In the anime Ulysses 31, Penelope is the wife of Ulysses and the mother of Telemachus. She lives on Earth and is presented as a young woman with golden, softly curling hair, a feature her son shares. Unlike her husband and son, who travel through space aboard the ship the Odyssey, Penelope remains behind on Earth, where she waits for Ulysses to return. As a result, she appears only briefly over the course of the series, and her presence is felt mostly through the thoughts and memories of the main characters.

Her role in the story is that of a cherished family member left at home. Ulysses and Telemachus frequently think of her and long to be reunited with her, and she represents the ordinary life and home they hope to recover. In terms of personality, she is shown mainly through the affection her family holds for her, as a dearly loved and much missed figure rather than an active participant in the adventure. Her motivations are simple and consistent: she waits faithfully for her husband, and the series does not give her any special powers or abilities. Because she rarely appears on screen, she undergoes little visible development and instead remains a constant, hopeful presence in the background of the story.