Chapter 36: Homecoming
Earth-A
Over the next three days...
...Professor Norton Nimnul-C underwent brain surgery. Afterwards, he appeared...somewhat saner than before. He was still Norton Nimnul, after all, so it was too much to hope for a complete cure.
...the Rescue Rangers were shown all the usual tourist attractions by Carolyn and Honker. They received a great deal of attention everywhere they went, and as a result the Hello Kitty web server was twice knocked offline as a result of too many people trying to join the RR fandom at once.
...Lahwhinie also became a tourist, although of the technological variety, tearing apart and rebuilding numerous useful devices that did not exist on her world, and committing their workings to memory.
...Gadget spent her nights experimenting with some of the same technology. In addition, she found and fixed the design flaw in the Dimensional Switcher that had caused the Rangers to lose their memories in the hours preceding their switch, and spent a good deal of time with a device worn on Lahwhinie's left wrist.
...the human interest sections of newspapers and Wired sites started filling up with odd stories of animal behavior.
...Francine locked herself in the Hartford Public Library and spent her time researching a wide variety of topics. One book in particular, How Fiction Works, was read cover-to-cover.
...Drew Maughlarde, Aldus Klordaine and Reynard D. Keigh spent their time behind closed doors with a couple replicas of the KEEN helmet. They were observed to be speaking with people who weren't there, and volumes of papers labeled TOP SECRET were produced and disseminated to the governments of nations around the world and, in the case of the Lunar Republic, off of it.
...hundreds of Rescue Rangers fans were returned to Earth.
...and Dr. Helena Russell returned to the First Lunar Hospital (as it was now named). A few days later she led an expedition to Clavius Crater, where she miraculously discovered the last human survivor of the battle, David Kano. In the story told to the press, after Emperor Norton left him for dead, Kano had stumbled from the scene with a damaged and leaking spacesuit and had managed to reach a forgotten supply depot before his air had run out. He had done so well in his enforced refuge, in fact, that instead of the expected rags, he was found wearing a stylish suit that completely covered his wrists.
Finally, the big day arrived.
Emperor Norton Nimnul left Earth-A in the middle of a fight. Citizen Norton Nimnul returned to Earth-A sitting in a chair in the bunker with about a dozen members of The Company pointing guns at his head. Nimnul stood up in shock then sat down in shock when he realized he could stand. He reached up and felt the scar on his head left by the brain surgery that had cured him.
Laurel, who had returned to her body at the same time as Nimnul, blinked a few times and looked around. "Do you really think he's that much of a threat? I think he's learnt his lesson."
"Have you?" Assistant Director Klaudaine asked him.
Nimnul gulped and stared wide-eyed at the men with guns.
Maughlarde started, suddenly feeling guilty at seeing the look. "Stand down, men."
"Considering what he did this afternoon, I'm surprised he was scared," remarked Laurel.
"I was provoked," explained Nimnul, sheepishly. "Now, my thanks to whichever brilliant neurosurgeon re-attached the nerves responsible for regaining the ability to walk, but..."
"Actually, we didn't," said Francine. "Dr. Russell fixed the brain damage that was making you increasingly erratic since the Battle of Clavius. That your paralysis was cured as a side-effect was a complete surprise."
"Oh, this is brilliant!" exclaimed Laurel with a laugh. "He was never really paralyzed in the first place, he just induced a reverse placebo effect on himself! You must feel quite the fool now, Nimnul! Ha, ha, ha, ha!"
Nimnul tried to summon a good glare, but he failed and just sighed. "As I was saying, thanks for the fix, but now what's going to happen to me?"
"We had a good deal of discussion of that," said Assistant Director Klaudaine. "Some of us were perfectly willing to let the Rescue Rangers take him back to their world, but rational minds prevailed."
"I should hope so!" exclaimed Laurel. "Prophecy or no prophecy, I don't trust him not to revert to his usual imbecilic behavior if left alone on his original world."
"Agreed. In addition, this planet is still vulnerable to alien attack, and Nimnul, you have been the best defender this planet has ever had. We will now do you the favor of swapping your two titles. You will now be Norton II, Emperor of the Moon and Protector of Earth, although the former title will be largely ceremonial. The astronomical observatory on the far side of the Moon has been expanded into your palace. Mr. Kano here will be our liaison."
Nimnul's mouth hung open, stunned, mostly at the fact that he would not be spending the rest of his life in prison, but also at seeing that David, who was busy entering the coordinates for Earth-1 into the Dimensional Control, had regained his humanity. Laurel, however, seemed to have guessed where this was headed. "I'd like to join David on the Moon, if you'll have me."
Klaudaine nodded his assent. "Professor, we will provide you with the means to explore and invent to your heart's content between invasions. We also expect that you will be able to come up with a truly-useful alien detector."
Nimnul's expression remained unchanged. Laurel's face took on a smirk. "Anybody home, Professor?" she asked, waving a hand in front of his face.
"Uh-huh," replied Nimnul slowly.
"What will happen to Norris Nulton?" asked Carolyn.
Agent Keigh, wearing his KEEN helmet, responded for the X-Files division of Earth-1's FBI. "Mr. Nulton will be settled on a South Seas island owned by my counterpart's government. It's one of the few places left on that world utterly devoid of technology. He was very insistent on this point. They will provide him in a state similar to Nimnul's, with art substituted for inventions."
"And what about me?" Francine asked, in a tone that suggested she knew the answer.
"Yes," Keigh said, "about that. We cannot force you, or your counterpart, to do anything, but Nulton has expressed his preference for having his wife accompany him 'into exile', as he calls it."
"We are both willing." Francine answered almost as soon as Moulder finished.
"Really?" asked Carolyn, incredulous. "You'd give up your fortune and your position as Empress, for life on a little island? And Winifred will legally be you-she can do anything she wants with your possessions and reputation!"
"We have settled the matter to our satisfaction," said Francine.
"But why?"
"You may not believe this, but I actually do love my husband. And between the two of us, this planet is about to become very uncomfortable."
"Uncomfortable?" asked Laurel. "It seems to me this world is better off now than it has ever been in human memory."
"Ah, that's the key word there: human memory. We humans have been exploiting the animals of this planet for thousands of years. I'm not sure if you noticed, but the 'gift of gab' the people of Earth so graciously bestowed on the Rescue Rangers didn't stop with them. For the first time, animals have the ability to demand the rights they deserve as sentient beings. Will the humans give it to them? Perhaps, and perhaps they need a persuader, someone with first-hand experience of working with animals both feral and sentient."
"Winifred Cadwallader?" asked Carolyn. She echoed Tammy's voice in her head by saying, "Good choice."
"Yes. She shall use my fortune to avert a possible 'War of the Species', while I get a vacation."
Chip, standing on a nearby table, looked up at Francine. "We should keep in touch," he said, cautiously. He still wasn't sure if he trusted her or not.
"I put myself in your hands, Hero," she replied in a tone half conciliatory and half challenging.
"The Switcher is ready," David announced.
Gadget bowed. "You first, Mrs. Nulton."
Francine smirked, reaching her hand out towards the pulsating wall of the Switcher. "Mrs. Nulton is so formal. Just call me..." And she fell unconscious.
Doctor Irwin stepped forward in the role of makeshift doctor to examine Winifred. As with Nimnul, the transaction took nearly an hour, as her senses slowly came "on-line" and adjusted to the different inputs from what she was used to. At the same time, Agent Scully on Earth-1 monitored Francine, who adjusted more quickly, just like Norris Nulton. Francine and Gadget had jointly insisted that they wait the entire time; to make sure that Gadget's adjustments to the Dimensional Switcher were not harmful, and Francine and Winifred had both agreed to make the potentially dangerous first switch after the modifications. Finally, both patients were proclaimed to be in perfect health.
"How was the trip?" Carolyn asked.
"Odd." Winifred sat up and wiggled her fingers before her eyes.
Carolyn introduced her to everybody, and then she placed her hand on the Dimensional Viewer so everyone could see Francine lying patiently in the City Park, being attended by a newly released and very happy Norris Nulton and Agents Mulder and Scully. Afterwards, as everyone was busy making their farewell speeches to the Rescue Rangers, Winifred experimentally brought her hands close together and concentrated, and then grinned from ear to ear when a magical spark leapt from one outstretched finger to another.
Chip waved Agent Maughlarde down to his level and pointed at Nimnul talking with Laurel. "Don't hesitate to call us if he starts acting up again. Or she, for that matter."
"Hey, Chip?" asked Laurel calmly. "I think you need to work on your snap judgments. I have done more than enough to justify which side I'm on."
And then it was Carolyn and Honker's turn to say goodbye to the Rangers. "And don't forget to get some real life in between all the fan stuff," Dale solemnly told them.
"We won't forget," Carolyn replied, grinning.
"Do you think you can say it, one last time?" Honker asked.
"But of course!" exclaimed Monty. "I don't know of any better exit line."
"Rescue Rangers, away!" cried Chip, Dale, Gadget, Monty, Zipper and Foxglove, as they simultaneously slapped their hands against the barrier. As one, they fell limply to the ground.
The two teenagers reverently transferred their unconscious bodies to a large pillow, and everyone stood and waited for them to wake up.
The waiting was interrupted when Bud burst in through the outer door of the bunker. "Bad news, folks-you better turn on the TV."
Lou picked up the remote and pressed the power button.
The live image on the screen depicted a burning downtown Savannah. From a glowing rectangular portal, ten feet high by one hundred feet wide, marched row after row of soldiers. They looked like men who had been subjected to the Rack, seven or eight feet long and impossibly thin. They were dressed very lightly for war, and were only armed with two-foot long wooden wands. Everything they pointed their wands at burst into flame, even if it was made entirely of metal or concrete. Meanwhile, a thick fog poured out at their feet, turning the pavement it touched into meadowlands.
Suddenly a man appeared out of nowhere in the middle of the street. He had the same bodily proportions as the soldiers, but was dressed in a wild parody of a navy admiral's dress uniform, colored in bright green. He removed his enormous hat to reveal a head of hair as pale and shining as thistledown, and approached the camera. Up close, he had pale fair skin, features that seemed just slightly askew, and slightly pointed ears that were mounted higher up on his head then they had a right to be. His eyes were cold and blue, and his dark eyebrows were long, dark, and ended with an upward flourish. "Ah, another scrying device!" he announced, and proudly threw out his chest. "For those few mortals who didn't hear me the first seven times, I hereby annex this realm to the Kingdom of Lost-Hope. We Faerie are your masters now! Resistance is utterly useless, although it is very, very amusing."
The inhabitants of the bunker were stunned into silence...all but one. "I've got this one!" cried Winifred, emerging from a utility closet with a scrub-brush and an Orlac canister vacuum cleaner. "You can have the next invasion, Norton, I promise!" The silence extended until she had flown, yes flown, out the bunker door.
Foxglove-A, nestled in Honker's arms, roused herself enough to say, "She really shouldn't meddle in magic. That always ends badly."
Earth-1
Tammy ran out of the door of Rescue Ranger Headquarters and looked down at the humans. "Francine! Where are your magic books?"
Francine, sitting at the base of the tree with Norton's hand in hers, looked at the translator device at her feet, then looked back up at the squirrel. "She's started already, huh? I'm sorry, but I burnt mine. Maybe Winifred had some that we can get."
Tammy shook her head. "The libraries locked them back in their 'forbidden sections', and then had the nerve to send late fee notices to the prison where she was being kept."
"Wait, Winifred is a witch again on Earth-A?" asked Agent Scully. "I thought her earlier encounter with the Rangers ended with her powers being permanently neutralized."
"That is correct," said Francine. "But the effect was confined to her body, which is now mine. In my body, her powers are only limited by her willpower."
Agent Mulder groaned. "You two knew this from the beginning!"
Francine summoned up her sweetest smile. "Should we switch back?"
Mulder sighed. "No. But we're re-evaluating this after the current crisis on Earth-A."
Tammy turned around and returned to the Rangers' living room, where they were still recovering from their switch.
"Tammy," said a bleary-eyed Chip. "All this running around is making our heads spin! Sit awhile and talk-we have so many questions."
"I can't. Carolyn's waiting for my answer and besides, you're all so out of it you won't remember anything I say and I'll just have to repeat it later. Now lie back and relax!"
"Doctor's orders?" he asked, teasingly.
"You'd have to ask Herbie; I'm no doctor."
Tammy strode into the workshop from the elevator and put her hand on the handle of the Dimensional Viewer, putting her back in mental rapport with her counterpart. "Sorry, no magic books to be had," she said out loud, largely for the benefit of Herbie.
Carolyn silently mouthed something on the screen. "It's OK," Tammy relayed to the dove. "Before she left, Francine gave David a list of books in the public library that she believed to be accurate."
"What's going on between my counterpart and Foxglove-A?" Herbie asked, pointing at one corner of the screen.
"He's asking her if she still wants to be his pet now that she has free will."
"And?"
"She's offering to pay him rent. She figures with a bat's abilities, she can probably get herself a decent job."
"I wonder how many similar conversations are going on right now all over Earth-A?"
"It gives you something to think about, doesn't it? If a world as seemingly messed up as Earth-A can handle animal sentience so well, why should we continue hiding?"
"I'm sure your grandfather can give you a long list of very good reasons to 'continue hiding' when the sophomore class gets back from their trip. Do you think he will be very disappointed when Gadget tells him she's abandoning her second paper?"
Tammy laughed. "No, I don't think he'll mind. Say, Carolyn, if you're finished writing about me, how about if I return the favor sometime? I think I'll call it The Adventures of the Quiverwing Quack! We can talk about it tomorrow, if you're interested."
"Sure, why not?" the voice of Carolyn in Tammy's head replied. "Only, not tomorrow. My boyfriend and I would like a little time for ourselves."
"Boyfriend?" Tammy asked, confused. On the screen of the DV, the view over Carolyn's left shoulder happened to include the shimmering wall of the Switcher, which no one had remembered to turn off. In its reflective surface, she saw that Carolyn and Honker were holding hands. "Oh! Yes, of course. You can contact me whenever you'd like."
Tammy took her hand off the DV's handle, watching the image of the two of them slowly fade. Then she looked over at Herbie, who was pretending he hadn't seen anything and had been working on a mathematical formula all this time.
"Hmm..."
Every time I close my eyes...it's you.
And I know now who I am.
Yeah, yeah, yeah.
And I know now
There's a place I go when I'm alone,
Do anything I want, be anyone I wanna be.
But it is us I see
And I cannot believe I'm falling.
That's where I'm going, where are you going?
Hold it close, won't let this go.
Dream, catch me, yeah.
Dream, catch me when I fall,
Or else I won't come back at all.
You do so much.
But you don't know...it's true.
And I know now who I am.
Yeah, yeah, yeah.
And I know now
There's a place I go when I'm alone.
Do anything I want, be anyone I wanna be.
But it is us I see
And I cannot believe I'm falling.
That's where I'm going, where are you going?
Hold it close, won't let this go.
Dream, catch me, yeah.
Dream, catch me when I fall,
Or else I won't come back at all.
See you as a mountain,
A fountain of God.
See you as a descant soul
In the setting sun.
You as a sound just as silent as none.
I'm young.
There's a place I go when I'm alone.
Do anything I want, be anyone I wanna be.
But it is us I see
And I cannot believe I'm falling.
There's a place I go when I'm alone.
Do anything I want, be anyone I wanna be.
But it is us I see
And I cannot believe I'm falling.
That's where I'm going, where are you going?
Hold it close, won't let this go.
Dream, catch me, yeah.
Dream, catch me when I fall,
Or else I won't come back at all.
-"Dream Catch Me", Newton Faulkner
Black & White Acknowledgments and Credits
This story would not exist if not for the incredible work of my two co-authors, Roxor and Erik "Ice" Berg. I am also heavily indebted to my editor, ModernTimes.
Chip 'n' Dale Rescue Rangers and the characters of Chip, Dale, Gadget, Monterey Jack, Zipper, Professor Nimnul, Foxglove, Tammy and Bink and their mother, Freddie the Witch, Queenie, Sparky and Buzz, Lahwhinie and Shaka-Baka, Bud and Lou, Fat Cat, Detective Drake, Aldrin Klordaine, and anybody else I missed are property of Walt Disney Television Animation, and were created by Tad Stones and the writers for the series.
Key to References:
Prologue: A Dark and Stormy Night
"Once upon a time, in a world not too different from ours, four rodents and a fly band together to fight the forces of darkness. For their detective agency, no case is too big, no case is too small. They are: The Rescue Rangers."
* Introduction to The Rescue Rangers cartoon on Earth-A.
"February 15"
* The year of Part 1 is 1994, although I didn't see any reason to reveal that. Basically, it takes place four years after Tammy met the Rangers, and one year after my fanfic The Knight and the Jester. This sets the events of Rescue Rangers to 1990.
""Bonkaholics Anonymouse", twelve-step program"
* Alcoholics Anonymous, plus the reference to the ubiquity of mice in RR
"Weird part of 2001"
* 2001: A Space Odyssey (1968, MGM). Gyrgy Ligeti composed Atmospheres, used for the monolith scenes in 2001: A Space Odyssey. Note that the dimensions of the stone, 9 by 4 by 1, is also a reference to 2001.
""Francine, is that you?""
* Part Two.
Part One: Tammy
Chapter 1: Homecoming
""All You Wanted" lyrics"
* Michelle Branch
"Molly, Beth's name for Tammy's invisible friend"
* Molly Cunningham, Talespin-Note that Molly's middle name in the show was Elizabeth.
"The sketch of Chip working on his casebook"
* Oblique reference to my Rescue Rangers fanfic The Knight and the Jester, which ends with a scene of Chip writing in his casebook. It's probable that Herbie drew the sketch.
"Herb, Binkie, Tank and Herbie Tanglefoot"
* Herb, Binkie, Tank and Honker Muddlefoot, Darkwing Duck (1991, Walt Disney Television Animation)
Chapter 2: The Tanglefoots
""I'm X. What can I tell you about Foreverware today?""
* "Forever Ware" episode of Eerie, Indiana (1991, Cosgrove/Meurer Productions / Hearst Entertainment / Unreality)
"Gulliver's Island"
* Gilligan's Island (1964, CBS / Gladysys Productions / United Artists Television), which in Darkwing Duck is called Pelican's Island
"A brand new car"
* The Price Is Right (1972, Freemantle Media North America / CBS / Mark Goodson Television)
"F-104 Starfighter"
* Lockheed; used by the U.S. Air Force from 1958 - 1967 (Check Yeager's big crash in The Right Stuff was in a NF-104A variant; the bribery scandal associated with the sale of the F-104 to Germany in 1961 and other aircraft to other countries in following years, revealed 1976, nearly brought down Lockheed)
Chapter 3: Our Heroes
""The Great Dale-dini""
* A reference to the advertising posters for magicians in the Nineteenth and early Twentieth Centuries, especially that for Harry Houdini
Chapter 4: Gadget Makes Children Cry
"Richard (and Isabel) Chestnutt"
* Sir Richard (and Isabel) Burton. Richard Burton was an English explorer of Africa in the Nineteenth Century. Unlike most of his fellow explorers, he actually tried to understand the natives he encountered (of course, he was also the first non-believer to sneak into Mecca and see the Black Stone, which, since he didn't convert to Islam first, shows a certain disregard for others' belief systems). He was continually put down by the establishment because of his middle class birth. Isabel Arundell belonged to one of the most prominent families in England. She became Richard's biggest fan after reading his books, and before long the two of them had wed, to the displeasure of her family (minus her father, another Richard Burton fan). At the end of his life, Richard wrote the best-known translation of The Arabian Nights. Isabel is mostly known for how much of her husband's unpublished work she burned after his death to protect his reputation from the truth. On the plus side, in his life she traveled with him wherever he went, making each stop into a little piece of England.
""Spumoni? Mascarpone?""
* Oblique reference to Rat Capone, and an obvious shout-out to one of my favorite fanfiction authors.
""The Yankees can't win them all, kid""
* The New York Yankees (1st place in the American League at 34 wins, 22 losses) were beaten at Toronto by the Blue Jays (10th place in the American League at 28 wins, 29 losses), 2 to 7, on Friday, June 10, 1994.
"Pr. Julius Hoppernickel"
* Grandpa Waddlemeyer, Darkwing Duck (specifically "Darkly Dawns the Duck"); he didn't really have a character in that episode, so that is my invention.
"String Theory"
* A theory of physics (controversial in 1994 but nearly universally accepted today) that holds that all phenomena in the universe can be accounted for by the vibration of one-dimensional strings embedded in ten-dimensional space; it is held by its supporters to be a "theory of everything", while its detractors like to point out the fact that the theory is so complicated that it is impossible to prove or use in a practical setting
"M-Space"
* String Theory term for ten-dimensional space.
""Special Theory" and "General Theory""
* A reference to Albert Einstein's Special Theory and General Theory of Relativity (1905 and 1915)
"John Nash"
* A Beautiful Mind (2001). Since the movie came out 7 years after this scene is set, the professor is referring to the actual events it is based on. The fact that Nash had just won his Nobel Prize justifies the facts being known to the scientific community.
Chapter 5: The Rescue Ranger Fan Club
""Cookie, cookie, cookie.""
* "Pizza, pizza, pizza" (from a really obscure radio commercial).
"Gulliver's Island, again"
* Rescue From Gilligan's Island (1978).
""I sense something""
* Darth Vader, Star Wars: A New Hope.
"Michael and Jane"
* The kids from Mary Poppins, but with the age difference reversed.
""I'm...Dale-dini""
* Batman: The Animated Series (1992) was produced by Paul Dini.
""Hey Rocky! Watch me pull a rabbit out of my hat!""
* Running joke in Bullwinkle.
"Clue: Master Detective"
* Parker Brothers, 1988.
Chapter 6: New Member
"Foxglove's opinion of armadillos"
* Home Is Where You Hang Upside-Down, by The Enduring Man-Child.
""...a national park in northwestern Connecticut""
* Mount Riga State Park.
"Bear Mountain"
* An actual mountain in Mount Riga State Park. Also reminiscent of "A Night on Bare Mountain" by Modest Mussorgsky.
Chapter 7: Appendix A
"Tank's song"
* "Enter Sandman" by Metallica, which just happens to be the theme song to The Knight and the Jester.
"TV Guide"
* Owned by News America Corporation in 1994 (currently Gemstar); it's largely irrelevant today.
""Don't anybody move!""
* Typical Barney Fife dialog from The Andy Griffith Show.
"Professor Dottmeyer's lost beetle Bubbie"
* Actually, I made this up.
""Lost Tribe of the Huachi""
* Oblique reference to the hwacha, an ancient Korean weapon featured on the "Alcohol Myths" episode of Mythbusters.
""What's this do?""
* GIR, "War of the Planets" episode of Invader Zim.
"Mulder and Scully"
* Main characters in The X-Files (20th Century Fox, 1991). They were linked with the Rescue Rangers in the fanfic Home Is Where You Hang Upside Down, by The Enduring Man-Child, and also appeared in The Knight and the Jester.
""Many Worlds Hypothesis""
* Hugh Everett, 1957
"Tungunska Comet"
* The most-likely cause of the 1908 explosion over eastern Siberia.
"Copenhagen Interpretation"
* Niels Bohr and Werner Heisenberg, 1927
"String Theory"
* Created by dozens of physicists from 1960's onward
"Musical String Theory"
* Another oblique reference to The Knight and the Jester, which included an involved discussion of acoustics and using overtones to track a diamond.
""Earth-A" vs. "Earth-1""
* The Futurama episode "The Farnsworth Parabox" (episode aired in 2003, so Bill Odenkirk must have ripped off Dale's idea!)
""Borg Earth""
* The Borg first appeared in the Star Trek: The Next Generation episode "Q Who?" (airdate May 8, 1989).
Chapter 8: Exit Light
""Exit Light""
* Lyrics from "Enter Sandman". Further lyrics will be used for the titles of Chapters 9 - 11.
""...because I can't remember the phone number of what's-his-name", and Gadget's translation device"
* "Home Is Where You Hang Upside-Down", by Roy Neal Grissom ("what's-his-name" is Fox Mulder from The X-Files).
Chapter 9: Enter Night
""the Bat Guy""
* The Batman, DC Comics.
""Coo-Coo bottle""
* Coo-Coo Cola, from the episode "The Case of the Cola Cult".
""Citrus Delight" and "purple stuff""
* 1980's commercial for Sunny Delight.
""OHD-0035""
* ID code from the website titled "Secret Contents of a Certain Government Warehouse". The letters mean this is an (O)bservation device that operates by modifying p(H)ysical law and must be (D)irected to work (the 0035 means there are 34 other objects in the warehouse with the same description).
Chapter 10: Take My Hand
""Pavane""
* I am thinking specifically of the one by Gabriel Faur.
"Cadwallader"
* Winifred's last name from Home Is Where You Hang Upside-Down.
"Guild of Calamitous Intent"
* A reference to Dr. Girlfriend from The Venture Brothers (2003, World Leaders / Astro Base Go! / Cartoon Network / Williams Street).
"Dirk Suave"
* CDRR episode "Double 'O Chipmunk"
""Two roads diverged in a yellow wood.""
* "The Road Not Taken," Robert Frost, 1916
"Plymouth Suburban"
* Marque of Chrysler.
Part Two: Francine
Chapter 11: We're Off to Never-Never Land
""Empty Is" lyrics"
* Frank Sinatra, based on a poem by Rod McKuen, from the album A Man Alone (1969)
"The countdown"
* This is counting down to June 15th at 12:00:03 AM, the moment the Rescue Rangers were swapped in Part One. If you're having trouble with the math, remember that the change from Standard Time to Daylight Savings Time occurs during the span being counted down. The year for Parts Two and Three is 1998.
"Bud and Lou"
* Based on characters created by Bud Abbot and Lou Costello. In particular, their characters from Buck Privates (1945). Of course, the reason I'm using these characters is because Freddie's familiars in "Good Times, Bat Times" were named and based on the pair.
"his arm snaked out to one side"
* An obligatory snake reference for Bud.
""you're like Little Miss Muffet: a spider would give you a heart attack""
* An obligatory spider reference for Lou.
"The movies discussed"
* Titanic (#1 in the box office on the weekend of February 13, 1998, for the ninth of what would be fifteen weeks in a row)"
* L.A. Confidential (#10)"
* Wag the Dog (#12)"
* The Wings of the Dove (#21)"
* Blues Brothers 2000 (#9)"
* As Good as it Gets (#5)"
* The Borrowers (#6)"
* Great Expectations (#8)
"Cracker Jacks"
* Property of Frito Lay.
"Family Circus"
* By Bill Keane; property of King Features Syndicate
"Commander Cellini, Ultra Probe"
* Character and spaceship from the Space: 1999 episode "Dragon's Domain". In a 1997 flashback during that episode, Cellini fought off a space monster that didn't appear on instruments. On Earth-A, that becomes a whole race of aliens that don't show up on instruments. Space: 1999 is a 1975 television series by Gerry and Sylvia Anderson.
"Captain Koenig"
* John Koenig, the main character in Space: 1999 (played by Martin Landau) was a captain during the flashback sequences in "Dragon's Domain", and a close friend of Cellini's. In the series he was the commander of Moonbase Alpha.
""Give me two tens for a five.""
* This skit is straight out of Buck Privates.
"Francine Nulton"
* Earth-A's version of Freddie the Witch (hence "Frankie"). She's also influenced by the Darkwing Duck character of Ammonia Pine.
"Vostaach Space Center"
* The link between the space center and Space: 1999 comes from a timeline by Shane Johnson
Chapter 12: Disappointment
"Walter Mitty Army Medical Sanitarium, Pritchard-Mitford, and pocketa-pocketa-pocketa"
* "The Secret Life of Walter Mitty" (1939), by James Thurber
"Norris Nulton"
* Earth-A version of Nulton Nimnul. As you can see, the Earth-A counterparts are sometimes similar and sometimes quite different then their Earth-1 versions
"Nuclear-powered cars"
* One of the features of the Space: 1999 is the universal use of nuclear power. The waste was stored on the Moon, with catastrophic consequences.
"Masked Marvel"
* Earth-A counterpart of Darkwing Duck. The "Masked Marvel" name is an alias used by Snoopy from Peanuts when he wanted to pose as a human, and also the name of one of my favorite compositions by composer Vince Guaraldi from It Was a Short Summer, Charlie Brown
"Dinah and Harold Largess"
* Dinah, Francine's sister (thus forming the second member of the "Rat Pack" after "Frankie"), is a version of Ample Grime from Darkwing Duck (Ammonia Pine's hated sister). Harold Largess is based on Emilio Largo from the James Bond movie Thunderball. The Darkwing Duck character modeled on Largo is Steelbeak, and my version owes more to Steelbeak than to Largo. While I'm at it, he's also the counterpart of the Rescue Rangers character Ratso Ratskiwatski, from "Out of Scale".
"Orlac's Machines"
* Inspired by Oreck, but also The Hands of Orlac (1924, remade as Mad Love, 1935, with Peter Lorre).
"Alice"
* Earth-A counterpart of Allison Worthington, the bee fan from Chapter 7. I'm also sort of thinking of Goo from Fosters' Home for Imaginary Friends here, although she's a lot less hyper and three years older.
"Herbert"
* Yet another version of Honker Muddlefoot from Darkwing Duck.
"Coo-Coo Cola"
* From the Rescue Rangers episode "Case of the Cola Cult", but also the Darkwing Duck episode "Dirtysomething" and the 1946 Tex Avery cartoon "Screwy Squirrel".
"Herbert's shirt art"
* "Light as a Mouse", by Candy Courtnier, a work dating back to 1998 or perhaps earlier.
""The Spanish Inquisition""
* This is a reference to an event in the history of the Rescue Rangers fandom: the Valentine's Day Massacre of February 14, 1998, aka Ranger War II.
"Alice's shirt art"
* This specific fan art doesn't exist, but I'm imagining a variation on "Look at the Moon", by Matt Plotecher, which dates to 1997.
"Analog"
* One of the major science fiction magazines, published by Dell; the editor at this time would have been Ben Bova. Per author George R.R. Martin, Analog had "the reputation of being hard-nosed, steel-clad, scientifically rigorous, and perhaps a bit puritanical."
"Moonbase Alpha"
* Space: 1999.
"Rockwell Studio"
* Cartoon studio from the Darkwing Duck episode "Twitching Channels", where Darkwing accidentally travels to the "Real World" and discovers that he is a fictional character. The pompous character of E. Thaddeus Rockwell is a self-parody by Tad Stones, producer of both Darkwing Duck and Chip 'n' Dale Rescue Rangers.
"Ratcatcher"
* Darkwing Duck's motorcycle.
"Rangermobile"
* The Rescue Rangers' skate-based means of land propulsion.
"Herbert, Sr. and Elizabeth"
* Herb and Binkie Muddlefoot from Darkwing Duck
"The Danaans"
* The alien menace, finally named. In the mythology of Ireland, the island was invaded several times before the Gaels arrived; the last two were the Fir Bolg and the Tuatha De Danann. The latter group were named after the Greek Danaans (the heroes of the Trojan War), and were considered somewhere between men and gods because of the magical artifacts they possessed.
"Zenith television"
* Maker of many old televisions, and inventor of the remote control. Owned by the LG Group.
Chapter 13: Arrival
"WOLD"
* The eastern sister-station to KOLD, "music for the old and the old at heart", a radio station from Rugrats.
"Emperor Freewheel"
* Earth-A version of the Ducktales character Gyro Gearloose, inventor for Scrooge McDuck.
"New Haven's local billionaire and Roboman"
* Earth-A versions of Scrooge McDuck and Gizmoduck from Ducktales.
"Gogol"
* Nikolai Gogol (1809 - 52) was the author of "The Overcoat", a story of social status
"Colt Park"
* An actual park in Hartford, CT.
"Laurel Weir"
* Earth-A counterpart of Lahwhinie.
"Industrial laundry"
* Winifred's base of operations in "Good Times, Bat Times".
Chapter 14: The Demonstration
"A low ridge ten miles east of Hartford"
* Case Mountain, elevation 744 feet.
"World Space Commission"
* The body responsible for administering Moonbase Alpha in Space: 1999.
"The Company"
* Based on SHUSH from Darkwing Duck, and of course derived from the pet name CIA operatives gave their organization.
"T.H.E.M."
* Based on F.O.W.L. from Darkwing Duck.
"Assistant Director of The Company ("The Bear", Aldus Klaudaine)"
* An amalgamation of Agent Gryzlikoff from Darkwing Duck and Aldrin Klordaine from Rescue Rangers.
"Head Scientist of The Company ("The Thinker", Dr. Elena Irwin)"
* Amalgamation of Dr. Sarah Bellum from Darkwing Duck ("Heavy Mental") and Irwina Allen from Rescue Rangers ("Risky Beesness").
"Titanium Gander"
* Iron Goose from Rescue Rangers ("Risky Beesness").
"Agent of The Company ("The Hero", Drew Maughlarde, aka The Masked Marvel)"
* Earth-A counterpart of Drake Mallard, aka Darkwing Duck. He is also the Earth-A counterpart of Detective Drake from Chip 'n' Dale Rescue Rangers.
"Carolyn Maughlarde"
* Earth-A counterpart of Gosalyn from Darkwing Duck, as well as Tammy from Rescue Rangers.
"Norma Ray"
* Dr. Bellum's invention from "Heavy Mental", which increased the psychic powers of whoever used it ("just so long as they don't think!").
"KEPN Helmet"
* Stands for "Kaon-Emission Paravoyant Neurolyzer". As the Maughlardes discovered, it's more of an equivoyant neuralyzer.
"Head of The Company ("The Philosopher", John G. Houker)"
* J. Gander Hooter from Darkwing Duck.
"Small mountain"
* Birch Mountain
"Commissioner Simmonds, Commander Gorski, Professor Bergman and David Kano"
* All characters from Space: 1999. Gorski was commander of Moonbase Alpha before Koenig, and lost his job as the result of a botched cover-up.
"Handy Navi"
* A reference to Serial Experiments: Lain.
""defensive science""
* In Space: 1999, Professor Bergman would invent a forcefield that would get stronger the more it was attacked.
"Dr. Irwin and the bee"
* Obvious reference to "Risky Beesness".
""Yes, Taurus Bulba""
* Quote from the Darkwing Duck episode "Darkly Dawns the Duck".
Chapter 15: The Judgment
"Men's size 10 tube sock"
* Reference to John Nowak's Under the Bridge, where the "Nimnul Effect" from the episode "Catteries Not Included" is used to power a rodent-scale submarine.
""I've developed [a generator] for use on Moonbase Alpha""
* This is the Bergman Generator, which powers the force fields in Space: 1999.
"The metal bulldog"
* From the Rescue Rangers episode "Catteries Not Included".
"The Kensington Experiment, Professor Hodgeson and KIDS"
* All from Serial Experiments: Lain. My addition is to link this to the experiment that gave David Kano a neural link with computers (the Space: 1999 episode "Guardians of Piri").
"Emperor Norton I"
* "Emperor of these United States and Protector of Mexico," self-proclaimed. Lived from 1819 - 1880. His delusional claims were respected by the amused residents of San Francisco until his death.
"Gorski's brilliant idea"
* In Space: 1999, everyone has a small device called a commlock to communicate with each other and to open the doors and turn off the lights.
"Robo-bee saboteurs"
* Another "Risky Beesness" reference.
""the Wired""
* name given to an advanced form of the Internet in Serial Experiments: Lain.
""September 14th Society""
* A reference to September 13th, 1999, the date in Space: 1999 when the Moon was accidentally blasted into deep space. It was implied in the series that the event was catastrophic for humanity back on Earth.
"Greenstreet"
* Sydney Greenstreet, the name of the actor who played a character known as "The Fat Man" in The Maltese Falcon (1941). Obviously, Greenstreet is Fat Cat-A.
"Percy"
* The name of Klordaine's henchman from "To the Rescue".
""A Fly in the Ointment""
* Episode of Chip 'n' Dale Rescue Rangers.
"The device on David's wrist"
* The Metamorphosizer, from the Rescue Rangers episode "A Wolf in Sheep's Clothing"
Chapter 16: Coronation
""Arise, Sir Loin of Beef!""
* Scene from the Bugs Bunny cartoon "Rabbit Hood" (1949, Chuck Jones).
"The history of Gogol"
* A hodge-podge of the following:
** The Mahicans (who had a village near Bear Mountain called Weataug) told stories of the giant death spirit Hobbomock, who was summoned in northwestern Massachusetts (see Sugarloaf Mountain) and was put into eternal slumber in southwestern Connecticut (see Sleeping Giant). It makes sense for him to have paused at Bear Mountain on the way between them.
** Winifred Benham and her 13-year old daughter, also named Winifred, were accused of witchcraft in 1697 and were found "not proven". The trial was in Wallingford, near New Haven, and the Benham family relocated to New York, not northwest Connecticut.
** There is a great deal of nonsense told about the former township of Dudleyville. Almost every one of the stories ends with one or more persons dead and the survivors raving about animals and demons before dying themselves. None of these deaths, on close examination, turned out to be suspicious, and in some cases, the people in question didn't even die until years later and far away from Dudleyville. The craze around Dudleyville grew so great after the release of The Blair Witch Project that the private owners of the ruins of Dudleyville declared the area strictly off-limits.
** The "no animals" story is also not true, as several (illegal) visitors to Dudleyville in recent years attest.
** The ironworks on Mount Riga did exist, and they are one of the reasons why Connecticut was known as the Arsenal of Democracy. They shut down in 1848 and the former colliers became known as the Raggies, a group segregated from their neighbors by their foreign origin and their own nature.
"Nikolai Gogol"
* See the Gogol entry for Chapter 13.
""Sending all those prisoners up to the Moon""
* My father.
""A series of tubes.""
* Alaska Senator Ted Stevens' defense of a net neutrality amendment to the Communications, Consumer's Choice, and Broadband Deployment Act of 2006.
"Agent Reynard D. Keigh"
* Earth-A counterpart of Agent Fox Mulder.
Chapter 17: The Final Battle
""force field roller" and "Professor Bergman's contribution""
* In the Space: 1999 episode "Black Sun", Bergman invents a force field that protects the station against a black hole.
"Clavius Crater"
* Besides being one of the most prominent craters on the Moon, Clavius Base was a setting used in the film 2001: A Space Odyssey.
""My forces are boxed in at Theophilus Crater""
* Another actual crater, and also a reference to how Space: 1999 frequently dealt with mystical and religious subjects.
"Eagle shuttle"
* The short-range craft used in Space: 1999 and as beloved by fans as any of the cast members.
"Comlock"
* The primary prop in Space: 1999, used to open doors, turn lights on and off, monitor people for medical and location purposes, and as a general-purpose remote control. They were actually introduced prior to Commander Gorski's time, as they are seen in use during the flashback sequences in the episode "Dragon's Domain".
"Galt Braunbight"
* The Earth-A version of Walter Cronkite, who was half of the inspiration for TV news anchor Stan Blather on Rescue Rangers (the other half being Dan Rather).
"Dr. Helena Russell"
* One of the two lead characters on Space: 1999, played by actress Barbara Bain; she was the chief medical officer for Moonbase Alpha. At the beginning of the series she had been brow-beaten by Gorski and Simmonds into covering up a series of mysterious deaths, so here I have her brow-beaten by Harold Largess into supporting his lies about Nimnul's condition.
Chapter 18: Voices in the Darkness
I am of course completely to blame for any mis-characterization in this chapter.
"The disembodied voice at the start of the chapter"
* Andrea Romano, voice director for Pinky and the Brain.
"Moe L. March"
* Maurice LaMarche.
"Pinky and the Brain"
* Pinky and the Brain (1995-2001, Tom Ruegger, Universal Pictures). In Earth-A, fictional properties are identical to the real world (unless I made them up).
"Jay Cummins"
* Jim Cummings
"Orson Welles"
* Orson Welles
"Rob Polson"
* Rob Paulsen
"Pam Haydn"
* Pamela Hayden
"Jeffery Burnet"
* Jeff Bennett
"Gary Elway"
* Cary Elwes
"Tress McNell"
* Tress MacNeille
"Jane and Michael Banks"
* Earth-A versions of Michael and Jane Banks from Chapter 5.
"Lassie's Rescue Rangers"
* An actual cartoon show from the 1970's.
"Rockwell Studio"
* This is a reference to the Darkwing Duck episode "Twitching Channels", where Darkwing travels to the "real world", where a TV show based on his exploits is wildly popular. The creator of the show, J. Thaddeus Rockwell (a parody of Darkwing Duck/Rescue Rangers creator Tad Stones) got the idea for the show from using a mail-order helmet that allowed him to spy on the world of Darkwing. At the end of the episode, Darkwing returns to his own world and the helmet is damaged, causing it to re-tune to the world of the Rescue Rangers.
"Mystery Mantis and the Clew Crew Review, Intergalactic Battle of the Network Stars, Three's a Crowd and Weeble Wobbles: The Animated Series"
* All made up shows, but considering the kinds of cartoons I grew up with in the 1970's and 80's, not entirely implausible.
"Corey Button"
* Corey Burton
""all twenty-five of the scripts to the episodes that had never been completed""
* If you add this to the 43 episodes that were aired, you get three more episodes than Disney ever aired. I wonder what they're about?
"Navi"
* Another reference to Serial Experiments: Lain, this time to the desktop version of the "Handy Navi".
""A Hawaiian surfer character""
* Hubba Bubba from "Gadget Goes Hawaiian".
""A witch character" and the quote that follows"
* Freddie herself, from "Good Times, Bat Times"
Chapter 19: Choosing Sides
"OMSST"
* Omsk Summer Time zone
"Space Dock Centauri"
* Space: 1999.
"The Grimemaster"
* Ample Grime, Darkwing Duck
"Alan Carter"
* Leading character in Season One of Space: 1999, where he was the designated hero. Played by Nick Tate, who in the 1990's became one of the leading voice-over artists for movie trailers.
""Training: it makes the job look easy""
* Commander Roger Houston's line from the Rescue Rangers episode "Out to Launch".
""Dean""
* And thus is revealed the fact that Francine and Dinah Orlac were named by their parents after Frank Sinatra and Dean Martin.
""Shnookums or Buffy""
* The latter was Ratso Ratskiwatski's daughter in "Out of Scale".
"Brown and Hash, Harold's goons"
* Counterparts of Spud and Fry from the Rescue Rangers episode "Short-Order Crooks", who are in turn clones of Moose and Rocco, Ratso Ratskiwatski's goons in the episode "Out of Scale".
""The Internet""
* Standard excuse from The Fairly Oddparents.
Chapter 20: Where's Waldo?
"∇"
* This represents Lunar Standard Time. By Hartford standards, it is May 16th at 12:18 AM.
"Paul Morrow (acting commander of Moonbase Alpha)"
* In Space: 1999, Morrow is Commander Koenig's second.
""The Underwater Menace""
* 1967 serial from Doctor Who, starring Patrick Troughton as the Doctor. The scenes quoted here star Joseph Furst as Professor Zaroff and Noel Johnson as King Thous.
"Seymour Travel"
* Throwaway reference to the villain from the Rescue Rangers episode "It's a Bird, It's Insane, It's Dale!"
"The Librarian"
* Earth-A counterpart of the CDRR fancharacter Trackball, created by John Nowak. In particular, a piece of fanart by Morgan Kohl was used for the wheelchair.
"Where's Waldo?"
* North American name for the Where's Wally? series, created in 1987 by Martin Handford.
""Waldo""
* Short story by Robert A. Heinlein, actually written 1946, but first published in book form in 1950, accompanied by "Magic, Inc.". The cover shown is from the 1986 reprint.
"The Moon is a Harsh Mistress"
* 1966 novel by Robert A. Heinlein.
"A. WENTWORTH"
* Alice Wentworth, from Chapters 12 and 15.
Chapter 21 (Bad Moon Rising): no references
Chapter 22: Victory Speech
"Fomorians and Firbolgs"
* Like the Danaans, these are names of mythical invaders of Ireland
""NIM!" "NUL!""
* Do I even need to explain this one? Think Leni Reifenstahl.
Chapter 23: Substitution
""A super-weapon for destroying an entire planet with just one shot""
* The Death Star from the Star Wars series.
"Harvey the Wonder Hamster"
* Character created by Al Yankovic. Also an oblique reference to the television show Flash the Wonder Dog on the Rescue Rangers episode "Flash, the Wonder Dog".
"Lou's recipe for almond cookies"
* Lou doesn't have one, but I do. They're called "Kifflings", and they are a Christmas tradition in my home:
** 1 box Imperial margarine (2 cups, or 475 ml)
** ½ cup granulated sugar (120 ml)
** 2 teaspoons vanilla extract (10 ml)
** 4 cups bleached all-purpose flour, sifted (950 ml)
** 1 ½ cup almonds (355 ml), chopped to ¼ inch size (5 mm)
** Plenty of powdered sugar
Preheat oven to 400° F (205° C). Cream butter and granulated sugar in a bowl, then add vanilla, flour and finally almonds. Roll dough into 1 ½ inch (4 cm) balls and place on a baking sheet. Cook for 15 minutes. Roll balls in powdered sugar while still hot. Makes 10 dozen.
Note: Kifflings are Norwegian in origin. They are supposed to be crescent-shaped, made from tubes the size and shape of your little finger, but I find those to be too dry for my tastes, as well as far too much work.
"Book of Asteroth and Substitutiary Locomotion"
* Bedknobs and Broomsticks (1971, Robert Stevenson, Disney).
"The Chipendale chair"
* An oblique reference to my fanfic The Last Case of Detective Drake.
""The Giants win the Pennant!""
* Reference to "the shot heard 'round the world", the game-winning play in the National League pennant baseball game between the New York Giants and the Brooklyn Dodgers on October 3, 1951 (before Francine was born). The pitcher was Ralpha Braca of the Dodgers, and the hitter was Bobby Thompson of the Giants. The Russ Hodges radio broadcast was quoted for the famous line above, but nobody actually said the lines I used in that order.
"Nimnul Security Agency"
* Uses the same acronym as the National Security Agency.
"It's a Small World"
* Famous ride at Disneyland (and the other Disney theme parks).
Part Three: Carolyn
Chapter 24: Graduation
"The Adventures of Pochacco & Keroppi"
* The Hello Kitty world of characters is copyright Sanrio. Hello Kitty's Furry Tale Theater was a co-production of Sanrio, DiC Enterprises and MGM/UA Television. It aired on the CBS network in America in 1987. The Sanrio characters of Pochacco, Keroppi, Sweet Coron, Badtz-Maru and Kuromi were not in the cartoon series.
"MourningDove"
* Herbie's species, as well as a recognition of all the Rescue Ranger fandom had lost.
"QQ and ConMouse"
* Mentioned in Chapter 15. "QQ" stands for Quiverwing Quack, Gosalyn's secret identity in Darkwing Duck.
""I've been curious about how the world worked ... the key to contentment is to always try whatever makes you uncomfortable.""
* Compare to Chapter 5.
"Ending from "Academy Days""
* Compare to Chapter 6.
""Have you ever seen the lain?""
* A message that starts randomly appearing on the Wired in Layer 07 of Serial Experiments: Lain.
""I take care of the place when MyMelody is away.""
* A reference to The Hands of Manos (and the MST3K treatment of it).
"Mimmy Kitty"
* Hello Kitty's near-identical sister. Amnesia1983 is of course referring to Lahwhiney.
""Not twenty minutes ago, 'she' dropped out of the sky in a helicopter and stole my pet bat!""
* For those with short attention spans (or reading the story out of order), this refers to events in Chapter 23.
"Inverness, Florida"
* Note that Inverness, Scotland was the location of the Battle of Culloden (1746), where the dreams of the Jacobites died.
""Where Will the Little Green Man Be Next?" and Ragle Gumm"
* References to Time Out of Joint, by Philip K. Dick (1959). This is a reference to a false reality (which is what Carolyn believes her world to be) and ends with the revelation of a war between Earth and a revolting Moon that resembles The Moon is a Harsh Mistress.
"The KEEN helmet"
* First referenced in Chapter 14. The portion of the helmet's history that involves E. Thaddeus Rockwell comes from the "Twitching Channels" episode of Darkwing Duck.
Chapter 25: Cross-Over
"Carolyn's fall"
* Alice by Jan Svankmajer (1988), the "lift scene"
""Said Alice""
* All dialog in Alice was spoken in Alice's voice, and would always be followed by a close-up of her mouth narrating which character just spoke. It got rather annoying after awhile.
"Tammy's entrance"
* Walt Disney's Alice in Wonderland (1951).
"The Moon is a Harsh Mistress"
* Robert A. Heinlein, 1966. Mike is the name of a sentient computer that consults the main character about the nature of jokes.
"Carolyn's story"
* Largely taken from the plot of the Darkwing Duck pilot episode, "Darkly Dawns the Duck". Terrance Barra is the Earth-A counterpart of Taurus Bulba.
Chapter 26: Norris Nulton
"Prisoner's Aid Society"
* From the Rescuers series of books by Margery Sharp.
""Even Nimnul had gone straight for awhile""
* Rescue Rangers episode "Rest Home Rangers"
"Fantasyland"
* Just to be safe, I will credit Disneyland with this one.
"Ernesto and Bernie"
* A twisted version of Bert and Ernie from Sesame Street, with their roles reversed
"Doctor Mitford-Pritchard"
* Earth-1 version of Doctor Pritchard-Mitford (Chapter 12)
""She turned you into a newt!""
* Monty Python and the Holy Grail
"Bob Ross"
* Host of The Joy of Painting (1983, PBS). Ross frequently referred to the "happy little clouds" he painted.
""I am Norton J. Nimnul, scientist. I own a ray gun and a lab.""
* Parody of "I am Elmer J. Fudd, millionaire. I own a mansion and a yacht," from the Warner Brothers cartoon "Hare Brush" (1955).
"Super Toast"
* Invader Zim, episodes "The Nightmare Begins" and "Future Dib"
"The Szalinski Process"
* From the Honey, I Shrunk the series.
"Chip and Dale's opinion on being mistaken for squirrels"
* Rescue Rangers episode "Out of Scale". This is also a callback to The Knight and the Jester.
"Dana Scully and Fox Mulder"
* The X-Files (20th Century Fox, 1991). A running joke in the series is that the pair's rental cars are always white or silver Ford Tauruses. That and the constant cell phone use. The "spokesperson" reference is to actress Gillian Anderson's cancer-awareness commercials.
"Mister Whizzer"
* Parody of Watch Mister Wizard/Mister Wizard's World (NBC, 1951; Nickelodeon, 1983) from the CDRR episode "Flash, the Wonder Dog".
"The black box"
* This is the animal translation device from Home Is Where You Hang Upside-Down. It is described only as a modified bat detector small enough for Foxglove to wear it. Search for "Build a Simple Bat Detector" on Google to see one built in a black plastic hobby box of the right dimensions. The exact dimensions (9 by 4 by 1) are once again a reference to 2001: A Space Odyssey.
"Banana baby food"
* See "Helping Orphans Survive", an article for the online BATS Magazine, where young insectivorous bats are fed a diet of fortified milk, veal and banana baby food, and vitamin paste, until they are capable of eating mealworms.
""The Irish Washerwoman", "She'll Be Coming 'Round the Mountain""
* Traditional Irish and American folksongs, respectively.
""The Inner Light""
* Name of an episode of Star Trek: The Next Generation (1987, Paramount Television).
Chapter 27: The Fandom United
"Anna Comnena"
* Byzantine princess and scholar. Believed to be the first Western female historian. Lived 1083 - 1153. [Ban Zhou, 46 - 116, has a better claim as first female historian, Western or Eastern]
"Quiverwing Quack, Gosalyn"
* As noted, alias and character from Darkwing Duck.
"Quackerwitz"
* The fanon last name of the Darkwing Duck character Quackerjack, as established by writer Sparky. Note that the idea that the Darkwing Duck fandom is controlled by anybody is false, at least on this world.
"Tuxedo Sam and Monkichi"
* Characters from Hello Kitty. The "Adventures of Pochacco & Keroppi" website implies that Tuxedo Sam corresponds to Monty, while Monkichi corresponds to Detective Donald Drake.
"Wexler"
* Annoying archeologist character from the Rescue Rangers episode "Throw Mummy From the Train".
"Fearless Leader"
* Rocky and Bullwinkle
"Lain"
* Serial Experiments: Lain. Lain refers obliquely to the Reset she performs at the end of the series, fixing the problems of the world at the cost of nobody remembering her anymore. Note that Carolyn instantly trusts Lain as soon as she says something; a common event in the series.
Chapter 28: There Ain't No Such Thing As A Free Lunch
"The dream"
* This evokes the Space: 1999 episode "Breakaway", where explosions at the Nuclear Waste Disposal areas on September 13, 1999, launch the Moon into deep space. The detail about the exposure of Atlantis is a reference to the Doctor Who serial "The Underwater Menace" (see Chapter 16), where draining the Earth's oceans was the mad plan of Professor Zaroff.
"The photograph"
* An evocation of Liberty Leading the People by Eugéne Delacroix, only with more clothes. Alice Wentworth appeared earlier in chapters 12, 15 and 19. The flag's description is taken word for word from The Moon Is a Harsh Mistress. "TANSTAAFL" stands for "There Ain't No Such Thing As A Free Lunch", the motto of Libertarianism in the book. "J&M B." are "Jane and Michael...Banks" (Chapter 17). The Pulitzer Prize is administered by Columbia University.
"Nimnul's pupils"
* Different pupil size is an actual indicator of brain damage. In addition, I'm using this to push his character into becoming a counterpart of the Darkwing Duck character Megavolt.
Chapter 29: The Rescuers
""I Think We're Alone Now""
* 1987 song by Tiffany.
"Officers Lee and Murphy"
* Counterparts of Kirby and Muldoon, the names derived as follows: Jack Kirby was a famous comic book artist, his best-known writer was Stan Lee. The name of the game warden in Jurassic Park was Robert Muldoon (his last words were "Clever girl..."). In the movie, he rescued Lex and Tim Murphy.
""the Reset""
* Refers to the end of Serial Experiments: Lain, where Lain is forced to rewrite everyone's memories to remove herself from existence.
""The Best of Everything""
* Song from the Rescue Rangers episode "To the Rescue: Part 1."
""True Faith" by New Order"
* Commonly known as "Morning Sun", released 1987, a song about loss of faith.
Chapter 30: Hartford City Jail Blues
""Gadget Hackwrench Eyes""
* Parody of "Bette Davis Eyes" (1974) by Kim Carnes, by The Enduring Man-Child (1998). This is slightly anachronistic, as the parody was first published about five months after the scene in question in real life.
"Sergeant Detweiler"
* Counterpart of Sgt. Spinelli from Rescue Rangers. If you're familiar with the show Recess, you'll get the connection.
"Detective Tenchure"
* Counterpart of my conspiracy-obsessed character Detective Chenture from The Last Case of Detective Drake.
"WHCT"
* Paxton Communications was the owner of the station in 1998. Today it's owned by Entravision Communications Corporation and as its current call sign, WUVN, shows, it is a Univision station.
""Ranger In Your Soul""
* Extremely-anachronistic parody of "Birdhouse In Your Soul" (1990), by They Might Be Giants, by Mayhem (2007), but on Earth-A, I suppose "Birdhouse" is the parody. "Dr. Spock's Backup Band" is a lyric from the group's self-titled song.
"A Tale of Two Cities"
* Charles Dickens, 1859.
"Emperor Albert"
* Albert Einstein. In Earth-A's history, he led the human resistance to the Fomorian invasion and was the first Emperor of Earth.
Chapter 31 (Too Much Theta): no references
Chapter 32: Truth or Consequences
"Television channels"
* These are all actual television channels available to cable television viewers in Hartford, CT in 1998. At that time, Chris-Craft owned WWOR; Connecticut Public Broadcasting, Inc. owned CPTV; Counterpoint Communications owned WTXX; Fox Television owned WNYW; an 80/20 partnership between General Electric and Seagram owned Sci-Fi; the Meredith Corporation owned WFSB; the National Cable Satellite Corporation owned CSPAN; Time Warner owned CNN, HBO and TBS; the Tribute Company owned WGN; an 80/20 partnership between the Walt Disney Company and the Hearst Corporation owned ESPN; the Walt Disney Company owned the Disney Channel; and Viacom owned MTV, TMC and TNN. Today, Sci-Fi is unfortunately called SyFy.
"Television programs"
* The New Stoicism, People's Choice Movie of the Week and Senate Subcommittee On the U.S. Auto Industry are invented shows; although they are typical of the stations I put them on. The quotes from SportsCenter, Headline News and Extreme Dinosaurs are also invented. The other programs all actually aired in June of 1998, albeit not all at the same time, and all included the quotes listed. Movie credits: Raiders of the Lost Ark (1981, Steven Spielberg, Paramount Pictures), Soylent Green (1973, Richard Fleischer, MGM), Real Genius (1985, Martha Coolidge, Columbia TriStar), "Crocodile" Dundee (1986, Peter Faiman, Paramount Pictures), The Rescuers (1977, John Lounsbery and Wolfgang Reitherman and Art Stevens, Walt Disney Productions), and Rustler's Rhapsody (1985, Hugh Wilson, Paramount Pictures). Television series credits: Magnum, P.I. (1980-1988, Donald A. Bellisario and Glen A. Larson, Universal Studios), SportsCenter (1979-present, Bill Rasmussen, Walt Disney Corporation/Hearst Corporation), Total Request (1997-1998, Carson Daily, Viacom), Headline News (1982-present, Ted Kavenau and Paul Amos, Time Warner), Sam & Max [or, to use the full name, Sam & Max: Freelance Police!] (1997-1998, Steve Purcell, Nelvana Limited), Pinky and the Brain [see Chapter 18], Extreme Dinosaurs [yes, this was a real show] (1997, Mattel, DIC Entertainment), The "Weird Al" Show (1997, Al Yankovic, Dick Clark Productions), Mystery Science Theater 3000 (1988-1999, Joel Hodgson, Best Brains Productions), and V: The Series (1984-1985, Kenneth Johnson, Warner Brothers Television). The song featured on Total Request was "Bitter Sweet Symphony" (1998, The Verve, Urban Hymns). The movie featured on MST3K was originally titled Uchu Kaisoku-Ken (1961, Koji Ota, Toei Company, dubbed by Walter Manley Enterprises).
"Why?" [the question asked by at least one reader slogging through this section]
* The even-numbered clips show the characters that inspired the creation of each Rescue Ranger: Indiana Jones (Chip), Magnum P.I. (Dale), Jordan from Real Genius (Gadget), "Crocodile" Dundee (Monty) and Evinrude from The Rescuers (Zipper). The odd-numbered clips contrast this with the hopelessness felt by the adult world in Earth-A.
"Coo-Coo Cola ("Bottled in Pensacola")"
* A reference to the Rescue Rangers episode "The Case of the Cola Cult". Curiously, Coo-Coo Cola is also referenced in Darkwing Duck and the 1944 Screwy Squirrel cartoon "Happy Go Nutty".
"Coin/Clutch Jewelers"
* A reference to Madame/Lady Clutchcoin, a standard rich character in several Rescue Rangers episodes, always with a different character design. The version in "Gorilla My Dreams" wore a diamond as big as she was and at least twice her weight.
""Straggly scrub-brushes...""
* Lengthy quote from "Good Times, Bat Times".
Chapter 33: Searching for Meaning in a Meaningless World
"Sprite commercial for "Sun Fizz""
* Actual commercial airing in 1998 (directed by Spike Jonze for Lowe & Partners/SMS). And if you're asking "why" again, consider this a warning of what you could get if you let cartoon characters run around in the Real World.
""Limited nuclear engagement""
* In the back story to Space: 1999, there was a brief thermonuclear war in 1987 caused by North Korean terrorists. This is used as the reason why humanity was united in the series. Also, the world's nuclear weapons were dismantled and the waste stored, first in Antarctica and later on the Moon.
Chapter 34: End Game
"four-note pattern"
* This is the bass beat behind the current incarnation of the Doctor Who theme.
"Davros"
* Prominent villain in the series Doctor Who, first appearance Genesis of the Daleks (1975).
"The world where the Roman Empire never fell"
* I was specifically thinking of Aquila by S. P. Somtow-Somtow also wrote "The Carpetsnaggers" episode of Rescue Rangers.
"The world where men are ruled by apes"
* Planet of the Apes (1968, 20th Century Fox).
"Earth: "It's where I keep all my stuff!""
* "The Tick vs. The Tick" episode of The Tick (1994, Sunbow Entertainment).
""Over my dead batteries! Eat amperes!""
* Direct quote of Megavolt from Darkwing Duck.
""We agreed that Nimnul is to stay there for three days.""
* The events of those three days are covered in "The Switch", a fanfic by Roxor.
Chapter 35 (Re-Introductions): no references
Chapter 36: Homecoming
"How Fiction Works"
* Title of two actual books written by Oakley Hall and James Wood, but those were written in 2001 and 2008, so Francine must have been reading something else.
"The Faerie and their leader"
* Jonathan Strange & Mr. Norrell by Susanna Clarke (Bloomsbury, 2004).
""Dream Catch Me" lyrics"
* Newton Faulkner
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