This post is taken directly from Trekmovie.com showing those “Easter Eggs” that can be found in Star Trek Into Darkness.
Of course Star Trek Into Darkness includes some big homages and reverences to Star Trek history including Khan, Section 31 and beyond which are key parts of the film. But there are also some more subtle ‘Easter egg’ references to Star Trek history and beyond included in the film. Some of which you may have already spotted and maybe some you didn’t.
Kirk’s Menage a Caitian
Kirk is seen in bed with two Caitains (according to STID scribe Roberto Orci) – a feline species first introduced in Star Trek: The Animated Series with the character M’Ress.
Daystrom
Pike and Kirk are called to a meeting with admiralty in the Daystrom Conference Room at Starfleet HQ. A reference to Dr. Richard Daystrom the inventor of the duotronic computers used in TOS (TOS: “The Ultimate Computer”).
Spacefight future history
In Admiral Markus’ office among other historical space flight vehicles, such as a Saturn V rocket and a Space Shuttle, there are also models from Star Trek’s future history, including the U.S.S Kelvin (from Star Trek 2009) NX-01 (Star Trek: Enterprise), the NX-Alpha (warp 2 test ship from the Star Trek: Enterprise episode “First Flight”), Cochrane’s Warp ship (Star Trek: First Contact), and the Enterprise XCV 330 “ring ship” (as seen on the wall of the rec deck in Star Trek: The Motion Picture , in a painting on the wall of the 602 Club in Star Trek: Enterprise, and rendered in the 2011 “Ships of the Line” calendar).
Mudd Incident
Sulu says over the comm system to ready the impounded trade ship from “the Mudd incident.” This is a reference to the prequel comic “Countdown into Darkness” and that story’s involvement with Harry Mudd’s half-Bajoran daughter.
Mr. Hendorf
“Cupcake” gets a proper name: Hendorf. Which is an homage to another red shirt with the name from TOS “The Apple”.
Ketha Province
The region of Qo’noS the team go to is the Ketha Province, which is where General Martok (Star Trek: Deep Space 9) will come from in the Prime timeline’s future.
McCoy’s Tribble
Doctor McCoy has a Tribble in sickbay, used for testing in the movie. McCoy already has this Tribble when the movie opens thanks to the adventures of the ongoing comic book series where they faced the Tribbles in “The Truth About Tribbles”.
Nurse Chapel
Carol Marcus mentions her friend Christine Chapel who had told her of Kirk’s “reputation.” Chapel is of course a recurring character from the original Star Trek (played by Majel Barrett Roddenberry in TOS). The character was also mentioned in the 2009 Star Trek film and was part of the USS Enterprise medical staff at that time, before leaving for a deep space assignment (apparently chased off by Kirk’s womanizing ways). She may be the blond nurse seen very briefly in this ST 2009 screencap.
The Gorn Babies
While McCoy boasts about his “legendary hands” during torpedo surgery he mentions that he had given a cesarean section to a pregnant Gorn and that the eight live-birth babies bit him as they came out (Star Trek The Video Game).
Dr. Boyce
The attending physician’s name on the biobed monitor by Kirk when he wakes up in the hospital in San Francisco is Dr. Boyce, a reference to the ship’s doctor in the first Star Trek TV pilot “The Cage”, which is also where we first met the Prime timeline version of Pike.
MUSICAL EGGS
Amok Time Sting
Michael Giacchino says he was compelled by a fan on Twitter to include something from TOS at the last minute. That homage is the classic “Amok Time” fight music sting, which is heard very briefly after Spock beams down in a foot chase after Harrison through San Francisco. It starts at approximately the 1:54:20 mark, it’s just a couple of notes lasting only 2 seconds.
Beastie Boys
Kirk is listening to an antique record of the Beastie Boys “Body Movin’ (Fat Boy Slim Remix)” while ‘entertaining’ twin cat-like ladies. This is a callback to young Kirk joyriding to “Sabotage” in Star Trek 2009, Kirk’s general interest in antiques in the Prime timeline, and thirdly, the Beastie Boys is a personal favorite of director of J.J. Abrams.
ABRAMSVERSE EGGS:
Kelvin
The archive blown up in London is the called “Kelvin Memorial Archive”, named for George Kirk’s ship destroyed by Nero in Star Trek (2009). The name of the U.S.S. Kelvin itself is from J.J. Abrams own family, it was his grandfather’s last name. This is of course in addition to the more apparent homage to Lord Kelvin of the eponymous temperature scale.
Alcatraz
Alcatraz Island in the San Francisco Bay is taken out by the USS Vengeance, a possible nod by the producers to the quickly canceled Abrams show on FOX named Alcatraz.
Slusho
In the bar by the Port of San Francisco where Scotty and Keenser are blowing off steam about resigning from the Klingon mission, the bar tables have a rotating light-up “Slusho!” orb in the middle. Slusho is from Abrams’ Cloverfield.
ILM’s R2-D2 EGG
As with Star Trek (2009) and many other ILM productions, there is a hidden R2-D2 in STID. Blink and you’ll miss him during the Vengeance firing on the Enterprise and ripping a hole in the hull while at warp.
That little droid sure gets around…
POSSIBLE EASTER EGGS
Praxis?
As the team approaches Qo’noS, there is a hulk of a dead moon, implying that the Klingon moon of Praxis was already over-mined in this timeline (Star Trek VI). As usual the writers are being coy and won’t say for sure that it’s Praxis.
This seeming early destruction of Praxis may be related to a Section 31 operation that John Harrison carried out before the events of the movie. There is a reference to a “Praxxis Project” barely visible in the redacted text of the “leaked” Starfleet Memorandum document about Harrison found on AreYouThe1701.com [they appear to have misspelled the name, if it is indeed supposed to be in reference to the Klingon moon].
Bay Stadium?
It may be that the floating/hovering Bay Stadium that was seen in the Star Trek Enterpriseepisode “Home” is in SITD. The version in the film is a circular stadium/coliseum instead of the rectangular in shape seen in ENT.
Carol “Wallace”
Carol Marcus’ mother’s maiden name was Wallace, which is assumed to be an homage to Janet Wallace (TOS “The Deadly Years”).