When the narrator (Ron Howard) refers to the history of Tobias (David Cross)' "The Man Inside Me" book, a brief clip of the book on amazon is shown. Below the book cover, the website reads, "Customers who bought 'The Man Inside Me' also bought: Families with Low Self-Esteem by Tobias Funke (Author), Caged Wisdom by George Bluth, The Low-Carb, Gay, Bisexual, Trans-gender Diet by BJ Zuckercorn (Author)." Two of the works were introduced to the show, except the one by Barry Zuckercorn (played by Henry Winkler), who occasionally exhibits homosexual tendencies.
Hindsight, a news show which appears several times, is a parody on 20/20 (1978), because '"hindsight is 20/20".
In the hospital scene, the white board indicating the nurse on duty says RN - Ratchet. A play on the book and movie "One Flew Over the Cuckoos Nest"
Ian Roberts (Ian Roberts) makes his first appearance as Dr. Fishman ("The Literal Doctor"), a doctor whose choice of words often gives the family false hope or, as in this episode, unnecessary grief.