In Praise of M*A*S*H

[The Boy Who Cried Worf]

One interesting factoid about the finale : Joss Whedon cites it as a counter-influence on the Buffy finale, saying he did not want it to be unwieldly, as he saw the MASH finale, and so kept it to one hour. Other issues aside, I found it to be an invalid argument because the BTVS actors never had the power and influence over their show that the MASH actors did, especially at the end. If it was overlarge and overlong in spots, it was because all the cast members demanded their own storyline, plus they were setting up a spin-off. Whedon I think still had enough control that the whole thing would have been his call.

Well, that's all nice and dandy for Joss Whedon; however, M*A*S*H was basically an American institution. When it was announced that the series was ending, people were literally in shock and denial. Then, there was concern over whether or not the cast/characters would have a proper send-off. IMHO, the writers did a fantastic job, giving each character a closing story.

Interestingly though MASH was never the number one show in any year it was on.

 

[TGTheodore]

One interesting factoid about the finale : Joss Whedon cites it as a counter-influence on the Buffy finale, saying he did not want it to be unwieldly, as he saw the MASH finale, and so kept it to one hour. Other issues aside, I found it to be an invalid argument because the BTVS actors never had the power and influence over their show that the MASH actors did, especially at the end. If it was overlarge and overlong in spots, it was because all the cast members demanded their own storyline, plus they were setting up a spin-off. Whedon I think still had enough control that the whole thing would have been his call.

Well, that's all nice and dandy for Joss Whedon; however, M*A*S*H was basically an American institution. When it was announced that the series was ending, people were literally in shock and denial. Then, there was concern over whether or not the cast/characters would have a proper send-off. IMHO, the writers did a fantastic job, giving each character a closing story.

Interestingly though MASH was never the number one show in any year it was on.

Like Cheers, M*A*S*H was that rare example of a network standing behind a low-rated show because they believed in it.

--Ted