[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/outernet.png]]
-> ''We are not alone. We might wish that we were... But we're definitely not.''

There are some things that exist solely to [[LampshadeHanging lampshade]], [[SubvertedTrope subvert]], [[InvertedTrope invert]], and generally deconstruct any tropes they come across. This series does that for [[TropesInSpace Space]] and ScienceFiction Tropes.

The series follows fourteen year-old Jack Armstrong, his friends Merle and Lothar (Loaf) and two {{Shapeshifting}} aliens trapped in the form of a dog and cat. After Jack receives [[MacGuffin The Server]], an alien teleportation/database system, the three humans are recruited to prevent [[NamesToRunAwayFromReallyFast The Tyrant's]] evil plan to steal The Server and thus control the Outernet. (Which is just the outer-space version of the internet). It has some surprising plot twists towards the end. There are six books in the series.

!!Tropes present in this work:
* AlienAnimals: A lot of cats and dogs are members of two rival races of shapeshifters in disguise.
* [[AlternateUniverseReedRichardsIsAwesome Alternate Universe Loaf is Awesome]]: In one book, Merle travels to an alternate universe where Loaf is a dashing freedom fighter named "Lothar."
* {{Alternet}}: The Outernet is a galaxy-wide internet that can teleport people as well.
* BigBad: The Tyrant.
* BiggerOnTheInside: The gang optimistically suggest that the van-sized Trigger might be this but they turn out to be wrong.
* CasualInterstellarTravel: The Outernet can teleport people across the galaxy instantly for free.
* DeadpanSnarker: Loaf, Googie, and the Server's interface, known (ironically) as Help.
* DeathWorld: The Planet Aaaaaargh (with six A's), home to the eyeball-popping razor-toothed ear-drillers.
* TheDreaded: The Tyrant is ''THE'' most feared being in the galaxy. On a less selective basis, his top enforcers the Bugs are these as well.
* ElvisHasLeftThePlanet: The gang find an old, fat Elvis performing on Arcadia.
* FallenHero: [[spoiler: The books always sadly note that Loaf's GoodCounterpart from a BadFuture universe]] was a brave and heroic freedom fighter. But being abandoned and left to die on an alien planet against the wishes of the cast, [[NecessarilyEvil to prevent the Outernet from becoming a tool of conquest for endless petty wars between warlords]], hardened and embittered him. In the present day, he has become, [[spoiler: well... the Tyrant]].
* {{Foreshadowing}}: Throughout the book, when discussing the humans who have the Server, the Tyrant always pauses a bit whenever he has to mention Lothar Gelt. [[spoiler: That's because the Tyrant is actually a Loaf from a BadFuture, who was accidentally stranded decades ago in the past.]]
* FunWithAcronyms: The [=FOEs=], the Forces of Evil. Also, Bug, the name of the species who work for the [=FOEs=], stands for "Big Ugly Guy" (Reportedly, the name came from when someone asked, "Who's the big ugly guy?" and it stuck.)
* GeniusBruiser: The Bugs, interestingly enough for the standard issue mooks of a series. They're big, hulking mutants larger than normal humans and speak with relatively soft, cultured voices.
* LovableCoward: Zodiac Hobo,
* MeaningfulName: Zodiac ''Hobo''.
* TheMilkyWayIsTheOnlyWay: Seems to be in effect. The only mentions of intergalactic travel are a petulent Halp threatening to teleport itself to one of the Magellanic Clouds and the back cover of the second book mentioning "a wild ride through strange galaxies".
* {{Mooks}}: The Bugs.
* OnlyKnownByTheirNickname: Lothar "Loaf" Gelt.
* APlanetNamedZok: Some planets fit, like Vered II.
* PlayingBothSides: [[spoiler: As it turned out, Tracer, the chief informant of the [=FOEs=], is also the Weaver, the leader of the Friends. When TheReveal comes around, he admits that this was the only way he could keep both sides aware of the other's plans.]]
* PleasurePlanet: Arcadia is a theme park planet.
* TheReveal: Who is the Weaver, and who is the Tyrant? Both answers will surprise you.
* ShapeshifterModeLock: Googie and Bitz are stuck in the form of a cat and a dog, respectively.
* ShapeshifterMashup:[[spoiler: Bitz uses one in the last book. In his own words, he didn't know how to use his old forms, so he just made something up]]
* StableTimeLoop:[[spoiler: They create one... accidentally.]]
* TimeTravel: The fourth book.
* TranslatorMicrobes: The laptop can translate anything nearby.
* YouHaveFailedMe: It's mentioned that anytime the current leader of the Bugs is called to the Tyrant's main palace, the Dark Pyramid, he's typically killed and his second in command is promoted.
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