M*A*S*H

[J.J. Walters]

M*A*S*H is an absolute classic television show! One of the all-time greats! Havn't seen an episode in ages! Need to see one soon!

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Higgins: It's not a scratch! It's a bloody gouge!

[Frodoleader]

Loved MASH also, but to be honest, I thought the show got a little too preachy at times.

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"You are three months at Dak Wei and still you crack jokes?" - Ivan

[Visiting Stewardess]

Yes, that's what a lot of people say, and even I as a die hard fan admit that.
But then again... you can't say it too often that people die in wars and it is such a waste of human life.
They raised awareness for various cases of discrimination (blacks, gays, women), the plight of the children that were the result of relationships between American soldiers and Korean women, and several other things too.

I personally don't like the preachy side so much either, but there are very few episodes I skip when I am on a run-through of the series.

[Majordomo]

Gotta love MASH!

I few years back they had it on TBS or some similar station and you could actually watch about 3 - 4 episodes daily. This went on for a couple years. I remember not ever liking MASH before that, but after being blasted by it for hours a day, it really became a staple in my retro-life.

[N1095A]

Fond farewell to the GREAT Harry Morgan. Morgan was one of those actors who when you saw him on the screen, just gave you a warm feeling. Sadly today we don't have much of that in actors.
He was truly a national treasure. RIP.

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"But Higgins, I can explain."

[AmandaByNight]

[Seaver41]

Though not my favorite, I don't think there is a show that I've ever watched more of then M*A*S*H*. Access is the easy answer. As a kid growing up in NY, the show was shown in syndication EVERY weeknight at 7pm AND 11pm......so over the years I've likely seen each episode at least 5 times over.....probably more. I was too young to watch it in current production until I aged a bit and that was towards the end. Born in 67', it was 2/3...3/4 of the way thru the series run before I was watching the Monday night 9pm broadcast, and even at that I was watching Monday night football knowing reruns happened all the time. Plus it wasn't must see tv down the home stretch, except for the finale.....and that was tough to watch.

MASH had 2 distinct lives. You had the zany, gag like comedy of the Hawkeye/Trapper/Henry years.....and a much more dramatic, mature approach in the BJ/Potter years. One could argue the switch came with the exit of Frank and the entrance of Winchester.....but the true zaniness lied in the years while Henry Blake was in command. I would classify the FRank to Winchester period as the growing up stage and once Winchester was on board the show had a much more grown up feel.

I haven't watched in some time now, but I guarantee you it would take a moment to figure out the episode.

My favorite episodes lie mostly in the early days with Henry/Trapper.

I see one poster in the thread wrote they never saw it.........and I must admit that was shocking, but it must be an age thing as MASH has been gone for quite some time now....so it is easy to understand younger generations not knowing it..............but anyone 35+ years of age had to have some contact with the show in their earlier life.

[Visiting Stewardess]

RIP Harry Morgan.

On the MASH forum it was quite a sad day, although everyone was amazed about the high age reached by Harry Morgan.
He was quite frail in the end but was still in contact with his friends from the MASH years.

There was a nice tribute from Gary Burghoff on the Ken Levine Blog. That made me almost choke, it brought out the man from behind the actor.

The weekend following his death we had our annual Christmas MASH fest.
When everyone on screen was saluting the Colonel, we paused the DVD for a moment and saluted Harry Morgan. It was an emotional moment.


I liked Harry Morgan as Colonel Potter. He was the father figure in the show, the one that every one looked up to. And I guess, looking at his age, he was a kind of father figure for the cast as well.

I do prefer, as Seaver41, the earlier period with Henry Blake and Trapper. But it depends a bit on my overall mood, the Potter/Winchester years certainly had some highlights too.
I have watched a number of documentaries and behind the scenes stuff, including the reunion, and I am amazed how close they were in real life.

When watching my MASH DVDs in sequence I usually leave out the last episode. It's just too much, I usually need several hankies during the show.

[Seaver41]

when watching the reruns you get to see the horrible gaps they left in dealing with the departure of Trapper. Yes, it was due to the contract and Wayne leaving at end of season, but it just sucks that they were such characters together and then he is gone.....poof.....just like that. The writers did a decent job of writing the episode and introducing BJ.