James Bond, Licence To Self-Reference. Skyfall had already played with the idea of becoming a library of canonical references - to the point where the unveiling of his car and the Moneypenny "twist" at the end might as well have had Sam Mendes pop up and wink in the corner of the screen. Spectre takes that idea and runs with it even further, tumbling down a hill of Easter Eggs. Look, a lot of more modern Bond fans will wonder why it's so obsessed with looking backwards, but nostalgic Bond fans - or the ones who prioritise legacy and don't want a Bourne Bond anymore - will take great pleasure in the familiar heartbeat of Mendes' sequence ender. At times, the film feels like a living exhibition of Bond fandom, and that is precisely the environment that SPECTRE's return should have been framed in. So, which of the references and Easter Eggs are the most rewarding for fans? And which are the most obscure?
23. The Gun Barrel
The gun barrel sequence wasn't exactly a new thing for Daniel Craig - he's done one for all of his outings so far - but this time, it directly references the classic opening sequence from Dr No, as designed by Bond legend Maurice Binder. There's also a second Easter Egg in the opening. Not only is the appearance of former Craig series supporting characters (most of them dead, incidentally) the first confirmation that this film is basically The Dark Knight Rises of the modern Bond franchise, but it is also a call-back to another Bond film. On Her Majesty's Secret Service also has former characters appearing in the credit sequence. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Bes3QUJQRVw
