Production #101: Destiny

There's nothing dramatically startling in this repackaging of the familiar Zorro mythology, but the switch from the traditional male swashbuckler to a female Queen of Swords does provide the opportunity for a few entertaining novelties. In addition, the production's earnest sincerity in playing out the basic storyline holds out the promise that this series will avoid a cheesy self-parody of the genre.

Tessa Alvarado is a young woman who travels from Spain back to her native California when she hears of the untimely "accidental" death of her father. It doesn't take her long to realize that the corrupt local officials are oppressing the peasants and are probably responsible for making her a penniless orphan. But the judicious intervention of her father's spirit into her dreams reveals some hidden gold with which to save the family estate and an image of her destiny as his avenging angel, The Queen of Swords.

The scrap of black lace which supposedly hides her features is as much of a conceit as Clark Kent's glasses, but Tessa cuts such a dashing figure in her black tights that it's easy to grant her this small concession and wish her well in her valiant protection of the abused and downtrodden peasantry. In another, welcome, departure from the original mythos, her servant and confidante Marta is a Gypsy who is far from mute. As she remarks dryly at one point, adroitly avoiding Tessa's plea for some guidance, "I say many things."

Also welcome is the production's oblique approach to Tessa's epiphany. Upon her arrival in California, her first instinct is to use the traditional arsenal of a beautiful, well-bred and unmarried young woman in getting her way. Appalled by the cruelty she witnesses, she tries to charm the wayward officials into acts of compassion and leniency. It's only when this approach doesn't work that she reaches for the sword.

Although the script is not rife with humor, there are the occasional flashes of wit. When the dastardly Captain Marcus Grisham attempts to woo Tessa and remarks that she needs protection, she readily agrees. "I'll get a dog." Later, when he fights the Queen of Swords and backs her against a prison wall, he sneers, "I guess I'm a little more than you expected." Then he feels the cold steel blade between his legs as the Queen warns, "You could be a little less."

With the exception of Marta — who is played with quiet authority by Paulina Galvez, a well-regarded Spanish actor — the other players are unexceptional, although adequate for the less-than-pressing demands of the script. In the lead as Tessa, Tessie Santiago is a little stiff and lacking in physical presence, but there is room for growth in the role of a young woman who is learning to be a hero. (Her features are conventionally pretty, but the true beauty in the series is the more mature Marta.)

Given the well-established backstory for Zorro/Queen of Swords, the first episode was practically a no-brainer, so it remains to be seen whether the writers can continue to find fresh ways of delivering on an old formula. Unfortunately, the fighting sequences were tepid and perfunctory, and the villains too shallow and lacking in moral complexity to provide sustained character drama. Unless both aspects are strengthened soon, the series will never rise above its premiere.

—Carmen Carter