Board Thread:The Panopticon/@comment-9435571-20130713021912/@comment-26975268-20130713042533

Well, I think this is really a question about how much real world we let seep in. When Donna says "That film, under the Earth, with dinosaurs", we all know she's talking about Journey to the Centre of the Earth. But she doesn't explicitly call it that.

Do we know that Obi-Wan Kenobe's from Star Wars? All we've got is two "Help me, Obi-Wan Kenobe"s (TV: Kiss Kiss, Bang Bang, PROSE: The King's Dragon) and one "He's Luke, which makes me Obi-Wan Kenobi" in TV: Warriors of Kudlak. All three of those are written on our page for Star Wars, but should that be allowed? Should we instead mark down those three things at Obi-Wan Kenobe, and only write that he's from Star Wars in a BTS section?

Do we know that Jabberwocky was part of Through the Looking-Glass? Indeed, are "said Alice" and "Like Alice, I like to believe three impossible things before breakfast" definitely from Alice in Wonderland? Neither (as I recall) express as such. The Doctor says "With great power comes great responsibility" in Timewyrm: Genesys, and only says that it came from Marvel Comics. He does not make a direct link to Spiderman. Can we write that there, or just note it in a BTS section?

There are many examples of characters making explicit references to the real world, but can we connect them to other references to the same thing if such a connection is not made in-narrative? The thing is, there are some things that the writer just expects the reader/viewer to get without explanation. We're meant to know that Narnia is the setting of The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe, but can we say that if we're not told so?

I say no. If a reference to Harry Potter is made that can't be confirmed as a reference to Harry Potter, then it can go in the BTS section of Harry Potter.