enter Soos' house in the past, you can see a red balloon in the door window, a reference to the Stephen King book 'It'.

The Love God

Northwest Mansion Mystery

  • The Ghost Harassers' uniforms closely resemble those of the Ghostbusters from the film of the same name. Also part of Dipper's spell to exorcise the ghost ("I ainta afraida no ghosta") is a reference to the film's theme song.
  • The "Used to be About History Channel" is a parody of the History Channel, which initially focused on broadcasting documentaries and historical fiction series before they began to primarily show more non-historic programs, such as contemporary reality shows and sensationalized pseudo-documentaries.
  • When Dipper mentions the scale of ghosts' malevolence, he opens to a page with a childlike ghost designed very similarly to Casper the Friendly Ghost.
  • When Dipper is flipping through Journal 3, a page on ghost with an appearance similar to Freddy Krueger from A Nightmare on Elm Street can be seen.
  • Candy describes Marius as the white whale who will destroy them if they hunt him. This is a reference to Moby Dick where Ahab is destroyed and ultimately killed by his obsession with the white whale.
  • In the scene where the lumberjack ghost is about to grab Pacifica from behind, the curtain draped over the painting is a reference to a similar scene in A Nightmare on Elm Street.

Not What He Seems

A Tale of Two Stans

  • The title of this episode is a reference to A Tale of Two Cities by Charles Dickens.
  • The "Mothgar" poster in Stanley and Stanford's childhood room is based on the American theatrical poster for the 1961 film Mothra.
  • The "Sham Total" is a parody of "Shamwow!"
  • Posters of Nikola Tesla and Carl Sagan are on Ford's dorm room wall.
  • McGucket's house is virtually identical to Steve Jobs' house.
    • There is a poster in McGucket's old home, which shows a colorful, bitten-off strawberry similar to the Apple logo, and the words "Ponder alternatively," which is a play on Apple's slogan "Think differently."
  • One of Mabel's drawings reads "What Hath Science Wrought?" a reference to "What hath God wrought?," a phrase from the Book of Numbers.
  • There's an object in Ford's room that has the Great Diamond Authority symbol from Steven Universe on it.

Dungeons, Dungeons, and More Dungeons

  • The title and the game in this episode is a parody of the popular role-playing game Dungeons & Dragons.
    • Like D&D, Dungeons, Dungeons, and More Dungeons use an assortment of polyhedron dice.
    • The 38-sided die is based on the 20-sided icosahedron die used in Dungeons & Dragons to resolve most rolls. There are no 38-sided die used in any real life RPGs; the closest is a 30-sided die, but this an unusually rare and impractical type of die.
  • Cheese Boodles are a parody of the snack food Cheez Doodles.
  • FCLORP (Foam and Cardboard Legitimate Outdoor Role-Play) is similar to LARP (Live-Action Role-Playing); an offshoot of table-top role-playing that uses physical play instead of dice.
  • The font used for the title of "Diggity Dungeons & All That," resembles the title art of The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air.
  • A scene where Stan ends up swatting a fairy on his back has it saying "Hey! Look! Listen" which is a reference to Navi, a fairy character from The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time, that is known for using the phrase "Hey! Listen!" constantly.
  • When Stan presents his taxidermy of Duck-tective, the violin riff originating from the film, Psycho, plays.
  • Stan describes Duck-tective as: "A TV show that has big mystery elements and jokes that go over kid's head's" which is a meta joke on Gravity Falls.
    • Additionally, when the Pines family, Soos, and Grenda are disappointed with the Duck-tective season finale's plot twist, Soos mentions predicting it a year ago. It is a reference to how fans of Gravity Falls predicted Stan having a twin brother which was confirmed two episodes previously in "Not What He Seems."
  • The fantasy names posted up on the boards in the living room by Dipper and Ford are all parodies of names from The Flight of Dragons, an animated film adaptation of Gordon R. Dickson's book The Dragon and the George by Rankin/Bass Productions. (Jason Ritter's father, John Ritter, was the voice of the protagonist, Peter Dickinson, in the movie.)
    • Gorbasch- there's a human/dragon character named Gorbash in both the book and movie.
    • Smerghol- Smrgol, another dragon from the movie adaptation.
    • Omhadawn- the evil wizard Ommadon, from the movie adaptation.
  • The Hot Elf is a reference to Legolas from the Lord of the Rings movies.[6]
  • The Hot Elf saying "Excelsi-whatever" is a reference to Stan Lee's catchphrase, "Excelsior!"
  • The ogre that guarded the path to Probabilitor alluded to the myth of Hercules. The ogre challenged Mabel, Stan, and Grenda to seven labors, as Hercules was.
  • While watching the season finale of Duck-tective, Mabel eats a snack very similar to Pringles.

The Stanchurian Candidate

  • The episode's title is a reference to the 1959 Richard Condon novel The Manchurian Candidate, which was adapted into a 1962 film and 2004 film of the same name. Incidentally, it is also about mind-controlling a political candidate.
  • When Bud Gleeful gives his speech at the Town Hall, he gives everyone in the room fifty percent discount on a used car. This is an allusion to Oprah Winfrey's famous car giveaway on the September 13, 2004 episode of the The Oprah Winfrey Show. Bud's line "You get half off a used car, you get half off a used car" is an allusion to Oprah's line "You get a car, you get a car."
  • Stan's campaign slogan "Yes We Stan" parodies Barack Obama's 2008 tag "Yes We Can."
  • Stan's "One does not simply" meme is a reference to the popular internet meme of the same name, both of which are based on a quote from the first Lord of The Rings movie, in which Boromir says, "One does not simply walk into Mordor."
  • When Stan walks to Greasy's Diner, music plays that is similar to the Bee Gees song Stayin' Alive, which was featured in a similar scene in the movie Saturday Night Fever.
  • During the final debate, Mabel makes Soos say "I can promise you a kitten in every pot!". This is a reference to Herbert Hoover's presidential campaign slogan in 1928: "a chicken in every pot and a car in every garage".
  • The monitor worn by Bud Gleeful while being possessed by Gideon is based off of Krang from Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles.[7]
  • The poster in Gideon's cell of a picture of a cat hanging onto a branch that reads "HOLD ON TO THAT BRANCH OR DIE, CAT!" is a reference to a well-known poster of a cat hanging from a branch that reads "HANG IN THERE."

The Last Mabelcorn

  • The episode's title and the unicorns are a reference to the 1982 Rankin/Bass film The Last Unicorn.[8] The unicorns' condescending attitudes are also a reference to Lady Amalthea's lack of appreciation for anybody's help throughout the film.
    • The episode's vigenère key, "SCHMENDRICK" is the name of a bumbling wizard who was a major character in The Last Unicorn (both in the book by Peter S. Beagle and the animated adaptation).
  • Dipper is seen with a book titled The Sibling Bros, a spoof of the novel series The Hardy Boys.
  • Various board games that Dipper and Mabel find in the closet are references to other real life games:
  • Mabel asks Ford if he is sending her and Dipper who are finally of age to wizard school, and if there is an owl in his bag. This is a reference to Harry Potter and how the titular character was accepted to magic school once he reached of age and recieved an owl as a present.
  • Wendy's shirt has a design similar to the Direwolf sigil of the Starks from HBO's Game of Thrones.
  • The text on the page in The Cipher File references:
    • The Lion King: "[...] warthogs and meerkat, is made tender by their carefree lives and trouble-free philosophies [...]"
    • National Treasure: "[...] setting for conspiracy movies. Like that one where the guy has to steal the Declaration of Independence [...]"
  • Celestabellebethabelle reads Whinny, Pray, Trot, a reference to the travelogue memoir, Eat, Pray, Love.
  • When hit with fairy dust, Celestabellebethabelle exclaims, "What the hay!", which is a common "swear" in the TV series, My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic.
  • Grenda says "Join the Dark Side!," a clear reference to Darth Vader's famous quote in the Star Wars franchise.
  • During Mabel's montage, one shot shows Mabel, Candy, and Wendy in a shopping cart, with Grenda holding an old woman on her shoulders in the background. This shot is an allusion to the DVD cover of the direct-to-DVD movie Foodfight!

Roadside Attraction

Dipper and Mabel vs. the Future

Weirdmageddon Part 1

  • When Ford says "So this is how the world ends. Not with a bang, but with a boop, boop," he is referencing the last line of T.S. Eliot's poem The Hollow Men, "This is the way the world ends. Not with a bang but with a whimper."
  • Bill saying "The being whose name must never be said." is a reference to the one of the famous epithets referring Lord Voldemort from the Harry Potter franchise.
  • The center where Dipper tries to punch Bill but is sent flying back mimics a similar scene in the first Pokémon movie where Ash Ketchum tries to do the same thing to Mewtwo but ends up with the same result.
  • When Bill and Gideon said "Hench-Maniacs, Roll out!" and "Discount Auto-mart Warriors, Roll out!" respectively, these lines refer to the famous catchphrase of Optimus Prime from the Transformers franchise where he says "Autobots, Roll out!"
  • Two of Gideon's henchmen wear sunglasses similar to those worn by Dave Strider and Dirk Strider from Homestuck.
  • The entire car chase scene is an homage to the Mad Max film franchise.[10]
    • One of Gideon's henchmen also resembles Max Rockatansky.
  • During the Weirdness Bubble car chase scene, when Dipper and Wendy are drawn anime style, Spritle and Chim Chim from the TV series Speed Racer are seated in the back seat of the car.
    • This scene is also similar to Gumball, Darwin, Anais, Nicole and Larry transforming whenever Richard accelerates his scooter in The Amazing World of Gumball episode "The Job."
  • One of the monsters from the Nightmare Realm resembles Cthulhu from H.P. Lovecraft's Cthulhu Mythos, seen as Gideon is freed from prison.

Weirdmageddon 2: Escape From Reality

  • Soos describes Mabel's world as "shining, shimmering, splendid." This is a lyric from the song, "A Whole New World" from the movie Aladdin.
  • The scene where Mabel is napping in her tower references the scene in the Disney animated film, Sleeping Beauty. Mabel's tower and bed are very similar to those in the film, and Mabel holds a rose while sleeping, referencing the iconic scene where Briar Rose is brought back to life by the prince
  • While driving their car, Xyler and Craz briefly have their heads tilted back as they pass a shimmering rainbow-esque backdrop, referencing the Fabulous Secret Powers video by Slackcircus Studios.
  • Dippy Fresh's design is based off of Burger King Kids Club's Vid Kid.
  • Mabel's bubble resembles the setting of an iconic episode of the anime Madoka Magica; they both deal with an apparently nice and candy world turning into a bloody nightmare. 
  • During the end credits, Xyler and Craz reference the French philosopher Jean-Paul Sartre and his existential philosophy.

Weirdmageddon 3: Take Back The Falls

  • When Mabel points out that Pacifica is wearing a potato sack, it aligns with the story of "The Paper Bag Princess".
  • When Rumble disappears, he holds up a thumbs up and disappears similar to how the Terminator sinks into the molten metal at the end of Terminator 2: Judgement Day.
  • Bill sings a verse of the song, "We'll Meet Again," most famous for its use at the end of Dr. Strangelove, or How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb, after unfreezing Ford.
  • The song playing in the background when Gideon is dancing in his cage is Scott Joplin's "The Entertainer."
  • Bill mentioning the idiom "Achilles' heel" refers to Greek mythology where an immortal warrior named Achilles is killed when his heel, the only place where he could be hurt, is struck by an arrow.
  • Bill's story of coming from a "flat world with flat minds and flat ideas" is a reference to Edwin Abbott Abbott's novel, Flatland, about a two-dimensional world. In an AMA in April of the previous year, Bill stated that "EDWIN ABBOTT ABBOTT HAS A DECENT IDEA [about Bill's origin]."[11]
  • Mrs. Valentino requesting the sawed-off shotgun in order to kill zombies is a reference to the Evil Dead franchise, because one of Ashley William's signature weapons is a double-barreled shotgun which he uses to kill the undead.
  • The "mermaid" that Soos holds up during the party, saying it is a monkey's body sewn to a fish, is a reference to the "Fiji Mermaid", a creature once thought to be real, but was determined to be a hoax.
  • The water tower's roar is the same as Bowser's from Mario Kart 64.
  • Quentin Trembley is shown riding a horse backwards, much like Dudley Do-Right from Rocky & Bullwinkle.
  • Dipper's line "Ready to head into the unknown?" is a possible a reference to Over The Garden Wall, whose creator, Patrick McHale, is a close friend of Alex Hirsch.
  • When the teens say "One of Us!" after Dipper and Mabel blow out the candles, it references to Freaks.
  • Dippers line in his ending monologue "It's not on any maps, and most people have never heard of it" is similar to a line from Herman Melville's novel, Moby Dick: "It is not down on any map; true places never are"

References

  1. Episode commentary
  2. Cory, Robertryan. Tumblr Post ID: 97554503088.
  3. Ramirez, Stephanie (September 10, 2014). Tumblr Post ID: 97146170141. Retrieved on August 15, 2015.
  4. Cory, Robertryan; Gravi-teamfalls (September 15, 2014). Tumblr Post ID: 97543114343. “Gravity Falls; Sock Opera Rough Designs”
  5. Hirsch, Alex (October 15, 2015). Tweet Number 654880485164736512. Retrieved on October 18, 2015.
  6. Cicierega, Emmy (August 3, 2015). Tweet Number 628378307243978753. Retrieved on August 3, 2015.
  7. Hirsch, Alex (August 24, 2015). Tweet Number 636014572789325825. Retrieved on August 26, 2015.
  8. Hirsch, Alex (September 8, 2015). Tweet Number 641305846031511552. Retrieved on September 8, 2015.
  9. Serrao, Nivea (October 12, 2015). Gravity Falls' Alex Hirsch on Tonight's "Extremely Significant" Episode. Retrieved on October 22, 2015.
  10. Serrao, Nivea (October 26, 2015). Gravity Falls' Weirdmageddon Begins: Creator Alex Hirsch Talks Journals, Celebrity Cameos and a Mad Max Homage. TV Insider. Archived from the original on November 12, 2015. Retrieved on November 12, 2015. “... It's funny for to think about 13-year-olds who will say, 'This is a reference to that new movie Fury Road' and have no idea that it is a completely written irrespective of that, based on a much, much older Mad Max.”
  11. I'M BILL CIPHER I know LOTS OF THINGS ASK ME ANYTHING. Reddit (April 2, 2015).
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