Bless you, Hawkeye - MASH

[@nocalsteve]

It's hard to believe that Sidney was only in twelve episodes of M*A*S*H. His presence was so powerful that he felt like a regular character.

[@scottknode898]

It was the actor himself Alan Arbus who played Sidney who decided against being cast as a regular and was only wanting to have a recurring role.

[@plapin3538]

Scott Knode - it just made his presence more profound. No need to dilute a great noble character that acted as the unit’s guardian angel.

[@scottknode898]

Renegade Juice I was not diluting his presence as a character or as an actor. It was the actor himself who chose to come on as a recurring role rather then a main cast member

[@plapin3538]

Scott Knode - Yeah that’s what I mean. Arbus made the right call... when he appears in an episode; you’re in for a real treat. Talking about the taboo subject of mental health, especially in the days of Korea, contrasted well with the surgeon’s ability to heal the tangible, but not with healing the cognition of the complex human mind.

[@furioussherman7265]

Only 12 episodes? You're right, it felt like so much more.

[@claudelemire2451]

The most profound and brilliant example of how a psychiatrist can unlock our traumatized mind. I love MASH for the growth. From satire to dramatic comedy to sitcom great show.

[@anomalyp8584]

It's the little battlefields that can leave the worst scars...one of the best lines and truths said on film

[@michealpowell1299]

anomaly P Amen to that! One of the most profound lines in television history. AND! One of my two favorite "Sidney Friedman Quotes"! The other being: "Ladies and Gentlemen, take my advice... Pull down your pants and slide on the ice"!

[@k1productions87]

And yet, since the turn of the millennium, the whole conversation has shifted to where if you are experiencing grief or trauma over small things or things in the past, you're a snowflake or an SJW or something thereabouts.

[@lolomgmetobavi]

@@k1productions87 There is a big difference between experiencing grief or small things or things in the past and being a snowflake or a SJW though. I guess most of us have some traumas or some "berserk buttons" but bitching about every little thing that "offends" me is something completely different.

[@k1productions87]

@@lolomgmetobavi There is also a difference between being a snowflake and being an SJW. A snowflake bitches about everything, but an SJW tries to shame and/or attack others for it. One can be overly sensitive without being an SJW. Quite frankly, the term "SJW" is thrown around too much. Just like "racist", "SJW" is so watered down now that the real trouble makers get lost in the shuffle

[@jamiegarrity6439]

lolomgmetobavi absolutely right!

[@ldcraig2006]

Prime example of gaslighting. Hawkeye's buddy pushed him into the pond, then pulled him out to be the hero and told Hawkeye, "You're so clumsy. You'd be dead if not for me." And though Hawkeye KNEW the truth, he didn't want to believe his best friend would do that to him, so he created a reasonable, acceptable alternative to help him cope with repressing his true feelings.

[@bbface21]

He was too young to comprehend, and too small and enthralled to punch him in the face. There was nothing else he could have done.

[@redsummergarden2600]

For innocent children betrayal by someone they love and trust is unthinkable . That's what Sidney meant when he said little battlefields often leave the worst scars.

[@JamesSmith-jq6om]

It sounds to me by the way Hawkeye describes his cousin that he was a little manipulative bully masquerading as a gentleman. He says everybody liked him, even the grownups and Hawkeye thought Billy was like a grownup himself when he was just 12 years old and Hawkeye was just 6. Hawkeye was 7 when the incident at the pond happened so Billy was 13 by then. It could be that Billy was something like a spoiled kid who got treated like royalty by his family just because he was good ol' Billy and Billy got spoiled and manipulative from it all and with Hawkeye being so young and naive he didn't understand Billy's true nature. Billy probably could have been a jerk to Hawkeye too but also played "nice" in ways where little Hawkeye could only take his seemingly kind nature as genuine at the time that he tended to overlook his otherwise manipulative nature and only see him for the "good" guy that he acted like so well. You've also got to think about when he mentions Billy letting him read Police Gazette magazines with him that he was also exposing him to some pretty racy stuff not meant for little kids, suggesting maybe Billy was trying to groom him. So it's quite possible that Billy was a manipulative and bullying kid with creepy tendencies which Hawkeye was too young to comprehend and could only see the good part of Billy and for whatever reason Billy decided to push Hawkeye overboard and into the pond and cause him to nearly drown, which the reason Billy decided to do that is not explained, Hawkeye got a very sobering and rude awakening about his cousin that he just could not bear to face the reality about, so he spent all those years having repressed the incident and the cold harsh truth about Billy that he had been overlooking before the incident at the pond.

[@gerardlafferti4485]

He was an amazing talker, he had a clever response for everything.

[@ufafgd]

Odor is the most powerful scent humans have connected with memory. ie: a smell or odor you have not smelled in 40 years and suddenly smelled again will inherently bring back a flood of memories from that time. Interesting it was brought up on this episode. Shows the intelligence of writers.

[@aj2080xy6]

You got that from House

[@ufafgd]

@@aj2080xy6 I got that from watching an episode of Star Trek many, many years ago where Captain Kirk smells an odor he hadn't smelled in 15 years. It turns out to be a red cloud entity that feeds on blood.

[@TheCoolProfessor]

Alan Alda is such a gifted actor. Not many could do a scene like this.

[@jamesdrynan]

Allan Arbus tells an amusing story. He had been portraying Dr. Freedman on MASH for several years. He didn't realize how good his characterization was until he was at a hospital. His daughter had undergone some minor surgery and he was in the waiting room. The attending surgeon came in to tell him everything had gone well and started to speak to Arbus as if he was a real doctor! The surgeon was using terminology that Arbus didn't understand and he had to remind the fellow he was an actor, not a certified doctor!

[@kleetus92]

A credit to the writers no doubt, but Alan delivered the lines convincingly.

[@cameron3753]

thats hilarious

[@jllucci]

Added data point he played a psychiatrist so well the even Alan Alda would tell him his troubles.

[@craigpellini268]

I just saw an interview where Alda said he would talk to Arbus between takes and he realized Arbus was looking at him funny because he was talking to him like he was his therapist.

[@CheshireCat-cm1si]

There are so many little ticks here that Sidney doesn't point out that are still so good. Hawkeye almost never stutters, but here, when he's talking about the lake and the boat, he is. Plus, he cuts himself off at parts. He speaks complete sentences when describing how he sank to the bottom and almost drowned, but he cuts himself off before finishing his statement that Billy saved his life.

[@kirkvoelcker5272]

Sidney did not pick up on Hawkeye's comment that heard laughter right before he fell in.

[@jasonkoch3182]

I can't remember a single bad scene involving Sidney Freeman. Some were quite funny, others quite serious but all of them were straight up excellent.

[@ufafgd]

One of the funniest things Sidney Freedmen said was" Pull down your pants and slide on the ice ". Hilarious !

[@AlexKS1992]

My favorite is the air raid prank.

[@cardinalbob1]

“Not without a bulletproof couch!” was my favorite line of his when asked to go out and try to talk down a shooter.

[@LS-ki9ft]

I can still hear Sidney saying, "sometimes you just have to pull down your pants and slide on the ice. Good advice indeed.

[@southerngent716]

This scene and the one where Hawkeye recalled about the mother smothering her baby on the bus in the last episode always gets me.

[@briane173]

That was difficult as well; that final performance Hawkeye never really got over, and I suppose he wasn't meant to. Just drove home the senselessness of war and the lives it devastates sometimes forever. Unfortunately that performance came so soon after this one it almost seemed like too much -- just sort of lacked integrity if not sincerity. And it turned the character Hawkeye Pierce into someone else entirely by the time the show was over.

[@Isheian]

It hurts to watch and is terrifying to realize how easy it can happen in real life. Real great show I rewatch on occasion..

[@dave929]

@@briane173 his character always seemed to be somewhat mentally unstable and towards the end of the show it came out more and more.

[@briane173]

@@dave929 I can see that. During the entire run it seemed Hawkeye coped with what he had to see and do in the operating room everyday by drinking, making wisecracks, and thumbing his nose at the military. Ironic when Sidney Freedman was frequently a reliable presence at the MASH unit.

[@mousepariah3884]

@@dave929 It's sad/insightful when you watch the show enough times that you can see all the moments Hawkeye 'cracks', just the little chips in his armor. Most notibly any time he goes on a 'repetative spiel' "I will not carry a gun" (season 3) is one I remember in particular, at first viewing it just comes off as just another of his little comedic commentaries but when you rewatch you notice the almost manic way he says it all. His speech in Yankee Doodle Doctor (season 1O) is a more serious example, again lots of repetition.

[@sunnchilde]

I always loved it when Dr. Freidman would come by. He was always wise and insightful. Kind of like in Kung Fu when Caine would speak with Master Po.

[@watchgoose]

Freedman, with two "e's" as Hawkeye once told someone.

[@aneilp7631]

@@watchgoose Yes, he told Colonel Flagg in Season 4's "Quo Vadis Captain Chandler" that "there were two E's" in Sydney's name, "as in freedom."

[@JaySports644]

He also didn't mind helping in surgery when the doctors were short handed.

[@alanchristensen5543]

I am so grateful for Allan Arbrus & Alan Alda for the acting of this scene. So many times I have watched this and it helps me face the things I have locked away. It helps me embrace my pain so I can let it go.

[@TheRetro64]

Hawkeye crying in this episode was one of the most moving scenes in this series. Even more powerful than when he cried in "Goodbye, Farewell, and Amen."

[@michealpowell1299]

TheRetro64 Agreed! Most actors would be far too macho to show that much vulnerability! Maybe that's why Alan Alda still has so many female fans! To this day! For me though, THE single most moving scene in the entire history of prime time television was in (I believe it was called) "Goodbye Henry".... When Radar walked into the O.R., without a mask, and read the telegram..."Lieutenant Colonel Henry Blake's plane was shot down over the Sea of Japan...It spun in...There were no survivors"

[@alking7655]

@@michealpowell1299 Yes, because it was purposely kept out of everyone else's script I believe, so that, for the first take of shooting at least, the rest of the cast would have a profound reaction, for that is the reality of war - the innocents can be taken tragically.

[@fever_spike]

Micheal Powell Close-it’s ‘Abyssinia, Henry’...an’ yes, it’s absolutely devastating.

[@LilCraftyNook]

I still cry at that myself!?

[@LilCraftyNook]

Definitely Miami Vice McLean and Gary were great friends off screen as well. Heavens, everyone was!

[@TTony-tu6dm]

Arbus was fantastic as a Freudian therapist. One would believe he was actually a doctor. The other great scene in this episode is when they run a battery of tests on Hawkeye and can’t find anything. Potter then says “Ok, we’ve looked at his body. Now it’s time to look at his mind” and calls in Sydney

[@melissacooper4282]

I don't think Billy was intentionally planning to kill Hawkeye. Otherwise he wouldn't have pulled him out! It was a practical joke that went too far. I don't blame him for hating his cousin. He looked up to Billy and he felt betrayed after what he did. Also the reason that Billy blamed Hawkeye was because he didn't want to get in trouble. I think the reason that Hawkeye altered the event in his mind was because the betrayal was too much to bear. And if he tried to tell any of the adults nobody would believe him because as Hawkeye told Sidney the adults thought that Billy could do no wrong.

[@Julia-lk8jn]

I think the worst thing wasn't even to push him in - that's a stupid thing to do, but children at play do stupid things. But pretending that it never happened, and turning it into "I saved your life" - there's something very sociopathic about gaslighting somebody in their weakest moment.

[@duanevp]

@@Julia-lk8jn No, I think it's very human. As you say, children at play do stupid things. Billy possibly had as strong a desire to alter the event and immediately bury it as Hawkeye, to not acknowledge to himself that he was responsible for such stupidity and betrayal.

[@mnirwin5112]

I think you're right. He was, what 7 at the time? And he KNEW what had happened but the first thing his cousin did after pulling him out was to gaslight him ... "YOU are clumsy; if it wasn't for me you would be dead." No wonder he buried the reality for so many years.

[@NE-pz4ku]

A bully.

[@IsiahTomas]

I've been reading all the replies, and somehow, it seems like everyone is right here. Not all at once, (that itself would be twisted) but they all sound plausible. The strange thing is that that's how kids learn certain lessons because some things can be explained till you're blue in the face but it won't make sense till it directly happens to them. It's a rough way to learn and it doesn't sound right, but there you go.

[@colin6768]

Talk about great acting. I always thought Alan Arbus did an excellent job playing Sidney Freedman - so good in fact I could actually see him being a shrink in real life - very compassionate, warmhearted, level headed, and sharp as a tack. I can't rate this show highly enough.

[@kwdrm1]

One of THE best supporting guest characters in the history of the show.

[@jamesedwards2237]

@@kwdrm1 Ladies and gentlemen, take my advice, pull down your pants and slide on the ice.

[@kwdrm1]

Gotcha! @@jamesedwards2237

[@kimiisungstartedthekoreanw2771]

colin6768 How hard is it to like that? Argus was really an actor of very limited range. See my channel on how radical and bad Mash was.

[@ronromeo5364]

He actually played a psychologist in a scene in the Odd Couple several years earlier.

[@stevensines7026]

Sidney's episodes were always some of the most profound on the series. I always felt they were a great commentary on the depths of humanity short of a psych class.

[@Dirk-van-den-Berg]

Alan Airbus played such a nice character, he had instant chemistry with the characters of Potter, BJ, Margaret and Mulcahy.

[@Yotrek]

What I needed to hear. A few years ago I was struggling with two unknown health crises. An undiagnosed concussion, from a bicycle accident, and undiagnosed Aspergers/Autistic. (since confirmed with DNA sequencing). The concussion made it even harder for me to initiate social interactions. Meaning, an increased inability to self-advocate, and not asking for help. I went to a friend (also my brother's brother-in-law) for help. I didn't totally trust him (he was psychopathic) but I didn't think I had any other choice. A few days later, I'm homeless, for 45 days. He called me during that time. I heard him laughing on the phone when he was asking where I was sleeping. The anger from realizing "he pushed me" is real. I'm good now. My health is stabilizing. I've received 70 hyperbaric oxygen therapy sessions at 2.0 ATA to repair any damage from the concussion. Now that I know about being Autistic, I am starting to reframe past life events in their proper context. Also able to process present life events in their proper context.

[@jonmt12]

One of my favorite episodes is one where a wounded soldier gets a letter from his girlfriend saying she has married some rich guy and she wants her picture back and he is all broken up. And the Mash officers collect pictures of girlfriends and draft a letter saying " i can't really remember which one is yours. Please keep yours and mail the rest back."

[@thekidsclub2793]

Whats the episode name?

[@ZZMJo]

@@thekidsclub2793 "Identity Crisis" should be S10E3. I watched it 2 days ago. Unfortunately they skipped S9 and renamed it. But I will go on watching the whole serie once again since I don't recall all episodes.

[@thekidsclub2793]

@@ZZMJo thank you friend :)

[@ZZMJo]

@@thekidsclub2793 My pleasure, Happy new year!

[@thekidsclub2793]

@@ZZMJo Happy new year to you too! Hope it's a good one 🎉

[@ExSkyCyclePilot]

MASH was without a doubt the most meaningful television show of all time, especially in the later seasons, and Alda was a big reason why.

[@lorriesmith5086]

In all of MASH, this one particular scene ALWAYS drives me to tears. The realism of Hawkeye's revelation gets me every single time. I searched hard for this and just showed it to my husband. I WAS wearing coal eyeshadow, but, it's pretty well gone. This is, IMHO, one of televisions greatest moments. Back when the bar was high, not like the garbage that's on now. Thank you guys for pulling real emotion with superb acting! 😍

[@Mary-zj9jz]

this and a few other seen get me every time Hawkeye in the final, the Christmas one, Radar sea of Japan and more. (tried not give spoilers just in new fans have seen them yet,)

[@paulzammataro7185]

@@Mary-zj9jz Yeah, the Christmas one...🕜? 😢

[@kelsey5776]

@@paulzammataro7185 I think they mean the episode where Hawkeye, Margaret, and BJ are trying to keep a patient alive until Christmas is over so the family won't have to remember the holiday as when their loved one died; the patient dies on Christmas anyway but Hawkeye changes the time on the clock and so he "made" it until December 26th.

[@fifthbusiness1678]

Had me until the second last sentence. TV has rarely been better than it is today. Fact.

[@ufafgd]

Lorrie, Thank you. Your "bar higher " comment could not be truer. As for some of today's TV programming; My comment, "Garbage in, Garbage out".

[@Avana-una-na]

The moment he realizes, the moment when the truth is hitting him...absolutely brilliant acting job...

[@Auzzie015]

Sidney was the most beautiful character, such an interesting person to watch and listen to. Such a fundamentally good person, who also happens to be wise and funny. One of my favourite moments is when Colonel Flag accuses him of being a communist or something and Sidney just responds with such contempt for the sort of man Flag is.

[@markmiller3713]

What episode was that?

[@qthelost]

@@markmiller3713 It's the episode "Quo Vadis, Captain Chandler." 1975. A brilliant episode where a patient (Captain Chandler) has been so affected by the war that he thinks he's Jesus. Col. Flagg, Frank Burns and Margaret think he's faking. One of the greatest scenes in MASH is when Sidney is bedside talking with Chandler. Sidney asks, "Is it true God answers all prayers?" Chandler replies, with a tear running down his cheek, "Yes. Sometimes the answer is No." Here's a link to a very crappy version of the episode on youtube. I think you can buy or rent a quality copy from youtube and maybe other places. But here's a link to the kind of messed up version. I hope you have access to a good version. kzbin.info/www/bejne/r3qmlqqKrsl5gpI

[@benbarker8154]

@@qthelost THAT scene where he says, "Yes,. Sometimes the answer is No." just crushed me. Even 45 years later I cry when that scene is shown. Then the show follows up with the teddy bear and "Bless you, RADAR." scene I just. . .I just lose it.

[@LordZontar]

"I'd like to stay and talk to you, Flagg, but with your schizophrenia I'd have to charge you double. Now if you'll excuse me I've already kept Jesus Christ waiting too long."

[@itaintoveryeti9444]

hearing him wail after all these years is still hard to listen to

[@themariusnos]

almost scary . you can see the memory come to him . haunt him suddenly .

[@nolanboles8492]

What's unsettling is the hate in his eyes after he realizes Billy almost killed him. You rarely saw that with Hawkeye.

[@themariusnos]

@@nolanboles8492 in the last episode of mash. When hawkeye tried to forget about the child and instead made himself believe it was a chicken. You could see the same hate but this time directed towards Sidney for helping him remember. It was the only time he called someone a son of a bitch . The brain has a habbit of filling in the blanks. But when ever something is to unpleasant, to shameful for us to entertain, we reject it ,we erase it from our memory . But the imprint is always there. Is it better to remember? If you repress a memory it might take you by surprise one day.

[@russperry3261]

Why did you listen?

[@wh4193]

When the TV showed the episode where he was having the nightmares and screamed and woke up, it horrified me.

[@brandscape356]

"You're so clumsy. If it weren't for me, you'd be dead." For some reason, that's the part of the monologue that I remember most clearly.

[@LS-ki9ft]

I think all of us have had those moments in live where we have excused someone's hurtfulness with a kind gesture of appreciation in return, especially when it comes to someone we have loved or admired. I know that is how I relate to it.

[@AlienWacker]

Alan Alda was the heart and soul of that show... Don't get me wrong, the rest of the cast is incredible.... But it's hard to imagine the show without Hawkeye...

[@TroutBoneless]

as great as Donald Sutherland was as a hardcore nihilistic Hawkeye, theres no way he could sell a scene like this as well as Alda

[@docadams7099]

A very insightful scene in a series chock-full of them. Alan Alda and Allan Arbus were so great together. Hawkeye was a thoroughly efficient surgeon, yet found many occasions to show his vulnerability.

[@dfire351]

Yes Hawkeye suppressed and altered a lot of awful memories. Like replacing a woman killing her baby with the memory of it being a chicken.

[@Morhek]

It's easy to see why even Alda was convinced Arbus had to be a real psychiatrist. It just comes so naturally, effortlessly.

[@StephanielovesDisney]

This is arguably one of the best scenes in all of mash ❤️

[@kilroy987]

It's really scary how he masks his memories so blatantly and they are just revealed. He's like the dad every kid is scared of snapping, but he's so human you feel for him. I remembered a repressed memory years ago - it felt like it was always there, and it really hurt to remember it. This was an interesting scene, and it made psychology seem a little bit convenient and magical, but at least it exposed me to the concept of what we do to mask painful things. Not a bad thing for a child to know - I feel sorry for children too embarrassed about a feeling to seek the needed closure at the time. I suffered the same thing as a child and repressed it. Unfortunately, this scene wasn't what broke it loose - a breakdown in my 30s did that.

[@j.m.1535]

kilroy987 Sincerest Greetings,kilroy.My heart goes out to you.i understand and can very much relate. You or others are welcome to write,if i can help or facilitate coping,healing,or helping..in any way-Gently.im a good listener,and confidential.You can remain confidential,of course .Just have a desire to help...as i can relate,in my own way,and everyone-, theirs.Nothing but the very best.

[@marvinmonroe3462]

I’m from the South Side of Chicago. Grew up here and have been here my entire life. In a neighborhood called Canaryville. You can find it on Wikipedia. I have a close friend named Ed Kilroy. He’s also from here along with his family that goes back generations. Seen the name Kilroy and it came to mind. Hope you’re doing well.

[@Sbannmarie]

God bless you Kilroy

[@southerngent716]

MASH is one of those shows that I can honestly say that I have seen every episode at least twice and most I have seen countless times. It never gets old and still watch it to this day.

[@TRockett55IRISH]

Just a brilliant scene the shrink is the best guess star in tv history such an amazing character and presence he has an actor .

[@alanhudson2999]

This episode is an excellent example of the how the mind works..Hawkeye's subconscious kept it hidden for all those years every since he was child...childhood traumas can last your entire life that's why it's important to talk about it..he held that pain in all those years..you never know what a person experiences in their life..great acting Alan Alda..good job

[@jinxiejae]

So many oscar worthy performances in this show.

[@phoenixtrite5068]

The best scenes in this show aren't the funny ones. They're the ones that sink in deep.

[@jasonseiler5364]

Reminds me of a lot of people I grew up around. Screwed up thing is that like Hawkeye, you do end up with repressed memory and it being convenient for others for you to just forget what they did to you. Happens more often than you think. Thing is though - sick people KNOW how to make you feel grateful when they help you after they hurt you. You don't need to feel happy for them.

[@garingdahl]

My favorite Sidney moment comes from the episode where Frank Burns digs a "Foxhole" next to the swamp. One morning Sydney catches BJ filling it will water. Sydney realizes in that moment that BJ is the unknown practical joker and BJ offers to let him help. "What do I do," says Sydney. BJ tells him to yell, "Air Raid!" The look on Sydney's face when it dawns on him what comes next is priceless!

[@TheCoolProfessor]

Alan Arbus made the perfect supporting character for Hawkeye. He was almost like a mentor.

[@vinnyvega2665]

I love this man. He's the best TV actor of all time. ALAN ALDA. TRUE TALENT AND HEART

[@tjtinsurvivaltin3797]

I loved the Sydney Friedman character! Such insight!

[@LS-ki9ft]

Family betrayals are the worst and as the scene shows, sometimes the ones that we love the most, can also hurt us the most. It takes courage to forgive and understand the flaws, limitations and yes, sometimes the hurtfulness of family members. Very powerful and beautiful scene. We all need a Sidney Friedman at some point in our life.

[@stephenconway2468]

Sidney was a device so brilliantly executed. You could not not disagree or hate him. So he could could pull out the thorns (to use Christian imagery) and Hawkeye a childlike adult who had suffered self realization then has self redemption. This was excellent writing, direction and acting.

[@maryhlad7501]

Brilliant acting by Alan Alda and Allan Arbus.

[@diddymuck]

a superb story where the typically belittled and misunderstood elements of psychoanalysis are here explicitly presented in their step by step means to an end. Author/director Nicholas Myers put it best when he said of Freud "you are the greatest detective of all."

[@buzzkillington110]

This scene was the single most emotional moment in all of MASH. Even more so than when Radar announced the death of Henry Blake. I think everyone has had something like this happen to them in their life, but many dont, or choose not to face their fears and deal with the trauma of the past. To be that innocent child, to love someone with all your heart, and then to be betrayed - to have your childhood innocence be violated by someone you love is one of the most traumatic things that can happen to anyone. Dr. Freidman helped Hawkeye through his trauma and come out the other side stronger than he was before. Hawkeye truly is a very strong person and hes one of my favorite characters of all time. If for nothing else - because of this scene.

[@inspiredwoodworks4131]

Buzz Killington , I agree, but the second most emotional scene has got to be when Hawkeye lost his friend in “Sometimes you hear the bullet”. The stress of the ER, the brief dialogue, Blake telling him to take another patient, and the conversation afterwards, that all just hits.

[@edrenajones5960]

Buzz Killington I hate when foolish cruel people say “but That was so long ago, just move on.” No matter what hurt you so deep, it’s PTSD, and it can last a lifetime. Because for some of us, That happened just a few hours ago. We cope, but sometimes we break.

[@adamschaeffer4057]

How about when Hawk was describing the time they all had to be silent on the bus, and the mother smothered her chicken to keep it quiet. Only it wasn't a chicken it was her baby. Actually, Pierce seems to have a lot of repressed memories that really inhibit his mental stability far more than you'd want from a trauma surgeon.

[@jonmt12]

In the last episode when the musicians that Winchester was working with were killed was really powerful.

[@kevindouglas5333]

No. This was just overacting personified

[@davidlee9026]

This is my favorite episode of M.A.S.H due to this very scene. I just love emotion in films, especially when a character breaks down like this. I dunno why, but I just love it.

[@ashleyjustice3008]

Man, I wish Sidney Freeman was my therapist! I enjoy his scenes!

[@chris1pdx]

The writing on this show was absolutely amazing.

[@michaelgj23]

Imagine having the skill set to help someone the way Dr. Freedman helps Hawkeye. I always wished I could do that.

[@toddstein5407]

This scene helped me put some things in my past behind me, too. Especially the talk about scars

[@ProtoNeoVintage]

This scene makes me cry every time. I can't help it. The pain is real.

[@v.i.kettenis8065]

I'm a fan of M*A*S*H since day one. A few years back Santa (my son) gave me 'the whole show on dvd'. After all these years and after watching the show several times, it is still the best show ever!!!!

[@mephisto4009]

This is one of my most favorite episodes. It's really deep.

[@ramennoodz2155]

I have never been so mad at a character who has never been seen on screen

[@rogerlynch5279]

The figure of Sidney Freeman had been one of my favorites in M.A.S.H. Yes, he is one of the main reasons I loved the reruns and bought for my self most of the later seasons on DVD. :) Besides being a fine actor, the stories about him contain a lot of truce to think about.

[@rogerlynch5279]

Yes, Allan Arbus played it like a male version of Mary Poppins - suddenly turning up and solving every problem in a kind and always understanding way ( "with a snap" ::::) ). Real psychologists or schooled educators are rarly as good as him in our non-fictive world; In the earlier episodes their were several actors with similar roles but those guys had played the role much more subbern and ended up as " enemies " of Hawkeye and Trapper. Guess there were a lot of critical letters to the developers so the script writers invented this marvelous typ for the later years if filming.

[@jamesedwards2237]

Sydney Freedman and Colonel Flagg were both great characters!!

[@hoverboard1000]

This has always been one of my favorite scenes...for the acting of course, but after I became a therapist myself, I really gained an appreciation for the scene with the interaction between client and mental health worker.

[@davidmcleod7757]

It's ironic how smells or dejavu can bring back sleeping memories of bad things from the past

[@kimberlycarder7730]

I've wished for a long time Sydney was my doctor. He's such a damn good physchiatrist, I think my therapy would progress a lot better

[@luckyluckystarstar22]

Such an absolutely perfect show. Most people refer to it as a comedy, but I can’t count how many times I’ve cried, and I mean sobbed. Such a beautiful scene and a beautiful show, with such talented actors and actresses.

[@briane173]

It was always considered a dark comedy; had to be to get anything funny out of war, especially one as pointless as Korea or Vietnam. But it stayed on long enough for viewers to _know_ those characters and _connect_ with them, and it allowed them to get more serious with the reality of what those Army doctors were doing there. And it was some of the most creative writing ever done for a weekly "sitcom."

[@luckyluckystarstar22]

I couldn’t have said it better myself.

[@NorthForkFisherman]

@@briane173 "pointless as Korea" Wow.

[@mickmack1409]

My favorite scene in MASH

[@mjc1970]

That chocks me up!

[@Lurker1979]

Everyone needs a mental health pro like Sidney

[@jerrykinnin7941]

My favorite characters are all of them. I think MASH is a great dichotomy of human nature. That's what made it so successful. And why my stepdad who spent 24 months in Korea. Couldn't watch a show. His words, "It's to real".

[@Miracle490d]

Sydney is one of those characters that you relish every time you see him. And you can’t wait to see him again. They make such a big impact, in such a short time. I felt the same way about Reverend Snow on Three's Company and Buddy on night court. I don’t know how the networks could’ve missed it. Why they didn’t bring him back more. I don’t know how the networks could’ve missed it. Why they didn’t bring them back more. But if they did, Would we have gotten bored faster?

[@daisymz3710]

What an actor! I could imagine it as he was talking about it. I cried so much watching this show.❤️😲😭

[@maryhlad5277]

Hawkeye’s cousin, Billy, was a real jerk. If Billy can’t own up to what did, then Hawkeye should cut him out of his life forever.

[@Lemegeton300]

no other show in the history of TV made me feel the range of emotions that MASH did. the only thing that came even remotely close was Scrubs.

[@ianmorton4136]

Great acting by my favourite comedian, the great Alan Alda.

[@robincrowflies]

This was such a good show.

[@theduke7539]

That's some damn acting right there. The emotion. The pain. The suffering. The strain.

[@parasol.p]

I could gush for so long about how this show dealt with mental health. But especially nowadays, with white-washed, over dramatized shows like 13 Reasons Why being the main representation for mental illness, I appreciate it even more. The fact that they let therapy be raw, ugly, and angry, but ultimately the solution so powerful to me. I've literally never seen that anywhere else.

[@stephenolan5539]

I think originally Thor was going to go back to being buff at the end of End Game but it was decided to not have him instantly recovered from his depression.

[@31xrg]

Great scene, well acted. Excellent writing!

[@kayequinn6726]

Wish Sidney was in more episodes. He was a special part of tge MASH legacy.

[@shannonbrewer3280]

Both great actors... awesome scene. Mash had so many great actors, a great TV show.

[@walterschivo9123]

This was one of the best from Hawkeye. The 2nd to me was the last episode when he lost his mind after the Korean woman had smothered her baby to death.

[@roseprevost8081]

The series finale, Goodbye, Farewell and Amen. That was some powerful TV.

[@ShikataGaNai100]

Great depiction of a conversion reaction. The medical advisor for this series was a genius.

[@jroysims44]

Classic scene from the best show ever.

[@sebulia1]

This episode was so good it made me downright uncomfortable.

[@booya5584]

best scene acted on film, ever.

[@savanaschmidt8906]

The acting in this show has always been phenomenal, but the look of confusion on Hawkeye’s face right before he starts crying, then the inhale when he remembers, is almost chilling to see once you notice it.

[@thefallenC073]

“It’s the little battlefields the ponds the schoolyards…” I can indeed verify, I still remember the guys fist on my face 8 years later

[@petemcintire4339]

First the boat, then the chicken. That's messed up.

[@grimgrinners]

This was one hell of an arc for Hawkeye. Poor bastard.

[@junkboxxxxxx]

0:44 Hawkeye's textbook Freudian Slip

[@gummygoo2]

Ladies and gents, One of the greatest actors of all time, Alan Alda.

[@sharkyfish3492]

this is a great scene, the writing was incredible

[@M-David-Hakoh]

Sydney was such a powerful caracter he should've been a regular

[@hankkingsley2976]

And then he wouldn't have been that powerful

[@Dave_B33]

Some powerful acting in this scene.

[@torinobob]

I find myself at a point in my life where I need a therapist. If only I could find a real life Sydney Friedman.

[@jabbahut72]

1:55 - 2:00 is when the reality of what happened is revealed. 2:01 - 2:03 is the processing of said reality. Then the raw emotion from 2:04 - 2:33. Outstanding acting by an outstanding actor!

[@xo_pumpkin_ox]

Everyone finds it weird cause I’m 16 and I’ve watched probably all of these. And I own all the movies I love them 💕

[@tubefluid]

There was another episode where Hawk was at Sidney's facility. "She killed the chicken!". And actually the mother killed her own baby to keep it quiet. I wonder if it's on here?

[@wh4193]

The finale ☹️

[@slashdemonfire5024]

Odours can be a powerful memory, I know that feeling

[@tonyhodgin1158]

Yes

[@melissacooper4282]

The only thing I have trouble understanding is that I know that Hawkeye repressed the incident with Billy. But how can an oder of a wet burlap sack make Hawkeye sneeze uncontrollably? Did he have the same sneezing fit when he was a child?

[@welcometogreenaquasglen1846]

@@melissacooper4282 Hawkeye's patient smelled like wet burlap when he was brought in, just like Hawkeye did when Billy pushed him into the water. That smell brought the repressed memory of his cousin's betrayal back into the forefront of Hawkeye's mind which made him psychologically sick.

[@shevetlevi2821]

In addition to being so full of humanity, he had a little bit of Groucho in him.

[@matthale8090]

I read an article, about Alda asking Arbus for psychological help or sit down sessions in actual life after the show had finished. Even though Arbus wasn't an actual physician. He had left that much of an impact on Alda during the show, he wanted to continue that with problems Alda was facing after the show.

[@bbface21]

Sometimes talking to a friend you trust is the next best thing.

[@michaelsaxonson251]

Yes, thank you so much, I've been looking for this

[@InformationIsTheEdge]

In 1983, the final episode of M*A*S*H aired and it was a big deal. More than a hundred million households tuned in to say goodbye. It was like saying good bye to a close friend and knowing that you would never see them again. It was perfect.

[@rexoates4484]

Masterful job of acting.