Just watched the worst M*A*S*H episode

[Oeditpus Rex]

In terms of anachronism and continuity -- "A War For All Seasons," the one that begins with a New Year's Eve party with Col. Potter as Father Time, ushering in 1951. Problem was, Potter didn't arrrive at the 4077th until Sept. 19, 1952.

M*A*S*H is notorious for continuity errors. How many can you think of? And, when do you think the show jumped the shark?

[hlthe2b]

1. Good gawd... Compared to the crap sitcoms and what passes for comedy today?

Good grief... So, what if there were a few "continuity" mistakes that those needing a hobby dissect out 40 years later?

M*A*S*H at its worst is better than 90 plus % of what is available today--even on paid networks. YMMV, but I'd bet the majority will agree with me.

[Oeditpus Rex]

7. Why must you compare it

to today's shows? I'm comparing it to itself.

[hlthe2b]

20. As has already been repeatedly said to you: "this was not a documentary..."

Your comment is the standard for the latter.

[Oeditpus Rex]

23. No, my comment

is the standard for shows with a capable continuity editor.

[hlthe2b]

29. ...

As you can see from the comments and recs, the majority of us still like and enjoy it.

Had you been sincere in wanting to talk about the lack of continuity in shows, you could have posted a thread about this among all comedies and dramas. But, instead all you wanted to do was make an issue of M*A*S*H. You didn't like it. We get it. Bye.

[Oeditpus Rex]

32. ...

I'd just watched what I consider one of its worst episodes because it threw logic into the shredder. I didn't realize i was butchering anybody's sacred cow.

You want me to critiqué other sitcoms? I can do that. Pick one.

[LetMyPeopleVote]

37. This show lasted three times longer than the actual Korean war

That makes continuity issues difficult

[Oeditpus Rex]

39. Why? (n.t.)

[LetMyPeopleVote]

40. Really?

If you have a holiday episode each season for ten seasons, it is hard to keep continuity for a war that only lasted three years.

I loved Mash and the show did a great job given the fact that the series was three + time longer than the actual war.

[Oeditpus Rex]

45. All you'd need

is a continuity editor who keeps track of everything and reads each script to make sure, for example, Col. Potter isn't a Methodist when he first gets there and a Presbyterian about fìve seasons later.

[Wiz Imp]

67. Actually closer to 4 times as long. 11 years vs 3.

[Ptah]

2. It's not a documentary.

[Attilatheblond]

4. It lasted longer than that war.

Agree, TV shows are not reality and back when that one was on, people knew the difference between real and TV shows.

[Oeditpus Rex]

8. Very astute observation

[boonecreek]

3. Continuity errors

were a hallmark of the Sheldon Leonard sitcoms.
Names changed, characters changed, etc.

[Oeditpus Rex]

13. I can think of one

In "The Dick Van Dyke Show," Laura had two maiden names: first Meeker, then Meehan.

[boonecreek]

22. Then there was Rob's old army buddy,

Sam Pomerantz or Sol Pomeroy first played by Henry Calvin who played Sgt. Garcia on Zorro,
then later by sitcom veteran Allan Melvin.

[Oeditpus Rex]

35. Wasn't Marty Ingels

originally Sol?

Seems like Allan Melvin was on half the sitxoms from the mid-'50s to the late '60s, and always as either a cop or a soldier. First, as far as I know, he was the cop whse beat included Danny Williams' (Danny Thomas) apartment building on "Make Room for Daddy." Then he was Cpl. Henshaw in "The Phil Silers Show" ("Sgt. Bilko&quot , and later Sgt. Hacker in "Gomer Pyle, USMC," in ddition to playing the aforementioned Sol (or Not Sol) in "The Dick Van Dyke Show." I'm almost certain he was a. one-ooff or ocasional character in other shows.

Oh -- he played the space sheriff in "Lost In Space" who was on the trail of Old West outlaw Zeno, who bore an uncanny resemblance to Dr. Smith in obe of that show's silliest episodes.

[boonecreek]

42. You're right.

Looked it up on IMDb, the episode was "Sol and the Sponsor." He was also on "I'm Dickens He's Fenster" with John Astin
and this crazy movie called"Wild and Wonderful" with Tony Curtis, Christine Kaufman and a spoiled rotten poodle. IIRC, I
saw it on a double bill wth "Dr. Strangelove."

[Oeditpus Rex]

57. I guess his biggest claim to fame

is being married to Shirley Jones.

I barely remember "I'm Dickens, He's Fenster." Must not have watched it much because I can't remember what it was about. Weren't they handymen or somethin'?

[boonecreek]

62. They were carpenters.

Basically, house builders. Their foreman was played by Frank DeVol who was primarily a
musician. If you see an old TV show where "Music by DeVol" is in the closing credits, that's him.
The episode I remember best was where Harry tells a joke and the job site splits into two armed
camps over whether to joke is funny or not.

[Oeditpus Rex]

65. Hmm... kinda like the Lounge, that last thing

First tine I recall noticing DeVol was in the "Family Affair" closing credits. (I had a bit of a crush on Cissy )

[RockRaven]

5. The biggest continuity error was making a 3 year war last 10.5 on air,

and DECADES in reruns!

[Ilsa]

31. Big "but" here: They only wrote and taped three

Christmas episodes. So, 251 episodes could hypothetically translate to an episode for every 4 or 5 days of the Korean Conflict?

[Wounded Bear]

6. Given that the war only lasted for 3 years and the series ran 11...

I'm not surprised at some chronological inconsistancies.

The war started in Jun of 1950. By the spring of 1951 it had stabilized into trench warfare that lasted until the armistice in summer of 1953. The front lines moved a little, but nothing significant like WWII. The mountainous terrain lent itself to defense and static warfare.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Korean_War

M*A*S*H would have occurred in the later, non mobile part of the conflict. Thus the hospital camp never really moves much. Helps to keep production costs down. That gives a window of just over 2 years to contain the 11 seasons and 256 episodes.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/M*A*S*H_(TV_series)

[Marie Marie]

9. Sorry, but as far as I am concerned, M*A*S*H* is one of the few shows that never jumped the shark.

One of the best shows ever aired on TV. JMHO.

[3catwoman3]

10. I totally agree.

[Diamond_Dog]

30. I agree also.

[debm55]

36. Agree

[LetMyPeopleVote]

38. I agree

[ms liberty]

43. This is the answer.

[electric_blue68]

46. Agreed!

[hunter]

11. The shows are clearly drawn from multiple parallel universes...

... with some small effort made to put them in a pseudo-chronological order.

[niyad]

12. I am so happy for you that you have the time and energy for this. Most

of us are too heartsick and exhausted to be able to care.

[Oeditpus Rex]

14. Yeah, you're busy with important questions

Like "What's your favorite breakfast cereal?"

[debm55]

17. Some poeple enjoy those threads, They are fun and get people sharing.

[niyad]

18. Good morning, Deb. Yes, they are fun, and yes, we enjoy them.

[debm55]

19. Thank you niyad.

[True Dough]

56. It's not just the threads, deb

It's the friendly nature of the people who start them. Some are naturals at it (like yourself) and others are just not very good at it (no names necessary).

[Oeditpus Rex]

24. This one was intended for just that purpose

That should be obvious by the question at the end of the OP.

[ms liberty]

44. That may have been your intention...but...

You picked on MASH, one of THE most sacred shows of the 20th century and the show that taught premium unmatched smart-assed repartee to a nation of ypung people.
(Finest kind!)

[Oeditpus Rex]

48. Then there were those of us

who learned it from Marx Brothers movies. (Swordfish.)

[electric_blue68]

47. They help balance out the bad stuff!

[Polly Hennessey]

26. Yes, we enjoy those threads. They help temper the horror of the tRump monstrous administration.

[electric_blue68]

60. At least for me - fun, laughter, beauty, wonderment, etc Are what Help me get away from, or wade through ...

the Awfulness of these current times in the USA, and elsewhere.

Otherwise I'd be cursing, and crying a whole lot more! Keeps my mental, and physical health at least better otherwise.

[Rigpa108]

15. M.A.S.H. lasted about 12 days

26 episodes per year at one hour per episode would be 26 hours, times 11 year run = 226 hours divided by 24 hours in a day = ~12 days. Counting reruns would double that to ~24 days.

Great show BTW.
And I tend to agree, never jumped the shark.

[Wiz Imp]

68. M*A*S*H was a half hour show. There were 256 episodes with the final one, at 2 1/2 hours the only one not a half hour.

[Morbius]

16. M*A*S*H was best for the first three seasons.

The show took a hit when Henry got killed. It was still good for several more years, and declined over time, especially in the last three seasons. Really, the prime was in the first four seasons before Larry Gelbart left.

Radar at the beginning was a cunning participant in whatever Hawkeye and BJ were up to; in the first season he would go into the Swamp and drink their moonshine. Then the show runners decided he needed to be naive and youthful, so he switched to grape Nehi and assumed an air of innocence. His character didn't grow; it changed based on the needs of the show.

Margaret was a joke until Loretta Swit negotiated a new contract, and she became a more sympathetic character. It's not like her character grew; her character changed. And so on.

Don't get me wrong; it's not like the show got terrible, not ever. But the end was a good deal less great than the beginning. It was a comedy and a good one; then they made it a dramedy and it was much less entertaining.

[Oeditpus Rex]

25. They made it into

the Alan Alda Virtue Signalling Show, but I don't think that was its downfall. That came with Radar's departure and Klinger's promotion to the main cast.

First, Radar wasn't a cohort of all the officers, but a comedic adjutant to them. Klinger, who was nothing but a clown from the beginning, became a member of the officers' club while contributing nothing but complains and bad puns. Then, this perennial bozo got promoted to sergeant. Unbelievable.

Meanwhile, Hawkeye and B.J. became overbearingy "punny" and Potter expanded his lexicon of "down-home" exlaations to absurdity. We also got too much of Sgt.Rizzo, one of the most inane, pointless characters in TV history.

Gary Burghoff's departure led to a chain reaction that showed how important hee was to the show.

[Wiz Imp]

69. Each cast departure weakened the show in my opinion.

Only Harry Morgan as Colonel Potter was a good replacement IMO though his casting significantly changed the tone of the show. But he was such a good actor to me I could accept him in that role. I like and respect Mike Farrell, but his character of BJ couldn't hold a candle to Trapper. David Ogden Stiers was a great actor, but his character was all wrong for the show. As horrible a person as the character of Frank Burns was, he added a lot to the dynamic of the show though I understand why Larry Linville chose to leave the show. They were probably smart in not replacing Gary Burghoff with a new actor, but he was crucial to the show, and the show declined precipitously after he left (even if the rest of the cast hated him as is rumored). The changing of Klinger's character was absolutely terrible to me.

The last several seasons are completely unwatchable to me. This blogger nails it for me:
https://manofwow.blogspot.com/2015/06/the-slow-burn-of-mash-jumping-shark.html

The show starts off as one of the best shows on television being both very funny and socially relevant, which is rare. It also has its fair share of pathos. By the end the 11th season, it is unwatchable. The last few seasons are so bad that I cannot watch it while trying to sleep. It just makes me angry. It is no longer funny, the drama is bad and so preachy and self-righteous. It is almost insulting at times.

I can watch any episode from the first 3 seasons at any time. The next couple seasons after that are OK - watchable if I'm in the mood. If a Post Frank Burns episode come on, I'll generally change the channel (probably quickly). If an episode comes on from when after Radar left, I'll run screaming the other direction.

As much as I love Alan Alda and the general underlying politics of the show, as it went on, Alda had more control over everything and seemed to either forget or ignore what made the show so likeable in the beginning. M*A*S*H was much better as a comedy with dramatic elements than the other way around.

[Omnipresent]

28. Don't forget how upbeat and peppy the shows music got in the last few years.

[ProfessorGAC]

51. We Are Polar Opposites On This

I like none of the Blake episodes, except maybe(!) the last one, where he is going home.
I didn't care for Wayne Rogers & the Trapper character, either.
I like everything AFTER the point you prefer ended.
Maybe that's why the show lasted so long. There was a little something for everyone.

[yourout]

54. I think Frank Burns and TACO are the same guy

[ProfessorGAC]

55. Beauty!

Made me laugh out loud!

[Oeditpus Rex]

64. Blake was much more a bufoon

than a C.O., but at least he knew he wasn't much of the latter. He had a couple of moments, like when Hawkeye's old friend Tommy died (the one who was writing the book about the war) and Blake tried to console Hawkeye with the adage about doctors not being able to prevent young men from dying in war. But, mostly, he waps a clown.

That doesn't mean those episodes themselves were all bad, though. It's more that, for the most part, they were strictly comedy. ("Yankee Doodle Doctor" was great.)

I think the best seasons were the three after Col. Potter arrived. He was an excellent leader, yet quite human, and the writing seemed to be at its peak during that time.

[ProfessorGAC]

66. Potter's Arrival

Completely agree. It also made more sense to me that a regular army doctor would be in charge of a hospital unit.
I also prefer the BJ character to Trapper, and the 2 of them arrived 2 episodes apart.

[appmanga]

53. Hear, hear...

...those first three years were hilarious, and the show didn't take itself so seriously. It eventually got too preachy for me, and I stopped watching after season four.

[Oeditpus Rex]

63. I watched it through all 11 seasons

In the original run, though by about the eighth season, a lot of episodes were pretty eye-rolly. I never minded the "preachiness" too much, just the bad plots (I mean, a bowling tournament with a portable lane?Surgeons mixing and pouring concrete?*) and resulting sub-par writing nd directing.

*For that matter, why would they send their two best surgeons to diffuse an unexploded bomb instead of calling in EOD, or at least using a couple of enlisted men? And that was in the first season.

[Paladin]

21. The movie was infinitely better than the TV series. (nt)

[Tiny Tabby]

27. Two years too early

Someone started singing the Mickey Mouse Club theme song to taunt another character. Mickey Mouse Club started in 1955, war ended in 1953.

[Oeditpus Rex]

33. Nice catch!

One that I've totally missed

[sdfernando]

34. Not at all unexpected given

the show ran for 11 seasons and the US was only involved in Korean War for 3 years.

[edbermac]

41. Hot Lips father was a major continuity error.

In one early episode she tells Col Blake “Do you know that you look just like my father before he died?”. A few seasons later guess who shows up at the 4077?

[Ptah]

49. OMG! Blazing Saddles had a Gucci bag, and yet, Gucci wasn't founded until 1921!

Can you explain that?

[Oeditpus Rex]

58. Is that something

most people would know?

Besides, you're referring to a movie that was pure satire. M*A*S*H wasn't.

[ProfessorGAC]

50. Normally, Continuity Errors Bother Me

But, not this one. I rather enjoy that episode.

[Xoan]

52. GET A LIFE

[Oeditpus Rex]

59. ...

[electric_blue68]

61. I love MASH, have little criticism of it. Reccently I watched tbe ep "Adam's Rib" about Hawkeye trying to get these...

famous ribs he's had previously.

My favorite part is when he throws his food to the tent, jumps on the table, and starts chanting, "we want something else !", till he gets the whole lunch crowd chanting it. Does a little dance, too.
😄😄😄