Yeah but that’s again one the many many background easter eggs that are included in episodes all the time. Like all the easter eggs that in the Master Systems Displays. Here is a collection of MSDs to peruse for some examples. Pretty sure the label for “Here be Moonshine” on the Enterprise-C, the spider and duck on the Defiant, and the duck, plane, mouse, car, etc. on the Enterprise-D aren’t canon accurate despite it technically being on-screen. There’s a whole section for in-jokes on Ex Astris Sciencia with examples.
A primary character directly mentioning something is an entirely different level of referencing other works.
I will freely admit that I squealed a bit at that moment.
There’s a literal TARDIS tangled in the scavenger ship in the sehlat that ate its tail
Yeah but that’s again one the many many background easter eggs that are included in episodes all the time. Like all the easter eggs that in the Master Systems Displays. Here is a collection of MSDs to peruse for some examples. Pretty sure the label for “Here be Moonshine” on the Enterprise-C, the spider and duck on the Defiant, and the duck, plane, mouse, car, etc. on the Enterprise-D aren’t canon accurate despite it technically being on-screen. There’s a whole section for in-jokes on Ex Astris Sciencia with examples.
A primary character directly mentioning something is an entirely different level of referencing other works.
yeah but she also spoke previously about a time travelling doctor she knew so mentioning a police box is pretty much passe by now :P