* Both Pronto and Pi were named after the screen names for two regulars on the series forum. Shep's visor resembles Geordi's from ''Series/StarTrekTheNextGeneration''.
* And the general uniforms for the Mallcop Command arc are effectively Next Generation command uniforms with the colors reversed... or, to be more accurate, early Deep Space Nine or Voyager uniforms.
* Given his status as the ButtMonkey, Der Trihs' first name (John) may be [[Series/{{Farscape}} one of these]], too.
* One of Kevyn's early attempts at a [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2001-08-23 time machine]] seems to be from [[{{Film/TheTimeMachine1960}} 1960]].
* If you're in a decently equipped lab, you might see [[Franchise/{{Alien}} Xenomorph-in-a-Tube]]. As well as an adult Xenomorph [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2010-12-16 here]]
* "What's a [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2010-12-23 He-man nemesis]]?"
* [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2004-11-01 This]]. (With a TakeThat in the commentary beneath.)
** And the events leading up to that strip involved a salute to Creator/DavidDrake's ''Literature/HammersSlammers'': the mercenary unit Pranger's Bangers, led by Colonel ''Drake'' Pranger, whose head, WordOfGod pointed out, is somewhat hammer-shaped.
* There's a city on Celeschul called [[Creator/IsaacAsimov San Asimov]]. And a [[Creator/DavidWeber Port Weber]] is briefly mentioned.
* [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2008-07-23 LOTA]]. "[[ComicBook/TheIncredibleHulk I don't think we'd like it when it's angry.]]" Also, [[HulkSpeak Lota is too large for your puny pronouns]].
* "What does a [[Manga/{{Bleach}} 21st Century anime]] have to do [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2008-11-23 with whitening wool]]?"
* LOTA and the Burana-Bots [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2009-11-29 performing]] the opening number from ''[[VideoGame/{{Portal}} Aperture Science: The Musical]] by [[Music/JonathanCoulton Coulton]], [[Creator/JohnScalzi Scalzi]], and [[Creator/WilWheaton Wheaton]]''
* Retired Rear Admiral Mikhail von Mauser. Stealthy until Thurl refers to him as [[Franchise/MickeyMouse "Mikki."]]
* In [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2010-08-16 this]] strip, Tailor says 'We're in a maze of twisty passages, all alike!', a reference to either VideoGame/{{Zork}} or VideoGame/ColossalCave
* In [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2011-04-01 this]] strip, Schlock gets put back together by jumping into a pod and reassembling. Once he gets out of the pod, he says "Whoa! I know kung fu," a reference to Neo in Film/TheMatrix.
** Later [[spoiler:an ex-Gav]] makes a point of saying he ''didn't'' say "I know kung-fu!" [[spoiler: upon emerging from [[ComicStrip/CalvinAndHobbes the Transmogrifier]]]].
* [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2003-11-07 Here is a comparison]] between uplifted Apes and [[Film/TheLordOfTheRingsTheTwoTowers Dwarves]]
* [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2003-11-30 Three words]]: WesternAnimation/{{The Lion King|1994}}:
--> '''Commentary''': The second panel's resemblance to the Lion King "Pride Rock" tableau is illustrative of a little known derivation of Eddington's Law (wherein an infinite number of monkeys at typewriters eventually bash out the script for Hamlet) in which in an infinite universe, with an infinite number of points of view upon an infinite number of vistas, eventually you'll recreate all the great movie posters of the 20th century.\\\
The above can be considered a near miss, due to the absence of giraffes. Keep trying, universe! You're almost there!
* Although it was subtle enough to require WordOfGod confirmation, [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2011-12-22 "key lime pie"]] is a reference to [[https://www.erfworld.com/book-1-archive/?px=%2F002.jpg the second]] ''Webcomic/{{Erfworld}}'' strip.
* Gavcorps gets one to ComicStrip/CalvinAndHobbes [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2011-12-31 here]]
** A [[LampshadeHanging lampshaded]] example [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2019-04-08 here]]:
--->'''Uptrobar''': A pair of ancient human philosophers pithily described this not-uncommon circumstance... [[Creator/IsaacAsimov Asimov]] said that scientific progress is less "Eureka" and more "That's funny", and {{Hobbes|WasRight}} said [[https://www.gocomics.com/calvinandhobbes/1990/01/10 "Scientific progress goes 'boink.'"]]
--->'''Lefevre''' ''({{facepalm}}ing)'': Watterson. That was ''Watterson''.
* ''Webcomic/BobTheAngryFlower'' -- [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2003-07-03 don't make it angry]]!
* [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2010-06-27 One arc]] is named VideoGame/CommandAndConquer.
* [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2013-02-17 Author notes]] reference a certain, popular [[Theatre/PunchAndJudy "Punch and Judy"]] TV show.
* [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2004-10-07 Their exit is a blue police box that looks]] [[Series/DoctorWho bigger on the inside]].
** Petey seems to like this one - he uses a similar box [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2005-03-27 as a breaching/boarding pod]] later on.
* ''Webcomic/TheWhiteboard'':
** Comic artist "Doc" Nickel's website "Doc's Machine" gets a nod, as [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2005-10-26 the name of the boat]] used for hunting a giant shark.
** The fictional "Doc" appears as a background character on one of Petey's floating cities, [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2011-11-15 seen in the window in the second frame of the strip.]]
* The imaginary TV in [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2006-12-14 "The Sharp End Of The Stick"]] has "Film/{{THX1138}}" printed on the back.
* Pi uses [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2009-09-06 non-dairy creamer]] for explosives training. [[https://freefall.purrsia.com/ff1900/fc01871.htm A couple months]] after Florence did the same thing in ''Webcomic/{{Freefall}}''.
* In "Delegates and Delegation", [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2014-10-30 using an orbital array of solar mirrors as a superweapon]] is referred to as [[Literature/TroyRising "cool to read about"]].
* ''Franchise/StarWars'': Combining a BrickJoke out of the name of the Kessler Array, [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2014-12-21 with Admiral Chu issuing orders and emphasizing them by stating he wouldn't like to start the next millennium making Kessler runs]].
* The ship chartered by the Toughs for [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2005-08-16 their salvage run to Ystre]] is a model called "Starcraft Ghost X360".
* "[[Series/MysteryScienceTheater3000 Ancient Earth documentaries]] suggest that [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2012-02-12 talking during this sort of show is required]]."
* One of the "Tarbots" is named [[Literature/TheWheelOfTime Tarvalon]], and it is mentioned that writing the history of the universe would be a good task for Creator/RobertJordan.
* When enough Gavs get tired of being a demographic of identical clones, they set up the [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2011-12-25 Diversity Engineering Institute.]] No-one else in the 31st century has a clue how hilarious the initials [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/House_System_at_the_California_Institute_of_Technology#Dabney_House DEI]] are.
* During the "Glamour Assault" arc, the "pre-programmed" hairstyles in Ellen's [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2006-04-25 new hair]] includes one called [[Film/ANewHope "The Cinnamon Princess"]].
* The [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2004-06-13 secondhand fabber]] the Toughs get during the ''Scrapyard of Insufferable Arrogance'' arc has a defect that causes everything it produces to additionally be capable of making toast. Yes, that includes a [[VideoGame/AfterDarkBerkeleySystems winged toaster]].
* [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2012-01-01 A building in Parnassus Dom]] is named "Barad-Mellon," which is [[Franchise/TolkiensLegendarium Sindarin]] for "Friend-Tower."
* Kevyn briefly [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2019-09-01 suggests]] [[VideoGame/{{Pokemon}} "umbreon"]] as a potential name for newly discovered dark matter proton-analog. They decide to go with "umbr''ion''" instead.
* UsefulNotes/{{Clippy the Paperclip}} [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2020-02-28 turns out to have returned in spirit]] (in the form of a VR tentacle) a thousand years hence:
-->'''Tentacle:''' It looks like you're trying to prevent the destruction of all baryonic life. Would you like...\\
'''Ennesby:''' Nope. I've got this.
* Schlock quotes [[Film/ANewHope Han Solo's infamous attempt to talk down Imperials investigating their shoot-out on Leia's detention level]] in an effort to fool the Pa'anuri. [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2020-03-29 It works just about as well as Han's.]]
* Tagon channels Ben Kenobi with another ''[[Film/ANewHope Star Wars]]'' [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2013-03-23 reference]]:
-->It's a large body orbiting a red dwarf star, which is in turn orbiting the burnt-out white dwarf at the center of this system... I thought that a thing orbiting a thing orbiting a star was called a moon, but in this case that's no moon.\\
It's a space station.
* The RPG mentions an Esspererin habitat cluster called "Lonesome, Series/{{Lost}} [[Series/GilligansIsland Gilligan]]" that suffered a memetic infection of 20th century Earth TV. During [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2020-05-22 the final battle]] we see one of their palm tree-ships crewed by a cyborg bug Skipper and a cowboy.
* ''Film/{{Jaws}}'': [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2005-10-26 We're gonna need a bigger boat.]] (As well as [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2005-10-25 we're gonna need bigger evidence bags]].)
* [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2005-10-31 This]] panel is also a near-duplicate for the cover of [[Literature/{{Jaws}} the novel]].
* Arguably the entire Tongassus plot counts as a shout-out to ''Film/{{Jaws}}'', hitting many of the same story beats [[note]]The authorities don't want to believe there is a shark attacking swimmers because it will hurt tourism; the first shark caught is not the one that attacked the first victim; a swimmer looks like they're being attacked, only to be a friend pranking them; etc.[[/note]].
* Gorilla Captain Kerchak is named for [[https://tarzan.fandom.com/wiki/Kerchak_(character) Tarzan's]] nemesis.
* Carbosilicate amorphs apparently ''[[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2007-10-25 do]]'' dream of [[Literature/DoAndroidsDreamOfElectricSheep electric sheep]].
* Sorlie brings the [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2020-07-12 same message]] as the alien traffic cop from Literature/GoodOmens.
* Here [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2005-08-12 Elf]] wields the [[TabletopGame/Warhammer40K Cluehammer 40,000]]; the reference is also lampshaded in the footnote.
* Schlock uses his plasma cannon to go [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2009-08-10 rocketing through the air]], and winds up on the receiving end of a rather uncomplimentary shout-out to the opening of ''Series/TheAdventuresOfSuperman'':
--> "Look! Up in the sky!"
--> "It's a turd!"
--> "On a flame!"
--> "Yeah... that's exactly what it is.
* As per [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2010-06-13 this strip]], there is canonically a space station named Series/BabylonFive in Sol system. It houses a forest preserve that is one of the last places in Sol system to use centrigal gravity, named "The Spinning Gardens of Babylon Five". This also doubles as a historical reference to the Hanging Gardens of Babylon, one of the UsefulNotes/SevenWondersOfTheWorld.
* And [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2011-03-03 here]] we have a shout out to ''Monty Python":
-->"I feel fine. '''[[Film/MontyPythonAndTheHolyGrail I want to go for a walk.]]'''
* Ennesby makes a ''Series/{{Firefly}}'' reference when he and Schlock are [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2011-07-06 walked into an ambush]]: "It isn't a surprising-yet-inevitable betrayal if I've been expecting it."
* An early strip duplicates an exchange between Zaphod and Marvin in ''Literature/TheRestaurantAtTheEndOfTheUniverse'';
-->'''Tagon:''' Hey, Ennesby, how are you doing?\\
'''Ennesby:''' Badly, I suspect.
* [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2001-09-04 Here]], Kevyn appears to be building a model of the ''[[Series/StarTrekTheOriginalSeries U.S.S. Enterprise]].''
* Knowing Howard Taylor's penchant for obscure references, Schlock asking [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2011-03-27 "Where's the rest of me?"]] just might allude to Ronald Reagan's famous line in ''Film/KingsRow''.
----