Last month, visitors to MASH4077TV.com overwhelmingly voted “Bless You, Hawkeye” their least favorite episode from Season 9. It received 36 votes, or 29% of the total vote. “Cementing Relationships” and “Father’s Day” were far behind with 11 votes each, or 9% of the vote. “The Life You Save” came in fourth with 8 votes, or 7 % of the vote.
A total of 123 votes were cast, way down from the 179 votes cast during September’s Least Favorite Episode From Season 8 poll. One episode, “Operation Friendship,” failed to receive a single vote.
Here are the full results:
Great 2017 M*A*S*H Episode Poll: Pick Your Least Favorite Episode from Season 9
Bless You, Hawkeye (29%, 36 Votes)
Cementing Relationships (9%, 11 Votes)
Father’s Day (9%, 11 Votes)
The Life You Save (7%, 8 Votes)
Blood Brothers (6%, 7 Votes)
The Foresight Saga (6%, 7 Votes)
No Sweat (5%, 6 Votes)
Oh, How We Danced (4%, 5 Votes)
Death Takes a Holiday (3%, 4 Votes)
A War for All Seasons (3%, 4 Votes)
Tell It to the Marines (3%, 4 Votes)
Taking the Fifth (3%, 4 Votes)
Depressing News (3%, 4 Votes)
Bottoms Up (3%, 4 Votes)
The Best of Enemies (2%, 2 Votes)
Letters (2%, 2 Votes)
The Red/White Blues (2%, 2 Votes)
Your Retention Please (1%, 1 Votes)
No Laughing Matter (1%, 1 Votes)
Operation Friendship (0%, 0 Votes)
Total Votes: 123
For the record, back in September 2015, “Death Takes a Holiday” was voted the favorite episode from Season 9.
Like so many others, I voted for “Bless You, Hawkeye.” As I wrote in my Episode Spotlight review of the episode, I don’t hate it the way some fans do. Alan Alda’s sneezing isn’t very believable but that’s not why I don’t like the episode. It’s too similar to “Hawk’s Nightmare” from Season 5.
Which episode did you vote for and why? Hit the comments with your reactions to the poll results.
Be sure to vote in this month’s poll. Pick your least favorite episode from Season 10.
Season 9 had only one decent episode, and that’s “No Sweat.” Other than that, all the other episodes of Season 9 are bad.
I’d have to say I’m on the other end of the spectrum. “A War for All Seasons” is my favorite episode of the entire season.
I meant my favorite of the entire series.
I agree, that was a great one, and probably David Ogden Stiers’ best comedic performance on the show.
I voted for Bless You, Hawkeye. If there was an episode I had to pick that I would skip watching, it’d be this one. Alan Alda’s sneezing and eventual breakdown is waaaay over the top for me. Perhaps if he would’ve toned it down, it might have been easier for me to watch, imho.
I voted for “The Life You Save” because IMO, Charles became too morbid after his near-death experience. The other storylines just weren’t that good especially Hawkeye’s obsession with getting French toast made the way he remembered.
Agree with BDOR that “No Sweat” is by far the best episode of Season 9. “Cementing Relationships” is a great episode though, why were there so many votes for it? The whole camp coming together, mixing some cement and putting in a new floor. The Italian guy thing’s a bit annoying but the OR Floor story line is strong enough alone for me.
Anyways I voted for Father’s Day just because I new Bless You, Hawkeye would win (lose?) anyways. That attitude Margaret has throughout most of the series is in full throttle here. Granted she has a bit of a reason, but I just dislike her so much by this point that I don’t give her a pass for it.
I chose ‘The Foresight Saga’ because the story and characters are so saccharine sweet that it makes me yearn for more world-weary and cynical stories like Barney the Dinosaur. The happy-go-lucky attitude and horrifically bad acting from the kid playing Park-Suck (pun intended) was just too much to bear. This is one of the few episodes that I will just skip because I am always afraid of diabetic shock after watching something so insufferably sweet.
Not only this, but the episode is super disappointing because it’s the first time they used something like a letter or phone call from a previous character, but they end up ruining it with a stupid episode.
They also never mention Radar again, or if Park-Sun makes it there and is helpful. If you count the spin-off’s though, like After Mash and WALTER, he clearly didn’t help the farm too much though hah.
For the first time since the least favourite episodes poll started I’ve voted the same as the majority.
Count me in among those who voted for ‘Bless You, Hawkeye.’ WORST episode of the entire series.
I believe I voted for “Bottoms Up.” Outside of Hawkeye and Charles getting even with BJ, neither of the stories really worked for me. Other weaker episodes this season were “No Sweat” (I usually like weather-based episodes, but something about this one felt really off to me), and maybe “The Foresight Saga” (I didn’t hate it, but it could have been better). I will admit, I can easily understand people voting for “Bless You, Hawkeye,” what with the sneezes and it being an admittedly weaker version of “Hawk’s Nightmares,” but I’m biased due to my love for Sidney episodes, and his relationship with Hawkeye.
But overall, I thought this was a very strong season. Easily the best of the last four (though I still enjoyed those other seasons), and about on par with the show at its peak IMO.
S9 is the first season where it felt the show was starting to run on fumes. The creative teams still produced well-structured episodes with fine concepts and moments, but somehow less robust than they once were. For instance, everyone acts so petty and selfish, a trope the show would lean too heavily on in the last two seasons, in the midst of Charles’ psychological breakdown in ‘The Life You Save.
‘Taking the Fifth’ was my pick for this season. I don’t hate it but I singled it out because it frustrated me for how listless and bland it was. (Even the worst MASH episodes are memorable in some way.) The Foresight Saga comes in a close second for everyone described as above.