The Saddest Sitcom Episode Of All Time Aired 50 Years Ago & It's Still Absolutely Devastating
MASH'sseason 3 finale, "Abyssinia, Henry," devastated audiences with the death of Henry Blake - and it's just as sad 50 years later. Despite coming dangerously close to cancellation during its first year, MASH ran for 11 seasons and left an indelible mark on American TV. This included its mixture of comedy and drama and breaking of TV taboos, including killing a prominent supporting character. This came with the death of Henry Blake during MASH's season 3 finale, where the 4077th's lovable commander is killed on a plane flight home to America.
This moment shocked America, despite Blake's death having been spoiled in several newspaper features. This scene came about after Blake's actor, McLean Stevenson, decided to leave MASH as he wanted to front shows where he was the undisputed lead. While it was originally scripted that Blake would leave the camp and get a happy ending, showrunner Larry Gelbart decided it would be more impactful to kill Blake off. This wasn't intended as a slight to the departing Stevenson, however; Gelbart just felt Blake's death would underscore MASH's antiwar themes.
MASH's Most Beloved Supporting Character Ruined His Perfect Ending After The Series Finished
Gary Burghoff's Walter "Radar" O'Reilly got a perfect sendoff on MASH - which was spoiled by his later return on the ill-fated spinoffs.
Why MASH's "Abyssinia, Henry" Is The Saddest Sitcom Episode Of All Time
Radar delivering the news to the 4077th is still heartbreaking
To avoid story leaks, Gelbart didn't tell the cast and crew about "Abyssinia, Henry's" true ending until the day it was shot. As scripted, Blake leaves the camp and that's the end of the episode. It was only when the cast and crew wrapped the episode that Gelbart delivered the final page, where Radar (Gary Burghoff) enters the operating room and haltingly delivers the news of Blake's plane being shot down. Radar's gut punch final line, "There were no survivors," still hits hard decades after the episode aired.
MASH's "Abyssinia, Henry" would have been a bittersweet episode regardless of its ending. Stevenson's Blake was a major part of the show, and the character leaving the 4077th was a major event. While Blake's demise resulted in an audience backlash and the network receiving hate mail, it was absolutely the right call to do it. Not only did it cement MASH as a groundbreaking show, but it also hit the point home that in war, even good people can die at any time.
MASH's Ability To Be Emotionally Devastating Shows Why It's An All-Time-Great Sitcom
MASH often mixed the light with the dark
MASH tellingly never attempted to kill off another character, but it didn't need that kind of shock value to be impactful. "Abyssinia, Henry" forever changed MASH from a sitcom with some dark moments to a full-on dramedy. Some fans would argue MASH leaned too hard into drama in its later years, but it was this balance that made it such a great series. For example, the season 4 finale "The Interview" is widely considered MASH's best episode - and it's borderline laugh-free.
"Abyssinia, Henry" was also the final appearance of Wayne Rogers' Trapper on MASH, with the actor deciding to leave between seasons.
Instead, the camp is interviewed by a news show about their wartime experiences, and audiences get more of a personal insight into the camp. MASH never forgot its sitcom origins, but from Margaret's (Loretta Swit) disastrous marriage and its inevitable end to Radar's exit during season 8, it could be as tearjerking as any drama. This is why MASH is so fondly remembered and why it has (to date) never been revived or revisited, because its legacy looms too large.
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