There are many anime references, particularly to the series "Space Battleship Yamato" (the name "Nadesico" is a play on the phrase "Yamato nadeshiko", which represents the traditional Japanese ideal of femininity, and also the name of a flower). One of the characters was a voice actress before joining the crew (and in fact is a parody of a specific voice actress, Megumi Hayashibara), another is a fangirl who likes to draw her own shōnen-ai doujinshi, and a third is an otaku who bases his entire life on "Gekigangar III".