From the beginning...

[Alan Brady's Hair]

MASH has finally cycled through its whole run and is back to Season 1, Episode 1 on MeTV tonight.

[treky]

those first 3 seasons were the best, then someone made a HUGE mistake and let Alan Alda take over the typewriter and the directors chair.

[Will Dockery]

Originally Posted by treky

those first 3 seasons were the best, then someone made a HUGE mistake and let Alan Alda take over the typewriter and the directors chair.

And with that, strayed to far afield of the original concept and characterizations as laid down by Richard Hooker in his novel. The M*A*S*H novel was, of course, based on actual experiences and people in the Korean War, while the television series simply became more and more of a soapbox for Alan Alda to comment on political and social concerns of the late 1970s and early 1980s.

Not at all the sort of man Hawkeye started out as, although 11 years of war must have really mellowed him out.

[Will Dockery]

Originally Posted by Alan Brady's Hair

MASH has finally cycled through its whole run and is back to Season 1, Episode 1 on MeTV tonight.

That one and the first few that followed are the best, when (as I remember well, having been a fan of the movie before the show was created) the television version really did seem like they were trying to do sort of a sequel to the Altman film.

I remember explaining to myself that it was Duke, rather than Trapper who must have went home early, and the Trapper John/Hawkeye chemistry was preferable to Duke anyhow, which, at first, Alda and Rogers pulled off well, very well.

Didn't Alan Alda even whistle once or twice during those early days?

I do for a fact remember him saying "Finest Kind" at least once during an episode, which was Hawkeye's catch phrase all through the novel.

[Edward216]

I'm sorry I prefer the later seasons of MASH to the earlier ones. Just my opinion. Though for me It was never quite the same after Radar O'Reilly was written out.

Ed.

[treky]

also in the first season Christmas episode ("DEAR DAD"-the BEST of all their Christmas episodes) Hawkeye calls Fr. Mulcahey "Red" in one scene; "Dago Red" was his nickname in the book and movie.

In one scene he walks into the mess tent and the "padre" is decorating a Christmas tree. Hawkeye says "Lookin' good Red"

[treky]

yea, I saw that in our on-screen listings.

They only showed the first quarter of the last season; I wonder why?

[treky]

Originally Posted by Will Dockery

That one and the first few that followed are the best, when (as I remember well, having been a fan of the movie before the show was created) the television version really did seem like they were trying to do sort of a sequel to the Altman film.

I remember explaining to myself that it was Duke, rather than Trapper who must have went home early, and the Trapper John/Hawkeye chemistry was preferable to Duke anyhow, which, at first, Alda and Rogers pulled off well, very well.

Didn't Alan Alda even whistle once or twice during those early days?

I do for a fact remember him saying "Finest Kind" at least once during an episode, which was Hawkeye's catch phrase all through the novel.

yea, he said "finest kind" once in the first season Xmas episode "DEAR DAD" (the best of all their Xmas episodes) In one scene he walked into the mess tent and see Fr. Mulllllcahey decorating a tree. He says to him "Lookin' good Red" ("Dago Red" was Mulcaheyes nickname in the book)

[treky]

Originally Posted by Alan Brady's Hair

Back to the top of the lineup again on MeTV. The 71 Henry/Trapper episodes following tonight's pilot are perfectly timed to get us through to spring.

well, I can watch them anytime and complete, without commercials and without the laugh track because I have those first 3 seasons on DVD and JUST those first 3. That's all I intend to ever buy since they're the best.

[treky]

66 Henry/Trapper/Frank episodes left!