The Big Valley

A con man tells Heath that he, not Tom Barkley, is Heath's father. Heath is determined to find out the truth; if he isn't Tom Barkley's son, he won't let himself be a Barkley, despite the fact that the family says they will not let him leave without a fight.

The Barkleys offer sanctuary to a Mexican general who has fled false arrest. Heath is jailed in Mexico and the Barkley ranch is invaded by men trying to seize the general.

The Barkleys refuse to give General Ruiz up for extradition to Mexico, even in promised exchange for Heath's life. Instead they embark on a plan to save both Heath and the General.

Therese Marvin has strong feelings for her stepson, Will, and a terrible jealousy of Audra, whom she believes is pursuing Will.

A young Payute Indian flees back to his tribal encampment when he learns he has measles, believing that only his medicine man will be able to cure him. Victoria goes after him, knowing that if he reaches his people the disease may wipe them out.

Jarrod defends a Basque sheepherder – a self-described anarchist – who is accused of murdering a cattleman. He finds that not all of the Basque community wants his client to be acquitted.

Unscrupulous gubernatorial candidate Joshua Hawks claims that Tom Barkley stole all the land he called his own.

Nick falls for a woman, not knowing that she is a gunslinger's lover. She sees this as a perfect opportunity to rid herself of a problem: a pursuer bent on revenge.

Jarrod is sent by the state to help mediate in a land dispute. Injured and without memory of his identity, he is taken in by the family involved in the dispute.

Three comically inept brothers try hard to crack a railroad safe.

Nick and Heath are arrested by a corrupt sheriff and sent to a road-gang prison. When the warden learns that the two prisoners are of the "California Barkleys," he plans to tempt Nick into leading a breakout so he can legitimately shoot the brothers outside the wire.

Stage passengers — including Victoria, Jarrod, and Heath — are abandoned in the middle of the desert by robbers.

Audra and Victoria are trapped in a church with a Bible School class by an outlaw clan of a mother and her sons.

When he accuses some gypsy workers of stealing his brandy and injures one of them in a fight, Nick is volunteered by his brothers to escort the other gypsies and their dowry wagon to a wedding. On the way he becomes smitten with the bride-to-be and learns some lessons about intolerance.

Audra befriends a man she finds camping out on Barkley land; she is intrigued by his cynical, poetic manner. She learns he is being pursued by men out of his past.

The Barkleys help a Greek immigrant deliver his fruit to San Francisco via wagon when the railroad manager jacks up the freight price to make a windfall profit.

Victoria learns that the leader of a gang of hired guns, hired to protect ranches against another gang of marauders, is an old flame. She becomes increasingly disturbed by the lawlessness of his men and challenges him to live up to the ideals he once had.

Lud, the oldest of three children, refuses to cooperate with the Barkleys, who have taken them in. He is determined to track down their mother, who has disappeared.

Victoria is eyewitness to the murder of a saloon girl: a murder committed by her godson, the only child of a local judge. When the boy admits the crime to his father, the judge turns to desperate means to protect him.

A ranch hand who has gotten too old for regular saddle work is determined to catch a wild stallion to prove he is as capable as ever.

Senator and ex-gunman Jud Robson claims he is being stalked by enemies. Unfortunately it seems that almost anyone can arouse his suspicions.

Heath tricks Nick into becoming a sparring partner to a professional boxer. When Nick knocks him down by a fluke, it is discovered that the boxer has a dangerous weakness: a blind side caused by a blood clot. Nick offers him a job on the ranch; when the boxer insists on re-entering the ring, Nick becomes his manager for one last fight.

Itinerant "preacher" Brother Love tries out his charm on Audra; Heath sets out to prove the preacher is a con man.

Armed men occupy the Barkley house, bent on punishing Nick's former general for the destruction of an innocent town during the war. Jarrod convinces them to let the general and Nick give their side of the story at a "court martial."

Heath is sent to a town endangered by a possible dam break. The town has been abandoned except for a few men who are there to guard against looters. Temptation gets the better of them and they turn on Heath.