MASHseason 6 featured an episode where Hawkeye barely appears, and shows the sitcom could have worked just fine without the chatty surgeon as the focus.MASHran for 11 seasons, and despite originally being planned as an ensemble, Alan Alda quickly emerged as the star. By season 3, Alda’s Hawkeye was the de facto main character, with the star having an uncanny knack for both comedy and tragedy. The star helped shape what the show became too, writing and directing many episodes.
Hawkeye is a great character and the soul of the series. That said, the showrunners came to rely on the motormouthed surgeon too much.Hawkeye is the only character to appear in everyMASHepisode, and even when he’s not the centre of attention, he’s still often at the forefront. It would have been interesting to see a whole episode ofMASHwhere Hawkeye didn’t appear, and the closest the sitcom ever came to that was season 6’s “Temporary Duty.”
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MASH’s “Temporary Duty” Sidelines Alan Alda’s Hawkeye For Most Of The Episode
Hawkeye only appears in two scenes of this season 6 outing
MASH season 6’s “Temporary Duty” opens with Hawkeye being transferred to another unit for a week, while the 4077th receives a new surgeon and nurse. This means thatoutside of “Temporary Duty’s” opening and tag sequences, Hawkeye is totally absent. This gives the episode a unique energy since Alda’s surgeon isn’t there to offer a dry quip or flirty comment as the main story plays out. Instead, the A and B stories involved the rest of the unit dealing with Hawkeye’s irritating replacement and Margaret (Loretta Swit) reconnecting with an old friend.
Captain Roy Dupree (George Lindsey) is the surgeon stepping in for Hawkeye at the camp, and this character is “Temporary Duty’s” biggest flaw. He’s intended to be an annoying figure who gets on B.J.’s (Mike Farrell) and Winchester’s (David Ogden Stiers) nerves, but instead of being obnoxiously funny, he is just plain obnoxious. Regardless,this episode is worth watching simply to see what a Hawkeye-free version ofMASHmight look like.
“Temporary Duty” Gives MASH’s Other Main Characters A Chance To Shine
Margaret is the emotional heart of this MASH episode
The absence of Hawkeye sees B.J., Margaret, and Winchester become the focus of “Temporary Duty.” Fun as the Charles/B.J. double act can be, it’s spoiled somewhat by their interactions with Dupree.The real standout of the episode is Margaret reconnecting with fun loving nurse Lorraine(Marcia Rodd), with the latter being shocked at how uptight her former friend has become. Margaret later confides that the war and her responsibilities have forced her to become a more aloof figure, resulting in her feeling constantly isolated even though she doesn’t want to be.
Margaret’s plotline is the best of the episode and the ending where she invites B.J. and Charles for coffee is a nice moment of growth…
Margaret istheMASHcharacterwho changed the most throughout the series, starting as a one-dimensional antagonist before evolving into a more well-rounded figure. “Temporary Duty” is a quiet breakthrough for Margaret in this regard, as she realizes how much she has needlessly cut herself off from connecting with others. Despite being the B story, Margaret’s plotline is the best of the episode and the ending where she invites B.J. and Charles for coffee is a nice moment of growth for the head nurse.
“Temporary Duty” Proves MASH Could Have Relied On Hawkeye A Lot Less
Maybe Hawkeye could have been transferred more often
“Temporary Duty” is a spotty outing overall, and is more effective as a drama than a comedy. Even so, it shows thatMASH’sensemble was strong enough to work without Hawkeye having to be present the entire time.It’s almost surprising the episode didn’t feature cutaways to Hawkeye at the other camp, though Alda probably preferred having a lighter workload for a change.
“Temporary Duty” is about as close to a Hawkeye-free episode thatMASHever attempted, and it’s a pity it never tried one again. Alda’s importance can’t be understated, but the true reason the show became so beloved was the entire ensemble. The humor and humanity they brought made it compulsive viewing, andthe lack of Hawkeye in “Temporary Duty” shows the series could function just fine without him.
MASHplayed a lot with its formula over the years, including experimental offerings like “The Interview” or “Dreams.” A Hawkeye-free episode sounds like an obvious move on that front, but perhaps fearing audiences would tune out if Alda was missing entirely, the show never attempted such a bold step. It could be argued thatAfterMASHwas proof enough that the seriesneededAlda to work, but all that failed spinoff really highlighted was that the CBS series required the entire cast to properly function.
