List of terms

A list of terms from the Buck Rogers universe.

Buck Rogers in the 25th Century

Careful. Careful. The filament you're soldering is the precise weight and thickness as the one you're replacing. Be careful, Twiki. It was very difficult to make.
Get off my back!
I'm not on your back, Twiki. And please concentrate on what you're doing. If anything, I'm on your front, and I can't get off without your help. Where have you been coming up with such expressions?
My good buddy, Buck.
I should have known. It's hard to believe that Captain Rogers learned to speak on the same planet as the rest of us.

 — Dr. Theopolis and Twiki as they repair Carl, (BR25: "Planet of the Slave Girls")

Anachronisms

Words and terms that are anachronistic in the 25th century.

* aspirin: a pain management medication that William "Buck" Rogers asks for during his interrogation by Princess Ardala and Kane; Kane surmises that "aspirin" is a pain medication, and instructs his practitioners to inject him with an anti-pain medication (BR25: "Awakening")

• crush: to have a romantic interest in another party; Rogers surmises that Ryma has a romantic interest in Regis Saroyan (BR25: "Planet of the Slave Girls")
• Funk & Wagnalls: a dictionary and reference book publisher from the 20th century (BR25: "Planet of the Slave Girls")
• o'clock: slang term for a numeric position on an analog clock; Lt. Wrather is confused by Rogers' term as Rogers attempts (in vain) to communicate an incoming threat (BR25: Film, "Awakening")

* "clam up": shut up; after detecting the stolen freighter Lisa's Dream, William "Buck" Rogers tells the wisecracking Cadet Westlake to clam up (BR25: "Return of the Fighting 69th")

"Geronimo!": an exclamation often used by jumping skydivers or anyone jumping, or launching, from a great height; Twiki uses this when launching their Thunderfighter from their launch tube in New Chicago (BR25: "Planet of the Slave Girls")

"get off my back": a retort by an aggrieved party after being told to do something that they already are working on; Twiki tells Dr. Theopolis to get off his back after Theopolis reminds him the delicate nature of the repair work on Carl, prompting Theopolis to correct him that, "if anything, I'm on your front" (BR25: "Planet of the Slave Girls")

"Hot dog!: chiefly U.S. slang used as an expression of approval or delight; Twiki uses this expression after Maj. Duke Danton agrees to take both itself and Dr. Theopolis on the attack mission to Vistula (BR25: "Planet of the Slave Girls")

"a thing": to have a romantic interest in another party; Rogers surmises that Ryma has a romantic interest in Regis Saroyan (BR25: "Planet of the Slave Girls")

"stick it": a partially impolite way to tell someone to shove their beliefs or comments elsewhere (preferably in an uncomfortable or compromising position); Rogers tells Galen to "stick it" after Galen attempts to wrangle Deering and Rogers' stolen Scorpion fighters back into formation before the Battle of Vistula (BR25: "Planet of the Slave Girls")

* clam: bivalve molluscs, the name is often attributed to Earth seafood that is eaten circa the 20th century; it is unknown in the 25th, as Westlake asks William "Buck" Rogers about the term following Rogers' use of it in the colloquialism "clam up" (BR25: "Return of the Fighting 69th")

* brown-and-serve rolls: a pre-made dinner roll that only needs to be heated; William "Buck" Rogers suggests to Duke Danton that they don their survival suits following their crash in the Sea of Stone, lest they look like cooked versions of these (BR25: "Planet of the Slave Girls")

grilled cheese sandwich: a hot sandwich made with one or more varieties of cheese on a grill or oven; William "Buck" Rogers asks Wilma Deering what took her so long to intervene after his tussle with Rafael Argus, and notes that he could have easily been a "grilled cheese sandwich" had things not worked out (BR25: "The Plot to Kill a City, Part I"). Deering later uses this term when threatening Cassius Thorne at gunpoint on Zantia, much to his confusion (BR25: "Planet of the Amazon Women").

* blackjack: a card game that is a staple of most gambling establishments, also known as "21" or, in the 25th century, 10 & 11 (BR25: "Vegas in Space")

* "(Won't You Come Home) Bill Bailey," a Dixieland / jazz song performed by many artists in the 20th century, and sung by William "Buck" Rogers on his return trip to Earth following his awakening (BR25: Film, "Awakening")

"My Kind of Town," a song performed by Frank Sinatra and sung by Rogers on his return trip to Earth following his awakening (BR25: Film, "Awakening")

rock and roll: a music genre evolving from the United States circa 1940s and 1950s, consisting of an amalgam of various earlier musical styles gospel, jump blues, w:jazz, oogie woogie, rhythm and blues, and country music; at Princess Ardala's reception, Rogers asks the musical performer if he know this form of music, and vaguely describes it before performing something that has the stylings of disco (BR25: Film, "Awakening")

* boogie: to dance to rock music (BR25: Film, "Awakening")

getting down: intransitive verb meaning to "to perform music or dance effectively and infectiously"; William "Buck" Rogers refers to his dance moves at Princess Ardala's reception party thusly (BR25: Film, "Awakening")

* clipping: a move illegal in American football, defined as "throwing the body across the back of the leg of an eligible receiver or charging or falling into the back of an opponent below the waist after approaching him from behind, provided the opponent is not a runner"; Maj. Duke Danton clips William "Buck" Rogers during a live demonstration of football moves before Earth Defense Directorate cadets (BR25: "Planet of the Slave Girls")

football: an American sport (BR25: "Planet of the Slave Girls")

judo: a martial art form; Rogers teaches this to Wilma Deering after his foray into teaching 20th century battle strategy to Danton's cadets (BR25: "Planet of the Slave Girls")

golf: a club-and-ball sport in which players use various clubs to hit balls into a series of holes on a course in as few strokes as possible (BR25: "Vegas in Space")

putting: a slang term for the act of golfing, namely using a club (putt) to hit the ball into a hole (BR25: "Vegas in Space")

red-dogging: to carry out a blitz in a football game; Rogers mentions this to Deering when going on the offensive during a faux "pirate" attack (BR25: Film, "Awakening")

"sacking the quarterback": a means of intercepting and tackling an opposing player behind the line of scrimmage; in the Battle of Vistula, Rogers identifies Galen as the "quarterback" to sack, and following the destruction of Galen and his Scorpion fighter, Kaleel's forces fall into disarray despite their overwhelming numbers (BR25: "Planet of the Slave Girls")

tackle: a means of intercepting an opposing player from advancing towards the goal (BR25: "Planet of the Slave Girls")

* Howdy Doody: a children's television character (in puppet form) circa 1947 CE through 1960 CE; Rogers disparagingly remarks that Howdy Doody has taken the stage, after hearing the cheers and cries for "Kaleel!" from a nearby chamber (BR25: "Planet of the Slave Girls")

The Juice: a nickname for O.J. Simpson, a football player; William "Buck" Rogers tells Maj. Duke Danton about him during their trek through the Sea of Stone, and it is how Danton confirms Rogers' identity during the Battle of Vistula (BR25: "Planet of the Slave Girls")

roger: a reply by a person accepting an order; Theopolis is confused when Twiki replies "roger" to Theopolis' order to adjust course in the Thunderfighter, prompting him to ask Twiki: "What about Rogers?" (BR25: "Planet of the Slave Girls")

Present Day

Words, phrases and terms from the 25th century.

* Astrium: a locale, likely a term for interstellar space given the use of the Latin root word "Astrum"; Emperor Draco's formal and complete title includes a reference to his being the "Warlord of Astrium" (BR25: Film, "Awakening")

• beety: the vocalization of Twiki's native machine language, despite the fact that it is commonly written out by fans as "bidi" (to rhyme, perhaps, with "midi") the word "beety" is used in the scripts to denote this dialogue
• credit: currency of Sinaloa (BR25: "Vegas in Space")
• Deckel: a Terran reductive term for the month of December (BR25: "A Blast for Buck")
• distress channel: a channel used by pilots in emergencies (BR25: "Planet of the Slave Girls")
• food discs: processed foodstuff in disc form (BR25: "Planet of the Slave Girls")
• hand talking: method of communicating using hand signals, a derivative of American sign language; William "Buck" Rogers communicates with Alicia this way after realizing her communication impairment (BR25: "Return of the Fighting 69th")
• launch channel: Draconian term for a launching runway and aperture aboard a starship, such a channel is used by small fighters and ships (BR25: "Awakening")
• Holocaust: term used by Terrans to describe the time during and after World War III (BR25: Film, "Awakening", "Testimony of a Traitor")
• mobile service module: mechanized labor, typically along the lines of ambuquads, employed in mundane and monotonous service tasks; Duke Danton asks why he hasn't seen these in the Governor's Statehouse on Vistula, and it is explained to him that the human nomad laborers from the Sea of Stone are more economical (BR25: "Planet of the Slave Girls")
• sanitation module: mechanized labor responsible for sanitation (BR25: "Vegas in Space")
• starliner: a luxury liner of the stars, e.g. Lyran Queen (BR25: "Cruise Ship to the Stars")
• subspace: a term used in conjunction with communications, superior to radio transmission signals as subspace is capable of transmitting over larger galactic distances (BR25: "Planet of the Slave Girls")
• termination: execution of a person, used as punishment for subjects who commit crimes of great severity, such as high treason and espionage; Rogers receives this sentence by the Computer Council following the discovery of a microtransmitter aboard Ranger 3 (BR25: Film, "Awakening")
• Terran: a person from Earth (BR25: Film, "Awakening")
• translight velocity: a form of light-speed or intense velocity; Maj. Duke Danton tells William "Buck" Rogers he'll launch in a Scorpion fighter at this velocity to avoid the power leech (BR25: "Planet of the Slave Girls")
• vector:
  1. a direction or path relative to a ship; e.g. the vector Draconia travels to Earth on is known to be attacked by "pirates" (BR25: Film, "Awakening")
  2. a communication's frequency; Wilma Deering notes that Duke Danton's squadron should be on "vector 92.4" (BR25: "Planet of the Slave Girls")

* 10 & 11: a re-branded version of [[w:blackjack|]], a card game; 10 & 11 is a digital game on Sinaloa, as well as a card game played by members of the Fighting 69th (BR25: "Vegas in Space", "Return of the Fighting 69th")

Olympiad: the 25th century permutation of the [[w:Olympics|]], a series of games where athletes from various planets come together and compete (BR25: "Olympiad")

* cordite: a smokeless propellant used in bullets or other projectile weapons, used as a replacement for gunpowder; Rogers claims that the "cordite" in the scoring marks (left by the Draconians that intercepted him) hadn't oxidized yet (BR25: Film, "Awakening")

cryogen: one of four gasses used in suspended animation (BR25: Film, "Awakening")

crystalline: a chemical used by Draconians in conjunction with diogen to revive subjects from suspended animation (BR25: Film, "Awakening")

diogen: a chemical used by Draconians in conjunction with crystalline to revive subjects from suspended animation (BR25: Film, "Awakening")

gold: a rare metal used in Dr. Theopolis' circuitry; Theopolis tells William "Buck" Rogers that the mutants in Anarchia would be interested in its gold circuits for trade on the black market (BR25: Film, "Awakening")

methalon: one of four gasses used in suspended animation (BR25: Film, "Awakening")

pressor agent: a Draconian term for a chemical or contrivance that can be diluted, used in conjunction with revival from suspended animation (BR25: Film, "Awakening")

* command frequency: a communications channel separate from the primary channel, meant for isolated communications; William "Buck" Rogers requests to talk to Wilma Deering via this channel during the Pursuit of Lisa's Dream (BR25: "Return of the Fighting 69th")

Condition 90: a condition issued over Draconia's intercom when first approaching Earth (BR25: Film, "Awakening")

Corridor 10A: referred to in radio chatter as "Corridor 1-0 Able," this is the corridor used by Earth Defense Directorate ships to dock at a hangar bay used by Col. Wilma Deering and William "Buck" Rogers upon Rogers' 500+ year overdue return to Earth (BR25: Film, "Awakening")

Earth Directorate emergency channel: a direct communications line used in emergencies, it is typically directed at the highest ranking person available; preceding Draconia's attack on Earth, Dr. Theopolis summons reinforcements from Earth using this channel (BR25: Film, "Awakening")

microtransmitter: a device capable of recording and transmitting; one such device is planted on Ranger 3 by Kane, in order to track the narrow passage in Earth's defense shield (BR25: Film, "Awakening")

* Delta Section: a monitoring position of the Earth Defense Directorate dealing with monitoring transmissions in lower band frequencies, such as those of 20th century radios; an operative from this section intercepts William "Buck" Rogers's radio communications meant for NASA (BR25: Film, "Awakening")

* quad: slang for ambuquad

* ambuquad: a machine with some level of artificial intelligence, used as servitors; see: Twiki

auto-flight: term for "automatic flight," the ability of a ship to be piloted solely by computer control, without the need of an external entity (i.e. pilot) (BR25: Film, "Awakening")

hologram: technology allowing projections of audio and video in multiple dimension; Emperor Draco communicates to Kane using this system following the commencement of preemptive hostilities against Earth (BR25: Film)

module: a mechanized automaton performing menial labor, e.g. food service and sanitation (BR25: "Planet of the Slave Girls", "Vegas in Space")

neurosystems transport: a Draconian term used in conjunction with revival from suspended animation (BR25: "Awakening")

retro gravity valve: a device capable of slowing the descent of a craft; after being hit by a power leech, William "Buck" Rogers suggests that Duke Danton use this device, but it was also disabled (BR25: "Planet of the Slave Girls")

stargate: an energy gate capable of transporting smaller crafts between two points (BR25: "Planet of the Slave Girls")

subspace transmitter: a communications device; Wilma Deering has one while she's undercover and it is subsequently discovered by Jolen Quince (BR25: "The Plot to Kill a City, Part I")

space warp: a means of shortening distance between two points, utilized by stargates (BR25: "Planet of the Slave Girls")

* pulsar: a directed energy weapon employed on crafts of the 25th century, both air and ground; a primary weapon employed on both landcrafts and Thunderfighter starfighters, as well as stationary weapons batteries (BR25: "Planet of the Slave Girls", "Return of the Fighting 69th")

power leech: a weapon that either inhibits or drains energy from a craft, thus disabling its intended target; Galen employs the power leech against Duke Danton's Thunderfighter over the Sea of Stone, thus forcing the craft to crash-land in the barren Vistulan wilderness (BR25: "Planet of the Slave Girls")