Just curious,I am certainly not ripping the show, just curious what everybody's opinions are considering the show actually lasted years after the actual real Korean War lasted...

yes, I think it did.

Yes - it went on at least 2 or 3 seasons too long.

yes it should have stopped after season 8

I'm going to disagree with all of you. I never got tired of this show. I never noticed that they were recycling any plots. And they very smoothly replaced departing characters with new and different characters. So no it did not last too long.

Yes,it did.It should have ended when Gary Burghoff as Radar left the series.

No, I think it was just the right amount of time. They stopped when everyone made the mutual decision that it was time to move on.

Nope, I think they cut out at the right time. It never really got stale. Now, if they would've kept going for another 5 seasons or so; that would've been too long and people would have been wanting it to be over. As it was, they left with people still wanting more, yet also contently resigned to the fact that it was time to leave.

Nope, I think they cut out at the right time. It never really got stale. Now, if they would've kept going for another 5 seasons or so; that would've been too long and people would have been wanting it to be over. As it was, they left with people still wanting more, yet also contently resigned to the fact that it was time to leave.
Well said!

Not to me! It always seemed to twist and turn in novel and captivating ways. Great fade out and intro of new characters esp.

It's strange that you should ask this question . At one point, I realized they should do a final episode where the Korean War ended and everybody got to go home . Every time they interviewed an actor or a writer who worked on "M*A*S*H", they asked him ( or her ) "How much longer do you think 'M*A*S*H' will run ?", and that person would say "I think next season will be our last !" . However, they kept trying to squeeze another season out of "M*A*S*H" , I began to think "They're going to do 'M*A*S*H' to death until people lose interest, and then they'll never be able to do that last episode !" . I know they finally bit the bullet and let "M*A*S*H" end, and I've seen "Goodbye, Farewell, and Amen" several times, but at one time, it looked like it was never going to happen .

No Mash could have lasted 20 years and, still been the greatest show on television in my opinion.

Yes,it did.It should have ended when Gary Burghoff as Radar left the series.

The show perhaps really lost its way once Klinger was no longer funny without a skirt and the replacements for Trapper and Frank were stiffs (B.J. and Winchester)--plus the "character development" mostly made people less interesting (Alan Alda's sanctimoniousness, Margaret's Oedipal (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oedipus_complex) relationship with Potter). They took the tension among the characters out of the show took the life out of it at the same time.

They should've ended it at the end of the fourth season.

no, they should have ended it after season 7 when Radar left, Klinger stopped wearing dresses and being funny and Alan Alda got more and more input and it became "Oh we're doctors and we're nurses and we're so good because we save lives, and death is such a bummer and war is hell..." and on and on and on.

I can't think of any memorable episode from the last 3 seasons -- at least between the Goodbye Radar episode and the last half-hour episode with the time capsule.

Nope, and I watched it right up to the end, pretty much from start to finish.

I think the show was actually better after the first three years or so. And yes, I know I'm in the minority.

I'm probably in the minority here but growing up as a kid in the 80's with M.A.S.H being in constant reruns at that point the show was never popular among pre-teen boys and even now as an adult I've never cared to watch a single episode, it just does not interest me, how do you find humor in a war setting.

I'm just dumbfounded hearing of how the last episode had such high viewership, how is that possible? sure yeah there were only 3 major networks but still, did the other two just turn off their programming?

I'm probably in the minority here but growing up as a kid in the 80's with M.A.S.H being in constant reruns at that point the show was never popular among pre-teen boys and even now as an adult I've never cared to watch a single episode, it just does not interest me, how do you find humor in a war setting.

I'm just dumbfounded hearing of how the last episode had such high viewership, how is that possible? sure yeah there were only 3 major networks but still, did the other two just turn off their programming?

No. The show was just that popular.

It's no secret CBS wanted the show to continue, but the cast voted for the last season to be the final one.

It ran just long enough.