Why?

1. It centered the show NOT on the original members of MASH, but on some stupid unknown and awful supporting characters that should not have been the center of attention. The show should have focoused on the original characters of MASH and made Col. Potter the head of the hospital. Instead they made him a lackee and it just did not go over at all.

2. It was simply NOT FUNNY! The comedy scenes were horrendous at best.

3. It was not serious either. The serious scenes lacked any imagination. No real drama like the Original MASH had.

4. The writing, directing and acting made the show seem ...."thrown together at the last minute".

5. Other than Radar making a guest apperance, not much worth salvaging out of this show.

6. The head of the hospital and ESPECIALLY that STUPID IDIOTIC HEAD NURSE really annoyed me more than anything. It made the show hard to keep interested in, when you wanted to reach out and slap the snot out of that idiot.

Oh and the new smartaleic doctor they have on there needs to be slapped as well.

And having potter and klinger take it from her made it just that much worse!

My opinion of this show was not very high to begin with. As a MASH fan and having seen all of the episodes of MASH, I thought I would watch this...I wish I hadn't!

I can give you three words to describe this show and you can pick which one fits it best...DUMB...DUMBER...or...DUMBEST! You decide.

If it was a horse, it should have been shot and put out of it's misery long ago. I know Col. Potter would have done that to Sophie if she was suffering like this show was!

You are correct, not a very good show. Actually it was pretty bad.

As far as the second year goes...they made klinger a MENTAL PATIENT? What kind of fools wrote this insane dribble?

As I said before.....if this series was a horse, it should have been shot a long time ago.

No wonder they only made 7 episodes of season 2...it was worse than season 1!

Why did it get a 2nd season anyway?

Why did it get a 2nd season anyway?


LOL! You got me on that one. I could not figure that one out myself.

I even watched the unaired episode of a show called W.A.L.T.E.R which was about walter O Riley (also known as Radar from M.A.S.H)

He was supposed to have lost the farm, lost his newly married wife and became a police officer. Not very good either. About as bad as after mash...no wonder the networks refused to touch it.

I had completely forgotten about this show. We didn't watch it at my house, sounds like we didn't miss anything.

I had completely forgotten about this show. We didn't watch it at my house, sounds like we didn't miss anything.



Don't worry...you didn't!

I remember when AfterMASH first came out. I was very excited about following the lives of some of the characters as they adjusted back to civilian life after Korea. After mid-way through the first season, it just did not stick for me and I lost interest after that.

I even watched the unaired episode of a show called W.A.L.T.E.R which was about walter O Riley (also known as Radar from M.A.S.H)

Actually, W*A*L*T*E*R did air on CBS -- during the summer of 1984.

Back then, networks didn't waste anything and would air pilots that didn't make it to series as "specials."

Actually, W*A*L*T*E*R did air on CBS -- during the summer of 1984.



Actually, it was only aired on the East Coast. It was cancelled before it would air on the West Coast. I only just watched it recently on YouTube! :lol:

Actually, it was only aired on the East Coast. It was cancelled before it would air on the West Coast. I only just watched it recently on YouTube! :lol:

Did not know that. Hmmm..

I guess I lucked out then.

I have never seen it.Sounds like i didn't miss anything though.But for some odd reason i still want to see it,Cus i loved Mash and atleast some of the charecthors are on it.

This show sounds like a classic case of good ideas but horrible execution!!

Most of you might know this, but in 1982 or so, the MASH cast members sat down and had another vote to continue the series into 1983 and BEYOND (MASH being on 11 years about a 3 year war), with Morgan, Farr and Christopher voting in the minority to continue the show. I think epecially with Christopher and Farr this was the best gig they ever had and did not want to let go of it.

CBS did not want to let go of the audience that MASH brought in and spun AfterMash. I dont remember too much about the series except the one where Gary Burghoff guest starred as Radar, something about Radar having a girl and having sex for the first time (which was Radar's choice, he had one nurse wanting to jump his bones, and then there was Nurse Kellye, who would have hooked up with Radar.).

They had a Frank Burns like character for the first season and an Alan Alda/Hawkeye like doctor. The series was trying to be too much like MASH. It wasn't a bad idea in my opinion, but badly executed. Harry Morgan and Jamie Farr were actually very good and funny together in MASH (Jamie Farr cracks me up just looking at his face).

I think the writers were the same MASH writers, and I feel that for a show like this to succeed which is a spinoff of a previous show without the show's star, that new writers should be brought in who are familiar with the characters and did something new and different. Old writers, old scripts, bad ideas.

Most of you might know this, but in 1982 or so, the MASH cast members sat down and had another vote to continue the series into 1983 and BEYOND (MASH being on 11 years about a 3 year war), with Morgan, Farr and Christopher voting in the minority to continue the show. I think epecially with Christopher and Farr this was the best gig they ever had and did not want to let go of it.

CBS did not want to let go of the audience that MASH brought in and spun AfterMash. I dont remember too much about the series except the one where Gary Burghoff guest starred as Radar, something about Radar having a girl and having sex for the first time (which was Radar's choice, he had one nurse wanting to jump his bones, and then there was Nurse Kellye, who would have hooked up with Radar.).

They had a Frank Burns like character for the first season and an Alan Alda/Hawkeye like doctor. The series was trying to be too much like MASH. It wasn't a bad idea in my opinion, but badly executed. Harry Morgan and Jamie Farr were actually very good and funny together in MASH (Jamie Farr cracks me up just looking at his face).

I think the writers were the same MASH writers, and I feel that for a show like this to succeed which is a spinoff of a previous show without the show's star, that new writers should be brought in who are familiar with the characters and did something new and different. Old writers, old scripts, bad ideas.


I can see why they didn't want it to end.The 3 who didn't because it was truly greatness.Wish they could of done it with more successNobody could possibly replace Hawkeye.There will never be another Mash.I still got to see this show just to see for myself.

Most of you might know this, but in 1982 or so, the MASH cast members sat down and had another vote to continue the series into 1983 and BEYOND (MASH being on 11 years about a 3 year war), with Morgan, Farr and Christopher voting in the minority to continue the show. I think epecially with Christopher and Farr this was the best gig they ever had and did not want to let go of it.

CBS did not want to let go of the audience that MASH brought in and spun AfterMash. I dont remember too much about the series except the one where Gary Burghoff guest starred as Radar, something about Radar having a girl and having sex for the first time (which was Radar's choice, he had one nurse wanting to jump his bones, and then there was Nurse Kellye, who would have hooked up with Radar.).

They had a Frank Burns like character for the first season and an Alan Alda/Hawkeye like doctor. The series was trying to be too much like MASH. It wasn't a bad idea in my opinion, but badly executed. Harry Morgan and Jamie Farr were actually very good and funny together in MASH (Jamie Farr cracks me up just looking at his face).

I think the writers were the same MASH writers, and I feel that for a show like this to succeed which is a spinoff of a previous show without the show's star, that new writers should be brought in who are familiar with the characters and did something new and different. Old writers, old scripts, bad ideas.

They even brought in original producer/head writer Larry Gelbart to write the pilot.

But unfortunately, lightning doesn't always strike twice.

And it didn't help that they were basing a show on three characters who were there to provide support in the original series.

I gues it has that one thing in common with Threes Company. A great show that turned into such a horrible spin off. Just as Threes Company spun off into Threes a crowd.

I gues it has that one thing in common with Threes Company. A great show that turned into such a horrible spin off. Just as Threes Company spun off into Threes a crowd.

What I remember of it wasn't horrible, just lackluster.

Now, if they'd done a spinoff where Hawkeye got a offer he couldn't refuse and took a job at a Boston hospital, where his buddy Trapper worked (Trapper came from Boston) and the head of thoracic surgery was Charles Emerson Winchester, now *there's* a M*A*S*H spinoff with potential!!

My brother-in-law, a HUGE M*A*S*H fan (born in 1980) tried to watch some of the AfterMASH episodes on YT and couldn't get through them, he hated the show so much.

I watched an ep. or two back in the day. I was about 9 yrs old so just about anything would capture my attention, but even at that impressionable age afterMASH failed to grab me.
W*A*L*T*E*R* was far supior offering in my opinion, even at its extant single episode. Im not sure that even the entire pilot exists even.

AfterMASH took all the very worst elements of the last seasons of mash (hackneyed sentimentalism, over-familiarity, lazily assuming the audience's unconditional love and approval. not very funny) and transformed it into an even less interesting version of itself with less humour and style. It would have been better had they all moved into the same house together and got into some sort of showbiz thing, like a puppet troup or side-show with fake freaks. and like how come trapper john md has an action adventure job in a modern hospital in bustling downtown 1980s when the rest of "The Gang From M*A*S*H*" still exists in a late fifties universe? Did, like, Trapper John decide he was too good and moved away from the other later mash crew?

I really liked "Hello Larry" though

Ya had me up until "puppet troupe."

:(

It had potential but it was a trainwreck.

Again, building a show on three supporting characters was not a good move.

Imagine if, say, Charles Emerson Winchester was somehow forced to work at a VA hospital instead of going back to his hometown of Boston and Klinger and Mulcahy showed up, with Potter as the head of the hospital?

They could have had some of Charles' family that we heard about make appearances and his anguish over still having to be an army doctor would have made for a better series.

They needed Alan Alda as Hawkeye, really, but i think he was done with Hawkeye after an 11 year stint.

W*A*L*T*E*R* was far supior offering in my opinion, even at its extant single episode. Im not sure that even the entire pilot exists even.


watch?v=OS8Vd1vVqXc

Actually, it was only aired on the East Coast. It was cancelled before it would air on the West Coast. I only just watched it recently on YouTube! :lol:

From what I've read, WALTER aired in a time slot like 8 PM ET/7 PM CT, when it was still too early for prime time in the other time zones. The 1984 Democratic Convention started around 8:30 or 9 PM ET that night and ran past the time prior to West Coast news when prime time shows would normally air in the West after live events (post-prime time in the East), so it was preempted in the other time zones and never rerun. It wasn't "cancelled" as such.

Spin off's don't normally do good.

As far as the second year goes...they made klinger a MENTAL PATIENT? What kind of fools wrote this insane dribble?

As I said before.....if this series was a horse, it should have been shot a long time ago.

No wonder they only made 7 episodes of season 2...it was worse than season 1!

What about the moment when Klinger had been told that he failed the civil service exam for a job to support his family, was TOTALLY crushed, and then Alma says, "What's this? If 'Active Duty Veteran' add 5 points."? Didn't Jamie Farr total nail Klinger's line of shock (paraphrased): "After all those years of misery, I FINALLY get paid back!"? He passes by one point.

AfterMASH existed for no other reason than it could exist. CBS wanted to be in the MASH business so the suits were willing to greenlight almost anything. Spinoffs get an initial bump from their connection with the mother series but after that they sink or swim on their own merits. The show was stuck with three characters from MASH that were interesting when mixed with the circumstances and the larger cast but as lead characters they failed to measure up. This was an attempt to build a show from back to front and it just doesn't work like that.

AfterMASH existed for no other reason than it could exist. CBS wanted to be in the MASH business so the suits were willing to greenlight almost anything. Spinoffs get an initial bump from their connection with the mother series but after that they sink or swim on their own merits. The show was stuck with three characters from MASH that were interesting when mixed with the circumstances and the larger cast but as lead characters they failed to measure up. This was an attempt to build a show from back to front and it just doesn't work like that.

There was network interference to blame as well. The ratings weren't all bad, but tinkering resulted in Potter's wife being played by a different actress in season 2 and I think someone at CBS decided they didn't want to be in the After-MASH business anymore.

I didnrt ever see one episode!!!!

There was network interference to blame as well. The ratings weren't all bad, but tinkering resulted in Potter's wife being played by a different actress in season 2 and I think someone at CBS decided they didn't want to be in the After-MASH business anymore.

Well, about those rating, the show had a sensational start out of the box, number 1 the first two weeks coupled with a number 4 finish in its third week! After that the show dropped and there was a sense on the creative side as well as the network side that the show needed improvement. As the show moved into 1984 the audience began disappearing, four of the last 5 episodes failed to make the top 30, two of the final three finishing at number 49 and 40. Here's a quote from Gene Reynolds:

The show was far less than brilliant. I take full responsibility for its failure. If I hadn’t been so in love with the title, I might have thought out the show to go with it in a more objective way. I knew the series would inherit Potter, Mulcahy, and Klinger. I knew, too, that good as these people are, a leading player was going to be necessary. There was an attempt to build up a central character, a doctor who had lost his leg in Korea, and played wonderfully by David Ackroyd, but other attempts at making a show with its own tone, style and intent were not as successful. Probably, an hour show would have been a better format… Oh, well, you win some and you lose some (except on TV you lose in front of a whole lot of people).

Here's a quote from Executive Producer Ken Levine:

Ken Levine, has called the show one of his worst efforts, sarcastically writing on his blog, “Take the three weakest characters of M*A*S*H, put them in the hilarious confines of a Veteran’s Hospital and you have a recipe for classic comedy.”

The second year was a complete disaster it did worse than the show behind it E/R.

Well, about those rating, the show had a sensational start out of the box, number 1 the first two weeks coupled with a number 4 finish in its third week! After that the show dropped and there was a sense on the creative side as well as the network side that the show needed improvement. As the show moved into 1984 the audience began disappearing, four of the last 5 episodes failed to make the top 30, two of the final three finishing at number 49 and 40. Here's a quote from Gene Reynolds:

The show was far less than brilliant. I take full responsibility for its failure. If I hadn’t been so in love with the title, I might have thought out the show to go with it in a more objective way. I knew the series would inherit Potter, Mulcahy, and Klinger. I knew, too, that good as these people are, a leading player was going to be necessary. There was an attempt to build up a central character, a doctor who had lost his leg in Korea, and played wonderfully by David Ackroyd, but other attempts at making a show with its own tone, style and intent were not as successful. Probably, an hour show would have been a better format… Oh, well, you win some and you lose some (except on TV you lose in front of a whole lot of people).

Here's a quote from Executive Producer Ken Levine:

Ken Levine, has called the show one of his worst efforts, sarcastically writing on his blog, “Take the three weakest characters of M*A*S*H, put them in the hilarious confines of a Veteran’s Hospital and you have a recipe for classic comedy.”

The second year was a complete disaster it did worse than the show behind it E/R.

That clarifies things. Thanks.

If they had had more of the original M*A*S*H cast members appear as guest stars, then maybe this sequel show might have survived? I enjoyed seeing Radar O’’Reilly and the infamous Colonel Flagg appear on “After-M*A*S*H.”

I would have liked to have seen Frank “Ferret Face” Burns return to annoy Colonel Potter, Max Klinger and Father Mulcahy as only Frank could. And, it would have been fun to have
seen the pompous and supercilious Charles Emerson Winchester reuniting with that decidedly blue collar and regular guy, Max Klinger.

Maybe Nurse Kelly and some of the the other former nurses from the 4077th could have returned to the show as RNs at Colonel Potter’s VA hospital? And, wouldn’t it have been cool to have Sgt. Russo goof-off at Colonel Potter’s stateside hospital like the way Rizzo had
goldbricked when he was in Korea? Oh, the possibilities would have been limitless!

I was never a fan of M*A*S*H, it got on my nerves. The Hawkeye character particularly rankled me, he seemed like he was always such a self righteous preachy type who was always trying to hit you over the head with his moral message. War bad! Really? Way to go out there on a limb, Hawkeye.

BUT, when they aired the big episode when they all went home, I had to watch, and somehow I got hooked. I especially liked Winchester's subplot with the Korean musicians. So I started watching M*A*S*H reruns prolifically (and it was on about six times a day at the time).

So when AfterMASH came on, I eagerly started watching. And I can't say it was good television necessarily, but in my state I enjoyed it well enough. I knew the critics were savaging it, and I think more than anything else I was pulling for them to turn things around. Some series start slow and pick up steam, but I guess it wasn't to be. Not sure why it has disappeared off the faith of the earth though.

I was never a fan of M*A*S*H, it got on my nerves. The Hawkeye character particularly rankled me, he seemed like he was always such a self righteous preachy type who was always trying to hit you over the head with his moral message. War bad! Really? Way to go out there on a limb, Hawkeye.

BUT, when they aired the big episode when they all went home, I had to watch, and somehow I got hooked. I especially liked Winchester's subplot with the Korean musicians. So I started watching M*A*S*H reruns prolifically (and it was on about six times a day at the time).

So when AfterMASH came on, I eagerly started watching. And I can't say it was good television necessarily, but in my state I enjoyed it well enough. I knew the critics were savaging it, and I think more than anything else I was pulling for them to turn things around. Some series start slow and pick up steam, but I guess it wasn't to be. Not sure why it has disappeared off the faith of the earth though.

A series based on the Richard Hooker novel M•A•S•H Goes To Maine might have turned out better.

A series based on the Richard Hooker novel M•A•S•H Goes To Maine might have turned out better.
I didn't realize there was a series of books, so I may look into them. Anyway, probably anything would have turned out better than AfterM*A*S*H, so you're probably right. From what I saw though, that book focuses on Hawkeye and Trapper, not the group of actors that were willing to carry on after the main series. I guess they could have used some creativity though.