Zorro: The Complete Classic Adventures by Alex Toth #1

In 1820, Don Diego returns to his homeland after years in Spain, summoned by his father amid the growing tyranny of the new Commandante. Determined to fight back without drawing suspicion, he adopts the identity of a cunning fox—Zorro—while enlisting his loyal servant, who pretends to be deaf and dumb to gather secrets. His first mission: free an unjustly imprisoned landowner and begin his campaign against Monastario’s cruelty.

In "Zorro's Secret Passage," Diego uses a hidden tunnel behind a fireplace to shelter his horse, Tornado, while Capitan Monastario offers a hefty reward for the capture of Senor Nacho Torres. As Torres takes refuge at a nearby mission, the Capitan attempts to lure Zorro out by arresting a vaquero named Avila, who bears a striking resemblance to the masked hero.

In "The Ghost of the Mission: Part 1," Zorro arrives at Mission San Gabriel under cover of night, where he confronts the oppressive rule of the Capitan and the forced labor of the mission’s Indigenous people. With the Lancers tightening their grip and the orange harvest under threat, Zorro moves swiftly to free those wronged—before the sanctuary ends and justice is lost.

In "The Ghost of the Mission: Part 2," Don Diego spins a tale of supernatural dread to unnerve Sergeant Garcia and the Lancers, hoping to free Inocente from the Commandante’s grip. With Monastario exploiting the fear of the mission Indians’ return, Diego turns the tide by conjuring the legend of a mission ghost—using cunning and shadow to outwit his enemies.

In "Garcia's Secret," Zorro’s daring nighttime stunt at the cuartel sets off a chain of events that turns the Capitan’s authority on its head. When Garcia is forced to repair the stable roof under the Capitan’s orders, his unexpected role as a spy leads him into a web of deception—only for Zorro to deliver a twist neither he nor the Commandante sees coming.

In "The King's Emissary," Don Diego finds himself arrested and brought before Sergeant Garcia, accused of being Zorro—just as the Viceroy’s unexpected arrival looms over Los Angeles. With Monastario scrambling to impress the noble visitor by emptying the jails and staging a grand feast, the true test comes when the Viceroy reveals his own hand, turning the tables on the corrupt Capitan and sending both Monastario and Pina to jail, leaving Garcia in command.

In "A Bad Day for Bernardo," the ever-unlucky servant tags along with Zorro on a mission to track down a missing girl named Maria, only to find himself caught in a web of deception and mistaken leads. As Zorro uses Bernardo to misdirect the Lancers, the day takes a surprising turn when the search uncovers a secret romance instead of a kidnapping.

In "The Little Zorro," a determined young boy journeys from Santa Barbara to seek out Zorro, hoping to join him in defending the oppressed. Impressed by the boy’s courage, Zorro recognizes his potential but insists he must first learn—sending him to Padre Onora’s mission school to prepare for the life of a hero.

In "The Visitor," a desperate Elena leaves her infant at Diego’s doorstep, overwhelmed by the injustice of her husband Jose Lopez’s imprisonment for speaking against oppressive taxes. With quiet determination, Zorro moves through the shadows to free Jose and restore his family, weaving justice into the dusty streets of the frontier.

In "A Double for Diego," Garcia, frustrated by Zorro’s endless escapes, tricks Diego into revealing the Fox’s true identity—only to find himself outmaneuvered. When Zorro arrives at the de la Vega hacienda to silence Diego, a clever twist turns the trap against Garcia, leaving the villain scrambling for a new scheme.