More connections to Nazi Germany for the Gamilas. The Zaltas can be seen as the Austrians of WWII, having been forced to fight with Germany, though some did willingly. The song they sing mentions a world with blue flowers blooming. Nazi soldiers often carried one Eidleweiss bloom, a blue flower, when going into battle.
In the original series, the drill was not explained, and was brought to bear much like the new series, with the added mention that it was ret-conned from a mining tool. This gives more reason as to how it was easily programmed into reverse. This also continues the plot device in the new series that the Gamilas are using tech in different ways to fight the Yamato, as Schulz had when he turned the planet bomb beam into a weapon during the fight at Pluto.