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Season 6, Episode 131: The Grim Reaper
Original Air Date: 11/29/77
Written by: Burt Prelusky
Directed by: George Tyne
Col. Potter, Hawkeye, and B.J. are in Potter's office listening to a report by the appropriately-named Col. Bloodworth (Charles Aidman), who is telling them of an impending assault on a hill, and exactly how many casualties it will result in.
Hawkeye and B.J. find it difficult not to interrupt and mock Bloodworth, because of his casualness over how many young men will be killed, just to get a hill, "Because the other side has it."
Potter tells them to quite down, but Hawkeye just can't contain himself. He belittles Bloodworth, and the meeting ends abruptly when Bloodworth has had enough.
Later that day, the promised wounded arrive, but its 77 short of the total Bloodworth promised. Hawkeye heads off to the Officers Club to gloat, but it turns ugly when, after the P.A. announces more wounded are coming, Bloodworth smugly promises that's the remaining 77 soldiers. Hawkeye wonders if Bloodworth shot them himself, and gets so worked up he grabs the Colonel and throws him against a wall. Other members of the 4077 separate them, and Hawkeye walks out.
Bloodworth brings Hawkeye up on charges, which Potter, after yelling at Hawkeye for pushing Bloodworth around, says he'll try and head off.
Meanwhile, Klinger is happy to talk to one of the wounded, a Private Danker (Jerry Hauser), who is from Toledo and knows all the same haunts as Klinger, like the local dance hall and Tony Paco's.
Potter meets with Bloodworth, asking him to drop the charges. Bloodworth refuses, and throws in an insult to Potter for "coddling" his doctors in the process. He drives off, leaving Potter saying, "Pierce shouldn't have pushed you--he should have decked you!"
Later that night, more wounded arrive, one of whom is Bloodworth. In O.R., he lies on a table, watching Hawkeye operate on a patient. He sees Hawkeye stay calm and cool as blood shoots out of his patient's wound, hitting Hawkeye right in the face.
Near morning, Bloodworth asks to speak to Hawkeye. He tells Hawkeye that he watched him perform as a doctor, and was deeply impressed. He also realized how callous he was about death, and how scared he was when he thought he was the one who was about to die. Bloodworth informs Hawkeye that "a push in a bar" doesn't add up to all that, and the charges are dropped.
A few days later, Klinger shares a package from Tony Paco's, sent to him by Private Danker, with Hawkeye and B.J. They at first refuse to share with Winchester (as revenge for him not sharing food he had sent to him from home), but eventually let him pull up a chair and enjoy.
Fun Facts: Radar does not appear in this episode.
I do wonder one thing--the soldier from Toledo, Danker, is told by Hawkeye that his wound is very minor. So how and why did Danker get sent home so soon, enabling him to send Klinger the care package?
Favorite Line: The final scene, where Hawkeye, B.J., Klinger, and Winchester dig in to all the hot dogs and such from Tony Paco's, is wonderfully lit and shot, and its clear the actors are really eating. I feel like I can smell the hot dogs cooking.
When they goof on Winchester by sharing with him only a tiny portion of one hot dog, he walks off in anger. They stop him, saying they were just kidding. When he begins to chomp down, they admonish him to "save some for Margaret."
He pauses, thinks for a moment, and then holds up the tiny piece he was originally given, and says, quietly, "Oh, um...this is for Margaret."
Season 6, Episode 129: Images
Original Air Date: 11/15/77
Written by: Burt Prelutsky
Directed by: Burt Metcalfe
A patient in surgery is covered with tattoos, to the amazement of everyone in the O.R. Also during that same session, a newly-arrived Nurse named Cooper (Susan Blanchard) runs out on B.J. during an operation when she gets overwhelmed at what she sees.
Margaret reads Cooper the riot act, telling her that if she does that again she'll be transferred out. Some of the other nurses ask Hawkeye and B.J. to get Margaret to ease up on Cooper, but she's not having any of it.
Radar later asks the G.I. with all the tattoos about them, saying he wants to get one too. The G.I. (Larry Block) is very pro-tattoo, and when he one of the benefits of them is "the ladies won't leave you alone", that's all Radar needs to hear.
Meanwhile, Margaret has Cooper transferred out of O.R. duty, and recommends her transfer to Col. Potter.
When Potter gets Margaret's request, he has a talk with her in his office, where he turns the transfer down. Margaret is angry at being overruled, and says she'll only go along with it "if it's an order." Potter says it is, and Margaret storms out.
Radar turns to Hawkeye and B.J. for advice about a tattoo, but they are totally against it. Radar though is still determined to get one, so they accompany him to Rosie's Bar when he gets it to make sure everything is as antiseptic as possible.
While there, they meet a friendly Sergeant (John Durren) who is covered in tattoos, but gives Radar some horror stories about getting them, and tells him in no uncertain terms not to get one. Radar is swayed by this argument, until Klinger wanders in and spills the beans that this whole thing was a set-up. Radar, angry at being fooled, marches off to the back room to get his tattoo.
Meanwhile, Margaret overhears some nurses talking that the camp mutt (that Margaret had taken a shine to) was hit by a jeep and killed. She gets so upset she storms back to her tent, bumping into Hawkeye. He senses something is wrong, and after some pushing she starts to break down. In her tent, she insists she's not upset about the dog, but eventually the tears start to come.
Later in Post Op, Margaret talks to Nurse Cooper, and apologizes for being so tough. She leaves Cooper with the advice, "Just don't let it get to you."
In Radar's office, Hawkeye, B.J., and Col. Potter demand to see Radar's tattoo. Despite his protests, he is forced to drop his pants and show the tattoo he got on his rear end--a tiny teddy bear.
But its not a real tattoo--Radar was so afraid of the needle he had them draw it in with ink. Explaining it'll come off when he takes a bath, Hawkeye responds with, "My God, it is permanent."
Fun Facts: There's a scene in the Mess Tent between Margaret and Winchester, and after she leaves Winchester calls her "a spirited woman" with wide-eyed admiration. It seems like the writers were planting seeds of a possible romance between the two, but obviously nothing ever came of it.
There's also a scene in the Swamp where Winchester defends Gen. MacArthur after Hawkeye and B.J. make fun of him, in a speech similar to something you'd hear come out of Frank Burns' mouth. In later seasons, Winchester would make comments suggesting he follows politics only as how it relates to business, so this speech feels like a leftover from the show's previous dynamic.
Favorite Line: B.J. makes a crack about Winchester's dough, and he replies sarcastically, "Money, money, money." Hawkeye retorts: "Quiet, he's praying."
Season 6, Episode 126: The Light That Failed
Original Air Date: 10/25/77
Written by: Burt Prelutsky
Directed by: Charles Dubin
Supplies are running low at the 4077th--gel foam, sutures, winter clothing, even light bulbs are becoming scarce.
A supply truck arrives, carrying nothing but useless items--salt tablets, an ice cream churn, insect repellent, and the like, leaving the 4077th up a creek.
The one interesting item is a package for B.J.--a mystery novel! Since everyone is so bored, a "spine-tingling" paperback is like pure gold. B.J. crawls into his cot, savoring every page. When Hawkeye grows frustrated that B.J. is taking so long, he tears out the first chapter and throws it to Hawkeye just to shut him up.
The book then starts to make its way around the camp--first to Winchester, then to Col. Potter, then Klinger, Nurse Bigelow (Enid Kent), and so on. It becomes the topic of discussion in the Mess Tent.
The only problem is, the book is missing its last page, leaving the identity of the murder unknown. B.J. insists he knows who the killer is--the Reverend Butterfield!
In Post Op, Winchester, in the middle of complaining about the working conditions, gives a patient the wrong sedative--Curare instead of Morphine--causing the young man to go into shock.
Hawkeye and B.J. pull him through, but Winchester (whom Hawkeye refers to as "Major Disaster") isn't even thankful for the help, and is unwilling to even take the blame for giving the patient the wrong drug.
Meanwhile, an argument over the identity of the novel's murderer breaks out, after B.J. concludes his first guess was wrong. He makes a second guess, but Nurse Bigelow points out that's wrong, too.
After numerous wrong guesses, they get so frustrated they place a call to the novel's author, who is a 97-year old woman living in Australia. They call her, and she tells them the real murderer. After hanging up the phone, they realize...she's wrong, too!
Later, Hawkeye continued shunning of Winchester drives Winchester nuts, leading to an argument. While Hawkeye admits, technically, that Winchester is the best, his lack of actual feeling for his patients leaves a lot to be desired.
Another supply truck arrives, carrying all the stuff the 4077th needs. With the tension eased, Winchester finds it in him to apologize to Hawkeye for his behavior, promising to think more about his patients from now on.
Fun Facts: The encounter between Hawkeye and Winchester is genuinely tense--you really feel the disgust Hawkeye has for Winchester and his arrogant attitude.
Radar makes no appearance in this episode.
Margaret basically only has one scene in this episode--where Winchester reads a few pages of the book to her--instead, Nurse Bigelow gets an extraordinary amount of screen time.
The guy driving the supply truck is played by Phillip Baker Hall, an amazing actor who has been in films like Boogie Nights, Magnolia, The Insider, and The Truman Show.
Favorite Line: The guy driving the supply truck asks Potter sign for all the useless supplies, saying he has to get to the 8063rd.
Potter: "Let them get their inflatable pool and swim fins an hour later!"
Season 5, Episode 118: Souvenirs
Original Air Date: 3/1/77
Written by: Burt Prelutsky and Reinhold Weege
Directed by: Joshua Shelley
A batch of wounded include some young Korean kids who were out looking for scrap metal (to sell for money), which leads to a discussion about the curious need for people to collect souvenirs.
One of the biggest souvenir pushers is a chopper pilot named Stratton (Michael Bell), who buys a lot of the stuff the kids are risking their lives collecting. While hawking his wares in the Mess Tent, he runs afoul of Hawkeye and B.J., who are disgusted by Stratton's creation of the market that is getting so many kids hurt. Stratton is unimpressed, and walks out.
They ask Col. Potter for help, who gives a lecture in the Mess Tent, all-but-officially banning the buying and selling of such material at the 4077th. Stratton is the only one who seems uninterested in following Potter's "advice."
Later, in the Swamp, an M.P. (Brian Dennehy) arrives, on the trail of an antique Chinese bowl which was stolen. The trail leads to...Frank, who insists he doesn't know anything about it. Turns out its a priceless treasure, and owning it is illegal. The M.P. leaves, leaving Frank to chortle uncontrollably.
Hot Lips also wants something from Frank--a ring she gave him when they were a couple, and now that they're not together, she wants it back. Like the Chinese bowl, Frank says he doesn't have it, leading Hot Lips to get drunk in the Officers Club, depressed at how poor a friend Frank is.
While drunk, Stratton shoots his mouth off, which gets Hot Lips so riled up she decks him. As Stratton lays on the floor unconscious, Hot Lips returns to her drink.
Later that night, Frank packs up the Chinese bowl he doesn't have, sending it to his wife Louise. Hawkeye and B.J. follow him, remove the bowl, and replace it with a bed-pan, returning Frank's dryly-written note to his wife about it being a "priceless object."
Frank catches someone rifling through his stuff in the Swamp, and they fight. Frank of course is pinned into submission within a few seconds, and thief is...Hot Lips!
Hot Lips was looking for the ring Frank said he didn't have, and she waves in front of him in disgust. Frank apologizes weakly, but Hot Lips storms off.
This leads to a confrontation the next morning, where Col. Potter admonishes Hot Lips, saying she can't go around "getting loaded and beating up our officers."
Hot Lips, despite this being from a superior officer, is having none of it, and she says she feels she was justified in her actions. Potter tries to argue his side of it, but she won't listen. Potter gives up, sarcastically saying he's "glad we had this little talk."
Back in Post Op, Hawkeye and B.J. are disgusted by Stratton's gift to one of the wounded scrap-metal collectors: a cigarette lighter in the shape of a pistol. They drag him outside and demand he stop, but he is unmoved, defiant even.
Hawkeye and B.J. then suggest that Stratton has some vague symptoms that might mean he's very sick, so sick he can't even fly as a chopper pilot anymore. Stratton thinks they're bluffing, but he's worried enough about losing his "wings" that officially agrees to get out of the business of souvenir selling.
Stratton, disgusted, mocks the doctors' noble efforts, pointing out that there are "A hundred other guys out there like me--what are you going to do, change the world?"
B.J. answers, "No, just our little corner of it."
Fun Facts: Brian Dennehy as the M.P. continues the tradition of future big stars (John Ritter, Teri Garr, Ron Howard, etc.) playing a tiny role on the series, then going on to stardom.
M*A*S*H never did cut-aways back home, of course, but man I've always wanted to see a scene of Louise Burns (played by the same actress who player her in Season Three's "There Is Nothing Like a Nurse") opening up Frank's package and pulling out the bedpan.
Favorite Line: While in the O Club, Hot Lips, threatening Stratton and slurring her words, says: "You know, its a good thing for you my fiancee, Col. Donald Penobscott, isn't here. You know what he'd do if he was here?"
B.J., interrupting: "Buy an ash-tray?"
Season 5, Episode 116: The General's Practitioner
Original Air Date: 2/15/77
Written by: Burt Prelutsky
Directed by: Alan Rafkin
In the middle of a session in O.R., a Col. Bidwell (Leonard Stone) arrives, and demands an audience with Col. Potter.
Potter meets with Bidwell, who tells Potter that he is looking for a private doctor for his commander, Gen. Lowell Korshak, and he wants the best doctor the 4077th has got--which means Hawkeye.
Potter tries to talk Bidwell out of the idea, trying to get across just how un-military Hawkeye is. But Bidwell won't listen, and he asks to get a look at Hawkeye at work.
In O.R., Hawkeye almost loses a patient, but he manages to bring the soldier back, almost by sheer force of will. Bidwell gets in the way, and Hawkeye barks at him to get the hell out of the way.
Potter and Bidwell walk out to Bidwell's jeep, where Potter reiterates what a bad mix Hawkeye and Gen. Korshak would be. Bidwell says he'll mention that in his report, and drives off.
Later that night, Potter joins Hawkeye and B.J. for drinks in the Swamp, and tells Hawkeye what Col. Bidwell was there for. Meanwhile, we see Col. Bidwell in a jeep with Gen. Korshak, on their way to the 4077th.
Korshak arrives, makes his way to Col. Potter's office, and they have a drink. He then demands to see his new personal physician--now.
Hawkeye and Korshak are introduced, and Hawkeye absolutely refuses to answer any of Korshak's questions seriously, which seems to charm the General.
Things get more serious when Korshak formally says he wants Hawkeye as his doctor, and Hawkeye firmly--but gently--refuses. He argues that if he has to be in Korea, why not do the work he's supposed to do--be a real doctor.
Korshak then asks to see Hawkeye in action, so Hawkeye gives the General a physical--and the results are not good.
Hawkeye says, between Korshak's drinking, smoking, and extra weight, there's a stroke headed his way, and he's not interested in being Korshak's "court jester" while there are wounded kids he can save if he's at the 4077th.
Korshak at first refuses, and says Hawkeye will get the official orders in a few days. He begins to drive off, but Hawkeye demands he stop, and offers this ultimatum: "Now you guys always say the men come first--well do they, or don't they?"
This finally makes Korshak change his mind, and he agrees to cancel the whole thing. He drives off, leaving Hawkeye to stay and do his job.
Later, Frank asks Col. Potter to recommend him for the job of Korshak's doctor. Potter agrees, and starts writing down the various bursts of salacious material Hawkeye and B.J. offer up, leading Frank to protest getting what he asked for.
Fun Facts: Gen. Korshak is played by long-time character actor Edward Binns, who was a favorite of legendary director Sidney Lumet. He had roles in two of Lumet's best films, 12 Angry Men and The Verdict.
Favorite Line: Hakweye tries to explain to Gen. Korshak why he's here, grabbing his lapel and asking Korshak what he sees there. Unfortunately for Hawkeye, there's nothing there.
Hawkeye: "You see this?"
Korshak: "What?"
Hawkeye: "There's supposed to be a medical insignia there--Caduceus. [shrugging] I probably dropped it in a patient."
Season 5, Episode 109: Hawk's Nightmare
Original Air Date: 12/21/76
Written by: Burt Prelutsky
Directed by: Burt Metcalfe
Hawkeye seems particularly agitated during surgery, complaining about the shocking youth of his patients. He calls them "babies" and said they should all be home getting burped by their mothers, not fighting in a war.
At the end of a day-long session in O.R., Hawkeye and B.J. go to sleep, but a few minutes later, Hawkeye wanders out of bed, across the camp, sleepwalking--and acting like a small child, to boot.
The next morning, everyone asks him what he was doing the night before, and Hawkeye doesn't have the foggiest idea what they're talking about. At first he dismisses the idea, until Klinger mentions the name of a grade school principal Hawkeye talked about while miming playing basketball, which freezes Hawkeye in his place.
Another day goes by, and in the middle of the night Hawkeye wakes up again and goes sleepwalking. He reverts back to the same childlike identity he had the night before--miming playing basketball and shooting marbles. He wanders the compound until Radar and Klinger lead him back to his cot.
This all seems harmless enough, but then thinks take a darker turn--Hawkeye has a blood-curdling nightmare, about a childhood friend getting killed with sledding. B.J. wakes him up, and Hawkeye finds himself sweaty, with his heart-pounding...and a possibly soiled cot.
The next day, Hawkeye tries to convince himself that its just tension. He tries to make himself feel better by calling the childhood friend back home, just to see if he's all right. He is, but the phone call degenerates into a shouting match when the friend insists Hawkeye owes him $37.
That night, Hawkeye is afraid to go to sleep, and he tries to get other people to stay up with him. At first he tries Klinger, then Father Mulcahy, and then gets so desperate he even tries to talk to Frank.
When that peters out, he lays down and falls asleep. But, sure enough, a little while later, he has another nightmare about a childhood friend being hurt, leading to him make another phone call.
As Radar puts the call through, Col. Potter asks him afterward to call Sidney Freedman. Sidney agrees to come visit the next day.
Late at night the next day, Hawkeye, B.J., Col. Potter, Radar, Father Mulcahy and Sindey are playing cards. One hand ends, and Hawkeye and Sidney take a walk outside, ending with them sitting outside the Swamp.
Hawkeye is clearly worried--terrified, even--and he comes out and asks Sidney if he think he's going crazy. Sidney, who has been gentle with Hawkeye to this point, pointedly answers, "No."
He deduces that Hawkeye is trying to get back to a time in his life when there were no Life or Death decisions. And that, on the whole, the dreams are peaceful--its when the pain of being in war intrudes on them is when they turn dark. He reassures Hawkeye that this will pass, but reminds him that there's "a lot of pain" Hawkeye is dealing with, and it will take some time to pass.
Hawkeye, feeling better, thanks Sidney for his help. Sidney responds by challenging Hawkeye to a game of Mime Basketball, the same kind Hawkeye has been playing all week.
As they laugh and relax, Klinger and Radar watch from inside, amazed. Klinger now understands why his brand of crazy gets so little notice.
Fun Facts: The scene outside the Swamp with Hawkeye and Sidney is extraordinary--Sidney is so warm and understanding, yet clear-eyed and honest. Who wouldn't go to therapy, if this was your doctor?
Sidney uses the (presumably Yiddish) word ferschimmled at one point in the episode. Upon seeing this episode, I would use that word as a kid, always leading people to ask me what the heck that meant.
I love how unresolved this episode is--Sidney doesn't have any sort of magic cure for Hawkeye. He tells him the dreams will continue, at least for a little while, because of all the pain bubbling up in Hawkeye's subconscious, an astonishingly dark prognosis, when you think about it.
Alan Alda, for all his chemistry with the other cast members, always seemed the most engaged when he had dialog with Allan Arbus. For my money, I could watch Hawkeye and Sidney scenes all day.
Favorite Line: After Sidney makes an astute observation, Hawkeye applauds him and says, in mock surprise, "Hey, you're pretty good."
Sidney: "Thank you. For my next trick I'll invent Sibling Rivalry."
Season 4, Episode 92: The Novocaine Mutiny
Original Air Date: 1/27/76
Written by: Burt Prelutsky
Directed by: Harry Morgan
This episode opens in a military courtroom, with Hawkeye as the defendant!
A Col. Carmichael (Ned Wilson) is officiating, and he hears testimony about the alleged mutiny, a charge leveled by Frank.
Col. Potter testifies, as does B.J., who gives the Colonel some examples of Frank's insanity as commander--a ban on gambling, snap inspections, parades--he even has the entire unit do a practice bug-out, moving across the road, only to move back to the same spot the very next day.
Frank testifies to the events that led to the "mutiny". He insists that during a long session in O.R., he had to do nearly everything, operating on several patients at once while giving blood--directly from his arm--to a third. He even does Father Mulcahy's job, saying a prayer (in Latin, no less), when Mulcahy collapses in exhaustion.
Bombs are falling, and everyone is scared and panicking, except for Frank. He insists more and more wounded be brought in. Hawkeye, unable to match the pace Frank is insisting on, grabs a hypo and knocks Frank out, screaming "I'm taking over!"
Hawkeye then testifies, commenting on the bizarre fantasy Frank has concocted in his mind. He makes a joke, but seems genuinely sad realizing that that's how Frank actually sees the world.
Then he gives the real story--Frank was doing a pathetic job prepping the patients, not sending them in in the right order, and not even preparing the ones he is sending in for surgery. Hawkeye and B.J. scold him for not doing his job, but he won't listen.
The argument gets heated, then at one point a nurse accidentally slams a door into Frank, knocking him out. Hawkeye and B.J.--and everyone else--are relieved. Father Mulcahy takes over in Pre-Op, while Klinger drags the unconscious Frank--face down--out of the O.R.
After hearing all the testimony and looking into everyone's records, Col. Carmichael concludes that Capt. Pierce, while being thoroughly un-military, is a "top flight surgeon", and concludes that no case for mutiny exists. He dismisses the case, throwing in a shot at Frank in the process.
Fun Facts: This is the first episode directed by a cast member other than Alan Alda, in this case Harry Morgan.
Hot Lips makes no appearance in this episode.
There's one part of this episode I never quite understood--when Potter is leaving, he directly tells Frank, who will be in charge in the interim, not to go overboard with the discipline.
Frank clearly does go overboard, even having the 4077th do a practice bug-out. Wouldn't Frank get in a lot of trouble from Potter once he returned?
There's a great line by Hawkeye, after he (and everyone else) has heard Frank's version of the event. He at first jokes that Frank's testimony is closer to perjury than the truth, but then says he believes that that's how Frank really sees it. Looking at Frank, he adds a quiet, "More's the pity."
Favorite Line: When Frank, searching for the stolen money, says that he doesn't believe Hawkeye and B.J. didn't take it, because "Officers don't steal."
Hawkeye and B.J. laugh at that, sarcastically agreeing:
B.J.: "Right...we don't go to the bathroom, either."
Hawkeye: "We just explode when we're fifty."
Season 4, Episode 81: Quo Vadis, Captain Chandler?
Original Air Date: 11/7/75
Written by: Burt Prelutsky
Directed by: Larry Gelbart
Wounded arrive, and Radar is shocked when one of them--who arrived without dog-tags--says his name is Jesus Christ.
Hawkeye and B.J. try and get the soldier's real name, but he insists he really is Jesus Christ. His wound is superficial, so they assume he's doing this to get out of the Army. The soldier remains unruffled by the doctor's doubt.
Frank and Hot Lips try and get Col. Potter to step in, since they are sure that "liberal, bleeding heart" Hawkeye and B.J. will try and fill this soldier's head with all kinds of anti-American ideas.
Potter refuses to humor them, so they take it upon themselves to meet with Col. Flagg, who shows up to investigate this solider claiming to be Christ.
Flagg reveals the solider is actually Captain Arnold Chandler, a bombadier who has flown 57 bombing runs. Potter thinks it sounds like battle fatigue, but Flagg couldn't care less. Flagg demands Chandler be released immediately, but Potter goes with Hawkeye's idea: getting the advice of an expert on cases like this, Major Sidney Freedman.
Sidney Freedman arrives, and Flagg tries to talk him into backing his position. He first tries cajoling, then moves onto threatening him, referencing his "subversive" background. Freedman is unmoved.
Sidney meets with Chandler, who, still as Christ, reveals a deep sadness about having to bomb people who never did anything to him. He weeps at the thought of dropping bombs on "my children." They discuss the notion of faith, and identity.
Later, in a meeting in Potter's office, Sidney gives his professional opinion: he's Christ. Potter replies: "As you can see, I'm not laughing."
Sidney then explains that Chandler has suffered a mental breakdown, feeling so tormented over the killing he's done that his mind has shut down, refusing to allow him to do any more fighting. He grabbed the most peaceful identity he could find--Jesus Christ--and Chandler disappeared inside.
Col. Flagg of course doesn't buy any of this, and now threatens to "blow the whistle" on Freedman and his pro-Commie background, particularly Sidney's refusal to sign his Officer's Loyalty Oath.
When Hawkeye and B.J. congratulate Sidney on not signing ("Where do we go to not sign?!"), Flagg thinks he's being played, and insists that Sidney is staying right where he is--in the Army, where he'll have to be "loyal to the organization that's going to hound your every step." He storms out, revealing Frank and Hot Lips listening outside.
Potter shakes his head at Flagg's lunacy, and ultimately decides to follow Sidney's advice.
The next day, Capt. Chandler--after blessing Radar's teddy bear, upon request--boards the bus to be taken home. He still believes he's Christ, leaving Hawkeye, B.J., and Father Mulcahy to sadly watch as he departs.
Fun Facts: One of M*A*S*H's most brilliant episodes--it manages to tackle some huge dramatic--even controversial--issues while also being hysterically funny. The interchanges between Freedman and Flagg are masterpieces of comic timing.
This episode features pretty much the only time Sidney Freedman and Col. Flagg would appear together (they were both in the Season Two episode "Deal Me Out", but Edward Winter was not playing Col. Flagg, at least officially).
There's a great exchange between Col. Flagg and Col. Potter--meeting for the first time--when Flagg demands Potter make a decision, and says "The last C.O. they had here couldn't make a decision without a month's warning." Potter, clearly angry, says, "I'm not fond of personal abuse, Colonel--I was in this man's Army when the only thumb you cared about was the one in your mouth!"
Sidney Freedman also gets his shots in at Flagg: "You're a victim too, Flagg. But you're such an example of walking fertilizer it's hard for me to care."
Favorite Line: After Col. Flagg unleashes a typically loony tirade, Sidney Freedman shakes his head and says: "He's what Freud used to call 'spooky.'"
