From classic films to beloved TV shows, this beloved animated series was packed with clever nods and homages! Join us as we explore the most brilliant references hidden throughout the series, from subtle movie callbacks to entire episode tributes that you might have missed as a kid.
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00:00Good afternoon, Principal Prickly. I'm Sal 3000 and I'm programmed to serve.
00:05Welcome to Ms. Mojo and today we're counting down our picks for the most
00:09noteworthy parodies, allusions, and references in recess.
00:15Scandalous!
00:18Scandalous!
00:21Number 10. Spinelli's Name
00:24Don't listen to him. He's lying.
00:25Oh yeah? Well explain this.
00:28Oh!
00:29Every main character in Recess is based on someone the creators,
00:33either Paul Germain and Joe Ansolabeheri knew. In Spinelli's case, she was based on someone
00:39they were both acquainted with in college, and who has been described as the coolest chick they knew.
00:45Hey, no cuts, warm breath. What do you got, crayons in your ears? Get to the end of the
00:50line before I show you the end of my fist. In addition to parts of her personality,
00:54Spinelli also got her last name from her real-life counterpart. However, her middle name,
00:59Funicello, is most likely a nod to Disney alum, pop star, and actress Annette Funicello.
01:06Come on, grats, let's find some more dumb stuff to make fun of.
01:09Ashley Funicello Spinelli, use your museum voice.
01:12Number 9. The Clockwork Orange Scene
01:15When it's revealed that Spinelli bears the same name as their clique,
01:18the Ashleys try to get her to become more like them. During the montage, we're shown a scene
01:23of Spinelli with her eyes taped open, forced to watch pony movies. This is, of course,
01:35an allusion to the famous scene in A Clockwork Orange. It's quite a dark reference to making a
01:40kid's show, but then again, it wasn't the first and wouldn't be the last. In that same episode,
01:45the Ashleys receive Spinelli into their crew with a chant of One of Us, a quote from 1932's Freaks.
01:54Number 8. Sleuthing
01:59But this does look like a case for...
02:01The Barnaby Boys!
02:02This episode sees TJ and Vince become obsessed with a fiction book series called The Barnaby
02:08Boys. They follow a mystery-solving duo, roles that Vince and TJ adopt later on in the episode,
02:14all complete with snazzy attire and a distinct manner of speaking.
02:18Can any of you ID this guy?
02:19Nope.
02:20Not me.
02:20Nuh-uh.
02:21This is big, Theo. That substitute Jana reminds me of the bad guy in the case of the really,
02:25really bad guy.
02:26Fans of the Hardy Boys probably will have recognized the spoofing here,
02:30where TJ becomes Frank and Vince portrays Joe. At the end of the episode, we get another fun
02:36mystery-solving reference with the delivery of one of the Scooby-Doo franchise's most iconic lines.
02:42Ah, dang it. And I'd have gotten away with it too if it hadn't been for them meddling kids.
02:47Number 7. Gus in The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly
02:51In this episode, we learn that Gus is secretly a dodgeball master.
02:55But I guess I tangled too close to the torch. Maybe I love the game too much.
02:59The flashbacks depicting his skills is set in an old western scene palpably reminiscent of The Good,
03:05The Bad, and The Ugly. Gus appears with a toothpick in his mouth,
03:09much like Blondie's signature cigarillo in the film. It's almost a shot-for-shot recreation,
03:14albeit not nearly as drawn out, with Gus mercilessly taking out his opponents
03:19in much the same way Blondie does. Recess even does a little freeze frame with red
03:31cursive writing, like how the characters are introduced at the beginning of the Spaghetti
03:35Western. Number 6. Mikey Sings Ave Maria
03:45If a flair for poetry wasn't enough, it turns out that Mikey is also an
03:49exceptionally talented singer. We get to hear him sing several times in this episode,
04:06but one of the most striking is when the playground hears his performance of Ave Maria.
04:11Similar to the scene in The Shawshank Redemption,
04:33when Andy plays Canzonetta Solaria from Mozart's The Marriage of Figaro over the prison's PA system,
04:40we pan across the schoolyard witnessing all the students' moved expressions. Like so many other
04:45references on this list, you likely didn't make the connection until you re-watched when you were
04:49older. Number 5. Various Spooky Classics
05:20Terrifying Tales of Recess itself appears to be an homage to The Simpsons' Treehouse of Horror
05:26series, which is probably no accident when you consider that many of Recess' staff also worked
05:31on The Simpsons. In this anthology episode, each storyline also makes allusions to various spooky
05:37classics. The first short, Children of the Corn Chip, is named after children of the corn,
05:43although the plots share few, if any, commonalities. The second short, When Bikes
05:48Attack, is clearly a parody of Maximum Overdrive. And the third narrative, titled Night of the
06:00Living Finsters, is clearly a reference to Night of the Living Dead, which fittingly,
06:05is also about zombies. Number 4. A Genius Janitor
06:20When Gretchen discovers that a complicated math problem she left on the board has been solved,
06:36she sets out to uncover the secret genius lurking in the school. Turns out it's Hank the Janitor.
06:50Hopefully, the plot is sounding a little familiar by now. It's a direct reference to Good Will
06:55Hunting, with Hank being a stand-in for Will. While we're not introduced to any Dr. Sean Maguire's,
07:01Hank and Gretchen do form quite an adorable friendship built on solving math equations
07:05together. Number 3. HAL 9000
07:20No 9000 computer has ever made a mistake or distorted information. We are all,
07:26by any practical definition of the words, foolproof and incapable of error.
07:32Not only is this a great episode on its own, it's also a phenomenal homage to 2001 A Space Odyssey.
07:39The SAL 3000 computer, a fully automated school management system that doesn't just keep time,
07:44it keeps control. No more grading tests, no more calling parents, the SAL 3000 does it all.
07:49And SAL is incapable of error. When Spinelli accidentally breaks the big clock,
07:54Third Street School replaces it with a fully automated school management, SAL 3000. You see
08:00where this is going. It doesn't take long before SAL turns evil, and the students enact a plan to
08:06take him down. Now wait a minute, SAL. You can't retire Miss Croaky, then call the smartest kid
08:10in the school dumb. I can do whatever I please. I am SAL, and I am perfect. Now take your seat,
08:16student Detweiler, and remove your hat. Remove my what?
08:20More than just the similarities in name, SAL 3000 also takes visual inspiration from
08:26HAL 9000's appearance, with its metallic circular design, red eye, and minimalist panel.
08:34Number 2. The Ashleys. This is like a major tragedy. That creature, an Ashley,
08:40how could it be? I mean, just look at her hair. She doesn't even moose.
08:44This quartet of same-named cool girls are undeniably Recess's version of the Heathers.
08:49Beyond the trend of girls all sharing the same name, both groups are very much cliques that
08:55share an exclusive and elitist mindset, not to mention their obsession with status.
09:01Did you have a brain tumor for breakfast?
09:03The Ashleys' preppy fashion sense and color-coordinating outfits are also
09:07super reminiscent of the Heathers. The major differences are their ages, and that the
09:12Heathers are three girls while the Ashleys are four. With that in mind, one can also recognize
09:17parallels between Spinelli and Veronica. Actually, Ashley S, you don't, like, have a choice.
09:23Like what?
09:24Before we unveil our top pick, here are a few honorable mentions.
09:28King Solomon. There are nods to King Solomon's tactics in the way Gus rules.
09:34Each of these first graders says that the doll is hers. You must decide to which of
09:37these girls the doll rightfully belongs. Royal judgment! Royal judgment!
09:44Star Trek line. Mikey's line is an obvious reference to
09:47to boldly go where no man has gone before.
09:51She's gonna shatter the rules of gravity, overcome the physical world,
09:54boldly go where no kid has gone before.
09:57Mulder and Scully. The special government agents closely resemble the X-Files' Mulder and Scully.
10:03Oh, excuse me, can we help you?
10:05No ma'am, we're from your government.
10:07He's Agent Barnes. I'm Agent Noble.
10:08And we're here to test you.
10:09Oh, I see. Um, well, class, the man is here to test you.
10:14Books and papers off your desks. It's time for your first standardized test.
10:17Casablanca quote. Finster delivers a variation of the famous quote.
10:22Oh, you're right, Hank. If we don't end this now, we'll regret it.
10:25Maybe not today, maybe not tomorrow, but soon and for the rest of our lives.
10:29Pokemon. Mom stickers seem to allude to Pokemon and other trading cards of the time.
10:35Five mom stickers for your trademark. That should be attractive to a man in your, uh, situation.
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10:56Number one, Hogan's Heroes Inspiration.
11:05If you've ever thought the recess theme music sounded familiar,
11:08that's because it's taken almost directly from Hogan's Heroes.
11:20Many of the intro shots are also recreated like Gretchen's Lab and TJ's
11:26Shuffling Cards. In general, the cartoon is considered to be a big homage to Hogan's Heroes,
11:32with many similarities between characters and the hierarchical structure, despite the two
11:37taking place in completely different settings. There are plenty of parallels to the sitcom to
11:42find in Recess, but one of the most evident had to be the episode where the gang visits
11:46a retirement home, and one of the elders recalls his past where he was a prisoner of war in Germany.
11:52There were these two crazy old officers that were always cracking down on us.
11:59Hogan, you wouldn't have any idea what happened to the secret communique I received today, would you?
12:04Why no, Commandant Prickly didn't, not at all. Which Recess reference did you understand right
12:09off the bat, and which took a little longer to pick up on? Let us know in the comments.
12:14I love the smell of diesel fuel in the morning.
12:17Do you agree with our picks? Check out this other recent clip from Ms. Mojo,
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