Shout Out / Flight Rising

The item descriptions in Flight Rising are chock full of references to all manner of things.

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• Common Sparrow: "As small and plentiful as this bird is, most dragons consider it junk food. Bet you can't eat just one!" (Lays potato chips)
• Marsh Stalkers are described as "The snack that scowls back—until you bite their heads off." (Goldfish snack crackers)
• Satin Mouse: "Living in arcane-infused fields does strange things to Satin Mice. All that matters is they're magically delicious." (Lucky Charms cereal)

Anime and Manga

• Sailor Moon: The description for the Tuxedo Urchin describes them as a "mysterious urchin (that) appears only when the situation is most dire".

Comics

• Batman: The Nightwing Bat "once nested with a darker, more cunning species of bat."

Film - Animated

• Blue Hamble "According to all known laws of aviation, there is no way a hamble should be able to fly." (Bee Movie)
• Harlequin Ladybug: "These beetles perform acrobatic cartwheels as they fly. Truly a challenge for young dragons to catch!" (A Bug's Life)
• Finding Nemo: The Silver Featherfin's description says "This fish is your friend."
• Happy Feet: The final Fiona's Fantastic Familiars feat for the Great Blue and Amberwing Waveskimmmers, two penguin-like familiars, has the same name as the film.
• The Lion King (1994):
  • A Hibernal Den slot unlock task is called "The Circle of Life". Appropriately, the requirements are familiars from the Thunderhead Savanna.
  • Dustrunner Meerkat: "This quirky species of meerkat has developed an unlikely cohabitation with the tusked boars of the region."
  • Mossy Beetleboar: "Prone to bad jokes and flatulence, the beetleboar spends its days hunting for its favorite snack: beetles."
  • Parasitic Grubs are described to be "Slimy, yet satisfying."

Film - Live Action

• Back to the Future: When you run out of time in the game "Artifracture", the game over screen says "Outta Time!"
• The three Fiona's Fantastic Familiars feats involving the Empress and Bloodstone Beetles are titled with "Beetlejuice" an increasing number of times.
• Monty Python and the Holy Grail:
  • Black Knight: "Keeps fighting no matter what."
  • Newt: "It's said evil magic can turn dragons into newts. If that's true of this one, it never got better."
• Pirates of the Caribbean: The Sparrow Skull is noted to smell as if had been soaked in rum.
• Rebel Without a Cause: The Speedy familiar is said to be "a rebel looking for a cause."
• Rocky III: One Hibernal Den slot unlock task is called "The Eye of the Tiger"
• Saturday Night Fever: The Fever Fly's description states that its bite "can impart high temperatures and the urge to break into dance."
• Soylent Green: There's a quartet of Soylent food items that can be made via alchemy. The description of the green one states "Totally not made out of anything weird. Especially not that thing you may be thinking about. Life is perfect."
• Spider-Man: One quest thread is entitled "I'm Something of a Pet Expert Myself".
• Star Wars:
  • The description of the Ruby Webwing notes that it "never stops growing. Pray that it is not altered any further."
  • The Teeming Loghive's description in its entirety is "You will never find a more fetching hive of thrummin' scylla-fleas"

Literature

• The Adventures of Pinocchio: The description for the Bogsneak Puppet familiar mentions that its snout grows longer when it's around liars and tricksters.
• Harry Potter
  • Brown Wizard Hat: "Placing this upon your head fills you with the urge to decide the fates of children."
  • Serthis Potionmaster: "This potions specialist has been trying to teach shadow magic for five years... but the congregation keeps passing him over for less-experienced Serthis."
  • "Time Turner's Sandglass"
• The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy:
  • Cloud Chaser: "As it ascends into the heavens, the clicks and whistles it emits can be roughly translated to 'So long and thanks for all the fish.'"
  • Cindershroom: "Though the spores of the Cindershroom indeed look like smoldering cinders, it's mostly harmless."
• Jurassic Park:
  • Amber-trapped Mosquito: "May contain a recipe for disaster."
  • Micro Goat: "Where's the goat?"
• A Song of Ice and Fire:
  • Simple Harp: "A delicate handheld harp. Will you play a song of ice...or fire? Perhaps both?"
  • Winter Wind: "Winter is coming."
• The Super Dictionary: One of the incorrect answers for the trivia question about how many dragons can be in a Coliseum party is "as many as four tens".
• Bluebite Rattler: "Despite warnings from their elders, rebellious dragons who chew these snakes turn an odd shade of violet before swelling up like a blueberry. Stop, don't..." (Charlie and the Chocolate Factory)
• Crystal Quartz: "This crystal catches the light and reflects it in a scattering of color. Octarine is not present." (Discworld)
• The Emperor's New Clothes: " Not nearly as dire as the name would lead one to believe, this clothing is only visible to the keenly intelligent."
• Little Red Riding Hood: "Who's afraid of the big bad wolf?" (Little Red Riding Hood)
• The Lord of the Rings: The 2020 April Fools Day prank was the talking "Which Waystone: PRO Edition". One of its comments for while users are browsing their Hoard is "I call this one precious."
  • One quest thread is entitled "I Have No Memory of This Place".
• Phantasmal Halfmask: "It's perfect for listening to the music of the night." (The Phantom of the Opera)
• Scary Storybook: "The forward indicates that these are best told in the dark. The black and white illustrations throughout are crude, sketchy, and haunting. Don't read the one about the neck ribbon." (Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark)
• Sea Hare: "This might be the only hare that can't beat the tortoise in a race." ("The Tortoise and the Hare," Aesop's Fables)
• Sun Baked Oysters: "It is said that, apart from dragons, the only predators of this oyster are walruses and carpenters." (Alice's Adventures in Wonderland)
• Sun-Flecked Fieldmouse: "Named for the way it sparkles in sunlight, this strange rodent can leap great distances and has a tendency to brood." (The Twilight Saga)

Live-Action TV

• Ancient Aliens: The Otherworldly Collar's description suggests that its workmanship is possibly too advanced to explain, then states "That is not to say that it was aliens...but it was aliens."
• Cosmos: The Cloak of the Cosmos' description provides a fun fact: "this cloak and its wearer are both made of star-stuff."
• Doctor Who
  • The description of the Animated Statue is a dead-ringer for Weeping Angels: "This peculiar statue wasn't standing there when you last looked, and it certainly wasn't posed in that way either. Don't turn your back. Don't look away."
  • Regenerating Reedjumper: "Long-standing scientific journalism has stated that this species of frog can only regenerate 12 times, but that has recently been proven false."
  • The Simple Red Fez's description notes that "Fezzes are cool", a memetic quip associated with the 11th Doctor.
• Power Rangers: The URL for the Predict Morphology page (which allows you to preview what genes/colors will look like on dragons) ends with "morphintime".

Music

• Black Fedora: "Black coat, white shoes, black hat, Cadillac." ("Time Bomb" by Rancid)
• Deadly Reflection: “I always feel like somebody's watching me. Who's playing tricks on me?” (“Somebody’s Watching Me” by Rockwell)
• Diamond Talonclasp Pendant: "Diamonds are a dragon's best friend." (Gentlemen Prefer Blondes)
• Golden Pepper: "Not as good as the red hot chili variant that was popular back in the day, but starting to grow on you." (Red Hot Chili Peppers)
• Moonbeam Crayfish: "Have you ever danced with a crayfish in the moonlight? If not, opportunity is knocking." ("Dancing in the Moonlight" by King Harvest)
• Overly-Engineered Buckler: "Better. Faster. Stronger." ("Harder, Better, Faster, Stronger" by Daft Punk)
• Tourmaline Vulstal: "No one is quite sure what these creatures sound like." ("The Fox (What Does the Fox Say?)" by Ylvis)
• One achievement thread is entitled "A Hard Day's Night".

Theatre

• Overwatered Seedling: “You’ve given it sunlight and mineral supplements, what does it want from you? Blood?” (Little Shop of Horrors)
• Poultrygeist: "A ghastly turkey, gobbling from beyond the grave. This bird was clearly victim of a murder most fowl, strange and unnatural." (Hamlet)
• Prim Highnoon Spurs: "White leather boots that look equally great on city-slickers and rhinestone cowboys." ("Rhinestone Cowboy" by Glen Campbell)
• Roc: "Like a roc, it was strong as it could be." ("Like a Rock" by Bob Seger)
• Rose Quartz: "A rose quartz by any other name would smell as sweet- ...why are you smelling quartz?" (Romeo and Juliet)
• Shrew: "Contrary to popular belief, these animals cannot be tamed." (The Taming of the Shrew)

Video Games

• BioShock: While their descriptions don't reference it, the Stone Borer and Frost Delver enemies/familiars look suspiciously like Big Daddies.
• The Legend of Zelda:
  • Aether Hermit: "Some say this crab can shoot beams of arcane energy at foes, but this one only pinches. Maybe it’s out of mana?"
  • Daredevil Covers: "It is said that the wearer of this mask will be granted unfaltering wisdom / immeasurable power / unfailing courage in exchange for his or her vision."
  • Grove Piper: "If one listens very carefully, they can follow the notes of a grove piper's song through the darkest and most twisted forest maze. If the tune fades, best take a different path."
• Katamari Damacy: One of the Hibernal Den tasks is titled "I Can Feel the Cosmos," hearkening to the kids in the first Katamari Damacy who announce "Oh! I feel it! I feel the cosmos!" as the game progresses.
• Pokémon:
  • The introduction to Bestiary is titled "Gotta Catch 'Em All," the slogan of the series.
  • Jungle Grass: "All manner of creatures can hide in this tall grass."
  • Sunkernel, named after the similar seed pokemon Sunkern.
• Sonic the Hedgehog:
  • Emerald: "It is very difficult to harvest emeralds, as their formations are the choice nesting ground for the extremely territorial Scarlet Echidna."
  • Speedy, a hedgehog whose name is a reference to Sonic the Hedgehog.
  • The Palette Swapped normal hedgehog description reads "It’s no speedier than any other hedgehog, alas."
  • River Royalist/Desert Dynasty Tail Rings: "A set of several golden/silver rings, worn primarily on the tail. Hedgehog familiars find them very comforting.'
• Super Mario Bros.:
  • Decorated Turtle Shell: "Lie in wait and let your hatred grow: sabotage the leader of the pack!" ^note In this case, it references the Spiny Shell from the Mario Kart spin-off series
  • Fire Flower: "Consuming this flower gives dragons of the Fire flight the sudden urge to channel their magic into projectile spheres of flame."
  • Fungus Cutter: "It seems rather large for an ant. Maybe it has something to do with its mushroom diet."
  • Killer Keyboard: "Explorers of haunted mansions should be wary of any dark empty rooms housing simply a piano. Just walk by slowly, don't approach. The teeth aren't even the most horrifying part. The sounds..."
• Metroid:
  • The Baldwin Protective Eyewear set: "When it is time to make science, always remember to prioritize safety first!" (The specific phrase "make science" may be a nod to certain memetic Metroid fancomics about TUUUUUBES.)
  • The Miths already kind of leaned on Metroid Prime 2: Echoes's Luminoth for inspiration, but the Arcane Ancients being mothlike dragons named Aethers appears to be an even more blatant reference to these mothlike aliens and their homeworld of Aether.
• Mystic's Bark Mask: "A mask fashioned out of the hardened bark of an old tree. There's something eerie about it, and you can't get the sound of beating drums out of your head." (Crash Bandicoot)
• Red Fedora: "Where in the world would you go once you own this hat? You certainly won't be doing much hiding." (Carmen Sandiego)
• Rogue Excavator: "The serial number "R-66Y" is inscribed on the shoulder bracket of this towering robot." (Chrono Trigger)
• Steelhound Core: "Hey, look at THAT thing! No, that other thing." (Portal 2)

Webcomics

• Fossilized Fish: "how i mine for fish?" (VG Cats)

Websites

• For Tomo's Trivia Tablet, one of the wrong answers for the question of what kind of item changes the breed of a dragon is "Species Potion". Species potions are a staple on Aywas, another and older petsite, and work just like breed change scrolls by changing an existing pet's species.

Western Animation

• Looney Tunes:
  • Dunerunner: "When lost in the joy of a good run, the dunerunner pays no mind to pits, cliffs, and tunnels; pursuing this carefree bird often leads to broken wings and limbs." (Wile E Coyote And The Roadrunner)
  • Hooded Hen: "This here's a nice, I say, a nice specimen. Though, it's got more nerve than a bum tooth." (Foghorn Leghorn)
  • Mallard: "After catching this fowl you realized it was actually rabbit season..." (Rabbit Fire, Rabbit Seasoning, Duck! Rabbit! Duck!)
  • Wooden Marionette: "This enchanted puppet moves when you don't want it to, and hangs limp when you'd like it to dance." (One Froggy Evening)
• Spongebob Squarepants: An incorrect answer for the trivia question "Where does the Tidelord reside?", one of the given answers is "a pineapple".
  • One incorrect answer for the name of the Fire deity is the Firelord.
• Bluesand Agate: "Also known as Tidelord's Tears, this agate is rumored to grant its bearer premonitions." (Steven Universe ^note While not an agate, a Sapphire of Gemkind is also blue and has the ability to see the future)
• Calculating Candelabra: "A thick, romantic accent and welcoming grin enchant your senses. You feel like a guest here, but can't quite let your guard down." (Beauty and the Beast)
• Chromefeather Lookout: "Step 1: Draft blueprint of robotic guard. Step 2: Revise until prototype is obnoxious and hilarious. Step 3: ??? Step 4: Profit." (South Park)
• Hydra: "Will you forget the head-slicing thing?!" (Hercules)
• Love's Herald: "Become Twitterpated!" (Bambi)
• Nightrage Axolotl: "This toothless amphibian hides in the shadows. No one has ever captured a Nightrage Axolotl... until now." (How to Train Your Dragon)
• Pale Greattusk: "But have you ever seen a Greattusk fly?" (Dumbo)
• Seaberry: "Even berries are better down where it’s wetter." (The Little Mermaid)
• Spinach: "A hearty, leafy plant chock full of vitamins. Eating a lot is great for the biceps." (Popeye)
• Steadfast Sweeper: "Everything is all fine and good until these grow arms and suddenly you've got eight thousand of them all pouring water into the same well." (Fantasia)
• Red Squirrel: "The Red Squirrel is known for its erratic, some might say screwy, behavior." (Screwy Squirrel)
• Rubber Laboratory Gloves: "What a fine day for science!" (Dexter's Laboratory)
• Futurama: Male White Reaches Crabs are stated to "make a high pitched whooping sound while scuttling away" when they're startled.
• My Little Pony: Friendship Is Magic: The first Fiona's Fantastic Familiars feat for the Flutterbun and its Radiant version is called "Fluttershy". For bonus points, the Flutterbuns are winged rabbits and Fluttershy has a pet rabbit named Angel.

Other

• Twitter:
  • Ire Tweet: "Lets a dragon know when it has encroached on its territory in 280 characters or less."
  • Red-Crested Tweeter: "A surprisingly talented bird with the ability to repeat brief sentences of speech, as long as they are sarcastic or politically-charged."
• My Brother, My Brother and Me
  • Four-Eyed Phylactery: "Someone in your lair picked up this 'haunted doll' as a gift in the easternmost bay [eBay] of the realm. The seaside hawker claimed it was (quote): 'Very independent! Do not try to pin this doll down!'" (Episode 267: Face 2 Face: Target Conditioning)
  • Lilium Floron: "Colloquially known as the 'Bramblepelt', this territorial species of Floron is covered in a thick brown outer coat of thorns for the majority of the year. It sheds this coat in the spring." (Episode 33: Bramblepelt )
• The Sköll and Hati familiars are references to Norse mythology. Like their descriptions mention, the mythological Hati and Sköll are wolf brothers who chase the moon and sun (respectively) across the sky.
• Billy Bass: "These fish have evolved to burst into frantic song when removed from the water. An effective adaptation, as many dragons will toss them back in horror." (Big Mouth Billy Bass)
• Blackberry: "Though they’re not really addictive, some dragons become very dependent on Blackberries." (Blackberry phone)
• Carl Sagan: Another April Fools "Which Waystone PRO Edition" quote: "We are all made of magic stuff."
• Cinnamon: "The practice of attempting to hold a mawful of cinnamon sticks for extended periods of time became strangely popular among juvenile dragons." (the "cinnamon challenge")
• Deviant Darter: "No one understands this fish." (DeviantArt)
• Grey Squirrel: "Though their diet consists primarily of nuts, some squirrels long for a grapefruit." (Suzy Izzard)
• Olympia Oyster: "A delicacy fit only for the gods. Dragons are advised to eat quickly, before theirs notices!" (Classical Mythology; Mount Olympus is the mountain on which the major gods were said to reside, and the concept of a food only gods are allowed to eat is similar to ambrosia)
• Oprah Winfrey: The description of the "Beekeeper's Swarm" is "Everyone gets bees!"
• Ruby Tetras: "It's rumored Ruby Tetras have their own language; too bad they have nothing to say to you." (Ruby programming language)
• Juvenile Crocoturtle: "From out of the radioactive sludge emerges a teenage mutant alchemical Crocoturtle." (Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles)
• Valkyrie Blade: "Onto Valhalla!" (Norse Mythology)
• White Rook: "Also known as a white castle. For some reason it makes you crave meat." (White Castle fast food chain)
• Writer's Aid: "This critical quill will immediately scribble a wiggly line in red ink under any mistake the writer makes. Take care if out of red ink..." (Red ink is traditionally used to mark errors in writing; you may also know it from this carrying over to the red squiggles under misspelled words in word processing programs.)

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