The Penguins of Madagascar premiered on Nickelodeon in 2008 as a spin off of DreamWorks' Madagascar film franchise, which began in 2005. The series followed Skipper, Kowalski, Rico and Private as Central Park Zoo penguins running covert missions under everyone's noses. Its short, recognisable title music became a nostalgic shorthand online for fans who grew up with the show, and the five second sting now circulates on soundboards as a quick cue for a team assembling, a plan starting, or a mischievous cartoon entrance.