download 4077th mobile army surgical hospital

However, both the serious and the comedic sides were present throughout. In the earlier seasons, the show placed most of its emphasis on the 'zany' elements, but later focused on more serious topics and character development. One significant shift observed by many viewers as the series progressed was a move from pure comedy to become far more dramatically focused.

So just as the characters remained true to their medical mission in spite of the shifting fortunes of war, so the television series, while preserving its unique blend of drama and commentary with comedy, endured many changes through its 11-year run. Hence, through its 11-season run, various episodes of M*A*S*H would deal with topics like military bureaucracy, racism, gender bias, homosexuality, alcoholism, drug abuse and so on.īut MASH means 'mobile' as the staff of the 4077th are constantly reminded. The dramedy format also proved to be an effective vehicle to expose and satirize pressing social issues of the times. The show's producers have, however, said that it was really broader, it was about war in general.

Some viewers saw the series as a critique of the Vietnam War (still in progress when the series began), rather than the Korean War, given the attitudes of the characters. The comedic elements of the show carried a darker antiwar message. As journalist Peggy Herz put it, 'They did not laugh at war. It was these coping efforts - the jocularity in the operation room, the practical jokes they played on one another and their crazy, wholly unmilitary antics which provided the show's comedic elements. It also depicted how they struggled to cope with the realities and horrors of war. So, like the movie which spawned it, the television series recounted in 26 minute weekly segments the experiences of a group of US Army doctors, nurses and medics as they worked desperately to save the lives of wounded soldiers. From the beginning, its producers had intended that it was not to be 'Abbott and Costello goes to war'. Some critics have referred to it as television's first 'dramedy'. 12.1 Final episode: 'Goodbye, Farewell and Amen'Īlthough M*A*S*H has been classified as a 'situation comedy', it proved to be something quite different.

4 End of the Series: 'Goodbye, Farewell, and Amen'.

Download 4077th mobile army surgical hospital