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One of Disney’s oldest television shows proves to still be one of their best.

There have been countless incarnations of the character Zorro across movie screens, television tubes and books, both text and graphic. None have proved more popular than the Walt Disney version aired in the late 1950s on TV, and probably rightly so. Antonio Banderas has nothing on Guy Williams when it comes to swashbuckling daring-do. Collected in their entirety for the first time on DVD are the two seasons of this landmark show as part of the Walt Disney Treasures collection, the latest installments in that annual series.

With Zorro and also Davey Crockett, Disney almost single-handedly created the mold for the weekly “hero adventure” show that eventually became lampooned by the likes of the 1960s Batman and revitalized in the recent past by Buffy. Taking inspiration from the serials of just a short decade or two before, Zorro played out as chapter-driven stories, with subplots driving the episodes while grander storylines drove the season. In them, unassuming Don Diego de la Vega would don his trademark black mask and outfit to rid the just-burgeoning California from evil-doers, usually political and military men looking to take over and spread tyranny.

It was a fun but simple show, and one that still holds up today, thanks in large part to its period setting. It has aged well, and remains entertaining to children and adults alike, never pandering to one set or the other. Williams was the perfect Zorro and has never been in danger of being replaced in that regard.

The two seasons have been released separately, each in their own sturdy tin. Included are all sorts of neat little things like Zorro pins, certificates of authenticity and the like, but the real treasure here is the show itself. It’s presented in gorgeous prints, and they look outstanding. There are also a few other extras, such as a brief documentary going over the history of the character and even some one-off “sequels” to the show that aired on another Disney show a few years later.

With Disney having almost (but not quite) exhausted their animated shorts library for the Treasures project, it’s nice to start seeing more and more of the live-action shows get their due, and Zorro is a great addition to the collection.

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