"...as a matter of fact, it gave me the opportunity to finish this last chapter : the effects of Moorish culture on Spanish poetry. Have you read it ?"
Monastario was somewhat surprised by the early return of the young de la Vega, the son of his greatest opponent. But, it was with amusement that he found out that Diego was a perfect dandy, cane in his hand and deep in reading.
The explanation of his return was simple, this young fellow was more interested in literature than in fencing and did not enjoy his life in his military academy.
Diego really seemed harmless to Monastario. The captain would be completely convinced of that, a few days later when Diego showed him his awkwardness with a sword.
"... There may always remain a small shadow of a doubt . I wish to try on the costume ! ..."
- Suspicions -
Although convinced that Diego de la Vega was unable to fight, Monastario was aggravated to constantly see this young untouchable aristocrat nosing about in captain's business. He even started to be suspicious ...
At the time of episode 5 at the Torres Hacienda, Captain Monastario was convinced that Diego was linked with Don Nacho's escape. And, if he hadn't discover him tied up in the cellar he could even have suspected him of being... Zorro!
"... All I know is that Diego... That is it ! Where is Diego de la Vega ? ..."
In episode 8, while Don Alejandro was hunted by the soldiers, Diego stayed in the hacienda seeming not to try to help his father. But Monasterio was no fool, and in answering Diego's ironic tone, he told him exactly what he thought.
This time, Diego really believed things were going to turn out bad for him !
"... I see through your trickery, you are an impostor ! ..."
Episode 11: after the intervention of the real Zorro against the false one during the Comandante's party, the guests noticed that Diego had curiously disappeared. The latter re-appeared from under the table with a bottle in a hand, appearing to everyone to be a coward. The Comandante Monastario did not seem fooled by that. He was going to ask Diego further explanations when the latter hastened to say goodbye and left the tavern.
"Where is Don Diego ?"
Episode 12: the spark which lighted the wick!
Diego wanted at all cost to clear Zorro's name of the crime of which he was accused. So he made the mistake of fighting Martinez in front of Monastario. Although he played his great scene of the awkward fencer, as he won the duel, Diego destroyed his best alibi and removed the last doubt Monastario had about him.
"How is it possible that the most inept swordsman of all California was able to defeat Martinez, one of the best ?"
- Unmasked -
As he was reading the report of Zorro's activities, where Sergeant Garcia described all the offenses referring to the masked bandido, Captain Monastario acquired the certainty that Diego was Zorro !
Here are the first pages of the Report of Zorro's activities written by Garcia (NEW! thanks to Venil). They relate the events that occured during the period from March 24 to May 18, 1820.
This report has to be read from the last page to the first page, that is to say from the most recent events to oldest. like Monastario read it that day.
While he was reading the report, Monastario wrote annotations in the right margin showing he was suspecting Diego more and more. At the end of his reading, as he reached the report of the 1st appearance of Zorro, the Comandante had no doubt anymore about the true identity of the masked bandido!
"I have here a list of Zorro's offenses (...). One of the interesting fact that I caught in about this list de la Vega : Whenever Zorro struke you were always closed at hand, yet whenever Zorro actually appeared you were never seen. How do you account for that ? ..."
"Diego de la Vega, I arrest you in the name of the King ! (...) You are Zorro ! ..."
Precisions about the report
Aspect : during episode 28, Raquel, Comandante Toledano's wife is reading the report of Zorro's Activities. There are summaries corresponding to episode 16 " slaves of the Eagle " showed
Dating:
- At the beginning of the first episode, we learnt that the scene took place in 1820. - the first episodes took place during the harvest of oranges.r - the judgement of Don Nacho and Don Alejandro (eps 9) took place the 14th. - the episode summarized in the report that Raquel read in the episode 28 occurs on June the 12th (several weeks later).
Author: It is known that Garcia wrote reports at several occasions (Monastario epis.12: " uh, Garcia wrote the report ...").
It seemed fun to me to make this report written by Garcia. As the Sergeant knew this report would be read by the Comandante, he did not report anything neither compromising nor ridiculing Monastario. If you read this report in the chronological order, you can also notice an evolution in Garcia's opinion about Zorro.
- Conclusions -
Captain Monastario is the greatest nemesis than Zorro had to fight. He was also the only one who found out Zorro's identity.
As you know or as you may guess, at the time of episode 13 of the first season, when Monastario revealed to everyone the double identity of Diego de la Vega, he did nothing but compromise himself... and in the end he was the one who was arrested.
As Diego's name had been cleared publicly and officially, the young man could not be suspected of being Zorro any more.
And as pointed out Raquel, in episode 28, only idiots would submit this ridiculous assumption again.
However, this misadventure taught Diego a lesson. Then, he took many more precautions to mask his identity, creating to himself solid alibis with the help of Zorro's double : Bernardo !
"... At one time or another, every stupid person of the pueblo has suggested that..."
