MASH (Season 2) DVD

Rated: Not Rated
Genre: TV Series
Length: 613 minutes
Director: Various
Year: (1973)

Britt Gillette's MASH (Season 2) DVD Review

Based on a Richard Hooker novel of the same name, MASH was released in 1970 as a full-length feature film by 20th Century Fox before experiencing widespread success as a groundbreaking television sitcom in the Fall of 1972. The show's brilliant integration of drama and comedy made it one of the most celebrated shows in TV history, culminating in an eleven year prime time series stint. The 1983 series finale of MASH made history as the program with the single largest audience in television history, beating out several SuperBowls and the fabled "Who Shot J.R." episode of Dallas. With the proliferation of new television mediums, it's a record likely to never be broken…

The sitcom is set in South Korea during American involvement in the Korea War (with M*A*S*H standing for "Mobile Army Surgical Hospital"). Buffered from the front lines by a mountain range and a minefield, the men and women of MASH were tasked with patching up wounded American soldiers. Unique to its genre, the cast of MASH was unusually large. Surgeons Dr. Benjamin Pierce (Alan Alda) and Dr. "Trapper" John McIntyre (Wayne Rogers) play the roles of excellent doctors who enjoy women and booze, while Dr. Frank Burns (Larry Linville) and Nurse Practitioner Margaret "Hot Lips" Houlihan (Loretta Swit) play foil to the two men's shenanigans (due to a contract dispute, Rogers' character was later replaced by Dr. B.J. Hunnicutt - played by Mike Farrell). The character of Frank Burns was also later replaced by Dr. Charles Emerson Winchester (David Ogden Stiers)…

Corporal Max Klinger (Jamie Farr) provides comic relief with his early attempts to procure a discharge by dressing in women's clothing, and Father Francis Mulcahy (William Christopher) adds flavor to a diverse cast of characters. Also rounding out the cast are Lt. Col. Henry Blake (McLean Stevenson), Corporal Walter "Radar" O'Reilly (Gary Burghoff), and Col. Sherman Potter (Harry Morgan)…

The MASH (Season 2) DVD offers a number of hilarious episodes including the season premiere "Divided We Stand" in which General Clayton assigns staff psychologist Captain Hildebrand to examine the M*A*S*H unit and make recommendations on whether or not to keep it intact. Hildebrand is amazed to witness some of the immature antics and wild behavior, but his impression is tempered by the great teamwork the unit exhibits in taking care of wounded soldiers… Other notable episodes from Season 2 include "Dr. Pierce and Mr. Hyde" in which a ruggedly tired Pierce decides to employ unique measures to end the war, and "The Sniper" in which a lone sniper holds the entire MASH camp hostage…

Below is a list of episodes included on the MASH (Season 2) DVD:

Episode 25 (Divided We Stand) Air Date: 09-15-1973
Episode 26 (5 O'Clock Charlie) Air Date: 09-22-1973
Episode 27 (Radar's Report) Air Date: 09-29-1973
Episode 28 (For the Good of the Outfit) Air Date: 10-06-1973
Episode 29 (Dr. Pierce and Mr. Hyde) Air Date: 10-13-1973
Episode 30 (Kim) Air Date: 10-20-1973
Episode 31 (L.I.P.) Air Date: 10-27-1973
Episode 32 (The Trial of Henry Blake) Air Date: 11-03-1973
Episode 33 (Dear Dad… Three) Air Date: 11-10-1973
Episode 34 (The Sniper) Air Date: 11-17-1973
Episode 35 (Carry on Hawkeye) Air Date: 11-24-1973
Episode 36 (The Incubator) Air Date: 12-01-1973
Episode 37 (Deal Me Out) Air Date: 12-08-1973
Episode 38 (Hot Lips and Empty Arms) Air Date: 12-15-1973
Episode 39 (Officers Only) Air Date: 12-22-1973
Episode 40 (Henry in Love) Air Date: 01-05-1974
Episode 41 (For Want of a Boot) Air Date: 01-12-1974
Episode 42 (Operation Noselift) Air Date: 01-19-1974
Episode 43 (The Chosen People) Air Date: 01-26-1974
Episode 44 (As You Were) Air Date: 02-02-1974
Episode 45 (Crisis) Air Date: 02-09-1974
Episode 46 (George) Air Date: 02-16-1974
Episode 47 (Mail Call) Air Date: 02-23-1974
Episode 48 (A Smattering of Intelligence) Air Date: 03-02-1974

Britt Gillette

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Posted on 05 April 2005