George

This episode was one of the things that I loved about M*A*S*H. It definitely was ahead of its time by about 20 years due to the fact that gays in the military wouldn't become a hot button issue until the Clinton Administration in the 1990's. The thing I thought was interesting is that they treated the character of George as a regular person and not as the stereotypical effeminate gay man. Also, this helped give a little bit of insight into Frank's character. It reminded me of the furor over Larry Craig who was vehemently anti-gay until it was found out that he was a closeted gay man and this probably was the case with Frank as some episodes would indicate.

All in all this is one of the most thought provoking episodes in the series and it showed why M*A*S*H became a classic.

....he could never do a scene without having to be permanently attached to Alda's heels. Honestly Trapper doesn't even seem like the type to be that deeply concerned about half the issues they come across, only because Hawkeye is and he has to follow behind every single thing he does. Not saying Trapper's not a good person he just has a more chill laidback vibe to him.

This episode focuses on the fact that there is a homosexual soldier that's brought in the infirmary with bruises but not from fighting the enemy. He confides in almighty Hawkeye telling him where the injuries come from and why he needs to get back to his unit. He ends the convo asking Hawkeye not to tell anyone and literally the next scene he's discussing it with Trapper. Oh but it's ok tho because telling Trapper is basically like telling himself, I mean that's what a shadow is right?

Frank somehow finds out about the guy and being the villain of the show of course he's against it, running his mouth to Trapper and Hawkeye. I don't get why Frank even goes to them to gossip or tries to be friends with them when clearly they don't like nor respect him, that's the most pathetic thing about Frank besides his bigotry. Anyway, he goes full force to try and get the guy a dishonorable discharge while Hawkeye and Shadow try to stop him with their usual antics.

This is my first watch of MASH so everything is new to me and even though my review is kinda negative in tone I did enjoy the episode. Trying to help a gay character was a nice thing to do and the subject matter socially advanced for the time. It just sucks episode after episode having to watch your favorite character play sidekick literally ALL THE TIME when you see he is capable of more. I really wish they would've gave Trapper more plots where he could shine. As the show goes on you see more and more why Wayne Rogers decides to leave.

A wounded soldier is brought to the OR with injuries non-related to battle. Actually, he has been wounded four times but has contusions inflicted by persons unknown. He confides in Hawkeye that he is gay. This term wasn't used much in 1975, let alone in Korea in the early 1950's. If this got out it would have been devastating to this young man. All his accomplishments and his very being would have been destroyed. He would have been given a dishonorable discharge and possibly even imprisoned. Of course, good old Major Burns gets wind of this and is set on destroying this person. The fact is that this subject was handled delicately and was very well presented.

... and it could be because I was living in Dallas at the time and the local networks often preempted shows and episodes that the station manager had moral objections to. For example, as late as 1993, Dallas' ABC affiliate would not broadcast "NYPD Blue" because of its sexual content! Or it could be that my Southern Baptist parents pretended that the TV was on the fritz that night. But enough about me.

This episode talks about the problems of a gay man serving in the military at the time of the Korean War when this was still considered moral turpitude and got you evicted from the military, and not honorably. Frank gets wind of the existence of the gay soldier, the titular "George", and demands that Lt. Col. Henry Blake sign the papers that get him kicked out. Henry refuses and so Frank says he will write Washington. Meanwhile Hawkeye and Trapper John try to comically short circuit Frank's plans.

The interesting thing here, as usual, is the moral outrage that motivates Frank. One of the things that the show did to out Frank as a hypocrite was that he was cheating on his wife with Major Hoolihan in a long running affair. However, Trapper John and Henry were ALSO cheating on their wives. I guess the difference is that they were open about it? Maybe it was a hold over from hippie culture, because when Trapper John and Henry Blake were written out of the show, their new counterparts were true blue to their wives.

It was really surprising to see something taken up in primetime TV that would still cause a furor 20 years later when Bill Clinton at first wanted to allow gay men and women to serve openly in the military, and had to settle for "Don't Ask Don't Tell". It is just a culturally fascinating episode. I recommend it.