Top Twelve Characters from MASH (part IV)

Here we are in the next part of the Top Twelve list, but before we get started, let me review the people from the earlier list.

Number 12-Dr. Sydney Freeman

Number 11- Maxwell Klinger

Number 10- Father Mulcahy

Number 9-Radar O'Reilly
Number 8-Frank Burns
Number 7- Colonel Potter
Number 6-Charles Emerson Winchester III
Number 5- 'Hot lips' Houlihan

If you want more details on the characters, look to these links:

http://lockheed40.blogspot.com/2011/01/top-twelve-characters-from-mash-part.html

http://lockheed40.blogspot.com/2011/01/top-twelve-characters-from-mash-part-ii.html

http://lockheed40.blogspot.com/2011/01/top-twelve-characters-from-mash-part-i.html

Well, there's no point in delaying it. Let's find out who the top four characters are.

Number 4

McLean Stevenson played Lieutenant Colonel Henry Blake.

Henry Blake is not a man that was groomed for command. He was given the crash course and sent out to lead a MASH unit. It's not his fault he can't keep things under control at the 4077. He's definitely not ready for this responsibility, but he doesn't have a choice. It's the position he was given. Henry is a good surgeon and a good man. Henry may have his faults, but he tried his best.

I'll just go with one moment for Colonel Blake, and it's a big one. Henry gets his discharge and is finally heading for home. There are all sorts of significant moments in that episode as he says good bye to everyone. At the end of the episode Radar comes into the operating room with a terrible message. Henry Blake's helicopter was shot down and he didn't survive. This is one of the most significant moments on the show.

Number 3

Mike Farrell was the actor behind B. J. Hunnicutt

I spent a lot of time thinking about #2 and #3. I knew who was going to be the top choice early on, but which of the two best buddies comes out on top? Well, I picked B.J. for the number 3 spot. Both of these guys are great characters, and they add a lot to the show. B.J. comes in to replace Trapper and definitely has some big shoes to fill. (We'll talk more about that in a minute.) B.J. is definitely Hawkeye's best friend at the 4077, and the two of them have a lot of fun, but B.J. is a different man than Trapper John. B.J. is a married man whose whole life is focused on his wife and daughter.

So what about some moments for B.J. What about the episode where B.J. decides he's sick of being compared to Trapper? Yeah, everything that happens causes someone to mention that he's not as funny as Trapper, so B.J. decides to show just how good, or bad, he can be. B.J. manages to pull a prank on every person in the 4077, leaving Hawkeye for last just to let him get really paranoid. The other is another moment from the final episode of the show. B.J. refuses to say the words "good bye" because he is worried that either something bad will happen. He also doesn't want to admit that things are going to change. In the last moments of the show, Hawkeye and B.J. are standing by the helicopter that is set take Hawkeye away. B.J. is going to ride his motorcycle back. Hawkeye says good bye, but B.J. doesn't, but as the helicopter is flying away Hawkeye looks down and sees that B.J. has written "Good bye" with stones on the ground.

Number 2

Wayne Rogers played Captain John Francis Xavier "Trapper" McIntyre.

So where B.J. is the straight man to Hawkeye's crazy antics, Trapper is more like the comrade in the arms of comedy. I was rewatching the first season in an attempt to decide between the two and saw a scene that explains the relationship between the two men. Somebody decides that the 4077 is the perfect place to record a video showing how things are going in the war to help with the morale back home. The two decide that the original video is no good. They decide to make a better video to take it's place. In the video, the two of them go into the OR. As part of the gag, Hawkeye plays Groucho and Trapper plays Harpo. Trapper is just like Harpo in a lot of ways. He's looking for a good time, and likes to live in the moment, especially if that moment is going to get a laugh.

So what about some Trapper moments? Well, in the first season, Trapper agrees to fight in a boxing match against another MASH in order to keep an attractive nurse at the 4077. He ends up winning thanks to the judicious use of some ether on his glove. Probably the best-known moment is Trapper's departure from Korea. Wayne Rogers had decided to leave the role and rather than give him a send off, the writers sent him home off camera. Hawkeye missed the departure and only gets some words from Radar.

Number 1

Alan Alda played Captain Benjamin Franklin "Hawkeye" Pierce.

Sure there are lots of things going on around the 4077, but more than anyone else, this show is about Hawkeye. He's the top surgeon, and he gets the best lines, and has the most fun. While Hawkeye likes to have a drink, a laugh, and a good time with one of the nurses. He hates being a part of the war especially when his job is to put wounded soldiers back together enough to send them back where they got wounded in the first place. What gets him through most of the situations is his concern for individuals. He learns that a patient is actually a 15-year-old boy who used his brother's birth certificate to enlist and helps him understand he should go back home. In the pilot, Hawkeye and Trapper team up to get a young Korean enough money to go to America for medical school.

Hawkeye's character is basically filled with big moments. I've already gone over a lot of them with the other characters and in the last paragraph. I will mention one great moment from the first season. In order to help the local orphanage, Hawkeye creates a fake surgeon named Captain Tuttle. Somehow Hawkeye and Trapper manage to convince the camp that Captain Tuttle is real. All of his money is given to the orphanage which causes some trouble because the big brass outside of the 4077 decide to give him a medal. Hawkeye makes up a story that Tuttle died valiantly saving lives and has to give a eulogy for his imaginary friend. Of course his death benefits also go to the orphanage.

Well, that's the end of the list. I'm sure you have some thoughts on it, so feel free to leave them below.