The voiceover narration during the “roll call” scene after the tag features dialogue lifted almost word-for-word from the very end of the movie MASH. We’ll never get out of here.” What were they hoping would happen? That Hildebrande would consider them insane and have them shipped back to the States?įinally, fear that the 4077th is going to be split up was later revisited in Season 10’s “Rumor at the Top.” Hawkeye and his skeleton friend. And the only act I can think of that would be madder still would be breaking them up.īut why were Hawkeye and Trapper so despondent after Hildebrande declared the 4077th should stay together? Hawkeye laments the fact that they “screwed up in reverse. And let me tell you this, General: These impossible people are in an impossible place doing totally impossible work. In my short stay here, I have seen textbook examples of neuroses, psychoses, I have seen voyeurism, fetishism, and a few ‘isms’ I’ve never even heard of. I love Captain Hildebrande’s analysis of the 4077th: Was he stealing clothes from nurses? Or were Hawkeye and Trapper in the showers and the sign was left up accidentally? I do wonder exactly what Frank was doing sneaking out of the ladies showers with an armful of clothes. I don’t really have much to see about the episode itself. That explains why the first few minutes, which see General Clayton giving Captain Hildebrande an overview of the 4077th and some of its personnel, seem somewhat excessive to longtime fans. The 1st season we had very low ratings and so was an opportunity – and a necessity – in educating 1st time viewers as to what we were all about. The idea was to make the script a 2nd pilot, i.e., introduce the characters and the background understandable for viewers who might be seeing the show for the first time.

The episode was the first show of the 2nd season. Larry Gelbart explained in an August 1998 post to the alt.tv.mash newsgroup how the episode was aimed at first time viewers: That meant millions of viewers would be seeing it for the first time. This episode served as a “re-pilot” to M*A*S*H, which started its second season in a time slot following All in the Family on Saturdays. Originally Broadcast: Saturday, September 15th, 1973Ĭapsule Summary: General Clayton sends a psychiatrist to the 4077th to determine if the unit should be broken up. Every Monday, I spotlight a random episode of M*A*S*H, providing a brief review and asking readers to offer their thoughts.

Mash divided we stand