The Tiger's Apprentice introduces Tom Lee, a regular Chinese-American kid in San Francisco whose life is upended when he learns he's a Guardian, destined to protect a phoenix with his grandmother, a powerful magical being. After she's lost in battle, Tom must apprentice under a talking tiger, Mr. Hu, to master ancient magic and join forces with other Zodiac animal warriors to fight an evil force, Loo, aiming to misuse the phoenix's power to destroy humanity, all set within a hidden world of Chinese mythology.