Show Description:

The plot of Invader ZIM revolves around the life of its titular character, Zim. Zim is a member of the mighty Irken race, an extraterrestial species whose social hierarchy is based on height. The Irken leaders are therefore known as the Almighty Tallest. During the course of the show, leadership of the Irken Empire is shared by two Tallest, Purple and Red, who are exactly the same height. Zim, who is both very short and very naive, was banished to the planet Foodcourtia for attacking his own planet and allies during Operation Impending Doom I. Upon hearing of Operation Impending Doom II, Zim escapes from Foodcourtia (or "quits", as he seems to have thought of it more as a mission than an exile) and arrives at the Great Assigning where elite Irken soldiers are chosen to become Invaders, special soldiers whose mission it is to blend in with the indigenous life forms of their assigned planet, collect intelligence, and prepare the planet for conquest by the Irken Armada. Zim pleads with the Tallest to assign him a planet, and in a desperate act to get Zim as far away as possible, they assign him to a "Mystery Planet" on the outskirts of their known universe that has never been explored. This "Mystery Planet" turns out to be Earth, and Zim's attempts at world domination and/or the eradication of the human race begins.