When Chase Gioberti (Robert Foxworth) learned that he lost his father (Harry Townes), two feuding heads of a California wine-producing family chose to put all their moments behind for Jason Gioberti's funeral. When younger daughter, Emma Channing (Margaret Ladd) was responsible for her uncle's death, Angela Channing (Jane Wyman) tyrannical matriarch and owner of Falcon Crest, protects and calms her. When Chase's family heads back to New York, after the death of his father, he begins to remember all the fun times he had with his father. It was also Chase's call for his wife, Maggie Gioberti (Susan Sullivan) and children, Cole (William R. Moses) and Vicky (Jamie Rose), to move to their own house in California, at Falcon Crest, after a year's sabbatical that has taken a toll on his family. Unhappy with Chase's family moving back to the vineyard, Angela comes up with a way to forsake them, consequently, her grandson, Lance Cumson (Lorenzo Lamas) was shocked to hear about her decision for a competitive family to go back east.

Paul, an old friend of Chase comes to Falcon Crest, where they spent a great deal thinking of the times they had, while attending the Air Force. After taking a trip down memory lane, the two decided to turn their flying business into action, where they disagreed on where it needed to be located. Angela and her family finds out about this, and that Paul has no intention of doing a flying service, when he lies to Chase about the large sum of money from Chase to cover his gambling debt, this led Angela into kicking Paul out of Falcon Crest. When Paul tries to go with his plan, this made the businesses of Chase, Maggie and Julia, as to how he nearly ruined the vineyard, when they find a way to get this vineyard back.

Chase, lacking of staff, needing to owe $50,000 in property taxes, who, tries to sell all his grapes before harvest time, only to get Angela to buy them below their retail price. Chase chooses to sell them, after Gus told him that another buyer is interested in paying above their price for his grapes. When Angela learns about the business deal, she chooses to purchase the man's mortgage from the bank, so he can drop a deal with Chase, around the same time The Giobertis decide to sell their house in New York, to stay on board.

When Angela couldn't tolerate Lance's irresponsible behavior, she prevents her grandson from becoming the proud owner of Falcon Crest, therefore, she kicks him out, much to her contempt. Discovering from him of his grandmother's feelings towards him, he tries to please Angela by blowing up Chase's pump house and cause a fight in the springhouse, and later gets arrested, before he gets grounded by Angela, not Julia (though she told Lance, her mother was under the impression, who also gave Lance to him, away from Julia, as a little boy)! Once grape harvesting begins, Lance tries to please Angela, again, by paying off Chase's staff, afterwards, to make Lance jealous, Angela escorts Cole into becoming the new heir of Falcon Crest, who straightens out with his father about Chase's staff losing pickers. Cole learned about this, he takes the keys and the car back to Angela, returning to his parents' house. Lance told Angela about his actions, and the staff, before Chase confronts Angela about her doings with Cole and about Chase's staff being gone and demanded that the staff returns, early in the morning.

After 12 years of turning Tony's back on Julia and Lance, Lance has a strong dislike about the truth that he can return to the vineyard as if nothing has happened. While Julia tries to please Tony, Angela and Lance become more concerned about their own responsibilities. The truth was revealed when Tony only came back to Falcon Crest to get Julia to make a brand new life, away from the vineyard. When Julia thought about that, she refuses to accept her ex-husband's offer, due to her unwillingness to leave with her family and friends in San Francisco. Also, Chase becomes more concerned about Maggie taking a job in San Francisco, as a newspaper writer, much in fact that she'd be working with his aunt's Angela's ex-husband, Douglas Channing (Stephen Elliott).

Chase and Cole accompany Lance on a trip to examine a remote piece of property that Angela is contemplating buying. As the wilderness property is only accessible by horse, Cole is injured in a riding accident. Chase stays with Cole, while Lance goes for help. After running into some problems, Lance finally leads a rescue team to Cole. After Vicky makes an innocent remark regarding a mental health clinic, Emma runs away from home, believing that she is going to be sent away because people think she's crazy. When Vicky discovers Emma hiding in an old springhouse, she befriends Emma, and ultimately persuades her to return home. Worried, Douglas Channing stays by Angela's side until Emma is found.

When Emma's lover, Turner Bates, who was on the scene when Jason died, returns, Chase informs him that Jason supposedly died in a car crash. Knowing this to be untrue, Turner seeks Emma to learn what happened after he ran from the scene on the night of Jason's death, but Angela throws Turner off her property. Turner sneaks back, steals Emma away and romances her in order to learn the truth. Unable to obtain any straight answers from Emma, Turner tries to blackmail Angela, who in turn calls in the police, and Turner, after a car chase, is accidentally killed. Chase and Lance pull Emma out and save her. When Maggie says that she may be pregnant, the Giobertis try to cope with the effects that it would cause.

When Angela takes Cole to Rome to attend an important wine-tasting competition, she is surprised to find that Douglas is there, and hopes to rekindle the memory of their honeymoon spent there years ago. Initially, romance flares between Angela and Douglas; however, Angela devastates Douglas when she refuses his proposal to re-marry. Meanwhile, Cole has been given a collection of mysterious letters, which belong to an Italian relative and which underscore the enduring bitterness between Angela and Jason. Angela leaves Lance in charge of Falcon Crest to test him with the family business, but Lance painfully discovers that he's not as shrewd as his grandmother. Chase learns in the end, however, that Lance is not just a spoiled rich kid, but is a very dangerous person as well.

Angry with her parents for their excessive protectiveness, Vicky runs away from home to San Francisco, where she's lured into a wayward street life that she can't escape. Chase and Maggie frantically search for Vicky, unaware that Lance has introduced their vulnerable daughter to a woman connected with pornographic films. The Giobertis become stronger than ever when Chase and Maggie endure a difficult ordeal before locating Vicky. Angela toys with Douglas's emotions, playing him against a renowned painter and making Douglas look like a fool.

Maggie's news assignment on vineyard worker's lifestyles becomes a personal concern to the Giobertis when Maggie's interviews reveal that an extortionist is terrifying Falcon Crest employees. Puzzled as to why undocumented workers suddenly stop working for him, Chase urges Maggie to find out the reason through her interviews. When Chase learns that a man is blackmailing the vineyard workers with threats of deportation, he, despite Angela's warnings against becoming involved, manages to rout the extortionist. When Emma discovers that she is pregnant, Lance realizes that the last thing he needs is another heir competing for the Falcon Crest fortune. Consequently, Emma tumbles down a flight of stairs and has a miscarriage.

After a bitter argument with Angela regarding plans for him to marry Melissa Agretti, the wine empire heiress, Lance leaves in a fury. After he nearly runs over a girl, he falls in love with her and decides to move to San Francisco to be close to the girl. However, when Angela attempts to stop him, Lance succumbs and leaves the love of his life. In an old room that Jason had walled up, Chase finds some writings, which lead him to believe that Angela may have been involved in crippling a girl forty years ago. Confronted with the evidence, Angela turns the tables on Chase, playing a small excerpt of a recording that leaves Chase believing that his father hated him.

Chase's wealthy mother, Jacqueline Perrault (Special Guest Star Lana Turner), mysteriously returns to Falcon Crest. When Jacqueline warns Chase of Angela's treacherous nature and tries to persuade him to leave Falcon Crest, hatred erupts and Jacqueline argues with both Angela and Chase. However, through their conflict, the mother-and-son relationship is strengthened; Jacqueline is convinced that Chase will survive and prosper in the valley.

After Ed McKay, a member of the County Board of Supervisors, is assassinated, Chase is encouraged to run for the office. When Chase begins campaigning against Angela's virtual monopoly of the water rights in the valley, she does everything in her power to see Chase defeated. Despite this, Chase wins the election. After Emma is caught shoplifting in a jewelry store, Angela threatens the owner that she will destroy him if he decides to prosecute.

Angela, angry that Lance is working for his grandfather's newspaper in San Francisco and determined that he will marry Melissa Agretti (Ana-Alicia), plans to destroy Melissa's budding romance with Cole. Chase and Maggie, concerned about Emma's instability, persuade Julia to take her sister to a local psychiatric clinic. When Angela finds out, she tells Julia the truth about Emma killing Uncle Jason, which turns Julia against Chase and Maggie. At the same time, Chase uses his influence as a county supervisor to discover the real cause of his father's death.

Chase begins to make inquiries into the circumstances surrounding his father's death. Angela, in an attempt to foil Chase, has Philip mislead Chase into believing he might inherit Falcon Crest. However, Chase doesn't fall for her trickery. Following a party at the Giobertis, Cole's friend is killed in an auto accident after Cole refuses to drive him home. Angela attempts to force Lance to marry Melissa, who instead has become deeply involved with Cole. However, when Melissa learns she is pregnant, she tells no one.

Pressured by Angela, Lance proposes to Melissa Agretti with the consolation in mind that they dislike one another and that he knows Melissa will reject his proposal. When she surprisingly accepts his offer, Lance is forced to go through with the ceremony. Melissa has her own cunning reasons for marrying Lance, aside from her father and Angela's scheme to merge Falcon Crest with the Agretti Vineyards. When Cole fumes about the arrangement, Melissa assures him that her marriage to Lance won't interfere with their relationship. Another wedding almost takes place as Vicky and Mario decide to elope, but they change their minds at the last minute. Lance discovers that Melissa is pregnant.

While Emma draws closer to revealing the truth about Jason's death to outsiders, Chase steadily draws closer to learning the truth through his investigation. No longer speculating over his father's mysterious death, Chase finally gathers enough concrete evidence to go to the D.A., who in turn, calls for a coroner's inquest into Jason's death. While Angela attempts to impede this, she is forced to testify. Following his release from the hospital, Douglas tries to help Emma and escorts her to the inquest. However, before she can testify, Douglas has a fatal seizure and dies. After witnessing this, Emma runs off while Angela blames Chase. Angela learns of Melissa's pregnancy following a disastrous honeymoon and assumes Lance to be the father, despite his denial.

When Douglas is buried, Angela tries to keep Emma sedated to prevent her from testifying. Angela could lose Falcon Crest to Chase if his attorney can prove that Jason died under suspicious circumstances. When the coroner's inquest resumes, the D.A. mounts a circumstantial case that is easily rebutted by Philip when Emma is unable to testify. Defying her mother, Emma manages to escape from Falcon Crest and arrives to take the stand, confessing how she accidentally pushed Jason to his death while he fought with Turner Bates. The jury rules that Jason "died at the hands of another," thereby giving Chase control of Falcon Crest, but he magnanimously offers fifty percent of the vineyard to Angela. Though Angela detests the thought of sharing Falcon Crest with anyone, she has no choice and accepts. Another threat looms as Angela learns of Douglas's illegitimate son, Richard Channing, who has inherited fifty percent of The Globe.

Angela resists Chase's claims to half ownership of Falcon Crest. Lance, already bitter over the prospect of sharing his inheritance with Melissa, gladly accepts the assignment of keeping Chase off the vineyard property. Richard Channing, illegitimate son of Angela's late husband, prepares to take control of The Globe as the new chairman of the board, while Angela looks for a way to block him. The newspaper is only a small part of the vast portfolio called ""The Company,"" held by Henri Denault, Richard's mentor and stepfather. Adopted at a young age, the desire to finally learn his mother's identity has motivated Richard to make the move to California and take over The Globe. When Cole shows up at the Agretti's demanding that Melissa acknowledge that she is carrying Cole's child and not Lance's, Carlo punches him in the face. After Gus dies in a gas explosion, Chase threatens Angela with an affidavit accusing her of complicity in Gus's death. He then forces Angela to agree in sharing the

In his new role on the Tuscany Valley County Board of Supervisors, Chase meets resistance in his efforts to break Angela's grip on county water supplies. When Melissa tells Carlo about her ambitions to control Falcon Crest, Carlo informs his daughter that she faces a powerful rival in Richard Channing, who is rumored to have ties to the C.I.A. and the British Parliament. Richard shows his ruthlessness by firing The Globe's longtime editor-in-chief, Herb Talmadge, who was only a year from retirement and a pension. After Angela tells Richard that he looks nothing like his father Douglas, Richard explodes after she leaves, vowing to ruin her.

When pressured by Richard to sell his winery holdings, Carlo spits in Richard's face, then confronts Angela about Lance's abusiveness toward Melissa and vows that Angela will never get Carlo's land through his daughter's marriage to Lance. Chase wants to distribute Falcon Crest's wine in Canada through a distributor other than Kleeger, which gets a big discount on their wine. Angela secretly owns Kleeger, and she charges Lance with keeping Chase from finding out. To counter Chase's efforts on the County Board of Supervisors to break her monopoly on the valley's water and distribute it to other growers, Angela claims her water is tainted. In turn, Chase orders another test of Falcon Crest's water supply that shows it not to be tainted. Cole gets into a fight with Carlo, who later telephones to apologize to Cole and invite him over to see Melissa. Not knowing that Carlo has leveled a pistol to his own head, Cole arrives to discover Carlo's body and becomes the prime suspect in Carlo's mu

Angela threatens Nick Hogan not to vote with Chase against her at the county supervisor meeting. If Nick votes to redistribute Falcon Crest's water to other vineyards, Angela warns that she won't be buying the $17,000 worth of pipes she was going to buy from him. Nick casts his decisive vote with Chase, and Angela warns Chase that he will come to regret his moment of glory. Emma disappears, secretly giving Chase the voting proxy to her twenty percent share of The Globe before she leaves -- the same proxy Angela hoped would give her control of the newspaper's board of directors. Richard prints a sensational article suggesting Cole murdered Carlo Agretti. When Richard asks Melissa to sell her the Agretti house, she suspects that Richard could have had a hand in her father's death. Cole is arrested for Carlo's murder after Cole's fingerprints are found on the statuette used to kill Carlo.

Chase and Maggie post Cole's bail, and Cole starts working part-time at the vineyard of a stunningly beautiful single mother, Katherine Demery. Richard's newspaper expose of workers' conditions at Falcon Crest leads Chase to publicly commit to higher wages and benefits for the workers, as well as changes in local labor laws. Lance agrees to take Melissa to child-birthing classes but refuses to attend, opting instead to spend time with Lori Stevens, his former girlfriend. Melissa is jealous of Katherine's attractiveness, and later Cole and Katherine's working relationship turns romantic. Richard tells his reporter, Blair, that he wants Cole convicted.

Against Maggie's wishes, Cole moves in with his new lover, Katherine Demery. Richard finds out and plasters The Globe with clandestine photographs of Cole and Katherine kissing. Jacqueline Perrault, Chase's mother, arrives from Zurich for a surprise visit and gives Chase money for Cole's legal defense, but Richard uses his contacts in Zurich to force Jacqueline to leave town. Angela buys up expensive stock in The Globe and continues tracking Emma to get her proxy. Lori demands that Lance come out in the open about their relationship. Lance is defiant when Melissa confronts him about his late night trysts. After a sudden complication in Melissa's pregnancy confines her to bed, however, Angela pressures Lance to spend more time with his wife.

Richard schemes to buy a piece of county property earmarked for a park, on which he plans to build a memorial to Douglas Channing on one small part and plant a vineyard on the rest. While Chase vehemently opposes the plan, Richard plants a bomb in Nick's truck and successfully intimidates Nick to vote his way at the board of supervisors meeting. Leaving her prescribed bed rest in order to win Cole back from Katherine Demery, Melissa collapses and is taken to the hospital, where she delivers an unhealthy, premature baby, whom she names Joseph Angelo Cumson, after Lance's great-great-grandfather. After Cole moves out of Katherine Demery's house, he moves back into his parents' house.

Doctors give Melissa's premature baby, Joseph, who suffers from a host of health problems, a twenty percent chance of survival. Richard uses a lucrative job offer to entice Tony into securing Julia's agreement to sell off her interests in Falcon Crest and The New Globe. However, the plan backfires and Julia is devastated; Tony realizes Richard's job offer wasn't real. When Cole goes on the run to avoid facing trial for the murder of Carlo Agretti, Melissa agrees to a second autopsy of her father's body hoping it will help clear Cole. The autopsy reveals that the killer must have been right-handed, whereas Cole is left-handed, and the charges are therefore dropped.

Melissa is grateful when Richard flies a neo-natal specialist in from Europe to keep her baby alive. Maggie travels to Los Angeles to meet with producer Darryl Clayton about her screenplay. After Darryl turns the script down, Angela meets Darryl in secret and agrees to invest in the film if he will keep Maggie occupied in Los Angeles. As a romantic relationship develops between Vickie Gioberti and her father's associate, Nick Hogan, Vickie finds out from Cole that Nick is married. Chase discovers that Angela is using all of Falcon Crest's investment funds to buy up stock in The New Globe. After Chase confides with Nick about his war with Angela and her attempt to take over the newspaper, Richard soon finds out and confronts Angela. As Joseph's condition improves, Cole vows to be a loving father. Richard puts a down payment on a house in Tuscany Valley.

Vicky talks Cole into informing their parents that Cole is the father of Melissa's baby, but the opportunity never comes up. Phillip has a romantic dinner with Amanda Croft, a beautiful woman in her fifties. There is chemistry between them, but Amanda is suspicious of Phillip's relationship with Angela. When Darryl seduces Maggie into a passionate kiss at his Malibu home, Maggie panics and flies back home to Chase. Just as Angela has nearly bought up enough New Globe stock to control the company, Richard announces he is going to issue two million dollars more of stock, which is a strategy that Angela and Phillip hadn't foreseen. However, Angela and Phillip secretly arrange for a Wall Street banker named Kenderson to approach the unwitting Richard. Kenderson proposes to underwrite the new stock issue thereby delaying the offer long enough for Angela to get control of the newspaper. Meanwhile, Chase's mother, Jacqueline, has researched Angela's business dealings in Europe and provides Ch

At the winery, Angela plays Lance and Cole against each other. Chase finds out that Richard is planning to use a false company front to buy up grapes at twice the going rate. Despite the threat from Richard, Jacqueline wants Chase to work with Richard against Angela. When Cole wants to tell Lance that he is the father of Melissa's child, Melissa strongly opposes it. Angela offers Darryl more money to maintain Maggie's hopes of getting her script produced. In spite of bribing Richard's banker, Kenderson, into postponing the new stock issue, Angela still needs Chase's votes on The New Globe board to take over the newspaper. When Chase arrives at Richard's office to deliver a construction injunction on his new winery, Jacqueline surprises both of them with news that she gave Richard up for adoption when he was a baby, which means that Richard and Chase are half-brothers.

Richard rejects Jacqueline's explanation of why she gave him up for adoption. Despite being cleared of charges for Carlo Agretti's murder, Cole is continually harassed by the police and the community. By making an insincere appeal to their brotherly bond, Richard asks Chase to vote against Angela's take-over bid of The New Globe's board. In turn, Chase makes Richard give up construction of his winery, in exchange for his votes. Lance and his date Brenda attend Angela's annual Founder's Day Party at which Angela later becomes furious when she catches them in bed together. Richard and Melissa not only confess their attraction to each other, but Richard also announces to the entire party that he finally has found his mother, Jacqueline. Angela then publicly denounces Jacqueline for ruining her marriage with Douglas.

Angela's Founders' Day Party is in disarray following Richard's announcement that Jacqueline is his mother. When Chase confronts Richard on the veranda, Richard reasons he did not promise to keep Jacqueline's secret, only Chase's. When Angie turns on Jacqueline, Chase suggests taking her home. After Richard calls his mother an adulteress, Chase strikes his half-brother, and subsequently Chase and Maggie whisk Jacqueline away. The next morning, Chase regrets hitting Richard, while Jacqueline believes that the events of the previous night are in the past. She also understands Richard's bitterness, although Chase may never trust Richard again. At Falcon Crest, Melissa overhears Lance making plans to meet Lori. Melissa's attorneys are still evaluating all offers. Nick and Sheila, in their bedroom, share a moment as they dress.

At Chase's office, Sheriff Robbins warns Chase to stop interfering with the Agretti investigation or he will be charged with obstruction of justice. Chase informs him that he intends to keep digging for leads. When Chase relates his run-in to Sheriff Robbins, Maggie pleads with Chase to drop the issue. At Falcon Crest, Angie demands that Lance never mention Joseph's test results again. To Angie, Lance is the child's legal father. Emma has been tracked down somewhere in Texas and her exact location should be verified in about a week. Attempting to avert Angie's anger, Phillip points out that Lance is where Angie wants him, Melissa will soon be forced to sell the Agretti vineyards, Chase is having both personal and political problems (vindicating Cole's complicity), and Jacqueline is finally gone for good. Reconsidering her accomplishments, Angie invites herself to go sailing with Phillip the next day. Later in the lab, Lance complains to his mother about Angie's ignoring Joseph's te

Cole's unconscious body is still limp on the floor as deadly exhaust fumes fill the closed Gioberti garage. Inside the house, Chase, in bed with Maggie, is distracted by a distant sound outside. After ripping open the door, Chase drags Cole out, shouts for Maggie, then desperately administers C.P.R. to his son. After Nick and Vicky make love, he is uncomfortable as he prepares to take her back to their meeting place in town. At Falcon Crest, sirens disrupt the silence of the household. When Nick's Packard instead heads to the Gioberti's to drop Vicky off, vehicles with red lights flashing, whiz past them. Realizing they are headed to the same place, Nick steps on the gas and arrives at the Gioberti's, right behind an ambulance and several vehicles. A team of paramedics revives Cole.

During breakfast, Lance presents the paper for Melissa to see and thinks he is off the hook. However, Melissa knows that Richard printed this because she would not sell him her father's property. When Angie learns that Richard's evidence is from the paternity results that Lance gave him, Angie denounces Lance's inheritance. At home, Cole, referring to the same article, thinks Melissa finally told the truth about Cole's fatherhood to Joseph. Although Cole's murder charges were dropped, Chase knows they will never hear the end of this until Carlo Agretti's murderer is found. At the hospital, Angie visits Elliot McKay, who, although quite ill, defiantly rejects Angie's offer to buy his vineyard. In town, Vickie meets Nick, who professes his love for her. At The Globe, Melissa confronts Richard about the newspaper article and when Richard refuses to print a retraction, Melissa threatens to sue him for libel. Richard welcomes the extra publicity.

At Lori's, Lance tries to delay Lori from getting out of bed. Lori is irritated that Lance keeps procrastinating in looking for work, since it has been a week since Angela threw Lance out of Falcon Crest. Ultimately, Lori gives in, and they make love. At Chase's office, Chase catches heat from Sheriff Robbins about going to the D.A. with Carlo Agretti's letter from Angela. Robbins doesn't believe the letter incriminates Angie in Carlo's murder. In Richard's office, Diana informs Richard that nearly everyone but Angela has accepted the invitation to Richard's housewarming at the McKay place. Richard is confident Angie will be there, since the party will have three of the nation's most respected wine critics. Richard wants his new neighbors to realize that buying the McKay vineyards was just ""the first step of a much longer journey."" At Falcon Crest, Angie not only tells Julia she has decided to go to Richard's party, but that Angie has the ability to be flexible, unlike Lance. Angie thr

Early in the morning at the Gioberti house, Chase is cleaning the garage. Vickie appears with a cup of coffee for him, and suggests that he should go see Maggie, but Chase stubbornly refuses because Maggie was the one who abandoned him. Cole arrives later and tells his father if he wants to quit the investigation, he will understand. However, Chase has no intention of quitting. Later that day, Julia meets Maggie for tea at the Tuscany Inn and tries to convince Maggie to return to Chase and not make the mistake that she did. At the jogging track, Vickie argues with Nick about his dealings with Richard Channing. Back at Falcon Crest, Chase confronts Angie about hiring Bitterman. As Chase storms out, Julia stops him to offer her help in his investigation of Carlo's murder. Because there is an injunction against Chase, he accepts Julia's offer as Angie eavesdrops from inside.

At Julia's overturned car, as Chase, Cole and Sheriff Robbins help the firemen extinguish the flames, they hear a weak voice calling for help. Chase sees Julia, who was apparently thrown from the car into the brush, and rushes to her. Julia informs Chase that the brakes went out. The paramedics arrive and take her away on a stretcher. Chase tells Robbins that this was not an accident, mentioning the threatening letter to Julia. Cole then reminds Chase that they still must meet Melissa at the Agretti's vineyard. Chase tells Cole to get Melissa while he goes to the hospital. However, when Cole arrives at the Agretti's tool shed, he finds Melissa alone, impatiently waiting for Fong. When Cole tells her of Julia's accident, Melissa asserts that the brakes were functioning properly when she borrowed the car the day before. At the hospital, Angie, Lance, and Chase nervously wait while a few minutes later, Vicky and Maggie arrive. In Richard's San Francisco office, Richard tells Phillip to pe

In the morning, Melissa and Lance linger in bed at Falcon Crest. Chao-li enters with breakfast and scolds Lance for wasting time in bed when he should be helping Chase with the inventory. After Chao-li exits, Melissa asks Lance if he has found his father. When Lance answers no, Melissa suggests that they ask Richard Channing to help them. Melissa and Lance also realize that they hold the key, the Agretti Vineyard, to getting written back into Angela's will. Back in Paris, in a sidewalk cafe, as Angie and Phillip enjoy the view, Angie invites him to join her in New York, but will not reveal what her business is there. At the Falcon Crest Winery Lab, Cole argues with Chase about continuing with the investigation because Cole is beginning to think that his mother is right. At a Tuscany café, Darryl and Maggie are arguing about the changes made in Maggie's script. Darryl then insinuates that Maggie's relationship with Chase is not as strong as she led him to believe. Maggie tells Darryl th

In the morning, Chase encounters Sheriff Robbins, who is running out of the county building. Robbins has obtained the forensic report on Henri Denault and wants to ask Richard Channing some questions. Chase explains that he has evidence that Carlo Agretti was blackmailing Richard. Richard is dictating Denault's obituary to Diana for the newspaper when Robbins and Chase arrive at Richard's house. After Robbins informs Richard that there were signs of struggle on Denault's body, Robbins wants to examine Richard's clothing from that day. In response, Richard tells them to get search warrants and slams the door in their faces. Later, Richard decides to give Lance all the information on Tony Cumson. At Falcon Crest, Lance tells Melissa that Diana Hunter called to tell him that Tony is working in San Diego as an offshore consultant for an oil company. Lance tells Melissa that if Julia travels to San Diego, she will never be able to show her face at Falcon Crest again. On the veranda, Angie q

At the Tuscany Hospital, Chase pushes Maggie's wheelchair toward their car. As it has only been a week since Maggie's accident, the doctor orders her to be careful because she had suffered a severe concussion. Chase tells Maggie that he is not taking her to the hotel, but home. At the Falcon Crest meadows, Lance and Melissa ride horses and gaze at the land that they hope will be theirs someday. Lance shows Melissa the divorce papers that he had intercepted before Julia could see them. Over at The Globe office, Phillip discovers that Richard has not been seen for ages, nor has Diana Hunter. Emma sees Phillip leave Richard's office, which piques her curiosity. At the Gioberti's house, Chase tells Maggie that her close call with the barrels was not an accident because he had heard someone running away. Angie arrives and insists on having Vickie's wedding at Falcon Crest, while Chase is still concerned with the accident and Richard Channing's disappearance.

At the Tuscany Valley Cemetery, a funeral is in progress that will drastically affect the lives of everyone at Falcon Crest. After admitting to the murder of Carlo Agretti, Julia pulls out a gun, critically wounds Chase and fatally wounds his mother Jacqueline. At Jacqueline's funeral, Chase's cousin, Dr. Michael Ranson, appears for the first time and is taken into the Gioberti household. At the prison, Julia fights Angie's attempts to help prove her innocence, believing prison is better than living under Angela's tyrannical control. Lance feverishly pursues Melissa, who is horrified that his mother murdered her father and who vows never to forgive any of the Channings. Back at the hospital, Chase finally comes out of his coma, only to discover that the bullet lodged in his spine has left him paralyzed.

Angela jeopardizes Chases recovery by telling him about his mother's death. After Maggie confronts Angela, Angela declares that it's time to go for the jugular. When Angela learns that Dr. Lantry augments his income by illegally selling pills, she uses this information to blackmail the doctor into signing an affidavit about Chase's incompetence to manage Falcon Crest. As Lance helps his grandmother in her scheme, his wife, Melissa, is turning to Richard for affection. Back at Falcon Crest, baby Joseph is rushed to the hospital after swallowing the pills that Lance had procured for Angela's blackmail scheme. With hatred and fear in her eyes, Melissa coldly accuses Lance of trying to destroy her baby.

After their baby's accident, Melissa and Lance agree to a truce, and Lance and Angela are soon thrilled when Melissa announces she's pregnant. Carrying out Angela's plan, Dr. Lantry informs Maggie and Michael that the bullet in Chase's spine has caused an infection, and that he may have to operate. Later, Lantry discreetly injects drugs into Chase's I.V. During this, Richard becomes guilt-ridden when he learns from Philip that Jacqueline was dying of cancer and stepped in front of Richard to spare her son from the gunfire. Richard and Melissa then plan to gain Julia's trust to manipultate her to avenge the deaths of their parents. Meanwhile, Maggie begs Michael to face his fears and take over Chase's case. That night, Dr. Lantry triumphantly announces to Angela that Chase has a raging fever and could die whenever she wants. Angela is horrified, but Lantry coolly informs her that it's too late and reminds her she's an accomplice to murder.

Michael frantically races against time to stop Dr. Lantry from operating on Chase, which could leave Chase paralyzed for life. Angela then sets a court date to have Chase declared legally incompetent to manage Falcon Crest. Chase regains some feeling in his legs, and through physical therapy, begins to recover. At the hearing, just as the judge appears ready to rule in Angela's favor, Chase hobbles in on crutches, and the judge denies her petition. While Julia is declared not to be criminally insane, jail inmates continually torment her. At the Gioberti's house, Maggie convinces Michael to take a staff position at the hospital, but is shocked when he tells her he's the executor of Jacqueline's estate.

While Chase returns to Falcon Crest, Angela orders Lance to make his homecoming difficult. Lance, in an attempt to undermine the Giobertis, sends home Chase's crew and sabotages one of the vats. As the Giobertis attempt to do all the work themselves, a drainage lid breaks loose, spilling thousands of gallons of wine. After controlling the leak, Chase collapses from exhaustion. At Julia's trial, Philip motions to have Julia placed under psychiatric observation, but before the judge can rule, Julia pleads guilty on all counts. The Channings and Giobertis sit stunned, but Melissa sits smugly, knowing her mission has been accomplished by convincing Julia to lash out against Angela through her prison sentence. Alarmed, Philip warns Angela that Julia could receive the death penalty.

Melissa helps push Julia closer to the gas chamber as she faces sentencing for two murders. As the judge prepares to pronounce sentence, Julia announces she'd rather die than spend her life in prison. The judge, however, sentences her to life behind bars. Michael Ranson accuses Dr. Lantry of malpractice, but Lantry tells Angela he will implicate her if she doesn't stop Michael. Meanwhile, Richard Channing spins a malicious web using Emma to lure Maggie to work for his newspaper as a feature writer while he fights Chase by delaying the reading of Jacqueline's will. Philip returns the original contract to Melissa that Angela had forced her to sign that would have given the Agretti harvest to Falcon Crest.

Julia enters prison where she meets up with a tough matron who has a personal vendetta against the Channings, while Angela works to get her sentence commuted. After making love, Melissa offers the Agretti harvest to Richard, which he eagerly accepts in order to keep it from Angela. In Jacqueline's will, she has left fifty million dollars to be split between Chase and his brother, but, only if after one year, Chase believes Richard to be trustworthy. This reveals the motive for Richard's brotherly actions. Jacqueline also leaves Angela a hotel suite key with instructions that Philip must accompany her there. Jacqueline has the last laugh when Angela finds an unmade bed with a note from Jacqueline stating that she and Philip made love at that very spot.

Julia breaks down to beg Angela for protection against the ruthless inmates and prison matron who are out to kill her. Angela pays the matron off to make things easier on Julia. Maggie uncovers evidence that Dr. Lantry's paychecks are supplemented by a mysterious and handsome additional income. Dr. Lantry is feeling the heat from Chase and Michael's investigation into his competency and ethics as a doctor. Afraid of being implicated by Lantry, Angela threatens Dr. Hooks into dropping any inquiries. Maggie's sister, Terry Hartford, discovers that Maggie has become wealthy and heads for Falcon Crest.

Angela desperately protects herself when she discovers that Chase and Michael's investigation into Dr. Lantry's underhanded past points to her. After Angela reveals to Lance that Melissa and Richard Channing are having an affair, Lance, boiling with anger, sets out to find them. Melissa covers by telling Lance that she's trying to maintain Richard as an ally, while Richard has his eyes set on Pamela. Linda's father refuses to acknowledge Cole as part of his family, while the newlyweds start a custody battle for baby Joseph with Melissa and Lance. Maggie's sister Terry seeks her fortune in Tuscany Valley by manipulating her way into the Gioberti's home.

Railroaded by Angela, Dr. Lantry is jailed, but now he poses a bigger threat to the wine baroness who fears he will turn the state's evidence against her in court, implicating her in the attempted murder of Chase. Philip arranges Lantry's bail and plans to have him sent out of the county, but Chase and Michael are determined to prove that Lantry is allied with Angela. Angela investigates Terry's dark past with plans of using her to destroy the Gioberti family. After discovering that Terry had been a prostitute in New York, Angela uses this fact to force her into stopping Cole's custody suit. Meanwhile, Terry, scheming to gain wealth, plans to overtly flirt with the men of Falcon Crest. At the same time Richard is incensed to learn that the cartel demands 100 percent control of his racetrack and will stop at nothing to get it.

Lance betrays Angela by revealing to Chase where Dr. Lantry is hiding. Chase accuses Angela of having arranged Lantry's bail and tells her that he found out from Lance. Angela denies everything but can barely control her fury over Lance's betrayal. Chase locates Lantry, who confesses that Angela had blackmailed him into signing the affidavit concerning Chase's incompetency. Before Chase can stop him, Lantry injects himself with a lethal dose of morphine. When Osborne's dead body is found on Richard's property, this not only further tarnishes his already scandalous reputation, but poses a threat to Richard's own life. Meanwhile, Michael warns Richard that his inheritance is in jeopardy, and Philip is exposed as the publisher's business associate.

As Dr. Lantry nears death, Chase realizes that he may lose his only opportunity to see Angela behind bars. Lance boldly threatens Angela and Melissa with blackmail, and at the same time, Angela works with Philip to admit Julia into a mental institution. Terry slithers her way into Michael's heart, while Angela blackmails her for devotion. Vince Caproni, bitter about Linda's marriage to Cole, tells Linda that Angela's cruelty to migrant workers caused Linda's mother's death. Angela forces Terry to spy on the Giobertis, or else Angela will reveal Terry's seedy past. Chase discovers a clause in his grandfather's will that gives him the legal right to oust Angela from Falcon Crest.

Chase fights a vicious public battle against Richard Channing, who is trying to build a racetrack that could destroy the wine industry, however, the final decision rests with the valley residents who are about to vote after the men's muckraking campaigns. Angela vows that she will not allow Chase to run Falcon Crest without her and thwarts his efforts to obtain the accounting records. Vince Caproni becomes seriously ill after Lance threatens him over Joseph's paternity suit. Angela makes a fiery attack on her nephew to strip him of his Falcon Crest powers. Meanwhile, Terry moves in with Michael, despite the Giobertis' warning that she is treacherous.

Richard has won the election to build his racetrack while Chase is madly driven to stop him, which results in an explosive disaster. In the mental institution, Julia becomes hysterical when Richard malevolently tells her Melissa's baby is his, thus pushing her into a catatonic state. Angela promises Lance that they will be kicked out of Falcon Crest if they lose Joseph's custody suit to Cole. However, when Melissa is grilled on Lance's affair with Terry while giving her deposition to Cole's attorney, she explodes and admits that their marriage is a farce. Angela attempts to stop Chase's plans to market a line of champagne by buying up the grape harvest he needs.

Michael Ranson must face his fears from a dark past and perform surgery on Sheriff Robbins to save his life. In the operating room, Michael is unable to perform the surgery and later confesses to Terry about the guilt he's felt ever since his wife died. The floodgates open as Michael tells Terry how his wife was in an accident and died when Michael had attempted to operate on her. Meanwhile, Terry spies on Maggie for Angela and at the same time, makes plans to marry Michael. A cartel gangster attacks Richard Channing while Angela plans to crush Chase with the help of Calvin Kleeger, the Falcon Crest wine distributor. Kleeger informs Chase that with Angela out of Falcon Crest, he will no longer serve as distributor unless Chase offers the winery as collateral.

Melissa loses control over her wicked power game when Philip intervenes and forces her to sell the Agretti harvest to him. Richard is nearly run down by a hit man as the cartel becomes even more determined to take over his racetrack. When Maggie interviews Sister Jeanette, an old acquaintance of Chase's mother, she overhears the startling news that Jacqueline had an affair with the head of the Nazi Gestapo in Paris, Johann Riebmann. When Cole returns home to find Melissa waiting for him seductively posed in his bed, he throws her out, but not before Linda enters, who witnesses the ugly scene.

Melissa and Lance resort to blackmail when Joseph's custody case goes to court. After enticing Cole into assaulting him in front of a witness, Lance shows up in court badly bruised claiming that Cole had beaten him. After hearing the corroborating story of the blackmailed witness, the judge dismisses Cole and Linda's suit. At the Gioberti's house, Maggie and Chase realize that Jacqueline's relationship with Johann Riebmann and Henri Denault made her a war criminal. Maggie decides not to submit her article to The New Globe, but Emma surprisingly turns out to be just as conniving as Angela when she has the story printed on the front page behind Maggie and Richard's backs. Richard fears for his life when Spheeris calls to convey the cartel's displeasure about the story.

Angela plans to bargain with the Giobertis for control of Falcon Crest; in return, Melissa must give Cole custody of Joseph. Melissa is at first horrified at the thought of giving up her baby for a piece of land, but later reconsiders the offer. Terry follows Angela's orders when she pits Michael against Chase, and Richard is at the mercy of the cartel's gangsters in opening his racetrack. Meanwhile, Maggie's article uncovering Jacqueline Perrault's crimes cuts through the valley with a razor's edge.

Death looms over Melissa after her argument with Linda culminates in a fatal car accident. Lance spends the night with Terry while Melissa has a miscarriage at the hospital. Lance is overcome with shame and tries to apologize to Angela, but she is unforgiving. At the hospital, Melissa informs Angela that she refuses to give up Joseph and wants the signed agreement returned. Philip proposes to Angela but she is preoccupied with driving Terry out of Tuscany with the hope that Lance will then act more like a husband to Melissa. Richard and Pamela's relationship extends past their work, but she fears he will be killed after defying the cartel.

Terry's dark, sordid past is exposed to Michael when Angela goes to extravagant lengths to run her out of Tuscany Valley. Angela pays Kate Mars, a former call girl buddy of Terry, to tell Michael the truth about Terry's past. Angela also exposes Philip's past indiscretions, producing a cuff link she found by the bed in the hotel room where Jacqueline claimed to have slept with Philip. Phillip denies everything and quits, fed up with Angela's manipulation. Chase seeks out another wine distributor and discovers that Calvin Kleeger served as a front for Angela. At the mental hospital, Julia, disguised as a janitor, escapes and starts hitchhiking her way back to Falcon Crest. Maggie discovers that the horrifying cause of her dizzy spells and headaches is a brain tumor. When Richard refuses to give the cartel control of his racetrack, hit men kidnap Pamela and force her to choose between loyalty to Richard and her life. Meanwhile, Lance stalks Richard, seeking revenge for his mother's menta

The New Globe publishes news of Julia's escape, while Julia steals a wallet and buys a wig from a waitress at a roadside coffee shop. Melissa pays a heavy price for trading her son for power. Chase meets with Philip to determine how serious Angela is about trading Joseph for half of Falcon Crest. When Philip produces Angela's custody contract, Chase is appalled, but is pleased to know that he can pry Joseph out of Angela's clutches. Melissa begs Angela to call off the deal with Chase, but Angela tells her that it's too late. As Chase and Cole come to take her child, Melissa is overwhelmed by guilt. Later, Chase gets an anonymous tip that Richard bribed a county geologist to approve construction of the racetrack. At the cartel's behest, Pamela plants bugs in Richard's office and home. Terry remorsefully suffers the backlash from her sordid past, but surprisingly, Michael still asks her to stay in Tuscany. Julia uses her disguise to slip past a police checkpoint, then assumes the identit

Lance flies into a rage when he hears that Melissa sold Joseph to Angela for her half of Falcon Crest. Angela later warns Lance that he must mend things with Melissa since she is now Pamela's heir and if he doesn't, he'll be left penniless. Richard finds the bugs planted by Pamela, leading him to believe the cartel is closing in on him. Angela ignites a romance with Carter St. John, which makes Philip jealous. Maggie is running out of time as her tumor rapidly grows and must decide between risky surgery and radiation treatment. Her eyesight soon starts to fail, and Michael warns that if they don't operate on Maggie soon, her loss of sight could be irreversible. However, questions about Michael's surgical abilities still linger. Claiming she is afraid for her safety, Julia has Lucas teach her how to shoot a gun.

Michael convinces Chase to let him operate on Maggie's tumor, which has already taken her sight and may take her life. Michael enlists his former lover, anesthesiologist Lillian Heller, for helping with Maggie's operation. Lillian is a houseguest, which arouses Terry's jealousy. As Maggie is wheeled into the operating room, Chase wonders if he will ever see his wife again. At Falcon Crest, Angela urges Lance to reconcile with Melissa in order to produce a true heir to Falcon Crest. However, when Lance begs Melissa to give their marriage a second chance, she sees through his insincerity and coldly reminds him that she is the sole beneficiary to Falcon Crest and has no intention of sharing her empire with him. Philip adds to his winery staff by hiring away Angela's best people. Meanwhile, Pamela carries out Spheeris's orders to help destroy Richard, while Richard is preoccupied with trying to win over Chase to obtain his inheritance for the completion of the racetrack.

Just as Michael and Dr. Heller remove the last of Maggie's tumor, her heart stops. Working quickly, Michael and Dr. Heller manage to get a weak pulse, but Maggie is left in a coma. As Michael humbly admits that Maggie's fate is up to God, Angela prays for Maggie, Julia and Falcon Crest, and reunites with Philip, whom she believes she will be able to trust again some day. Meanwhile, Richard is crazed when he learns that Chase has turned over Jacqueline's fifty million dollar trust fund to St. Martha's convent in Paris at a time when Richard desperately needs the money. On top of this, the cartel's plot against Richard threatens Pamela's life. After Pamela is abducted by the cartel, Richard realizes that though he may have retained control of the racetrack, the cartel has the one thing he cares most about: Pamela.

When the cartel begins to carry out its plans to make a public spectacle of Richard's assassination at the grand opening of the racetrack, Richard, making a switch with the bomb, causes the cartel to explode its own limousine. Eager to please Angela, Lance promises that he and Melissa will produce a grandchild. Melissa learns, however, that she can no longer have children because of injuries sustained from the car accident. While the Giobertis believe that Michael and Terry are traveling to Mexico, they are surprised when the two announce their marriage. At Falcon Crest, Angela agrees to marry Philip. As detectives discover Julia's hideout, Lucas discovers Julia's true identity and murderous acts as she heads for Tuscany. Meanwhile, Lance secretly executes his plan for power using The Globe as his tool.

As Angela's wedding day draws near, Julia prepares to murder her mother. The wedding ceremony begins as Julia, dressed in a nun's habit, heads towards the church. Chase notices her, but Julia manages to lock him in a closet. As he feverishly tries to work his way out, Julia misses her chance to shoot Angela and leaves for Falcon Crest and the wedding reception. As the reception begins, Julia, hiding upstairs, crouches at the railing and aims her gun at Angela. The sound of sirens distracts Angela, and she moves out of range. As Julia realizes she's lost her chance, Joseph comes to her. Chase bursts in with the police, warning Angela that Julia intends to kill her. Cole dashes upstairs to check on Joseph, but it is too late: Julia has taken the child hostage.

Emma and Lance discover Julia hiding out at the springhouse with her hostage Joseph. Terry receives a disturbing letter, dredging up more of her sordid past and forcing her to lie to Michael again. As Angela reads a letter that Julia had sent her while in college, she regrets having been too busy with her business career to spend time with Julia. In the springhouse, Julia agrees to release Joseph if Angela is brought to her. The police surround the house as Angela enters in exchange for Joseph. Angela admits to Julia that she has failed her as a mother and finally says what Julia has been waiting to hear, that she loves her. As Julia breaks down and hands Angela the gun, the deputy prematurely opens fire, igniting a kerosene lamp and setting the house on fire. Braving the flames, Lance and Chase dash into the house. Chase pulls Angela to safety, but Lance is knocked out by a falling beam and must be rescued from the fire. As the springhouse erupts in flames, Angela watches helplessly,

At the charred springhouse, the coroner, after inspecting a ring and bone fragments, positively identifies the remains as Julia's. In a note to Lance, Julia's last request is to have her ashes scattered in Italy. Angela asks the Channing and Gioberti families to travel to Italy in hopes that Julia's death can somehow reunite them. Richard is heartened to learn that Pamela may be alive in Europe. Melissa informs Lance that when he returns from Italy, she will have already moved out of Falcon Crest. Angela discovers that Melissa has filed for a divorce and is unable to have children. As everyone prepares to leave, Melissa pays one of the workers to stage an accident at the winery so that Cole will have to stay behind with her. As Chase inspects the airplane, he fails to recognize one of the cartel's men posing as a mechanic. As Angela, Philip, Lance, Emma, Richard, Maggie, Michael, Terry, Linda and Joseph take off in the plane with Chase as the pilot, the emergency buzzer sounds indicati