If for nothing else, Space Jam: A New Legacy has lived up to its predecessor's own strange and eccentric legacy. Just like the first film, it's about a modern marvel of basketball collaborating with the Looney Tunes gang to take on a science fiction threat.
However, this version gets plenty more kicks in by referencing video games and Warner Bros. long, film history, and it uses that wide range of personality to give its characters plenty of material to work their iconic banter on top of giving Space Jam some pop culture references. With the help of the animated, comedy troupe, this movie has plenty of memorable lines coming from the Tunes, Don Cheadle, and the Akron Hammer himself, LeBron James.
"I'm Going Old School On His butt."
Granny was always going to stand out among the Tune Squad for her deceptively frail demeanor, but Space Jam: A New Legacy doesn't waste any time hyping up her character, especially after it positions her as "The One" in her Matrix parody.
A "veteran player" for both animated basketball and Looney Tunes (just check out her Looney Tunes spin-off), Granny is an ace player who could always be counted on for taking on difficult offenses. This turned out to be the case when the Goon Squad began to depend on "Dame Time" Chronos to slow down the other team, and Granny had to step in to show some truly, timeless plays.
"I'm Shorter Than Kevin Hart!"
Much like Michael Jordan in the original film, LeBron James' journey to the Looney Tunes world was a bit of a clash of cultures. However, while Michael Jordan pulled a Bob Hoskins and just interacted with the Tunes as his human self, LeBron saw himself go through an entire, toon transformation at the beginning.
This gave way to some classic, visual gags, and after LeBron found himself squished for a second, he gave a quick roast of comedic actor, Kevin Hart. The line is easy to miss though. The joke was almost as short as Hart himself.
"I May Live In A Hole In The Ground, But We Still Get TNT."
It makes sense that since their last adventure, the Looney Tunes gang would be very well versed in NBA star players. Even more fascinating, they are apparently able to watch the playoffs on TNT from even Bugs' rabbit hole.
As jarring as it should be for cartoons and humans to interact in a strange, sci-fi crossover, it's nice to know that basketball is the great unifier.
"You Might Not Be Able To Get All Those Top Guys For The Team. This Ain't The Miami Heat, You Know."
Though the Miami Heat's lineup with LeBron didn't include Yosemite Sam or Wile E. Coyote bringing in dynamite, it did have him play with one of the biggest, dream teams in recent memory, with LeBron forming the "Big Three" alongside Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh.
When it came to saving his son from a manipulative, computer program, however, LeBron tried to get Bugs Bunny to help enlist the likes of Superman, King Kong, and the Iron Giant. Unfortunately, Bugs had other ideas; and while the final team wasn't exactly the Miami Heat, they still showed some unbelievable moves.
"I Went To School For Six Months To Be Accredited As A Security Specialist, Specializing In The Securial Arts."
After LeBron and his son got trapped by Al G. Rhythm, LeBron's childhood friend in the movie, Malik, rushed to get help. Unfortunately for him, the help wasn't exactly in a rush. One of the first people that Malik turned to was the security guard working the gates at the Warner Bros. lot.
While it would make sense to turn to the person who has access to all the cameras for help, this security guard put it in no uncertain terms that he didn't see LeBron and that he couldn't help. However, he also stated how that shouldn't discredit his credentials as a master of the securial arts.
"Now, You Are Gonna Finally Be Who You Really Are: Captain Of My Basketball Team."
It was obvious from the get-go that Al G. Rhythm was trying to use Dominic James against his own father. This is mostly because Al himself, despite being an advanced, computer program, is not exactly a cold, emotionless machine.
Much like the film executives that made him, Al is eccentric and vain, and he could barely hold himself at times from accidentally revealing his master plan to Dom. However, Dom himself is not totally absolved of his involvement here, especially given the large amounts of irony being served in this line.
"Hey, Yo, Brow, I Think It's Time For Your Eyebrows To Break Up With Each Other!"
While LeBron is the marquee performer in this film (second only to Bugs Bunny himself), Space Jam: A New Legacy stars plenty of NBA and WNBA players, though it has them playing for the other team. The Goon Squad is comprised of basketball legends such as Diana Taurasi and Damian Lillard playing superpowered versions of their nicknames, such as Diana playing as an actual "White Mamba" and Damian playing a time-manipulating robot called Chronos.
However, despite Anthony Davis' character still being called "The Brow," he plays a flying, harpy-like monster. LeBron, in this instance, gives Davis' famous moniker some relevance with one of the film's sickest burns.
"He's like Superman But With A Hi-Top Fade."
Dominic "Dom" James was more than just LeBron James' son in this movie. He's an aspiring, video game designer whose amateur game acted as the schematics for the pivotal battle between the Tune and Goon Squad. Literally upgrading the formula from the previous film, Dom helped add power-ups and "style points" to Space Jam: A New Legacy.
Dunking and making impressive plays that could only otherwise be done in a video game, Dom was a major player in the movie, and Lil Rel Howery was correct to call him "Superman but with a hi-top fade."
"I Was Famous Before The Internet. Since 1935, I've Been Getting Respect!"
While people may have come to the film for the live-action magic and cartoony basketball, they certainly weren't expecting to be glued to their seats for a Porky Pig rap. In one of the most memorable scenes to come from the franchise's timid pig, Porky drops his infamous stutter and instead drops some of the hottest bars ever used to fry some bacon or, in this instance, burn the other team.
There are a lot of great lines that came from Porky's rap; and while it would be easy to appreciate some of his disses, his best line had to be when he paid respect to the Tunes' history.
"Adversity Is Part Of The Process, Man. But If You're Passionate, You Gotta Learn How To Push Through It."
There are a lot of lessons to get out of Space Jam: A New Legacy. There's having fun, letting people be who they are, and certainly the need to resist making evil, artificial intelligence for the sake of marketing movies. One of the most impactful lines to come out of the movie, however, comes in the beginning when LeBron has a heart-to-heart talk about Dom's dreams.
Realizing that video games and computer science may mean more to Dom than basketball, LeBron encourages his son to pursue his passions, even when they're faced with obstacles and setbacks. As he says, "Adversity is part of the process," and who would know more about the process towards greatness than one of the NBA's greatest?