Mark Vader Posted March 2, 2013 Posted March 2, 2013 (edited) That's roughly where I would put it. Whatever season Radar left was the first one where I thought they were not up to par. And, it wasn't due to missing Radar. I just thought the shows were getting lame. Very few shows that didn't go that way. I didn't watch the last episode because I was a junior at Bonas and we had a huuuge game vs. Rutgers that night. So, the whole debate on campus was do you go to the game (We had just beat West Virginia and Penn State in back to back overtime games) or watch MASH............I went with the former. And, was rewarded with one of the best games ever. Won on a three pointer in OT, making three OT wins in a row vs. these now BCS conference teams. I never ended up watching it on DVD or anything. Fair enough, can't say that I blame you for missing the last episode when you've got something already important going on. I do recommend that you check out some of the later shows along with the last episode. Some of the episodes are very good and the last episode was a great way to end the show. I know you are not addressing me with this one...but IMO, MASH always maintained a high quality of story telling, so I would never say it was not worth watching...but at some point (sorry, it is too long ago for me to pin-point which season), as the cast changed, the show kind of transformed from being a top-notch comedy/drama with a liberal POV, to a drama/comedy with a liberal POV. I am liberal, so I don't have an issue with the politics of the show, but the comedy (or maybe more accuarately the "tone" of the comedy) on the show changed drastically. As time went on, it emphasised the drama over comedy. It was still a really good show (especially compared to other things on at the time), but different. The replacement characters (BJ Honeycutt, Charles Winchester, Sherman Potter) were all good, but they were much more nuanced than the characters they replaced, so the tone of the show changed. Not to say that none of them were great characters (I never cared much for Honeycutt, but Charles and Col Potter were great), just so dramatically different. No doubt the overall tone of the show changed. There was a lot more outrageous comedy in the early seasons. Yet at the same time MASH still had a serious drama angle. The first season episode "Sometimes You Hear The Bullet", where Hawkeye has to watch his friend die in the O.R., really set that tone. Yes the later characters were different, which is fine. You wouldn't want characters like Hunnicutt, Potter & Winchester just to be carbon copies of their predecessors. I'm not going to debate which characters were better than whom, I just enjoyed who those characters were. My wife and I are HUGE M*A*S*H fans and have been for years. The later episodes were ok as compared to other shows of the time but really way behind the earlier episodes. They became too political and liberal. If I hear BJ complain about missing Peg and the kids one more time I swear I'm going to...... Take away: Henry Trapper Frank Radar And what have you got? A bunch of whining. The best line in any episode was when Trapper was using a duffle bag as a punching bag and Hot Lips ask "is that Frank's bag?" and Trapper says "I thought you were Frank's bag." Let's hear BJ say anything remotely that funny. Oh and Mike Farrell is the WORST actor ever! I don't fully agree with your whining comment, but I see your point. In my opinion, the character I missed the most was Radar. Potter & Winchester are great characters whereas Hunnicutt was ok. Yeah, Mike Farrell was pretty awful. Once Trapper, Frank and Henry left, Hot Lips turned nice (and boring), Klinger turned into the goofy Radar replacement (which was not a goofy character originally) and the show was mostly Alan Alda sermonizing. MASH was running on fumes at the end. No doubt Hot Lips was the one character that changes the most. Many fans also said that Klinger stopped being funny when he no longer wore dresses. I disagree. Klinger's shiftiness and con artist mentality made him very funny. Since it's been 35 years or whatever, I had forgot the details, but this is exactly how it was those last few years.........Running on fumes is how it felt to me. When a show like MASH lasts as long as it did, running on fumes is going to happen. That's happened with many shows before. Edited March 2, 2013 by Mark Vader
Mark Vader Posted March 2, 2013 Posted March 2, 2013 Which is exactly what i said. And maybe it can be a good thing for shows to not last as long. "The Dick Van Dyke Show" lasted only 5 seasons, and "WKRP In Cincinnati" only 4 seasons. As much as we would have liked for these shows to run longer, in the end they did not wear out their welcome. Shows like "MASH", "Cheers" & "Family Ties" are great shows, but may have lasted longer than they should have.
bbb Posted March 2, 2013 Posted March 2, 2013 Totally agree. Especially back then, shows just ran out of steam. I would even venture to say that the first season of Happy Days should make the list. That was great. Then, they put a leather jacket on Fonz and make him the main character. Cut Chuck the brother out with no explanation............Somewhere, they literally jump the shark, and soon enough you have teenagers in the 50s with blow dried 70s/80s haircuts! It was like they said eff it - we don't care about any standards at this point.
Mark Vader Posted March 2, 2013 Posted March 2, 2013 Totally agree. Especially back then, shows just ran out of steam. I would even venture to say that the first season of Happy Days should make the list. That was great. Then, they put a leather jacket on Fonz and make him the main character. Cut Chuck the brother out with no explanation............Somewhere, they literally jump the shark, and soon enough you have teenagers in the 50s with blow dried 70s/80s haircuts! It was like they said eff it - we don't care about any standards at this point. Never thought about it like that.
Bufcomments Posted March 4, 2013 Posted March 4, 2013 I have to reply to this topic, these are the shows that mad me laugh in no order.. The Jeffersons Barney Miller...best theme song ever WKRP Happy Days.....the Fonz Taxi I Love Lucy..... she was the best Night Court Married with Children....yea i know but it WAS funny The Bernie Mack Show Sanford and Son Reno 911 In Living Color....Jim Carrey was crazy on that show That 70's Show...Mila Kunis...nuff said. Roseanne Martin Mash....the early years Good Times..... I still watch
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