Dune References in (Un)Popular Media

[CallMeMrZ]

In Battleforge there is a building which extends the lifetime of energy wells (game resource), its ability is called "The juice must flow".

[LoneSandRider]

Futurama:

 

- Fry and Leela trying out a still suit

http://i.imgur.com/pp9yQ.jpg

 

- Sandworm being used as public transportations

http://www.optionated.com/2012/02/6-sci-fi-futurama-references-you-might-not-know-were-based-on-books/sandworm_786x786/

 

 

Simpsons:

 

- Liza can see through time

http://27.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_l8r73rPA0S1qdoghio1_500.png

 

 

I remember a last one in cartoons but cant say which one it was. Main character walk into a party and say "hi" to the Baron Harkonnen.

[MrFlibble]

Recently I've played a demo of a turn-based strategy game called Emperor of the Fading Suns by Holistic Design, and immediately noticed a very obvious Dune reference:

This is a technology you can research in the game. Further inquiry revealed more references, like Doppleganger special unit that apparently was inspired by Face Dancers:

And this here seems to be a reference to the Voice:

The whole game, which is actually based on a pen-and-paper RPG Fading Suns, seems to borrow a lot of elements from Frank Herbert's Dune universe. The story is set in a galaxy-spanning empire ruled by noble houses (which are striving for the throne), the trading Guild and the Holy Church (with numerous heresies here and there). Advanced technology (which is mostly salvaged from the remains of an apparently more technologically advanced Second Republic) exists side by side with feudal superstition and psychic practices. Unlike Dune however, there are also sentient aliens in the game world of the Fading Suns.

[LoneSandRider]

Not exactly a direct references but, in John Dies at the end, there's this slug thing that look a lot like a sandworm:

 

 

[THE AQIB]

wtf?

[X3M]

I think that is supposed to be a snail.

[LoneSandRider]

I think that is supposed to be a snail.

Without the shell yeah. But the circular mouth with the crystal teeth reminded me of a Sandworm. 

[THE AQIB]

well that way you're right....

it has the mouth of the sandworm but the guy who made it must have copied it from another guy and so on and the first guy copied it from dune...

bingo all round mouth creatures are descendents of our ol sandworm....

anyone seen tremors???

I guess that was using the same idea of the dune sandworm....

[MrFlibble]

LoneSandRider, cool OoTS-style Fremen avatar, btw :D

[MrFlibble]

Hey guys, I wonder if http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/DAR_%28Disk_Archiver%29'>this could be considered a conscious Dune reference:

DAR (Disk ARchive) is a command-line archiving tool and a replacement for http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tar_%28file_format%29'>tar.

Most likely a coincidence, but who knows?

[LoneSandRider]

LoneSandRider, cool OoTS-style Fremen avatar, btw :D

Tks, use to play Tribal Wars and it was my avatar over there. Always created Fremen tribes and made it my duty to educate my member to the ways of the desert  ;)

I got a other reference this time, one that is a lot clearer. Unfortunately i forgot to paste the pic last i play the game, i'll be back with it next time i play it.

Game's call Crusader Kings 2. In this game you lead a Baron or a Duke and lead his House to fame and glory. Characters can have children and you can chose who's to tutor the said child. When you do this with the leader of your dynasty you get events like every years in the game in which you can influence the traits your tutored children are likely to get.

 

One of those is to make either the child Brave or Craven. Event will sound like "Every time your son (or else) see a spider he look like he might faint". If your leader is not a craven himself, you'll get a reply option called "Fear is the Mind Killer". 100% chances not to get the child craven and a slim chance to make him brave if you select this one instead of the others they offer you.

[LoneSandRider]

well that way you're right....

it has the mouth of the sandworm but the guy who made it must have copied it from another guy and so on and the first guy copied it from dune...

bingo all round mouth creatures are descendent's of our ol sandworm....

anyone seen tremors???

I guess that was using the same idea of the dune sandworm....

Oh and almost forgot, I sure remember the Tremors movies. One of very few Kevin Bacon movies i actually enjoyed (no offense meant to his fans).

They're a bit of differences ofc but they sure are sandworms inspired.

This, is the movie posters and somehow the actual worms in the movie dont look like it. Here's a pic from the movie.

Although the movie worms dont look like they have any teeth, they sure are a reference to Frank Herbert vision.

[MrFlibble]

Oh and almost forgot, I sure remember the Tremors movies. One of very few Kevin Bacon movies i actually enjoyed (no offense meant to his fans).

Haha, I've watched these (the first two IIRC) so long ago I didn't know who Kevin Bacon was back then, so I never thought of Tremores as a Kevin Bacon movie until you've mentioned it :D

[Davidu]

hehehehehe, take a look at this one: http://inkoutbreak.com/inker.php?comic=c2b6f07819768dbb310ef36ad7abb6e4

[X3M]

In what way is that one as reference to dune?

[Davidu]

Damn links! Here it is:

 

[X3M]

The image doesn't even load -.-

But maybe it's just my computer. But then again, this forum is slow lately.

[MrFlibble]

Somehow I find the fact that there's a Harry Potter reference right next to a Dune reference a bit... unsettling.

[Davidu]

Maybe it's because Dune and Harry Potter fans are such fanatics hahahahahahah.

[X3M]

How about you google:

Warriors of the Wind

 

Can't find a picture that can be posted here though. That's why, google it ^^

You see someone riding a worm.

[Davidu]

Could be. As concept mainly :)

[MrFlibble]

Warriors of the Wind

Looks like all the prominent science fiction tropes and cliches have been thrown together to produce this :D

[X3M]

Produced in 1984 by a Japanese.

Sold the rights to the film in 1985 to an American studio.

Apparently the American version is hated by every one.

No wonder if you cut about half an hour of film and change every single dialogue.

 

The original was called:

Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind

And was a best seller back then. So if you are interested. Choose the Japanese version. Which I suggest for any Japanese production.

[MrFlibble]

I've enjoyed quite a few of Miyazaki's works, and now I remember I even started watching Nausicaä, however somehow that particular film didn't impress me at all so I couldn't even bring myself to watch it to the end. I also remember now that there were some giant trilobite like creatures as the one depicted on the US version poster, which BTW did not invoke the association with sandworms at all when I watched it.

In all honesty though, the Warriors of the Wind poster looks more like some sort of a parody of sic-fi cliches that anything else.

[Andrew]

I enjoyed Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind. Although I've enjoyed almost every film from studio ghibli.

 

In the first episode of http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Peep_Show_%28TV_series%29'>Peep Show one character shows David Lynch's Dune DVD in the case, and mentions wanting to watch it.