Shout Out / Samurai Jack

Season 1

The Beginning

• To Conan the Barbarian (1982):
  • The Training Montage of Jack's upbringing in which he's taught various arts is inspired by Conan's.
  • Jack's Father being forced to push a giant wooden wheel similar to Conan pushing the Wheel of Pain.
  • The line "The sword is only a tool. What power has it compared to the hand that wields it?" is a reference to Thulsa Doom's quote: "What is steel compared to the hand that wields it?"
• In England, Jack shoots the coin purse from a wealthy traveler's belt. Allowing for the differences in art styles, the traveler and his horse are dead ringers for the ones in Robin Hood Daffy.

The Samurai called Jack

• Among all the faux hip-hop slang the three locals use when talking about Jack, one of them says "Supercalifragilistic".

The First Fight

• Two of the talking dogs resemble Big Dog and Little Dog from 2 Stupid Dogs.
• The city the dogs rediscovered is apparently Townsville from The Powerpuff Girls. Their mayor even looks like The Mayor as a puffy dog.
• The draft animal like a horse with compound eyes and heavy tail is a clear reference to Ookla's equarse from Thundarr the Barbarian.

Jack Under the Sea

• "Sometimes the needs of the many outweigh the needs of the few."

Jack and the Scotsman

• A reference to Aladdin occurs when Jack and the Scotsman are attacked by bounty hunters, and they both simultaneously say to each other:
  "They're after me! They're after you?! They're after me!"

Jack and the Gangsters

• The mobsters are meant to resemble the Ant Hill Mob of Wacky Races and The Perils of Penelope Pitstop.
  • Two of the gangsters look a lot like Mr. Brown and Mr. Pink.
• The Three Elementals guarding the Neptune's Jewel are Earth, Wind & Fire.

Aku's Fairy Tales

• The Big Bad Wolf is a shout-out to Yogi Bear, down to the sound effects and lusting for "pikinik baskets".
  • The wolf's voice is closer to that of another Hanna-Barbera character, Hokey Wolf, who was an impersonation of comedian Phil Silvers.
• During "Jack and the Three Bears", Jack is shown stealing a snow globe in the style of the Grinch. Bonus points for the snow globe being Christmas-themed.
• Jack is shown going after The Three Little Pigs. He slashes a hole through the door with his sword and yells out, "HERE'S JACKIE!"

Season 2

Jack and the Smackback

• One of the champions in the Dome of Doom is named Mr. Roboto.

Jack and the Scotsman II

• The way haggis is described is a direct quote from Highlander.

Jack and the Ultra-Robots

• The Ultra-Robots are plated with Adamantium.
• The scientist who created them, Exdor, resembles Professor Frink, The Nutty Professor, and especially Dexter.
  • The giant cybernetic arm that Exdor gives to Jack is also reminiscent of an almost identical limb that Dexter gave his father to defeat a jerkass trucker in arm wrestling.

Jack Remembers the Past

• We see a Rōnin and his child pushing a squeaky cart. The man places his child near Jack as he effortlessly kills a quartet of Ninja, and we see that the father and son have the same look in their eyes. The ronin and son are none other than Ogami Ittō and his son Daigorō from Lone Wolf and Cub, and the ninja are of the Ura-Yagyu clan. The short fight leads to Jack wishing to become a samurai too.

Jack and the Farting Dragon

• The Scissorsmith offers Jack the following advice:
  Scissorsmith: "At the fork in the road, follow the rocky path! It will take you to the Dragon's Lair!"
  Jack: "Where will the other one take me?"
  Scissorsmith: "Space Ace!"
  (Cut to Jack's baffled face as a goofy sound effect plays)

Jack and the Hunters

• The Imakandi, a group of alien hunters who pursue Jack, are a minor shout-out to Predator; they're aliens who thrive on the thrill of the hunt, and honor worthy opponents. The main difference though is that the Imakandi intend to capture Jack alive, rather than take trophies from his mutilated corpse.

Jack versus Demongo, The Soul Collector

• Once Demongo is summoned, he exclaims to Aku: "What is thy bidding, my mastah?".
• One of Demongo's warriors resemble one of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, just with a sumo wrestler outfit instead of a shell. Another one heavily resembles Lobo, and another looks like Marshal Law.

Jack is Naked

• Planet of the Apes (1968) is referenced when Jack's clothes are stolen while he bathes in a lake beneath a waterfall, leaving him nearly naked.
• At one point, Jack follows a white rabbit down a hole which leads to a fantastical, whimsical world. Does this even need a reference?
• The odd, anthropomorphic elephant/fairy creature's design is a reference to Pompadour, from the Babar franchise.

Jack's Shoes

• A reference to Sonic The Hedgehog; when Jack is running with a pair of blue sneakers, he leans forward, puts his arms behind his body, and his running motion forms an 8. And he's as fast as a car.

Season 3

The Good, The Bad, and the Beautiful

• Take a guess what the title is based on.
• There's a scene between two characters credited as Quick Straw and Bubba Louis.
• Josephine declares at a late point that "the south shall rise again!" (a reference to Jefferson Davis)

Jack and the Traveling Creatures

• The Guardian is one big homage to Morpheus from The Matrix; his appearance, usage of a katana, and the way The Hero is reflected in his eyes, are all reminiscent of him. There's also a nod to the One (aka Neo).
  Guardian: I told you, man- you ain't the one.
  • If you get the Guardian of the Time Portal mad, he will go all blue Hulk on you!

Jack and the Travelling Creatures

• The opening voice-over mentions a character named "Goseki" in the city of "Kojima", a reference to the mangaka Goseki Kojima.

Jack and the Creature

• The Creature is based on Totoro.
• The latest magic time-travel object is called "The Crystal of Cagliostro".

Jack and the Haunted House

• This episode was a shout-out to the Fatal Frame franchise.

The Birth of Evil, Part 1

• Jack's father being chained by Aku to a giant tree is inspired by a scene from Conan the Barbarian (1982) in which the Big Bad orders the protagonist to be left for dead crucified on the Tree of Woe.

The Birth of Evil, Part 2

• At one point, Jack's father rides a cloud much like a certain Saiyan did in his youth.^note Who was inspired by the Monkey King of Chinese folklore who also rides on a cloud.

Jack and the Labyrinth

• The Thief resembles Daisuke Jigen from Lupin III, but with Lupin's personality.

Season 4

Robo-Samurai vs. Mondo-Bot

• The Mondo-Bot seems to resemble Samus' Power Suit.

Samurai vs. Samurai

• "Da Samurai" looks like Sho'Nuff from The Last Dragon with a name change. He even says the word.
• "Da Samurai"'s theme is very similar to "Flashlight" by Parliament.
• The scene where Da Samurai keeps trying to provoke Jack into fighting him takes a lot from the opening scene of the pilot of Kung Fu (1972); although it differs in that Jack, having demonstrated extraordinary patience, eventually goes ahead and grants him a (truly hilarious) Curb-Stomp Battle.

The Aku Infection

• The three precious gems found by the miners highly resemble green rupees.

The Princess and the Bounty Hunters

• None of the other bounty hunters realize that Princess Mira is a woman until she takes off her helmet. Not to mention she's a brunette, much like Samus was in the early years of Metroid.

The Scotsman Saves Jack

• The bounty hunter that bothers the Scotsman at the beginning of the episode bears a striking resemblance to Greedo.
• An old (and surprisingly cheerful) sailor tries to gull the Scotsman into hearing the Rime Of The Ancient Mariner. The Scotsman is having none of it, but apparently Jack enjoyed the tale before he got amnesia.
• The Sirens look and sound like Destiny's Child.

Jack vs. Aku

• The martial arts duel taking place in the ruins of a classic gladiator arena. Is it Samurai Jack or Way of the Dragon we're watching? Jack even does some of the same warm-up routine as Bruce Lee does in the same movie.

Tale of X-49

• The X9 robots, including the title character, are a shout-out to the Terminator; they're an army of assassin androids made to help the Big Bad take over the world and wipe out any resistance. Bonus points for also resembling the T-800, right down to their eye color.
• One of the scientists working on the X9 project resembles Dr. Eggman. His coworkers resemble Dr. Wily and... Dr. Clayton Forrester.

Season 5

XCII

• The Emoji Family look very much like Stitch from Lilo & Stitch, complete with antennae, blue fur, and dog-like features.
  • They could also pass for members of the Andorian race, from Star Trek.
• The dead souls heavily resemble the residents of Hell from Constantine.
• Scaramouche the Merciless sounds like Sammy Davis Jr., plays a jazz flute a la Jethro Tull, and dresses like a mix of Alucard and Raiden.
• Ashi, the only named member of the septuplets who make up the Daughters of Aku, looks like Princess Ilana right down to the voice, except with her hair dyed black.
  • Her color scheme is similar to that of Mavis, whose film she appeared in was directed by indeed the guy who created this very show!

XCIII

• Much of the episode takes place in a Grave of the Fireflies.
• Jack's fight with the Daughters in the dark, only being illuminated by the flash of their weapons clashing, all in stark black and white, is a very Sin City-inspired scene.
• The scene where the Daughters of Aku hunt down Jack hiding in a tomb among a sea of others is deliberately modeled after the "Ecstasy of Gold" scene from The Good, the Bad and the Ugly.

XCIV

• The first half of the episode could be subtitled Lone Wolf and Cub.
• The faces Jack's alter-ego makes gives off a bit of an Adventure Time vibe.
• The hero is shivering cold with an ally not too far from him. He wakes to find that ally warming him up in some way. Are we talking about Kuzco with Pacha, or Jack with the Wolf?

XCV

• The monster that swallows Jack and Ashi has a slight resemblance to Godzilla, especially with its last appearance showing only its jagged dorsal fins sinking into the water. The monster also uses a Godzilla roar (specifically the one from the 1998 film) when it first swallows them.
• The very premise of the episode has a lot in common with Jabu Jabu's belly from The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time, what not with two individuals being stuck inside a massive beast.
• The art style was based on Punch-Drunk Love.

XCVI

• The Scotsman's death and subsequent return as a blue ghost calls to mind of "Force Ghosts" from Star Wars.
• Jack and Ashi leave the island riding on a dragon similar to Haku.
• The blue alien children heavily resemble Beast from X-Men: The Last Stand.
• The Dominator has more than a passing resemblance to Sundowner and Moltar.
  • The Dominator tortures Ashi with bolts of electricity, similar to the way Emperor Palpatine tortures Luke Skywalker.

XCVII

• Following the Moltar-esque Dominator's appearance last episode, we see a Zorak look-alike walk past Ashi on the airship.
• One of the talking dogs on the boat with Scaramouche looks like Astro. Another of them resembles the Big Dog from 2 Stupid Dogs.
• The dress made from leaves that Ashi wears after washing off the ash that clung to her body is awfully similar to the outfit worn by Tinkerbell.
• Ashi runs into a Popeye-like robot while visiting Da Samurai's tavern.
• When Da Samurai talks about how he met Jack, Jack's card when he mentions him features his name written similarly to the logo for Super Fly.

XCVIII

• The overall color setting and the use of orcs approaching was similar to that of The Lord of the Rings.
  • On top of that, their Cockney-like accents hearken to the Orks of Warhammer 40,000, and the sword that the lead orc has is clearly modeled on the orc swords from The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim.
• When Ashi confronts the orc army, they all start laughing except for the ones way off near the back, who can't properly hear what's going on.
• Toward the beginning of the fight, the rapid shots of Ashi's attacks on individual orcs — and knocking the teeth out of a few of them — bring the intro of The Powerpuff Girls to mind.
• Ashi was beating towards the orcs in a very similar way to Star Wars: Clone Wars: Chapter 13, where Mace Windu battles the droids.
• Jack meditates into a spiritual world while his love interest guards his immobile body and wards off assailants trying to kill him — a frequent occurrence on Avatar: The Last Airbender and The Legend of Korra.

XCIX

• The walrus-like merchant whom Jack buys some food from sounds a lot like Dr. Zoidberg, and looks like Chumley.
  • ... or possibly Wally Walrus from Woody Woodpecker? His accent is more Swedish than Jewish.
• It's not the first time Ashi interacts with someone who magically gets a talking fish head.
• The device resembles the Grid Disc from TRON.
  • In one shot, Jack is shown fiddling with it almost exactly like Dexter with his remote.
• When Jack and Ashi smooch each other, "Everybody Loves Somebody" plays through the end credits.

C

• Jack exiting the interior of a rotted-out bug carcass by kicking open a hollowed-out eye lens calls to mind a similar scene in Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind.
• This is a little debatable, but when Jack goes to slice Aku after Ashi's revealed to be a true daughter of Aku, he hangs back and smiles as Ashi (albeit against her will) blocks Jack's attack. This seems somewhat similar to in Return of the Jedi, when Luke goes to strike the unflinching Emperor, but Vader blocks the strike.

CI

• Aku announcing to the world via TV screens that he will execute the captured Jack kinda echoes the final part in Batman: Arkham Knight when Scarecrow announces he will unmask Batman before executing him with an overdose of fear toxin, in words similar to Aku's: "Don't you see, Gotham? You have no savior. No more hope. No - more - Batman! I've won."
• Jack fighting off the black Aku mass that is smothering him and taking control of Ashi looks kinda similar to when Daffy Duck tries fighting off the black screen frame to no avail in "Duck Amuck".
  • Ashi's final confrontation with Aku mirrors Raven's with Trigon in the Season 4 finale of Teen Titans, right down to the dialogue disowning him as her father. Both Ashi and Raven are voiced by Tara Strong.
• The fate of Ashi brings to mind the ending of Gurren Lagann, sans the coconut. Which is to say the hero and heroine have a wedding, but the heroine disappears, as the destroyed villain was the source of her existence. There's also the whole matter of the protagonist's love interest only sharing one on-screen kiss with him before her demise, the Love Confession coming out the final episode, being forced to wear a black skintight suit while controlled by evil, making sad glances at the protagonist that suggest she knows her end is near before he does, and someone being restrained to a rock by the villain in the finale, followed by an explosive defeat and a calm moment to collect one's thoughts after the battle is over. Lastly, both protagonists seem to be Walking the Earth at being Widowed at the Wedding, only Jack and Ashi never even made it to the nuptials.
  • It's also worth noting that Ashi's hand disappears first, followed by the rest of her body, as the result of a Delayed Ripple Effect. This also happened to Nia in Lagann-hen as her body lost its integrity, but she forced it to regenerate.
  • The last scenes feel a little inspired by Kung Fu Panda, which featured a lone peach blossom tree in the mountaintops that was considered sacred and turned out to be the place Master Oogway held most dear. It was also where he chose to Ascend to a Higher Plane of Existence in his old age, mirroring the way Ashi disappeared from the mortal realm and had a meaningful connection to a blossom tree as well (cherry).

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