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Day 07 - Least favorite episode of your favorite TV show
As with Day 06 I'm not claiming it from my favorite show but rather one of my favorite shows: M*A*S*H.
I chose Fallen Idol, an episode I refuse to watch. I don't have a problem with the concept of the show -- that Hawkeye is fallible or that Radar has a hard time dealing with that notion. And I don't have a problem with most of the details. Hawkeye would feel responsible for Radar getting hurt and he would go to Rosie's and drink himself into oblivion.
My problem is this: Drinking without consequence is a conceit of the show. We accept that this little, amazing M*A*S*H unit can function 24/7 with just 4 doctors. That these doctors are ready at a moments notice to do what they have to. That they can drink, take R&R, work for days on end, have liaisons and spend hours over at Rosie's all without hindering their life-saving efforts. Sure there is a nod here and there about people who drink too much or who are worried that they may drink too much, but it never really effects their performance.
Except in this episode. In this episode, all of a sudden, Hawkeye drinks too much, has a hangover and can't finish an operation. It's a poorly written excuse for Radar to lose his hero-worship of Hawkeye. And more than that, it's a weak excuse, one that smacks of poor writing in a series that usually has stellar writing. I really wish they would have given Hawkeye a different flaw. A flaw that Radar could have dealt with, a flaw that would have lasted more than one episode. Something real -- because drinking on this show was never real.
As with Day 06 I'm not claiming it from my favorite show but rather one of my favorite shows: M*A*S*H.
I chose Fallen Idol, an episode I refuse to watch. I don't have a problem with the concept of the show -- that Hawkeye is fallible or that Radar has a hard time dealing with that notion. And I don't have a problem with most of the details. Hawkeye would feel responsible for Radar getting hurt and he would go to Rosie's and drink himself into oblivion.
My problem is this: Drinking without consequence is a conceit of the show. We accept that this little, amazing M*A*S*H unit can function 24/7 with just 4 doctors. That these doctors are ready at a moments notice to do what they have to. That they can drink, take R&R, work for days on end, have liaisons and spend hours over at Rosie's all without hindering their life-saving efforts. Sure there is a nod here and there about people who drink too much or who are worried that they may drink too much, but it never really effects their performance.
Except in this episode. In this episode, all of a sudden, Hawkeye drinks too much, has a hangover and can't finish an operation. It's a poorly written excuse for Radar to lose his hero-worship of Hawkeye. And more than that, it's a weak excuse, one that smacks of poor writing in a series that usually has stellar writing. I really wish they would have given Hawkeye a different flaw. A flaw that Radar could have dealt with, a flaw that would have lasted more than one episode. Something real -- because drinking on this show was never real.
