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I have finally figured out why MASH was funny.
I don't mean the book or the movie, nor even the early period of the TV show when Jackie Cooper was in charge; those were simply the antics of doctors who'd gotten through medical school with Army money, showed up to do their payback, decided that the only thing they gave a shit about was doing the surgery right, and spent the rest of their time just screwing around and figuring out how to get out of trouble when they were caught at it.
The TV show after Alan Alda took over was very different, and as I say I have finally figured out what was funny.
Hawkeye is insane.
The only thing that temporarily restores him to sanity is putting a prepped patient on the table in front of him. Then he turns into fucking Asclepius.
The rest of the time he lives in a world of pure and undiluted make-believe.
Everything that happens in the show is seen through Hawkeye's reality-filtration system, whether he's onstage or not. This is why every character who's trying to win the war is a one-dimensional caricature who could never exist in real life.
Mind you, there is one one-dimensional caricature who actually could, and does, frequently exist in real life:
Hawkeye.
And this is why directors cannot be allowed creative control unless they are actual writers.
I don't mean the book or the movie, nor even the early period of the TV show when Jackie Cooper was in charge; those were simply the antics of doctors who'd gotten through medical school with Army money, showed up to do their payback, decided that the only thing they gave a shit about was doing the surgery right, and spent the rest of their time just screwing around and figuring out how to get out of trouble when they were caught at it.
The TV show after Alan Alda took over was very different, and as I say I have finally figured out what was funny.
Hawkeye is insane.
The only thing that temporarily restores him to sanity is putting a prepped patient on the table in front of him. Then he turns into fucking Asclepius.
The rest of the time he lives in a world of pure and undiluted make-believe.
Everything that happens in the show is seen through Hawkeye's reality-filtration system, whether he's onstage or not. This is why every character who's trying to win the war is a one-dimensional caricature who could never exist in real life.
Mind you, there is one one-dimensional caricature who actually could, and does, frequently exist in real life:
Hawkeye.
And this is why directors cannot be allowed creative control unless they are actual writers.