By Joseph Walter
On the surface, the movie's Earth appears as an almost mirror image of our own, with Michael Jordan being a basketball hero who decided to take a break and play baseball. But beneath the surface, like, literally beneath the surface, it's revealed that the Looney Tunes live in some cartoon universe, one that's seemingly protected by the iconic, "bullseye" Looney Tunes logo and WB sigil... or perhaps this sigil is more of a portal? Regardless of whether they live in an underground, undiscovered realm, cross-dimensional rift/event, or something else entirely, the Tunes literally exist in our reality.
But they also know that they're cartoons. They're fully aware of their place as pop culture icons, and their associated merchandise. They also know they are broadcast on TV. In fact, it's shown that all the Warner Bros. shorts are essentially being performed by the Tunes live. When our Looney friends leave in the middle of a broadcast, there's nothing left in the screen's frame but an empty background. This happens on actual TV and, presumably, on multiple networks simultaneously. Did no one in a control room anywhere notice this? And what kind of existential crisis did they have if they did notice?
Enter the villains, a group of aliens hailing from a shitty, cosmic amusement park somewhere in the deepest reaches of space. They're also aware of the Looney Tunes as a brand, and they decide that they should be kidnapped and used as entertainment for their theme park, "Moron Mountain."
... wait a minute. Wait. They know who the Looney Tunes are... okay, I can believe that. But they also somehow know that the Looney Tunes are living beings that can be physically interacted with, and are housed beneath the surface of the Earth? Now this shit's just getting crazy.
Oh, and there's one more thing: the aliens? Yeah, they're also fucking cartoons.
The movie has already established some kind of Looney Tunes universe in a pocket dimension underground, where all cartoon characters exist and genuinely live their lives. And now we've got aliens, who are decidedly NOT from that animated realm... but they're also cartoons!? What!?
Do only the Looney Tunes exist on Earth, but other living cartoons are found in their own animated dimensions on other worlds? Did the aliens from Moron Mountain used to live in a subterranean cartoon world but then emerged into "3D land?" What in God's name does this mean?! How the hell did they even know where to find/how to access the Looney Tunes in the first place???
Speaking of accessing the Warner Bros. dimension, how does one leave? The WB sign/portal (found in the giant rabbit hole under the golf course) seemingly leads straight to the middle of the cartoon world's sky, with no obvious exit/entry point left behind. Despite this daunting predicament, it's clear that Bugs and Daffy are capable of easily (and/or regularly) slipping between the animated and three-dimensional territories. Bizarrely, the same can be said about Bill Murray. And Wayne Knight.
Also, quick side note: the presence of Wayne Knight. Does Seinfeld not exist in Space Jam's version of our reality? Bill Murray exists, but Wayne Knight isn't even Wayne Knight. He's Stan Podolak. So Michael Jordan, Larry Bird and Bill Murray exist in roles that are virtually identical to the ones they have on our version of Earth, but Wayne Knight just... doesn't?
Why? How?
And does this mean Danny DeVito doesn't exist, either, because he voices the boss of Moron Mountain, Mr. Swackhammer?
For example, both Michael and Stan effortlessly survive gruesome and brutal assaults, despite suffering injuries that would otherwise kill them in the "real" world. Likewise (and far more proactively), Michael famously took advantage of these odd environmental benefits by stretching his arm to an impossible length in order to score the winning basket against the Monstars.
In other words, it's safe to say that human beings are affected by the properties of the animated reality in which the Tunes thrive, becoming capable of incredible feats (by human standards, at least; not those of Bugs and co.)
This begs the question: what happens to Tunes in our world? Is it similar to Roger Rabbit, where 'toons just naturally have these traits and abilities, regardless of whether they're in "Toon Town" or Michael Jordan's house? Bugs and Daffy seemed to retain their full capabilities... but maybe their powers were actually surreptitiously limited by simply crossing the threshold between realms. Will prolonged exposure to "our" world make Bugs and Daffy develop unforeseen vulnerabilities and limitations similar to those of mortal men?
Who can say?
What a wild world.
... and that brings us to Space Jam: A New Legacy, and its dubious (at best) relationship to said world.
Is A New Legacy a remake? Is it a sequel? It can't seem to decide. It makes it seem like the original never happened, but then it suddenly decides that, yeah, it did happen... but only the Looney Tunes know about it? Maybe? It's all profoundly and bizarrely vague. Was the first Space Jam just some in-universe fiction/movie? Was it merely a product of the "Warner Verse?" Was it an event that happened solely in the Warner Verse? It doesn't make a lick of sense. It's all needlessly vague. Why couldn't they make up their minds!? Why further muddy up an already muddied-up fiction?
Honestly, at this point, I can't even begin to figure out what this mess of frayed continuity threads is trying to accomplish, but I think it's a safe bet to say A New Legacy isn't canon to Space Jam.
But you know what is? Do you know what piece of fiction fully embraces the madness of the original Space Jam's frenzied mess of a world? What treats the words and events of the 1997 script as absolute law? What takes every bonkers, contradictory story thread literally?
The one, true sequel to Space Jam, and the only one we ever needed: Barkley: Shut Up and Jam: Gaiden: Chapter 1 of the Hoopz Barkley SaGa.
Warning: that game is canon.