In my Veilguard AU for pop culture references in that world, what if they were all jokes and twists on pop culture in this world?
Shakespeare doesn't exist in that world. Meet Quiverspitt! (Which also sounds like a great Dickensian name.)
'Friends'? Nope--'Mates'.
'Bewitched'? We don't have that, but there is a TV show about an ordinary woman that married into a culture of magic wielders and needs to keep her identity as a regular human secret. It's a fun if slightly dated romp full of shenanigans with her doing everything normally but trying to make it look like she's doing it all magically. It's called "Not Witched".
'Downton Abbey'? 'Upstone Château'.
'The Lord of the Rings'? 'The Master of the Circlets'.
'The Great Gatsby'? 'The Notable Nezbey'.
'A Christmas Carol'? 'A Yuletide Yowl'.
I am SO obsessed with all of these! Firstly, they are so totally in the tongue-in-cheek tone of the game, and also have a brilliant fantasy/medieval twist.
Quiverspitt is FANTASTIC. And Dickens would be incredibly proud of that name! The infamous playwright, known for his affinity for large, frilly collars and romantic-tragedies, called traum-antics.
Bellara would adore 'Upstone Chateau.' With her love of serials and romance, especially enemies-to-lovers, girl would be obsessed with every episode and plot point. She starts a "watch club" where everyone gathers and talks. Emmrich is allows, but only if he keeps his eye-rolling about the 'those Orlesian politics' to a minimum. (Orlais is very much inspired by France in DA, haha.)
I would watch he heck out of "Not Witched" honestly. Calling that now. And a "Yuletide Yowl" is glorious. Just like the classic story, but there are werewolves in this version. It's a classic!
Davrin: Why doesn't he just fight the ghosts? I don't get it. Take 'em out with a fireball or two.
Emmrich: Well, if you must know-
Davrin: Stop, stop. No. That was not an invitation for a dissertation.