Disclaimer: I originally planned to start Cyberspace Jam for the original Space Jam's 25th anniversary, but still couldn't figure out whether to use a fictionalized Lebron or someone else (not MJ though), and also couldn't figure out how to start this version of the sequel without making it appear as "the Basketball Player: the Movie guest starring the Looney Tunes as his sidekicks" when I want it to focus on both of them when WB failed to do so. Also, I have so many Christmas projects to take care of, but I had one particular scene in mind I wanted to show the world that may be used in either Cyberspace Jam or a different multiverse story.

As I'm dying for Penelope to have her own solo story where she feels ashamed for not being thought of as an equal toon like the others (more than anything and the same goes to Sylvester and Furrball), I thought it would work as a sideplot for a Space Jam sequel or at least some basketball-free Wreck-It Ralph-type film that A New Legacy should have been, and I intend to have Penelope as one of the main characters of the former, even though users think it's a stupid idea. I consider it killing two birds with one: doing a better Space Jam sequel and giving a story where she proves herself to be a worthy toon and not just Pepe's prop.

Everyone else wants a fanfiction related to A New Legacy where Pepe and Penelope are together or not present at all (exactly like the film), but this tackles how Pepe is used more in LT media, and by himself, without her, implying that she can't be without him. Of course, it feels unfair not to allow her to do anything on her own yet allowing Lola, Melissa/Tina, and Petunia do whatever they want without their guys. This serves as an allegory to that matter.

This is inspired by the opening scene of Muppets from Space, and would have been done as an opening scene for Cyberspace Jam but I wasn't sure about starting it that way because I'd like this version to focus on more than just one character. This could either take place in the same continuity as Cyberspace Jam or a basketball-free Penelope story.

I don't own any characters used here.


If one were to watch this on television, they would see an urgent news bulletin logo appear. An alarmed and frightened news reporter named Tuck Buckerson (from the reboot of Animaniacs) was making this report as he said, "Good evening, citizens of Earth. Welcome to what may be the last report this network ever makes. I am Tuck Buckerson here to report that the apocalypse constantly played at in films and TV shows is finally upon us. Technology has turned on us, toxicity levels have raised to the point of no return, and fire is raining from the sky! As we speak right now, a number of specifically-marked spaceships are set to leave Earth to restart life on another planet, with the best, brightest and most valuable individuals invited to go."

As Buckerson said, the end of the world was happening. His report was dead on. People were screaming and fleeing for their lives as they were being chased by appliances that had grown sentient enough to turn against them, the air was too toxic to breathe, and balls of fire rained down from the sky just like one of the Almighty One's plagues in the Old Testament. Humankind had screwed up most severely, and thus have doomed their home. In parts all over the globe, there were spaceships ready to go, with lines filled with the best, brightest and most valuable individuals the planet had to offer ready to board the ship. All the individuals boarding these ships included scientists, technicians, chefs, musicians, actors, singers (these particular musicians, actors and singers were environmentalists), worldly-famous cartoon characters, etc. We focus on one of the ships in particular, and one individual, a female black-and-white cat named Penelope, rushing to catch up to the line of those leaving. She stopped a bit by a wrecked car to catch her breath. Then as she continued running, she called out, "Wait for me! Hold the ship!" She raced as fast as she could to the end of the line, for she didn't want to die on this doomed planet. "I'm coming! Don't leave yet!"

At the entrance, as the last of the selected few were ushered in by the bouncer of the ship's door when he saw the panting Penelope sprinting up the rant all the way to the entrance. The breathless cat stopped in front and said, "Oh, barely made it. I thought you'd be leaving without me."

She prepared to make her way in when the bouncer blocked her way, giving her a stern look. The little cat cleared her throat and told the guard, "Excuse me, but, um, I'm coming with."

The bouncer looked at her suspiciously and asked, "Who are you anyway?"

"Well...I'm Penelope Pussycat. I am one of the Looney Tunes. They're on the ship so I should be with them." Yes, since the Looney Tunes are worldly-famous cartoon characters, they are considered important individuals of mankind and are on the list of those to leave Earth.

He looked at his list of people on the ship and saw names of the Looney Tunes characters required. "Hmmm. You're not on the list."

"What? There's got to be a mistake. I'm one of the most well-known and well-valued toons," she protested.

The guard started asking obvious questions for her worth as someone valuable. "Do you outsmart enemies?"

"Well, not usually."

"Do you telegraph any snarky moments?"

"No."

"Do you have a speech impediment that is adored by households all over?"

"No."

"Do you have quotable catchphrases?"

"Does 'le mew' count?"

"Hardly a passable catchphrase. Do you hear people mention your name?"

"Not to my knowledge."

"Do you show off athletic skills?"

"I haven't been given the chance to, but..."

He cut her off, saying bluntly, "If you have no useful qualities to use for humanity's emotional survival on the next planet, you have no place on this ship. Only the best, brightest and most valuable are allowed for humanity's continuation and you seem to have no valuable quality whatsoever. We can't let you on the ship."

Then she objected, "Wait, I happen to be the cat who's usually paired with Pepe. He can't be without me."

"He's been without you before, according to my research." Yes, there were works where Pepe Le Pew has appeared without Penelope where he managed to do well without her. "In fact, he's on the ship right now. He's on the list as he has more talent."

Then Pepe came to the door telling the guard, "Excuse moi, monsieur bouncer, but I sink we're ready to take o..." He then saw Penelope there and looked awkward.

Penelope pleaded to her usual skunk love-interest, "Pepe, please tell this man that I'm valuable enough to join in humanity's new life with the other Tunes."

Pepe felt uneasy, not knowing how to break this to her. He said with a sigh, "I do not know any other way to tell you zhis, cherie, but Monsieur Bunny has told us zhat only ze ones who are most cherished by viewers are needed for humanity, and between the deux of us, I telegraph more personality."

She couldn't believe this would be coming out of him, of all people/anthros. "But you still love me, right?"

"Well, zhat's what I've been meaning to tell you. As I have been taking on roles without you, I noticed zhat you have shown very little characteristics as ze years have gone by, compared to moi and our other cast members. Thus, I've realized that as you are too timid and ordinary, and not only is it somezhing far too, how you say, expendable for humanity's sake, but I have grown to lose interest you. I just do not see how a relationship between a timid cat and an extraordinary skunk could work."

She then felt a feeling of heartbreak inside her. It couldn't be? After so many years, Pepe was rejecting her just because she wasn't like Bugs, Daffy or the others? The French skunk then concluded, "Zhis hurts moi far more zhan it hurts vous, no? It is zhe order of zhings and I choose not to argue with it."

Then a yellow fox with a red wig, known as Claudette Dupri, appeared behind Pepe and said with a smug look, "But do not worry, darling, I shall be sure to look after him on our new planet and we shall remember you as you are: frightened, pitiful, and hopeless." Penelope gasped and just watched as the vixen led Pepe away back inside the ship and the bouncer looked back at the cat.

"Sorry, that's how it is, kid," the guard said blatantly. "If you don't have any special skills or memorable traits, you have no place with anyone else. You are not Looney, you are not talented, you are not well-known, and you are not useful; in short, you are not worthy! Have fun getting destroyed by a flaming rock or an appliance."

He then went inside, closing the door behind him. This can't be! She's doomed to perish on this creator-forsaken planet all because she is not like her co-members! What's even worse is the French skunk who has pursued/loved her all these years has finally rejected her for this reason rather than defend her! The cat protested, "No, no, wait! I can be worthy, just give me a chance!" She looked even more worried and scared, as it is too late to get on the ship or find any other way off this rock!

Then, to her surprise, the door opened with the bouncer appearing again, beginning to say, "Um..."

"Yes?" Penelope asked with hope that he's changed his mind and he'll be letting her escape with them after all.

"If it's any consolation, you'll be needing these." As he said that, he handed her a suit of armor and helmet just her size as he got her fit into it all. "Oh, and this as well." He handed her a flame-retardant shield to go with the armor, to shield her from the raining fire. This left her stunned and in even more disbelief. As he went back inside, she protested again, "But...but...but..."

Alas it was useless as the bouncer already closed the door and made sure it was locked tight. Then the spaceship's engines ignited and the spacecraft took off high into the sky, with the smoke from the exhaust blowing all over, sending her tumbling down the bridge she was on. She coughed and brushed the smoke away and looked up in horror to see the spaceship blasting off away from Earth with all its passengers, including the Looney Tunes cast, on it. This was unfair. Alas, there was only one thing she could do now.

So she ran off the bridge in her armor, desperately hoping to find another spaceship that has not departed Earth yet. Hopefully she still has a chance to escape this horrible fate, and she can always lie to the other ships' guards. As she panted and ran, the armor she was in clanked and cluttered, and because of this armor, she wasn't really getting any much speed. This armor's weight was slowing her down!

As she ran, she dodged various citizens running in terror and used her shield to dodge any raining fireballs. There may be a slim chance she could make it to another spaceship. Suddenly, without warning, her tail got snagged on something, causing her to fall to the ground. She looked and, to her further horror, her tail was snared by the cord of one of the evil appliances. She desperately fought it to get out of the little machine's grip, but suddenly yelped and screamed as her limbs were caught by four more cords, each belonging to four more evil appliances. They glared evilly at their feline prisoner and started to pull on her, stretching her in attempt to rip her apart.

All she could do was scream helplessly to the sky, "NO! NOOOOO! I DON'T WANT TO GO THIS WAY! I CAN BE LOONEY, I CAN BE WORTHY! JUST GIVE ME ANOTHER CHANCE AND DON'T LET ME DIE THIS WAY!" Then one of the flaming balls of fire came raining down in her direction and since she was caught by the evil appliances, she could not escape. This was it! This was the end for her! "AAAAAAAAAAHHHHHH!"

The ball of fire crashed down towards her, ending the poor kitty, with everything flashing to light.


Suddenly, Penelope came rising in a bed she was in with a scream, resulting in another cat sleeping in another bed next to her to jump awake as he hit his head, giving him the usual cartoon bump. He was a black and white tuxedo cat with a red nose, and people know him as Sylvester. He was Penelope's roommate and closest friend.

"I don't want to die! Give me another chance! I can be Looney! I can be worthy! Just don't let me die!"

The cat, soaked in sweat, breathed fearfully, before the annoyed male cat came over to her saying, "Technically, in this world, you can't die."

The female cat looked around and noticed everything was normal. No appliances were attacking and the sky had no balls of fire pouring down. The world was not ending, and she wasn't left to perish. She heavily sighed in relief that the whole thing was just a nightmare. Then she noticed the bump on Sylvester's head. "Oh, sorry, Sylvester." She got up and pushed the bump back down into her roommate's head. "I just had this terrifying dream. It's one where..." She was about to explain but she sighed. "Forget it. You wouldn't understand."

"Nonsense," he said as he held her paws. "In the cartoons, I'm usually someone too proud to admit when he's wrong, but here, I'm your roommate and closest friend. I'm here for you, and don't forget you also have Pepe. You can confide any problem you have in either of us."

She paused and sighed as she turned away. Although Sylvester was usually cast as the over-proud antagonist of the bird and mouse shorts, he did care for his fellow cat cast member. He and Pepe are there for her outside their work, and thus, he deserved to know.

She started to explain, "Well, in this dream, the world is ending and only the best, brightest and most valuable are allowed on board this ship to start life on a new planet. Since we Looney Tunes are considered the most valuable characters, we're on the ship also to provide emotional survival, but this guard refuses to let me come with any of you. What's worse is Pepe didn't bother to defend me, and why? Because apparently I'm not..." Then she heard snoring, turning to see Sylvester fast asleep again. He either lost interest in the story or the ability to stay awake much longer. "...worthy. Well, good night, Sylvester."

She went back to her own bed about to sleep as well, but gave a sad look upwards and letting out a sad sigh. Though she had Pepe and Sylvester for friends, she truly felt alone and ashamed as the other Looney Tunes all had something people praised them over, and thus, no one else, not even Bugs, bothered paying her any mind.


There you have it. I'm not sure if I could have this as an opening to a story, but I at least wanted to show this to others before I did such a thing. If I did, I would have to make slight alterations, if anyone has any suggestions. Keep in mind though that as much as I like Pepe, I don't want to make it so her entire world revolves around him when evidently HIS world doesn't revolve around HER.

After all, he did the following without her: play on a basketball team, meet the Groovie Ghoulies, fight a dog over a warm bed on a winter's day, a spy with Claudette Dupri, take care of a flower garden (as a baby), teach at Acme Acres, and was a perfume mogul. Let's not also forget that Carrotblanca was created in 1995, implying that she could do other things on her own and not be a weak, defenseless female character needing a skunk to take all the glory while she helplessly sits back.

Now I had Pepe lose interest in Penelope in the nightmare as a case of worse case scenario, like if he got wrapped up in all his appearances (as he tends to be narcissistic), he started to care more about his self-image and keeping the viewers happy than letting her join. It too is an allegory to how he was used on his own without her. However, it only exists within a nightmare. By the way, as you can see, this ignores WB's retirement of Pepe as a character.

One more thing to add: Before anyone gives a comment saying "but it's about Bugs", I have to point out that first off, he's not the only toon, there are several other characters in the franchise to enjoy. Secondly, as much as I like him, I am sick and tired of him and most of the others. There's no challenge to him anymore. He can handle anything.