What Happened on the Final Episode of ‘M*A*S*H’?
M*A*S*H (which stands for Mobile Army Surgical Hospital) is one of television’s all-time most beloved primetime series. Based on Richard Hooker’s 1968 novel and 1970’s big-screen adaptation, the show, which premiered on September 17, 1972, depicted the ups and downs of life at a U.S. Army hospital during the Korean War. Blending comedy and drama like few shows before or since, it pulled no punches in showing the horrors (as well as the precious lighter moments) of living and tirelessly working under those uniquely traumatic conditions.
With a diverse ensemble cast led by Alan Alda (who played the wisecracking Hawkeye Pierce) and Loretta Swit (the tough-but-beautiful Major Margaret “Hit Lips” Houlihan), M*A*S*H survived first-season ratings struggles and enjoyed 11 iconic seasons of success, landing in TV’s top 10 shows for most of its run … so why did it end?
Why did M*A*S*H Come to an End?
20th Century Fox Film Corp./Everett Collection
Unlike many TV shows, the folks behind M*A*S*H weren’t compelled to close up shop due to poor ratings, creative differences or debilitating cast departures. After 11 years of ratings success, the creators and cast (led by Alda) largely agreed that they’d finished telling the story they began. They wanted to go out on top instead of waiting until the show’s quality and fan base began to dip, so they decided to end things on a high note.
If the M*A*S*H family were looking to go out with a bang, they certainly succeeded. On February 28, 1983, the show’s 2 ½ hour series finale scored a history-making 60.2 rating, drawing approximately 125 million viewers, a record for a primetime TV show that never has – and likely never will – be broken.
What Happened in The Episode?
20th Century Fox Television / courtesy Everett Collection
The series finale of M*A*S*H, titled “Goodbye, Farewell and Amen” — directed and cowritten by Alda — focuses on the 4077th preparing for the end of the Korean War and their eventual return home. As the characters navigate their final days together, they struggle with leaving behind the makeshift family they’ve formed and the life-altering trauma they’d endured together.
Hawkeye Pierce, in particular, takes center stage as he struggles with the psychological scars of the war, leading to an emotional breakdown as he relives the traumatic events that have haunted him.
In one of the most shocking moments in TV history, Hawkeye, while speaking with psychiatrist Dr. Sidney Freeman, recalls an experience transporting some local refugees by bus. While trying to hide from a nearby enemy patrol, Hawkeye told a woman on the bus who was holding a noisy chicken to shut it up; she accidentally smothered it in the process, killing it. With probing from the psychiatrist, Hawkeye is finally able to admit that the woman didn’t actually kill a loud chicken — she suffocated her crying baby. The admission is horrifying, yet also a crucial step in Hawkeye’s healing.
The other departing members of the team find themselves pondering their respective next chapters while they also tie up loose ends at the camp, which is now in chaos. Charles Winchester (played by David Ogden Stiers) sidles up to a group of Chinese soldiers, offering to teach them classical music (all but one are tragically killed by enemy fire later in the episode before a ceasefire is enacted). Major Houlihan accepts an offer for an administrative position with the Army, while Winchester struggles with Margaret’s intervention in his pursuit of a high-profile Chief Surgeon spot in Boston.
Klinger (Jamie Farr) falls in love with a refugee named Soon-Lee Han, eventually deciding to marry her and stay in Korea to help her find her parents. B.J. Hunnicutt (Mike Farrell), wanting to get home to celebrate his daughter’s birthday, is touched by a birthday party held for a girl at the local orphanage. Colonel Potter (Harry Morgan) takes one final ride on his horse Sophie, and receives one last gift before he departs: a final heartfelt salute from Hawkeye and B.J.
The episode’s final scene is one of the most emotionally powerful TV moments of all time, as B.J. and Hawkeye part ways for the last time. Ascending to the sky in his chopper, Hawkeye spots B.J.’s going-away gift – the word “Goodbye” spelled out with rocks below.
These characters we watched for 11 seasons didn’t have much to work with, but their simple gestures told us everything we needed to know about how they grew to love each other as much as we loved all of them.
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