The episode included several other cultural references; the basic theme lampoons the commercialization of children's media products and its plethora of merchandise tie-ins.

The babies discover a tiny lizard in Tommy Pickles' backyard that they are convinced is the offspring of Reptar, a fictitious green dinosaur and main character of many action movies of which the Rugrats are fond.

After learning about the extinction of the dinosaurs, Tommy decides to return the lizard to Reptar just as his family has purchased tickets for a musical ice show based on the character.

[2] It is the first segment of the tenth episode of season two of Rugrats,[3] which was created by Arlene Klasky and Gabor Csupo, along with Paul Germain, founders of the self-titled company Klasky-Csupo.

[7] Despite being a green dinosaur, he still embodies the character, and though he is portrayed comically, his name is referent to the way a child would pronounce "Velociraptor," later made famous for its appearance in Jurassic Park.

[8] "Reptar on Ice" continues this satirical tradition, heavily displaying the over commercialization where media is dragged on into several merchandising tie-ins.

Another reference in the episode is the subsequent joke about Beauty and the Beast in the romantic plot of the entire "Reptar on Ice" performance.

Four years later in 2001, the episode is featured on a VHS and DVD compilation for the show's tenth anniversary entitled Decade in Diapers.

"[3][10][11] The Decades in Diapers video had originally been released as a VHS in 2001, and though Paramount Studios intended to concurrently put it as a DVD as well, they "opted to wait a year".