Skunk's Adventures of The Lion King 2: Simba's Pride

## Plot

The film opens a few months after the events of the first film where Rafiki (Robert Guillaume) gathers the animals of the Pride Lands together for the presentation of King Simba (Matthew Broderick) and Queen Nala's (Moira Kelly) new daughter Kiara. Mufasa's spirit (James Earl Jones) proudly watches over the ceremony.

Months later, Simba becomes very overprotective of young Kiara (Michelle Horn), assigning Timon and Pumbaa (Nathan Lane and Ernie Sabella) to be her babysitters. One day, while they are arguing over their lunchtime, Kiara sneaks into the Outlands where she meets a young cub named Kovu (Ryan O'Donohue). After escaping a river filled with crocodiles, the two become friends, but Simba and Kovu's mother, Zira (Suzanne Pleshette), quickly end their playtime. Zira claims that the Pride Lands belonged to Scar, and reminds Simba that he banished the Outsiders, and notes that if he wants to punish them, Kovu is Scar's hand-chosen successor. Unwilling to harm the cub, Simba orders them to leave and later scolds Kiara for endangering herself. Furthermore, Simba lectures Kiara saying that he wants her to be careful when she is the future queen. In the Outlands, Zira's eldest son, Nuka (Andy Dick), complains to his younger sister Vitani (Lacey Chabert) about Kovu's status as "the Chosen One". At that moment, Zira returns and rebukes both of her sons, but then decides that she can use Kovu's new friendship with Kiara to get her revenge against Simba.

A few years later, an adolescent Kiara (Neve Campbell) heads out to do her first solo hunt. However, Simba is worried and fearful of his daughter unprotected and sends Timon and Pumbaa to watch her again, despite promising not to. Furious to find out her father has lied, Kiara decides to hunt away from the Pride Lands, though is still unsuccessful in her efforts. Nuka and Vitani (Jennifer Lien) set fire to the plains where Kiara is hunting, causing her to faint and give Kovu (Jason Marsden) the chance to rescue her, as part of Zira's plan. Drawn by the smoke, Simba and Nala find them together and Simba reluctantly thanks Kovu for rescuing his daughter and allows him to come to Pride Rock, though he is ordered to sleep outside the den. That same night, Simba has a nightmare about his father's death, only in the dream, Scar morphs into Kovu and throws the panicked and frightened Simba off the cliff into the stampede. In the morning, he walks outside the den and yawns and stretches and goes to drink at a watering hole where Kovu contemplates attacking him. However, Kiara interrupts and they go off together so Kovu can help her learn to hunt. During the lesson, they run into Timon and Pumbaa struggling with some birds, so the two lions help them chase the birds off. Together, they have fun playing, something Kovu notes he has never experienced before. That night, Kovu tells Kiara that he is not Scar's real son, but "was a part of him". Simba, who is hesitant to trust the young Outlander around his daughter, seeks guidance from the "Great Kings" and Nala gently advises him to give Kovu a chance. Kovu decides to leave after trying to confess his real intentions, but Rafiki stops and invites the young lions to experience "Upendi" – which means love in Swahili. After a musical journey through the jungle, the two fall deeply in love. Then Simba finally warms up to Kovu and invites him into the den to sleep. Unbeknownst to them, Vitani overhears them and alerts Zira.

In the morning, Simba invites Kovu for a walk and tells him the true story of Scar, which Kovu had never heard. However, their walk is interrupted by Zira and her pride. After Zira deceitfully praises Kovu for leading Simba away from his pride, Simba believes that Kovu had set him up and Kovu truthfully claims he had nothing to do with it. After a brief fight, Simba manages to escape by scaling a wall of logs in a gorge. In chasing after him, Nuka slips and is killed by falling logs. Zira blames Kovu for Nuka's death and swipes her claws across his face, leaving a scar across his eye identical to Scar's. Breaking from his mother, Kovu returns to the Pride Lands and begs the king for his forgiveness. Believing Kovu was behind the ambush, the wounded, shortsighted, and distrustful Simba exiles him and strictly orders Kiara to be confined in Pride Rock and forbids her to leave unescorted. Kiara is furious because her father refuses to listen to Kovu. Simba claims that Kovu is following in Scar's paw prints and that himself must following in Mufasa's, unknowingly he defied what his father wanted. Kiara angrily defies Simba, saying, *"YOU WILL NEVER BE MUFASA!"* horrifying and hurting him. Later that night, Kiara escapes and reunites with Kovu far from home.

Meanwhile, Zira leads her pride in a war against the Pride Lands, and a fierce fight breaks out. As Zira and Simba face off, Kovu and Kiara leap between them and Kiara tells her father that the fighting has to stop. She then tells him that the Outsiders are part of the pride, and she and her father peacefully nuzzle and reconcile. Zira refuses to stop fighting, but Vitani agrees with Kiara. Zira tells her daughter that she will die too if she will not fight, which turns the other Outlanders against her and they join Simba's side. Now alone, Zira leaps for Simba, but Kiara pushes her away and they fall over a cliff. Kiara safely lands on a rock, but Zira is sliding towards a storm-swollen river. Kiara offers to help, but Zira, like Scar, is unable to let go of her hate and falls to her death. Simba helps his daughter back up the cliff and allows the Outsiders, including Kovu, to return to the Pride Lands. Additionally, Kovu marries Kiara before joining her and her parents at the top of Pride Rock. Mufasa's spirit proudly watches over from among the stars and praises his son for his decision.