Mr. Hendricks didn’t answer. He peeled back the cardboard flaps, revealing a DVD set so thick it looked like an encyclopedia. The cover showed a grinning cat and a smug mouse, frozen mid-chase. Gold letters read: Tom and Jerry: The Complete Collection – All 161 Episodes. Restored. Uncut. Uncensored.

The complete collection. All 161 episodes. Just not the ones you remember.

But after the credits, something strange happened. The screen didn’t go black. Instead, a new episode began—one Leo had never seen. Tom was reading a book titled The Art of Patience . Jerry tiptoed past, carrying a wedge of cheese. Tom didn’t move. Jerry paused, confused. He waved. Nothing. He tapped Tom’s tail. Tom turned a page.

But that night, alone in the back room of the shop, he slid Disc One into an old player.

Leo didn’t listen. He jumped to Episode 161.