Pop Culture References and Greekisms

Long before planes, trains, and automobiles, there were people. And people still used common phrases and sayings, but they were slightly different. Here are a few examples of lines or other things in the episodes that reference familiar phrases or items in the 20th century.

Young Hercules (Movie Pilot)

Cheiron: Never, never, never quit.

• Reference to the commonly mis-heard Winston Churchill quote, Never, never, never give up. It is most commonly referenced as this speech, but is not correct. The original speech performed in 1941 by the British Prime Minister was at Harrow School in Britain: Never give in. Never give in. Never, never, never, never--in nothing, great or small, large or petty--never give in, except to convictions of honor and good sense. Never yield to force. Never yield to the apparently overwhelming might of the enemy. - [1]

1.01 Treasure of Zeus

Kora: I'm gonna have to put up a sign: 'No shirt, no feet, no service.'

• Reference to the phrase "No shirt, no shoes, no service" indicating that any customer needs to be wearing at least a shirt and shoes to be served. The origin of this policy is probably from areas like Atlantic City where customers would come in clad only in bathing suits, tracking in sand with their bare feet and making other customers uncomfortable with their lack of dress. - Barefoot and Grounded

Iolaus: Hey, is that new? It looks like fine, Corinthian leather. Almost fit for... a king.'

• Reference to: "Fine Corinthian Leather", a most-oft misspoken catchphrase of Ricardo Montalbán. In 1975, Montalbán became the spokesperson of the Chrysler Cordoba and he praised the interior as being "soft, Corinthian leather". Its mis-quoting has become more popular than his original catchphrase. -Ricardo Montalbán

1.02 Between Friends

Jason: What'd Fiducius want?
Iolaus: What's a dinar-counter like him always want? The academy fees.

• Reference to the term bean counter, n. Slang
  • A person, such as an accountant or financial officer, who is concerned with quantification, especially to the exclusion of other matters. - Answers.com
  • A disparaging term for an accountant, or anyone who one who is excessively concerned with statistical records or accounts. - The Phrase Finder

1.03 What a Crockery

Hercules: What do you talk to dads about?
Jason: Ask him how his day was. See if you can borrow the reins to the chariot.

• It is a dream of most teenagers to borrow the keys to their father's car.

Iolaus: You'd think Cheiron would have accepted my excuse about the God of War vaporizing my homework.

• Reference to the old "The dog ate my homework" excuse.
  • An excuse kids use at school when they don't have their homework assignment to submit. This excuse is never believed and usually said as a joke. - Idiom Quest
  • A classic and not very credible excuse usually used in cartoons and sitcoms to excuse a student's lack of completed homework when they get to school. - Urban Dictionary

1.05 Girl Trouble

Iolaus: Okay. Through the arch; off the ladder; over the roof; off the well; off the wall; down the steps; nothing but pigpen.

• The contest between Jason and Iolaus is an allusion to a series of 1993 McDonalds Commercials with Michael Jordan and Larry Bird calling and then making impossible bank-shot baskets.

1.06 Teachers Pests

Fiducius: When my boy Pythias went here, the students knew the value of a precisely ordered library. But nobody reads anymore - everyone's too busy going to plays or looking at sculptures.

• A common complaint from an older generation about a younger generation, that they're too busy listening to music or watching tv or movies to enjoy more traditional entertainment, like reading.

1.08 Keeping Up With the Jasons

• The title "Keeping Up With the Jasons" is a play on the phrase "Keeping up with the Joneses", with "Joneses" meaning one's neighbors, friends, business associates, etc. - (Reference.com)
  • "Keeping up with the Joneses" is an idiom in many parts of the English-speaking world referring to the comparison to one's neighbor as a benchmark for social caste or the accumulation of material goods. To fail to "keep up with the Joneses" is perceived as demonstrating socio-economic or cultural inferiority. - (Wikipedia)

1.09 Amazon Grace

• The title "Amazon Grace" may be a reference to the Christian hymn "Amazing Grace", however, the lyrics of the hymn don't seem to have any parallels with the plotline of the episode.

Jason: They thought everything was quiet... and then it came again, that eerie, scratching sound. So the knave and the maiden sped off in the chariot. And when they got home, they found the monster's hook stuck in the side of the chariot!
Hercules: Last time I heard that, it was a farm boy and a peasant girl in an oxcart.

• Jason's story is incredibly reminiscent of one of the endings of a well-known urban legend called The Hook, in which two lovers are menaced by a man with a hook for a hand. In this ending, the lovers get away, but find the man's hook attached to their vehicle.
  • Legend: A couple's late night make-out session is cut short when they hear a report on the car radio about an escaped killer (who has a hook for a hand) in the vicinity. The girl insists on being driven home immediately; upon arrival at her house, the boy discovers a bloody hook hanging from the passenger-side car door handle. - "The Hook" Urban Legend at Snopes.com

1.10 Cyrano de Hercules

• The title "Cyrano de Hercules" is a reference to the play Cyrano de Bergerac by Edmond Rostand. Cyrano, an ugly soldier and poet, helps the handsome but tongue-tied Count Christian to win the love of the woman they both love.

1.12 Battle Lines II

Iolaus: Look, I know a con when I see one, and this has 'setup' chiseled all over it.

• Reference to the phrase: "This has [insert word] written all over it." chisel, n., a metal tool with a sharpened edge at one end used to chip, carve, or cut into a solid material (as wood, stone, or metal) - Merriam-Webster. chiseled, adj., formed or crafted as if with a chisel - Merriam-Webster.
  • [blank] written all over it - an idiom meaning that the object of the phrase is the epitome of [blank]. If something, such as a plan or idea, has disaster written all over it, it is thought to be heading for complete failure or will cause a lot of trouble, i.e. "Mary's idea of a holiday with her in-laws has disaster written all over it!" - English idioms and idiomatic expressions

1.13 Forgery

• Kora seems to be working an ancient "drive-thru", taking orders trough a window from customers in chariots or on horseback, and delivering their "To Go" orders in an easy-to-transport basket.

1.15 Ares on Trial

Ares: Goodnight, John-Boy!

• Reference to the television show "The Waltons" - In the signature scene that closes almost every episode, the family house is enveloped in darkness, save for one, two or three lights in the upstairs bedroom windows. Through voice-overs, two or more characters make some brief comments related to that episode's events, and then bid each other goodnight.

1.16 Down and Out in Academy Hills

• The title "Down and Out in Academy Hills" is a reference to the 1986 movie "Down and Out in Beverly Hills" starring Nick Nolte, Bette Midler and Richard Dreyfuss. The film is about a rich but dysfunctional couple who save the life of a suicidal bum.
• In this episode, Hephaestus invents an espresso machine for Kora, and uses it to make himself a cappuccino.

1.17 Winner Take All

Iolaus: Eye of the tiger, baby, eye of the tiger.

• Allusion to the Survivor song Eye of the Tiger which was the theme song for the boxing movie Rocky III.

Iolaus: Okay Jason, I want you to float like a butterfly, sting like a wasp.

• Paraphrase of the famous Muhammad Ali quote, "I float like a butterfly, and I sting like a bee!"

1.21 Lyre, Liar

• The title "Lyre, Liar" is probably a reference to the common phrase, "Liar, liar, pants on fire."
  • TV.com claims that the title "Lyre, Liar" is a reference to the 1997 movie Liar, Liar starring Jim Carrey. However, other than the title, there doesn't seem to be any plot similarities - in the movie, a man who lies all the time is cursed and can only tell the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth.

1.29 Sisters

• The character of Don Corleonus, and the speech mannerisms used by the actor, is based on the title role played by Marlon Brando in the Academy Award winning movie The Godfather.
• The henchman, Scarface, is based on the character made famous by Al Pacino in the movie of the same name.

1.30 The Golden Bow

• The similarity may just be coincidence, but there is definitely some visual parallels in the brown-and-white outfits of The Huntress and the Magic the Gathering card Caller Of The Hunt.

1.31 Home for the Holidays

• The scene at the end of the episode where Capaneus is saying goodbye to Alcmene is very reminiscent of a similar scene from the movie The Princess Bride where Buttercup is saying goodbye to Wesley as he goes off to seek his fortune.

1.33 Con Ares

• TV.com claims that the title "Con Ares" is a reference to the 1997 film "Con Air", starring Nicolas Cage. However, other than the title, there doesn't seem to be any plot similarities - in the movie, convicts who are being transported by plane rebel and take over the flight.

Strife: May the horse be with you!

• Reference to the famous line from Star Wars: "May the Force be with you." - Wikipedia
  • "May The Horse Be With You" is also a song by popular Christian rock band Relient K.

1.35 My Fair Lilith

• The title "My Fair Lilith" is a reference to the 1964 film "My Fair Lady" starring Audrey Hepburn, based on the play by George Bernard Shaw. The film is about a British linguist who accepts a wager that he can take a cockney flower girl from the streets and transform her into a refined Victorian lady with an aristocratic accent good enough to pass in upper-class society.

1.36 Hind Sight

• The similarity may just be coincidence, but there is definitely some visual parallels in the brown-and-white outfits of The Huntress and the Magic the Gathering card Caller Of The Hunt.

1.41 Adventures in the Forbidden Zone

• The title "Adventures in the Forbidden Zone" might be a reference to the 1980 movie Forbidden Zone. Coincidentally, the surname of the family in the movie is "Hercules".

1.42 The Prize

• Ares's singing definitely carries an influence from Elvis Presley. Kevin Smith had also played the role of Elvis in a New Zealand tour of Are You Lonesome, Tonight?, and did Elvis impersonations at parties.
• Hercules's line, "You can say hello to my little friend!" is a paraphrase of the famous line by Al Pacino from the movie Scarface.
• Ares's line, "There can only be one!" might be a reference to the Highlander movies and TV series.
• Strife's make-up for Ares's number is reminiscent of that worn by the hard rock bad Kiss.

Young Hercules (Novelization)

Cheiron's voice hardened. "Never-never-never-quit."

• Reference to the commonly mis-heard Winston Churchill quote, Never, never, never give up. It is most commonly referenced as this speech, but is not correct. The original speech performed in 1941 by the British Prime Minister was at Harrow School in Britain: Never give in. Never give in. Never, never, never, never--in nothing, great or small, large or petty--never give in, except to convictions of honor and good sense. Never yield to force. Never yield to the apparently overwhelming might of the enemy. - [2]

Young Hercules: Cheiron's Warriors

"Never underestimate the power of a woman," Lilith said. Then she smiled, thinking, I like the sound of that. Have to remember it.

• "Never underestimate the power of a woman" was the editorial and advertising slogan adopted by the Ladies Home Journal in March 1941.

"Don't make me angry, Strife. You wouldn't like me when I'm angry."

• "Don't make me angry. You wouldn't like me when I'm angry." is a famous quote from The Incredible Hulk.