Does Mendoza have a dark side? The possibility that Mendoza has a "dark side" was being discussed in another topic. I felt it was an interesting one that could definitely be explored a little further.
Does he have a dark side? I tend to think that in the beginning of the show, he most certainly had ulterior motives which he kept well hidden. This probably wasn't much of a feat for him, since being secretive seems to be a natural part of his character.
I never did think that Mendoza would have ever done anything to harm the children though, regardless of the reward. Toward the end, it is pretty clear that he really cares for them - after all, he risks his life to help them. I may even venture to say he loves them - at least Esteban.
Although I do believe he is capable of murder (recall Tao's near death experience), I get the feeling that he really dislikes it. For example, When he has the opportunity to kill (Tao, Tetiola when he was knocked off the portico-thing by Mendoza's spear), he doesn't. By the end of the show he's probably killed a few Olmecs in self protection, and a handful of animals.
I do recall him being pretty callous in some situations with the Doctor and Marinche, which disturbed me. Like when he was going to leave them on the ledge to die after the eagle attacked - but then again I think a lot of people would have done the same considering their treatment of them. Later, at the second city the Doctor threatens Zia with his sword if Mendoza didn't give up the pistol and he was really hesitating! I wonder what would have happened if Esteban hadn't intervened? After all, Zia really was of no use to him at that point.
Anyway, Mendoza redeems himself in the end.
Another important thing to consider: whenever anyones life is in immediate danger, who comes to the rescue? Although I'm not sure what his motives are for taking huge risks to help people. Most likely he's trying to challenge himself, or maybe it's just bravado. It could be that when he sees someone in trouble, he doesn't even stop to think about what he's doing, he just feels compelled to help. Maybe it's when he has time to actually think something through that his motives become a little more selfish. Who knows. Any ideas?
Re: Does Mendoza have a dark side? I don't think that Mendoza have 'dark side'. He's human, too, that's all.
He killed olmecs, of course, it was "war". And animals? Yes, but Tao killed animals too, to survive.
And he hesitated, when he was no need for Zia...maybe he thought about some plan to save all his members.
Don't forget, he once risked his life to save Pedro, too!
Re: Does Mendoza have a dark side? The common way of interpreting Mendoza is to say that he starts off thinking only about gold, but gets more and more attached to the children as time goes on so that he ends up considering their welfare as the most important thing.
And I don't disagree with this actually, it's explicitly stated by Mendoza himself at the end of the series, but I also think that even in the earlier episodes he displays a consistently protective attitude towards the children that goes beyond just needing them to find the cities of gold. After all, the other Spaniards like Gomez, Pizarro and the Doctor also want to use the children to find the treasure, but they happily resort to threats and rough treatment.
Whereas Mendoza, in addition to all the times he saves their lives, spends time with them on board the Esperanza explaining navigation to them, lets them use his own cabin, stops Pedro and Sancho from bullying them when needed and refuses to let the other Spaniards get information out of them by violence.
In short, I think there's a noble core to Mendoza that makes him someone you could trust on a basic level even when he's at his worst, i.e. most gold-hungry, if that makes sense.
IMO, his most unpleasant moments come in the The Lake of Gold episode where he not only floods the village but also seems to temporarily forget about the captive children, although he is pleased to see them again at the end.
Re: Does Mendoza have a dark side? Mendoza never attempted to betray the children at any cost, what he did was just to try and buy time to escape serious situations.
Re: Does Mendoza have a dark side? Just think about it... in ep 34 Tao hesitated to give the sword back to Gomez, when Gaspard captured Zia. Then, Tao has "dark side", too?
