List of references to popular culture in Pokémon

References to other franchises in the Pokémon franchise are occasionally made.

In the core series

 * In the Generation I games and, in the 's room there is a television connected to a Super Nintendo Entertainment System running "A game with  wearing a bucket on his head!", referring to the Japan-exclusive game , also developed by Game Freak.
 * In the Generation I games and, Eric in the Rock Tunnel makes a reference to the song  by , saying "Hit me with your best shot!" prior to battle, and "Fired away!" after being defeated.
 * In the Generation I games and, Ashton in the Rock Tunnel makes a reference to , saying "Pokémon Fight! Ready, Go!" prior to battle. Official Gundam Fights in the series began with both participants declaring "Gundam Fight! Ready, Go!"
 * In the of, the  are named ,  and , referencing the manga .
 * In, upon undefined interaction, the television in the player's house says "There is a movie on TV. Two men are dancing on a big piano keyboard. Better get going!", which is a reference to the movie .
 * In, the television in the player's house produces one of two messages upon player interaction, with the reference being dependent on which gender the player chose. If the player chose male, the TV says, "There's a movie on TV. Four boys are walking on railroad tracks. …I'd better go, too.", which is a reference to the film '. This was also in the Generation I games. If the player chose female, the TV says, "There's a movie on TV. A girl in pigtails is walking down a yellow brick road. …I'd better go, too.", which is a reference to the film '.
 * During the Gym battle in, Fantina exclaims "Never give up, never surrender!", the catchphrase from the 1999 science fiction comedy movie .
 * In at,  Omar says, "One day, people will run to the other side of the road when I walk by 'em." This may be a reference to  from the series  where people often run away when they see him walking down the street.
 * In, when the player reaches 6F of Dragonspiral Tower for the first time, 's cry is heard followed by an unknown person yelling "Burn, baby, burn!", which are key lyrics in the song  by.
 * Similarly, in Pokémon Black 2 and White 2, the announcer's introduction of Flannery in the Pokémon World Tournament also includes the line "Burn, baby, burn!".
 * In the English versions of Pokémon Black and White, two Driftveil Gym Pokémon Trainers ( and  ) who use  Pokémon share their names with main characters from the first two games of the, who are both associated with the element of.
 * In Pokémon Black 2 and White 2's flashback ', Elesa says, "You bet! And don't call me Shirley." This is a possible reference to a line in the movie '.
 * In Pokémon Black 2 and White 2, the Giant Monster Series movies of the Pokéstar Studios are likely a reference to the  movies. Also, the Mecha, MT for short, is likely a reference to Godzilla's mechanical counterpart, Mecha Godzilla.
 * In Pokémon Black 2 and White 2, the Full Metal Cop Series movies in Pokéstar Studios are a reference to the ' films. The premise of several of them, in which the titular character battles a villainous ninja, is likely a reference to '.
 * In, after being defeated by the player, Mia on  says "Hey! Hey! Listen!" before battle, referencing  from.
 * In Pokémon X and Y, an non-playable character (NPC) in Lumiose City mentions the play , with the titular Beast as a Pokémon.
 * In Pokémon X and Y, after being defeated by the player, Robert on  references the famous "over 9000" meme spawned from , commenting "Wow. You and your Pokémon's power levels are amazing! They're over 9000 for sure!"
 * In Pokémon X and Y, after being defeated by the player, a Psychic near Psychic Robert says "You and your Pokémon were far more powerful than I could have imagined..." which is a reference to Obi-Wan Kenobi's line just before Darth Vader kills him in .
 * In Pokémon X and Y, a found at the Poké Ball Factory says "Don't worry, be happy!", referring to 's song .
 * In Pokémon X and Y, while the ultimate weapon is present in Geosenge Town, a Team Flare Grunt in front of a house in the west of the town comments "Only Team Flare's stayin' alive, stayin' alive.", referencing the song .
 * In Pokémon X and Y, Timeo in  will say "my body is ready" before battling the player, a reference to the meme spawned from a statement made by Nintendo of America's President and   at the unveiling of the  at, "My body… my body is ready!"
 * In Pokémon X and Y, after being defeated by the player, Wikstrom will say "My will, which even shakes spears, trembles at so fine a battle as this!", referencing.
 * In Pokémon X and Y, when playing the game in French, Romy in Azure Bay sings a variation to 's "" before the player battles her.
 * In Pokémon X and Y, in the Battle Maison, Catla makes reference to the  brand of memes with "Meow, meow, I can haz battle, meow? (Ugh, I really sound like a fool, don't I?)" before battle and "Meowww... I haz lost, meowww. (This job is sooo embarrassing.)" after being defeated.
 * In Pokémon X and Y, in the Battle Maison, Clio makes reference to , saying "Man, I'm so speedy and smooth! I should be on So You Think You Can Skate!" after being defeated.
 * In Pokémon X and Y, the final chapter of The Looker Detective Agency is named "Here's lookin' at you, kid", a reference to 's quote in .
 * In Pokémon X and Y, at the Santalune Gym, whose Gym puzzle is based on a spider web, there is a named Charlotte, which could be a reference to the titular character from .
 * In Pokémon X and Y, on, there is a named Alice, which could be a reference to .
 * In, the fictional franchise Hoenn Rangers is a reference to ', or possibly the Japanese show that it's based on, '.
 * In Pokémon Omega Ruby and Alpha Sapphire when the language is set to French, before battle Brawly says, "", a reference to Twitch Plays Pokémon.
 * In Pokémon Omega Ruby and Alpha Sapphire, an old man in Pacifidlog Town says "One does not simply walk into a Mirage spot.", referencing the famous quote from , "One does not simply walk into Mordor."
 * In Pokémon Omega Ruby and Alpha Sapphire, an on Sea Mauville mentions that she found a "Hi Skitty" doll on the facility, a reference to.
 * In Pokémon Omega Ruby and Alpha Sapphire, there is a in Sea Mauville named Lois and Hal, a reference to Malcolm in the Middle.
 * In Pokémon Sun and Moon, Samson Oak tells the player to follow the "black brick road" to find him, a reference to the in .
 * In Pokémon Sun and Moon, upon player interaction with the television in the player's house, it will say "They are showing a movie on TV. The scene is showing four boys walking down a set of railroad tracks… But it's time you get going!" Just as in FireRed and LeafGreen and Generation I, this is a reference to the movie Stand by Me and a callback to those earlier games.
 * In Pokémon Sun and Moon, if the player takes a picture of water while using the, one of the possible comments is "7.8/10 Too much water ¯\_('-- ')_/¯", a reference to the meme spawned by 's infamous review of Pokémon Omega Ruby and Alpha Sapphire.
 * In Pokémon Sun and Moon, a man riding a on  says, "Hi-yo, Mudsdale! Away!", telling the player that he's pretending to be a hero he loved as a child. This is a reference to the .
 * In Pokémon Sun and Moon, a woman with a in the Poni Wilds says "We're going on a Berry hunt. We're going to find a big one! ♪" This is a reference to the popular children's book "We're Going on a Bear Hunt", which has similar lyrics.
 * In Pokémon Sun and Moon, Lillie talks about how she was watching a movie about a man going outside to sing in the rain, a reference to .
 * In Pokémon Sun and Moon, Hala mentions the book  while talking to the player at  Hau'oli Outskirts.
 * In Pokémon Ultra Sun and Ultra Moon, the player can help a woman on Hano Beach to rejoin a love-smitten called Mukeo with its loved one, another Pyukumuku named Mukiet. The player is able to recognize Mukiet from it saying "O Mukeo, Mukeo". These are direct references to William Shakespeare's .
 * In Pokémon: Let's Go, Pikachu! and Let's Go, Eevee!, if is the player's walking Pokémon, the player and their  will ride it by clinging on to its chest. This is a reference to .
 * Pokémon: Let's Go, Pikachu! and Let's Go, Eevee!, two  that use  and  (which both are based off of ) are named West and Keaton who share the same surnames as  and, actors who have both portrayed .

In the side series

 * In Pokémon Stadium 2, when the player views the entire room, if a game system other than the is set up, screenshots from several games for that system (such as  for the N64) will appear on the player's TV.
 * In Pokémon Colosseum, before he is battled, Fein will say, "You are me, and I am you, and we are all together here", making a reference to the line "I am you and you are me and we are all together" from song "."

In spin-off games

 * In Pokémon Mystery Dungeon: Gates to Infinity, after the player's first meeting with, she says "You can call me Swanna if you want. Just don't call me maybe.", referencing the song "."
 * In Pokémon Super Mystery Dungeon, in Chapter 5, Farfetch'd tells the tale of the Three Little Spoink and the Mightyena, a reference to the fairy tale of
 * In Pokémon Super Mystery Dungeon, the that operates Hawlucha's Slam School calls his followers "Hawlucha maniacs", a reference to.
 * In Pokémon Super Mystery Dungeon, all Meowth Theater dungeons are named after real life movies: Meowth in Black is a reference to ', My Fair Misdreavus is a reference to ', For a Few Boldores More is a reference to ', Casameownca is a reference to ', and It's a Meownderful Life is a reference to .
 * In, the names of the Baker Detective Agency and its director, Mike Baker, are references to , where the fictional detective 's home is located.


 * The plot of Mystery at the Lighthouse seems to be based on the events of 's short story .
 * The dub titles of Beauty and the Beach and Beauty and the Breeder are references to the fairytale .
 * In Tentacool and Tentacruel, there is a noticeable similarity between the scene where Tentacruel speaks through Meowth, and a scene from the 1996 movie Independence Day, in which a captive alien speaks through the body of a scientist. In both cases, a voiceless creature covered in tentacles telepathically speaks through another being in order to make its objectives known to humans.
 * In the dubs of both The Flame Pokémon-athon and  Grass Hysteria, Meowth shouts "James! Stop this crazy thing!", a reference to George's famous "Jane! Stop this crazy thing!" from .
 * In EP035, Kaiser's appearance, demeanor and handgun bear a resemblance to a character portrayed by in the Spaghetti Western .
 * The plot of Showdown at Dark City is based on the events of 's .
 * In Pokémon: The First Movie - Mewtwo Strikes Back, when Team Rocket are disguised as Vikings, Brock says he was not aware that they existed anymore. Ash replies that they mostly live in, a reference to the  team.
 * In the, Brock says ', and Ash replies ' and in the , Brock says ', and Ash replies ' This makes it likely that both the Norwegian and Danish dubs reference the Swedish band,.
 * In the, Brock says ', and Ash replies '. Real Vikings existed in both Sweden and Norway.
 * The ' is referred in several episodes, Gary's outfit in Attack of the Prehistoric Pokémon is very similar to the titular's and the giant boulder scene from ' is reenacted in Battling the Enemy Within! and Explorers of the Hero's Ruin!.
 * In Lights, Camera, Quack-tion, mentions that Cleavon Schpielbunk directed ', a reference to '.
 * The plot of ', which was first mentioned in Lights, Camera, Quack-tion, is based on '.
 * In Go West Young Meowth, the movie ' is shown at Camp Pokéhearst, a reference to '.
 * The dub title of Wherefore Art Thou, Pokémon? is a reference to the line "Wherefore art thou Romeo?" from '. The names of the two Nidoran in love, Tony and Maria, are references to ', which was based on Romeo and Juliet. In the dub, at the end of the episode the narrator makes reference to , another play.
 * In The Superhero Secret, Gligarman is based on . His civilian name, Mr. Parker, is likely based on Peter Parker, the alter ego of the superhero . When the video of Gligarman is shown, "Look up in the sky, is it a, a , a ? No, it's the crime fighting superhero Gligarman!" is heard, a reference to the famous line "Look, up in the sky! It's a bird, it's a plane, it's Superman!"
 * The dub title of Machoke, Machoke Man! is a reference to the song .


 * In Lights, Camerupt, Action!, describes a movie about a luxurious spaceship with a  and  in love who are separated because of an ice asteroid, which is a parody of the movie ', while the ship displayed in the film is similar in design to the titular spaceship from '.
 * Max describes a movie about a giant destroying a city and battling against  fighter pilots and a giant, which is based on the Japanese television show.
 * Tyson's Meowth that debuted in Like a Meowth to a Flame is loosely based on the fairytale character Puss in Boots.


 * In Ya See We Want An Evolution!, Meowth's remote is similar to a remote, and he says "whee" once he pushes it.
 * In Staging a Heroes' Welcome!, two girls near the beginning look like and  from . This is most likely a joke on how their hats resemble the one Wallace wears.
 * Hamilton, a character of the day in Cream of the Croagunk Crop! is based on a character named Hiroshi from the anime and manga . His, Craig, is a reference to the frog known as Pyonkichi, as it spent a lot of time on the front of his shirt.
 * Hamilton's appearance and even the Japanese names of both himself and Craig were changed shortly after the episode's initial airing in Japan, possibly to avoid a lawsuit from the producers of Dokonjō Gaeru.
 * In the of Stealing the Conversation!,  calls Jessie "." When Jessie tries to correct it, Chatot says "Lassie ran away."
 * In Uncrushing Defeat!, before the group attack, the way Ash and his Sinnoh team (,, , , , and ) pose, strongly resembles the pose.


 * The plot of A Venipede Stampede! references the story of the when Burgh uses his bug flute to lead the  out the city at the request of the mayor.
 * In Movie Time! Zorua in "The Legend of the Pokémon Knight"!, mentioned ', a reference to '.
 * In Purrloin: Sweet or Sneaky?, when tries to ask  out for a date, he says "Come on baby, don't say maybe!", referring to 's song Take It Easy.
 * In The Mighty Accelguard to the Rescue!, Charles has the alter ego of The Mighty Accelguard (Japanese: 快傑ア☆ギルダー  A☆Gilder), which most likely draws inspiration from . Certain other aspects of his alter ego, like his A☆Gilder Kick attack, draw inspiration from the titular characters of the.
 * In A Call for Brotherly Love, during 's training montage, it is seen running up a flight of stairs and throwing its arms into the air in victory. This is a reference to the film  where 's character does exactly the same thing.
 * The plot of Battling the Bully! is a tribute to, with , Glenn and Sean having similar roles to that of.
 * In A Restoration Confrontation! Part 2, when attacks  and the group under a tree, Jessie has a communication device over her eye. After Ash and Ferris refuse to give up, Jessie says "Resistance is futile." This line is the catchphrase of the Borg from , who commonly wore similar devices.
 * The logo has been referenced several times in the anime with different Pokémon taking the place of ;
 * In An Epic Defense Force, with in Leo's place.


 * In A PokéVision of Things to Come!, with in Leo's place.
 * In Lights! Camera! Pika! with in Leo's place.
 * In Beheeyem, Duosion, and the Dream Thief!, the character Leon's design and mannerisms, are based on the character Iyami from the manga and anime  He even adds "zansu" to his speech and does Iyami's trademark "Sheeh" pose.
 * In Team Eevee and the Pokémon Rescue Squad!, Virgil and his, along with the Pokémon Rescue Squad run by his father Jeff, are likely a reference to the 1960s TV series , which features a group of brothers using to save people in trouble in the same way as Virgil uses different Eevee evolutions to help those in need. One of the brothers was also named , and the rescue organization was run by their father, , much like the Pokémon Rescue Squad.


 * In To Top a Totem!, a fantasy depicts a and some  scaring away Alolan  and  in a similar fashion to the title card for the anime series .
 * The inside of the mecha Meowth pilots in Alola, Kanto appears to resemble the controls of the mobile suits that appear in , specifically the head and wrist attachments resembling the Mobile Trace System.
 * In A Mission of Ultra Urgency!, just before he prepares to capture, Ash's face briefly changes to resemble the titular character of the long-running manga series . Also, the way that the move their heads as the Ultra Guardians prepare to launch is a reference to the way the palm trees move during the launch of  in the 1960s TV series .
 * In Acting True to Form!, when demonstrating how to perform Z-Moves, briefly does the transformation pose of  before switching to the pose for.
 * In SM064, the scene in which one of the jumps on the back of another one and the second Passimian appears to be hurt is a reference to a scene from the television series .
 * In Smashing with Sketch!, Ikari acts as a homage to Ryūichi Kazama of the manga '. In addition, 's pose when mentioning Ikari's nickname "Ikari the Dragon" is the same pose of Gendo Ikari from the series '.
 * In Sours for the Sweet!, after Jessie's scolding of James and Meowth, Jessie's face momentarily turns into that of a doll.
 * In Why Not Give Me a Z-Ring Sometime?, in one scene, James pulls a face that resembles the character of Iyami from .
 * In The Prism Between Light and Darkness, James references the series  by appearing as a pseudo-Super Saiyan, emanating the typical yellow Super Saiyan aura with his hair spiked upwards while still retaining his hair color.
 * In Lillier and the Staff!, there are multiple references to other anime.
 * Near the beginning of the episode, Jessie is seen dressed as as Chigusa Tsukikage from .
 * Jessie's outfit choices when she introduces her fake persona are references to some of her Megumi Hayashibara's roles throughout her career, including from ' and  from '.
 * Lillie and Mallow's embrace during the play is a reference to the series .
 * The clash between 's mecha and Sophocles's Charjabug in a mechanized suit is a reference to .
 * In addition, during the Poké Problem extra scene of SM093, Rotom shows a picture that is a reference to a poster for the.
 * In Alola, Alola!, the Robo-Meowth mecha from Alola, Kanto! returns with a red-colored appearance. This is a possible reference to the antagonist of the original, , known for his custom, red-colored Mobile Suits.
 * In Heart of Fire! Heart of Stone!, the pose and Olivia make when using  is a reference to the Erupting Burning Finger Sekiha Love-Love Tenkyoken from the anime series . The mecha  uses is a reference to the Dark Gundam from the same series.

In the Pokémon Adventures manga

 * 's catchphrase is "", a reference to a popular song by the same name.
 * Jet, a competitor in the Pokéathlon, is based on Jet Link (or Cyborg 002) from, having a near identical resemblance and his reputation for being fast.

In The Electric Tale of Pikachu manga

 * Brock sings a line of the  song "Rubber Duckie" in the hot springs in To Evolve or Not to Evolve, That Is the Question!.

In Pokémon Pocket Monsters manga

 * Professor Oak's Laboratory resembles to the Capsule Corp. building from franchise.