DYNASTY (ABC): Episode Guide: Season 4 (1983-1984)

In this week's edition of the "DYNASTY" episode guide I'll be looking at season 4 which began in September 1983 when enormous hype surrounded the show and its stars, which moved into the top-3, finally snapping at DALLAS' heels.

Again, I found some discrepancies with regard to episode guides you can normally find on the web (and on the official DVDs):

- episode "Carousel" aired December 21 (back-to-back with the Chrustmas episode of "Hotel") and not December 14

- episode "The Engagement" aired on April 25 and not on April 18 (when the show was pre-empted).

Being now an established hit, "Dynasty" moved this season to an earlier timeslot, since ABC wanted to use it as a launching pad for a compatible lead-out show at 10:00pm.

"Dynasty" producer Aaron Spelling (who I believe by then had 7 shows airing on ABC) came up with that companion series, finding inspiration in Arthur Hailey's novel "HOTEL."

The two series would air back-to-back for 4 seasons until spring 1987 (when ABC decided to move "Dynasty" back to 10:00pm and ship "Hotel" off to Saturday nights due to plummeting ratings).

Finally, since "DYNASTY" was now a major hit, ABC wanted more fresh episodes (plus 3) and the season length was extended from 26 to 33 weeks.



Regular timeslot: Wednesdays at 9:00pm (NEW!)
Season premiere: September 28, 1983
Season finale: May 9, 1984
Season length: 33 weeks
All-new episodes: 27
Pre-emptions: 6 (on October 12; December 14; January 25; February 8 and 15; and April 18)
Reruns: August 29-September 19, 1984
Episodes repeated: 4 out of 27
Hiatus length: 19 weeks (from May 16-September 19, 1984) 



1983:

September 28    #4.01 "The Arrest" (Season Premiere, New Timeslot)
                A mystery person tries to save Krystle and Alexis from a burning cabin; while Fallon and Jeff each decide to stop Adam's grab for power

October 5       #4.02 "The Bungalow"
                Krystle defends Mark, who is suspected of setting the cabin fire; and Alexis realizes that a killer is after her.

October 12      pre-empted for World Series baseball coverage

October 19      #4.03 "The Note"
                The identity of the arsonist who nearly killed Krystle and Alexis is revealed; and Steven rekindles his affair with Claudia (Pamela Bellwood re-joins the cast).

October 26      #4.04 "The Hearing" (Part 1)
                An unexpected visitor endangers Steven's custody battle; while Blake's lawyer warns Krystle not to testify on Steven's behalf

November 2      #4.05 "The Hearing" (Part 2)
                Sammy Jo (Heather Locklear) appears at Steven's child-custody heaing; and Adam becomes more nervous about Fallon's probe into his past

November 9      #4.06 "Tender Comrades"
                Steven does not return to court for the resumption of the custody hearing; and reportes grill Blake about his present relationship with Krystle

November 16     #4.07 "Tracy"
                Ambitious Tracy Kendall (Deborah Addair) tries to allign herself with the Carringtons; while Alexis schemes to wreck Steven and Claudia's marriage

November 23     #4.08 "Dex"
                Denver-Carrington board of directors member Dex Dexter (Michael Nader) becomes attracted to Alexis; who travels to Montana for information about Adam

November 30     #4.09 "Peter De Vilbis"
                Wealthy playboy Peter De Vilbis (Helmut Berger) charms Fallon; while Alexis schemes against both Steven and Denver-Carrington

December 7      #4.10 "The Proposal"
                Blake proposes marriage to Krystle; Peter continues to court Fallon while dodging questions about his past; Jeff and Adam have a brutal fight over Kirby

December 14     pre-empted by a 2-hour episode of "Fall Guy" (8:00-10:00pm)

December 21     #4.11 "Carousel"
                Blake and Krystle announce their engagement at Denver's gala Carousel Ball charity event; Alexis and Dex have a romantic liaison; and Jeff lashes out at Peter for taking Fallon for a ride in his plane

December 28     #4.12 "The Wedding"
                Krystle and Blake are joined in wedlock; Jeff makes a rougish pass at Claudia; and Kirby tells Adam about his divorce plans


       
1984:



January 4       #4.13 "The Ring"
                Blake and Krystle honeymoon in Rio de Janeiro, but Dex must persuade Alexis not to follow them

January 11      #4.14 "Lancelot"
                Blake shocks Adam with his reaction to the truth about Kirby's pregnancy; and Fallon becomes deeply involved with the underword life of Peter de Vilbis

January 18      #4.15 "Seizure"
                Adam stays at the hospital as Kirby suffers; Alexis turns singer to land a major oil deal; and Peter makes a surprise announcement

January 25      pre-empted by ABC News "State of the Union" live telecast

February 1      #4.16 "A Little Girl"
                Blake and Alexis reveal Peter's scandalous past and warn Fallon about her impulsive behavior about him

February 8      pre-empted by live coverage of Winter Olympics in Sarajevo

February 15     pre-empted by live coverage of Winter Olympics in Sarajevo

February 22     #4.17 "The Accident"
                Fallon's romance with Peter crashes with a horrifying conclusion; Blake asks Alexis for help and Tracy creates another scandal for the Carringtons

February 29     #4.18 "The Vigil"
                Jeff fails to rescue Fallon from a dangerous situation; Alexis schemes to uncover the secret past of Kirby's mother; and Blake's new political power threatens Alexis' standing in the business world

March 7         #4.19 "Steps"
                Alexis devastates Kirby with the truth about her mother; and a paralyzed Fallon receives solace from Jeff after Peter abandons her

March 14        #4.20 "The Voice" (Part 1)
                Claudia learns the devastating truth about the disappearance of Matthew and Lindsay; and Mark's interest in Alexis draws suspicion from Dex

March 21        #4.21 "The Voice" (Part 2)
                Tracy and Blake seem to mix business and pleasure in Hong Kong; Claudia receives a call from Matthew

March 28        #4.22 "The Voice" (Part 3)
                Dex discovers Alexis and Rashid Ahmed together; and Blake faces an inquest into his China Sea dealings

April 4          #4.23 "Birthday"
                Fallon arranges a late night meeting for her family; and Rashid plans to sabotage Denver-Carrington

April 11        #4.24 "The Check"
                Rashid cleverly avoids a confrontation with Blake; and Kirby is obsessed with avenging the death of her father

April 18        pre-empted by "Charles and Diana: A Royal Romance" (repeat, TV-movie, 1982, 9:00-11:00pm)

April 25        #4.25 "The Engagement"
                Mark's attack on Alexis' business practices leads to trouble; Sammy Jo (Heather Locklear) returns to Denver; and Dex clashes with Steven over his loyalty to Alexis

May 2           #4.26 "The New Lady in Town"
                A mysterious woman arrives in Denver with damaging knowledge of Alexis' past; Blake attempts to keep his losses in the oil lease deal to a minimum; and Sammy Jo takes an interest in Adam

May 9           #4.27 "The Nightmare" (Season Finale)
                A gathering storm foreshadows the collapse of Blake Carrington's world; Alexis' nightmare of Mark's death becomes real; and Fallon loses her senses as she prepares for her wedding



SUMMER HIATUS / RERUNS:



NOTE: Unlike the previous 3 seasons when ABC reran most of the episodes from early June through mid September, in 1984 the network repeated only the final 4 episodes (beginning in late August) simply to refresh the viewers' memory prior to the new season. 

Although I'm not sure about the reasons for that decision, I would assume the reruns would have been interrupted by ABC's live telecasts of the Summer Olympics in Los Angeles and political conventions (as part of the presidential campaign 1984), so they opted not to have them. 

Plus the show was ABC's top series and it probably didn't need additional support through summer reruns. ABC filled the remaining available timeslots between May and late August with reruns of movies and mini-series. Those 4 episodes were repeated as follows:


August 29       #4.24 "The Check" (R)
September 5     #4.25 "The Engagement" (R)
September 12    #4.26 "The New Lady In Town" (R)
September 19    #4.27 "The Nightmare" (R)

Sept. 26, 1984  NEW (5th) SEASON BEGINS!