Tear Jerker / Madagascar: Escape 2 Africa

"Daddy..."

Spoilers are unmarked on all moment pages. You have been warned.

• The entire opening. As a cub, Alex is captured by poachers and his father, Zuba, desperately tries to save him only to get shot in the ear (much to his son's horror), then the crate Alex is trapped in gets knocked into a river, and he desperately cries for his father. Zuba still believes that the poachers still have Alex.
  • Worse, the scene with baby Alex crying out for his daddy while floating in a crate out at sea, itself a Call-Forward to the first film.
  • Adding deeper, the way he saw his father shot down, made it looked like Zuba took a Boom, Headshot! instead of an Ear Ache.
• On his first night back in Africa, Alex is told by his parents the sad story of his disappearance, which he doesn't even remember due to mentally blocking it out at such a young age. Zuba says he tracked the hunters for weeks but never found him, which we know is due to the fact that Alex's crate was knocked into the river. However, Zuba and Florrie eventually had to assume the worst and that Alex had been killed by the hunters. While Florrie already had it bad in that she didn't get to see her young son before his apparent death, Zuba's last memory of his son while he was alive was him simply crying for his father to help him. It's a horrific, heartbreaking thing to think about.
• After the fight with Teetsi and Makunga taking over the pride, Alex and Zuba have an argument that doesn't end well.
  Zuba: You should've told us, son. You should have told us that you weren't a real king.
  Alex: You never told me I'd have to fight anybody!
  Zuba: What did you expect, son?!
  Alex: Oh, I don't know, maybe a little fatherly advice, like, "Hey, son, it's a fight!"
  Zuba: You're a lion, aren't ya?
  Alex: But I've never fought another lion in my life!
  Zuba: Oh, I guess not, you dance!
  Alex: And other stuff! The point is your pal, Makunga, set me up back there! I mean, none of this would've happened...
  Zuba: If you were a real lion!
  Florrie: Zuba!
  Zuba: Yeah, I said it!
  Alex: A real lion. Thanks. Thanks a lot. (leaves)
  • If you look closely as Alex leaves, you can see some of the animals on the ground, looking at Zuba as if to say "You messed up".
• Alex fighting with Marty. While the first part doubles as Funny, the entire conversation shows Marty hurt that Alex thought one of the zebras was him, like he found a replacement. At the end, Marty leaves in a huff, culminating with a call back to the first movie.
  Marty: You thought that guy was me?!?
  Alex: No, no, no... I mean, yes. Yes, you do kind...
  Zebra: You thought I was him?
  Alex: You guys do look a little a lot... You look a lot alike. Marty, you look a lot alike, come on. You laugh alike. You talk alike. You have the same sort of speech pattern. I mean. It's a little weird, really. You guys are... I mean, come on. Marty.
  Marty: (close to tears) So, you're sayin' there's nothin' unique about me. I'm just like any other zebra.
  Alex: No, of course you're different!
  Both: How?
  Alex: (Beat) Okay, okay. I can't tell you apart. Maybe you could wear a bell or something? I don't know.
  Marty: A bell?
  Alex: OK, not a bell. No, bell's a bad idea.
  Marty: No, no, no! How about a T-shirt that says "I'm with stupid"?!
  Zebra: I'm not stupid.
  Marty: Not you, stupid! Him, stupid!
  Alex: You know what? While you've been doin' the "Prancing Pony" with your new posse, I've been having pretty much the worst day of my life, okay?!
  Marty: (sighs in frustration) It's always about you, isn't it?
  Alex: My problems are just a little bit bigger than yours, Marty. Alright, I couldn't tell you apart. So what?! (one of the zebras is seen leaving) Yeah, fine. Run away, Marty! Run away! That's what you do best, just like back in New York!
  (the actual Marty is right next to him)
  Marty: I'm right here. But you can't tell that, right?
  (Alex groans furiously)
  Marty: Your "one-in-a-million" friend hopes you enjoy your "bigger-than-anyone-else's" problems ALONE!
  Alex: Good! Leave! I don't need you to help solve my problems! You know what, you're a dime a dozen, I can't tell which one's Marty! Oh, which one's Marty? Wait a minute, wait a minute, oh, yeah! I don't care!
  Marty: Nice hat, ya show off!
  (Beat)
  Alex: (quietly) Marty... Don't go.
  • Made worse by the fact that this was indeed a misunderstanding, as Alex wasn't looking for a replacement, and it really didn't register that it wasn't Marty that he was talking to, in a case of Dramatic Irony, WE can obviously see the signs that it wasn't Marty, such as the advanced knowledge of African culture (i.e Moto Moto's name's meaning), and the rather stale, almost robotic personality in comparison to the real Marty. The twist is ultimately revealed when the other zebra reacts with SURPRISE at being called Marty!
• The whole Gloria/Melman subplot is full of this. Melman learns that he has come down with a terminal illness, and becomes too depressed to tell any of his friends. When Melman finally gathers enough courage to tell her how he feels, he finds her on a date with Moto Moto, who only loves Gloria for her large build. He indirectly reveals his feelings to her when he tells Moto Moto to treat Gloria properly, for his sake.
  • Later when the watering hole dries up, King Julien manages to convince the animals of the reserve that a volcanic sacrifice to the water gods is needed to bring it back, and Melman offers himself, and tells Gloria that he's already dying when the other animals carry him off to the volcano. The look on her face when she hears this is absolutely heartbreaking.
    Gloria: "This is crazy. I had to go halfway around the world to find out the perfect guy for me lived right next door."