Plot: Everyone is more concerned with the Army-Navy game than they are with an unexploded bomb at the 4077th.

Great Line:"Doc, why does my nurse need a shave?"

I still crack up every time Henry reads the instruction to Hawkeye and Trapper on defusing the bomb. The look on everyone's faces after Henry says "But first.." is classic.

Ever notice that when the bomb stops ticking and Hawkeye says, "Let's get out of here!" they only run a few FEET away from the bomb before falling flat. Granted that they wouldn't want to be in an upright position when it exploded, but surely they could have gotten a little further away.

One line that I love is where Hawkeye is on the phone trying to get help. The man on the other end says something like, "You'll need to find out if the bomb is still ticking. You got any stethoscopes?" Hawkeye's reply: "We're a MEDICAL unit!"

Yeah, how far Hawk and Trapper ran from the bomb's always bugged me, too.

Another great line Henry asking "Why would the Navy be dropping bombs on us?" and the officer on the other end of the phone saying "Because we're beating them 14-0!"

The propaganda was aimed at the North Koreans; why were they written in English?

During this episode, Radar "checks out the supply tent" with a nurse. In the book "Watching M*A*S*H, Watching America" the author said that it was implied that Radar lost his virginity. (It's been so long since I've seen the uncut version, there may have been such implications.) Radar is probably the only person in television history to (allegedly) lose his virginity twice (the second time in "Springtime") and still be pure when he left the show.

Also missing from this episode is the explanation for why Klinger isn't wearing a dress. He wants to die a civilian.

There's an interesting bit of foreshadowing in this episode. At one point, Henry tells Radar of his days of high school football. He tells Radar how he taped the wrong leg on Tank Washington. This is interesting because later, when Henry gives Hawkeye and Trapper the instructions for deactivating the bomb, he gives them the instructions in the wrong order, causing the bomb to explode.

Wow! There's a completely different arrangement for the opening theme. No guitar in it.

There's a different sign on Father Mulcahy's door. Instead of saying "Chaplain", it reads "Father Mulcahy".

This is the second time Henry gets caught in an explosion.

In this episode, Henry's wife's name is Mildred. Later her name would be said to be Lorraine.

This may not be a nit, but about two seconds after the sound of the bomb landing in the compound, we see the camera shake.

Larry Gelbart has stated with pride that during his years on M*A*S*H they never used the same joke twice. That's not true. In "Dear Dad", Hawkeye makes a joke that he's unmarried, he has the most to live for. Trapper makes the same joke in this ep. (He's refering to Captain Pierce, of course.)

The scene cut which explains why Klinger is dressed as a civilian takes place in Father Mulcahy's tent. The Padre has trouble recognizing Klinger. Max suggests it's because it's the first time Mulcahy has seen Klinger without a dress on. Wrong. Klinger wasn't wearing a dress in the episode "Dear Dad". And Mulcahy most certainly did see Klinger then.

That suit Klinger is wearing, by the way, was the one Max wore when he got drafted.

"At one point, Henry tells Radar of his days of high school football." - me

Uh, excuse me, but the game was the final one for the season for Ohio State and Illinois. I believe that makes it a college game. My bad.

While Henry tells Radar about the Ohio State-Illinois game, you can see that Corporal O'Reilly once again is drinking alcohol.

"Ever notice that when the bomb stops ticking and Hawkeye says, "Let's get out of here!" they only run a few FEET away from the bomb before falling flat. Granted that they wouldn't want to be in an upright position when it exploded, but surely they could have gotten a little further away." - D.K. Henderson

It's especially pathetic when you consider that the Captains had something like two minutes to get away from the bomb. In two minutes' time, they should have gotten further away than that.

When Hawkeye goes to see if the bomb's still ticking and gets the registration number, he has taken his shoes off and wears only his socks. However, when he and Trapper go to disarm the bomb, they both are still wearing their boots.

Shouldn't Trapper be checking the bomb more frequently to be sure it's still ticking? I personally would want to know when it stops - the exact moment it stops!

"The propaganda was aimed at the North Koreans; why were they written in English?" - D.K. Henderson

Oh god! I can't believe I did this! I've gotta laugh. I'm ashamed of myself. Still... Not only can I look at my DVDs frame by frame, but I also have the capacity to zoom in on the images. Those leaflets most definitely are written in English. I went through the entire scene to check it. But if Hawkeye's seeing "Give yourselves up! You can't win! - Douglas MacArthur", the Captain is blind! The biggest letters on the flyers say "ACE ELI". I could also make out the words "Airplane" and "Lady". And the number 3. (Sounds like Sesame Street.) Those flyers the CIA dropped on Korea are for an Air-Show!

Earlier in the ep, Mulcahy lost his cross. Don't worry, folks, he found it. Or at least replaced it. You can see it around his neck as the winner of the Army-Navy pool is announced.

Remember the episode where the Korean boy kept calling Klinger "Mama san"? Max eventually opened his blouse and said, "Look. No Maguffies." (Or whatever it was he called them?) Well, in this ep, he's got 'em. Must be wearing falsies.

This is undoubtedly my favorite episode.
One thing that bugged me was the story Henry told Radar about taping Tank Washington's wrong leg.
Excuse me, but shouldn't Hank have TOLD Henry that he was taping the wrong leg. The man is concious. Moreover, a team medic should know which leg is injurred.

Yeah, StevenScott, this is definitely of my favorite eps, too. Hadn't thought of that nit, either. Good job.

The radio announcer says at the beginning of the game that it is the 53rd edition of the Army-Navy football game. That would date this episode in 1952. However, the score given for the end of the game in the episode (Navy 42, Army 36) is incorrect. The actual score of the 1952 game was Navy 7, Army 0 and no game from the period has a score of 42-36. This also means that Army could not have had a 14-0 lead at any time during the game, as the general stated earlier.

Aren't the annual Army-Navy games played in December? If so, then it's impossible that this ep takes place in 1952. By that time, Trapper and Henry are no longer with the 4077.

Abyssinia!

It's the 1951 game. The score is still incorrect however.

The 1951 game final was Navy 42 Army 7.

The 1950 game was Navy 14 Army 2.

It may be a callous way to look at it, but why are Hawkeye and Trapper the ones risking their lives to disarm the bomb? There are many enlisted men, some very qualified mechanics, at the 4077. They should be the ones handling the actual work, not the much harder to replace surgeons.