"Darrow" - some sources indicate the name comes from an Old English word for "spear", and others indicate it stems from a Scottish surname meaning "of the oak tree".
"Eo" - In Greek mythology, Eos is the Titan personification of the dawn (Roman - Aurora).
"Jove" is the ancient name for the Roman god Jupiter.
"Two small men with quick green eyes and bald heads studded with metal spikes and tattooed with shifting digital codes suggest for me a trip to someplace called Osgiliath." - Referencing a city from The Lord of the Rings.[1]
House Barca - The name "Barca" is from the Carthaginian General Hannibal Barca.
"'So this kid is a what? A predestined Alexander? A Caesar? A Genghis? A Wiggin?'" - Darrow. References Ender's Game, a sci-fi novel following a space battle school trainee, Ender Wiggin.[2]
The Lost Wee Den, a Tavern on Luna. Intended to sound like "Joss Whedon," a famous director.
"Never tell me the odds, just do it." - Darrow. References another popular line from the Original Star Wars films.[3]
"He has to play my game! Shithead isn't getting out till he plays nice. I'll give him a riddle instead. What do I have in my pocket?" - Sevro au Barca. A similar question is posed during a similar game in The Hobbit.[4]
"They've wrapped themselves in myth. Filled their grand oceans with monsters to hunt. Mirkwoods and Olympuses of their very own." - Quicksilver. Mirkwood is a fictional forest in Middle Earth.[6]
"'Bye, Felicia!'" - Victra au Julii. Referencing a popular meme, originating from the 1995 film "Friday," starring Ice Cube.[7]
"It's not your fault. It's not your fault. It's not your fault. It's not your fault."- Mustang. Referencing Sean Maguire (played by Robin Williams) comforting Will Hunting (Matt Damon) in "Good Will Hunting".[8]
"'Impossible, sir. The First Law of Robotics states-'" - Robot. Referencing the first law of Isaac Asimov's Laws of Robotics, which states that a robot may not injure a human being.[9]
"'I know what it states, you toaster.'" - Alban. Referencing the television series Battlestar Galactica, in which the robotic Cyclons are called toasters as an insult.[10]
"'For the Republic!'" - Darrow. Referencing a popular quote from the Star Wars films and the TV series The Clone Wars.[11]
"Volsung" - in the Nordic Sagas, the Volsung leads a family of ruling warriors that descend from Odin himself. Volsung was ultimately betrayed by his son-in-law, Siggeir, but was avenged by his son Sigmund, who was the father of Sigurd.
'I shuffle the octagonal cards.' - Ephraim ti Horn. Likely a reference to the TV series Battlestar Galactica in which playing cards are notably octagon shaped.[12]
"Next time, I'll tell you the story of Sophocles the clone, a creature so noble and so wise he learned to cheat death" - Heart of Venus. References a quote from Star Wars: "Did you ever hear the tragedy of Darth Plagueis The Wise? (..) Darth Plagueis was a Dark Lord of the Sith, so powerful and so wise he could use the Force to influence the midichlorians to create life."[13]
"'Bloodydamn toaster." - Darrow. Another use of "toaster" from Battlestar Galactica.[14]
" ' Get out of here, Rhonna. I know you're dying to see the hero.' She blushes. 'I'm not.' 'LYING,' the machine bleats from the corner. Darrow smirks. 'Get.' " - The Warlord and the Libertine (A reference to Lying Cat from the graphic novel series Saga by Brian K. Vaughan and Fiona Staples.)[15]
"Pedicabere, fur, semel; sed idem..." - Atlas au Raa. He recites Priapus 35, one of many irreverent poems published as a collection known as the Priapeia. The poems are presented as monologues from Priapus (a rustic Greek god of fertility) either praising himself for his virility and the size of his sexual organs or threatening those who would steal from his fertile and productive garden.[16]
