Alex the lion is the king of the city jungle, the primary attraction at New York's Central Park Zoo. He and his greatest buddies—Marty the zebra, Melman the giraffe and Gloria the hippo—have spent their entire lives in blissful captivity earlier than an admiring public and with common meals supplied for them. Not content material to go away effectively sufficient alone, Marty lets his curiosity get the higher of him and makes his escape—with the assistance of some prodigious penguins—to discover the world.