M*A*S*H on Netflix Details [Updated]

56 Comments

July 1st, 2015 Update: “Goodbye, Farewell and Amen” has been added to Netflix! Plus, Seasons 6-11 are now listed in broadcast order rather than production order.

April 1st, 2015 Update: Seasons 6-11 were added to Netflix on April 1st but not the series finale “Goodbye, Farewell and Amen.” Also, the last six seasons are ordered by production block rather than by broadcast season.

As I reported a few weeks ago, as of today the first five seasons of M*A*S*H are available for streaming through Netflix (the United States version, at least). Here‘s the Netflix page for the series. Presumably the remaining seasons will be added at a later date. I took some time this morning to examine the series on Netflix using both a TV set and a computer.

Not surprisingly, M*A*S*H is not streaming in HD on Netflix. There has been no additional remastering and the video is identical to the DVDs. The quality appears somewhat lower on my 40″ HD set but that may be due to my Internet connection. Watching the first episode on DVD and Netflix side-by-side on my computer it was hard to tell the difference. It did take a few moments for Netflix to clear up but again that’s likely my Internet connection. Netflix does seem to be a slight bit darker.

Netflix Page for M*A*S*H

The episodes on Netflix are presented uncut the way they are on DVD. They are all 24 to 26 minutes long. However, both “Welcome to Korea” (Season 4) and “Bug Out” (Season 5) are split into two separate episodes on Netflix rather than one episode on the DVDs. I’m not sure why. These two episodes were originally broadcast on television as hour-long specials and were split in two for syndication but are not split on DVD.

Audio is in English with the laugh track. There is no option to watch the episodes without the laugh track. Captions are available in English only.

Netflix has rated M*A*S*H PG-13: Parental guidance suggested. May not be suitable for all children. It has a Common Sense Media Rating of AGe 13 (OK for kids 13+). Here’s what Common Sense has to say about M*A*S*H:

Parents need to know that M*A*S*H* is an outstanding dark comedy set during the Korean War at a mobile military hospital. Based on the classic 1970 movie, the show includes scenes of operating rooms with visible blood, wounded soldiers writhing in pain, and frank discussion of death. Though many of the characters are pro-military, the main characters are firmly anti-war and speak regularly and cynically about war and the military. Many episodes include veiled discussions of sexual activity, and there’s some kissing and groping, though it’s usually in a comedic context. Several characters drink regularly, one cross-dresses in an attempt to get sent home, and most are prone to playing practical jokes on each other. Older tweens and young teens will likely enjoy the show for Hawkeye’s wisecracks and the broader humor, but its more subtle messages may not kick in until kids are older.

(I regularly use Netflix but had never noticed the Common Sense Media Ratings before. The full M*A*S*H review includes details on violence, sex, language, consumerism, positive role models, and more.)

Bottom line: It’s great to see M*A*S*H on Netflix because it means millions of people may be introduced to the show. If you already have a Netflix plan with streaming, you might find it easier to stream episodes from the first five seasons rather than having to keep switching DVDs. If you’ve been thinking about signing up for Netflix maybe M*A*S*H being available for streaming will be the push you’ve been waiting for. If you don’t have Netflix and don’t want it, you’re not missing anything, especially if you have M*A*S*H on DVD.

56 Replies to “M*A*S*H on Netflix Details [Updated]”

  1. It’s actually inferior to the DVD’s. There are compression artifacts that are not present on the DVD’s.

    It’s a shame Fox hasn’t given the show a nice cleanup and HD upgrade.

      1. Heh, no, I just happen to be a real big Canadaphile. 😛 My best friend lives up in your province though.

  2. I watched “Bug Out” (both parts) yesterday. not only was the picture quality poor, but the sound was off time with the image by about one half second. I hope Fox/Netflix restore the show to proper quality.

    1. I have no problem with the picture quality – it is what it is. But the half-second difference between sound and scene was distracting. All that aside, I only have seasons 1-3 on DVD, so NETFLIX airing M*A*S*H is pretty awesome. Now, I’m holding out for NYPD Blue.

    2. I just checked the first part of “Bug Out” and I think I do see/hear the audio being out of synch with the video. It is slight but noticeable if you watch closely.

      But then I went back and watched part of “M*A*S*H — The Pilot” again and the audio seems to be perfectly in sync with the video.

      For anyone noticing problems with M*A*S*H, if you’re accessing Netflix through a computer, try to find your Recently Watched page. From there, you should be able to report a problem for any episodes you are having issues with. I just reported “Bug Out Part 1” that way.

      There does not appear to be an easy way to contact Netflix via e-mail but they have live chat and phone support.

    1. There never was a laugh track for this episode…even on the DVD. The producers considered it blasphemous to include one. It makes just as much sense as there to not have a laugh track in the O.R.

  3. The order of the episodes for the last few seasons does not match the broadcast order that is listed on the MASH wikipedia page. Season 11 only has 9 episodes? Also, the finale is still not available on Netflix.

  4. Several of the season 6 Several episodes of seasons 6 and 7 have the audio track more than 30 seconds out of synch. S7 E15 “Point of View” is missing its audio track entirely. Many of these are entirely unwatchable. Don’t know what to do…

    1. I also want to know what’s up with season 11 and the episodes mentioned!! I mean really…. You release seasons 6 to 11 1/2 and not the final 7 episodes!!!! My husband and I are extreme fans and love the clean humor it has– we don’t care for today’s humor!!! And we are both are in our early 40’s!!! Would love some sort of response… Thank you

    2. With the exception of the series finale (“Goodbye, Farewell and Amen”) all of the episodes from Season 11 are available on Netflix, they are just mixed in with Season 10.

      Starting with Season 9, episodes were held over from season to season. Three episodes produced during Season 9 were broadcast during Season 10 while six episodes from Season 10 were broadcast during Season 11.

      Netflix, for reasons unknown, lists the episode by production block rather than broadcast season. Thus, you’ll find “That’s Show Biz,” “Identity Crisis” and “Rumor at the Top” in Season 9 on Netflix despite the fact that they aired during Season 10. Likewise, Netflix lists “Hey, Look Me Over,” “Foreign Affairs,” “The Joker is Wild,” “Who Knew?,” “Settling Debts,” and “The Moon is Not Blue” as part of Season 10 even though they aired during Season 11.

      The episodes are also listed in production order rather than broadcast order. Plus, Netflix splits hour-long episodes in half so there “That’s Show Biz” is in two parts.

  5. I just finished watching all 11 seasons on Netflix, only to be hit in the head with the missing finale… I hate when they play games like this…

  6. I am watching season 11 this week.. Glad to know now that the final episode will be missing. It will be much easier to bear 🙂 Strange tho’ that the final episode is absent. Like ending Casablanca before the airport scene.

  7. Today is 4/1/2016 and I have been watching MASH for a couple of months and now it looks like it is not available for streaming? What’s Up?

  8. Just contacted the Netflix rep on live chat and they said they are working on the license at the moment, but expecting it back in a week.

    1. Holy cow, that’s great to hear. Thanks for finding that out!!

      I did however see it on their list of things ending in April so I wonder…

  9. Why was mash taken off netflix. That is why I subscribed to netflix in the first place. It was timeless, and the perfect way to unwind before going to bed.

  10. Still cannot access MASH hope Netflix sorts out their issues soon. Going through withdrawals.

  11. I too subscribed to NFlix for Mash and a few select others. No MASH and I will likely drop NF. Too many other streamers to choose from.

  12. Supposedly gonna be back soon????? That was April 2nd. It is now May 7th and no wisecracking Americans in Koe-Reha as Wayne Rogers used to pronounce it in New Yorkese. WTF???? only reason why I subscribed. How do I cancel my script in the middle of the month?.

  13. Bring back MASH and leave it on indefinitely. If you bring back MASH, I along with many other people will be happy. This show is still as popular today as it was when it first aired and I, as many other people, can watch the reruns for what seems like forever. Yes, we’re a sad bunch, but it is still great entertainment which is lacking on modern TV.

  14. Ridiculous, August 28 and still no licence agreement. I’ve been continuing my subscription waiting for the return. Time to cancel. Great job Netflix. Ill be cancelling my subscription tonight. You guys suck

  15. You took off my a s h but you leave the other crap on forever you raised my account price and now you have all crap about to cancel

  16. Why is it you have such crap now? … no worth while episodes to watch. Where are the classics? Your baby-boomers are your largest market now … the old Hawaii 50’s, barnaby jones, M A S H …. etc. why did u take off mash this past spring? Your subscription has increased by 80% in some ways but you take off a program that is an American icon? Shows like Bonanza, McHales Navy, Hogans Heros ALL NEED TO BE ADDED. The Classics you have now ARE NOT CLASSICS.

  17. Bring back MASH was the main reason I subbed to Netflix, gonna give it one more month then just cancelling Netflix forever the hell with it you guys just recycle the same old garbage movies and yet can’t bring back one of the most popular TV shows in history. Way to go Netflix way to go.

    1. Bringing back mash to Netflix will be the smartest thing Netflix could do at this point. As the saying goes ” if something works stick with it”If Netflix doesn’t bring back mash then they are the biggest buttheads in the world

  18. Please bring back MASH! It’s my favorite! Mine and many,many,many others! That’s why I wanted netflix! Now what’s the point?

  19. I can’t seem to watch it anywhere. Seasons are not in order on some channels I carry with Dish and I can’t even BUY the episodes on VuDu! Please break back Mash!

  20. I just signed up for Netflix tonight. If MASH is not available, and there is no firm schedule for when it will be available, I’ll play around with Netflix for a week or two to see what content they’ve got. But most likely if there’s no MASH by the end of February. I’ll cancel for sure. I came here specifically looking for MASH and am extremely dissappointed.

  21. When MASH was removed from Netflix I was told by a Netflix rep it would return in six months. Where is it? I encourge everyone to write/email President Trump and ask for his help.

  22. Id be willing to keep Netflix if they still had M*A*S*H, but my list of shows I watch on Netflix has become limited. No new movie releases doesn’t help either. A few weeks ago I was Lucky enough to find M*A*S*H on regular tv, although I’d still prefer to watch it on Netflix because of the ability to watch episodes chronologically. Well, if anyone is curious about networks that air M*A*S*H, here are a few that I found; TV Land, AMC, and Sundance.

  23. A tremendous mistake by the Netflix higher ups. Netflix has 100’s of millions financial lossest on their in house productions of series. My humble opinion is to rid your company of those incompetents and bring back MASH

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