History WesternAnimation / Lightyear

** Some scream canisters from ''WesternAnimation/MonstersInc'' can be seen in some scenes.

* PowerCrystal: The crystallic fusion cores are an artificial, synthesized version that are central to FasterThanLightTravel, and the first act of the movie is Buzz's pursuit in finding the right mix to create a core that can get the colonists home. Buzz's perfected crystallic fusion core is used [[PlotCouponThatDoesSomething as the Armadillo's power source]], and is also [[spoiler:the MineralMacGuffin that Zurg seeks for his plan.]]

* {{Zeerust}}: While the film mostly avoids this, an exception can be found in the portable I.V.A.N. modules, which resemble video game cartridges from UsefulNotes/TheFifthGenerationOfConsoleVideoGames and earlier. Considering this movie was InUniverse released in 1995, this makes a lot of sense and makes for a cute gag for viewers who grew up playing UsefulNotes/Nintendo64 and other cartridge-based consoles. Buzz has to blow on the circuitry to get it working at one point.

* ComicBookAdaptation: Random House have announced a graphic novel will be released in August 2022.

** Considering the semimajor axis of the Hostile Planet the ColonyShip landed on of its orbit of its primary cannot be more than 2 Astronomical Units (and is probably substantially less), and that to even reach a Time Dilation value of T 0.5 would require a velocity of .875 of C (Speed of Light in a Vacuum), there is simply no way a simple slingshot around that star's primary would cause that level of subjective MissingTime each time hyperspeed was attempted [[spoiler:and failed]].

** This isn't the first time Chris Evans [[Film/CaptainAmericaTheFirstAvenger became a captain who wound up in the future]] and wound up having to [[Film/AvengersInfinityWar fight a giant purple menace who will]] [[Film/AvengersEndgame reset the universe as he sees fit, and is played by a Brolin.]] Nor is it the first time he's [[Film/{{Sunshine}} undergone a space mission to save humanity]].
** Creator/JamesBrolin was once [[Film/{{Westworld}} pursued by a seemingly unstoppable robot.]] Now he ''is'' the seemingly unstoppable robot.

** The third [[spoiler:reveals that Zurg has survived the encounter which saw him getting caught in an explosion caused by Buzz blowing up the hyperspace fuel.]]

** The reveal that [[spoiler:Zurg is a robot being piloted by a future version of Buzz himself.]]

* AbsentAliens: With the exception of a some non-sentient extra-terrestrial bugs, there are no aliens in this film, with even Zurg turning out to be [[spoiler:an alternate-future version of Buzz Lightyear]].
* AdaptationalSympathy: Zurg, a CardCarryingVillain in both ''Toy Story'' and ''Buzz Lightyear of Star Command'', is [[spoiler:a future version of Buzz and a TragicVillain trying to undo the mistake he made years ago that got everyone stranded.]]
* AerithAndBob: A last name variant; Morrison, Steel, and Hawthorne are mostly common last names, but then the movie presents some over-the-top last names like Lightyear and .... Featheringhamstan.

* HasTwoMommies: Alisha and her wife, Keiko, rear a boy who grows up to become Izzy's father.

* AdaptationalSympathy: Zurg, a CardCarryingVillain in both ''Toy Story'' and ''Buzz Lightyear of Star Command'', is [[spoiler:a future version of Buzz and a WellIntentionedExtremist trying to undo the mistake he made years ago that got everyone stranded.]]

* {{Zeerust}}: While the film mostly avoids this, an exception can be found in the portable I.V.A.N. modules, which resemble video game cartridges from UsefulNotes/TheFifthGenerationOfConsoleVideoGames and earlier. Considering this movie was InUniverse released in 1995, this makes a lot of sense and makes for a cute gag for viewers who grew up playing UsefulNotes/Nintendo64 and other cartridge-based consoles.
** Buzz even has to blow on the circuitry to get it working at one point.

** Upon his first return and seeing Alisha has gotten engaged, he briefly asks why she would marry someone she just met, only for Alisha to remind him that they met three years ago (a time of which Buzz was absent for). If only [[WesternAnimation/Frozen2013 Elsa]] had such a luxury with Anna.

** When Buzz is looking at his rations after returning from his first flight, the boxes are all marked "Breakfast", "Lunch", and "Dinner"... with a single box labeled "Brunch".
** When Mo checks out the vending machine at the mining facility after the capture-cones scenario, one of the packages in the machine has the [[WesternAnimation/{{ToyStoryToons}} Poultry Palace]] logo on it.

* FakeOutTwist: When Buzz is beamed up to Zurg's ship, [[spoiler:Zurg unlocks his robotic suit to reveal an older man who resembles Buzz. Buzz exclaims, "Dad?" (A twist backed up by Toy Zurg's Luke, I Am Your Father reference in the earlier Toy Story 2 film.) However, Zurg instead reveals that he is actually Buzz himself, from a now-alternate future.]]

** When [[spoiler: Buzz successfully achieves hyperspeed]], in the moment his ship reaches it traveling in space at such incredible speed it warps the passing stars outside his cockpit, there's a brief homage to the "Stargate" sequence from ''Film/TwoThousandOneASpaceOdyssey''.