Águila Roja

One of the best film criticisms I ever heard was "if the characters weren't so stupid, we wouldn't have a movie." That pretty much describes this series. Most, almost all, the problems the characters face result from their own unbelievable stupidity. I can't even count how many times I groaned & yelled at the TV, "Come on! Nobody is THAT stupid!!" The two main culprits are Satur, the faithful squire of our hero, and Alonso, his son. Satur's numbskull mistakes I could bear because the character is so lovable & endearing, but the son ... yeesh. He starts out as an obnoxious brat & over the course of nine seasons grows up to be a selfish, insufferable brat. His character became so deeply unlikable that I started rooting for him NOT to be saved from his various predicaments.

So how/why did I make it through all 116 eighty-minute episodes? You gotta love the 17th century superhero. Not only is he kind, selfless, and just, but he can take down a whole batallion of bad guys with his crossbow, ninja stars, and trusty sword. The fight scenes are rather unrealistic until you remember that he's not just a hero, but a superhero, with all the appropriate speed, reflexes, and strength befitting a superhero, centuries before Marvel Comics.

In summary, the series is a very mixed bag: groan-worthy plotlines but a truly great protagonist. Despite the ups & downs, I binged through all nine seasons in about two months. By the end, I was honestly hoping that they would revive the series, bring us Son of Aguila Roja, just with better-written characters the next go-'round.