Let's just say that the fourth season was so low rated that it was cancelled. Now all the episodes are the same, meaning the series finale would have been "The Interview." Do you think the show would still be considered the classic that it is? Would you have become a fan of the show in reruns (for those who weren't fans in it's original run)?

I imagine some people figured the show would suck without Stevenson and Rogers. If they had this messageboard back then, I'll bet it would have been flooded with "M*A*S*H is gonna suck now!" or "How can they do the show without Henry and Trapper?" However, it turned out well.

But for this thread, imagine what it would be like if the fourth season was the show's last.

I don't think the show would have been as well known now if it was cancelled after only four seasons.

One of the reasons the show is so well known was because of it's longvevity. It's still a rarity for a prime time TV show to be on for more than ten seasons.

The final episode of M*A*S*H was the biggest televison event of 1983. No program would have that grand a sendoff after only four years on the air.

I'm going to have to agree. I think the show would have faded into relative obscurity if it were canceled after season 4.

On a random side note, does anyone know if MASH's finale is still the most watched finale ever? Where does it fall in terms of most-watched programs ever on tv?

Most sitcoms run about 5 years. Or use to.
It's hard to sustain comedy that long.

I think it would probably settle in somewhere around WKRP and Taxi in popularity. People would point to Mike Farrell as the 2nd Darin that weighed down the comedy in Season 4.