The Fox, the Sword and the Rose

Don Diego de la Vega - The Man.

An ahistorical version of colonial Los Angeles, full of romance, royal intrigue, witchcraft, and even polygamy. The city is populated by gypsies, slaves, priests, cannibals, conspirators, rebellious Indians, and Amazon warriors, as well as Spanish settlers, soldiers, pirates, and mestizo peasants. Diego learned acrobatics and fencing in Spain, under the tutelage of a great fencing master. Remembering the injustices he witnessed as a child, he returned to his family's hacienda in California. Now he lives as both a nobleman and a vigilante fighting against imperialist oppression. He is supported by Zorro's brotherhood, a secret society called the Knights of the Broken Thorn. Here Zorro falls in love with a beautiful young widow, Esmeralda Sanchez de Moncada. She arrives in California with her sister, Mariangel Sanchez de Moncada, and her father, Fernando Sanchez de Moncada, the newly appointed governor - and villainous dictator - of Los Angeles. The hero must take on a host of villains by branding them with Zorro's signature Z, made from three quick scratches. The story arc centers on mysteries surrounding Esmeralda's long-lost mother and the man whose brutality changed Diego's life forever. Their decision threatens to shake the Spanish Empire. In this story, Don Diego is sexually active. Much of the show is devoted to two sisters whom he allegedly impregnated out of wedlock. One of these women is Esmeralda, who ends up in prison, starved, and tortured. The other, Mariangel, plots to steal de la Vega's fortune. Zorro is dressed in black attire - shirt, belt, pants, boots, hat, bandana mask, and cloak. There is some gold embroidery on the hat and cloak. Diego wears a medallion on his chest, which he never takes off. Zorro uses a sword and a whip.