First of all, Gina Dalfonzo is right and MASH should win this whole thing. Secondly, to say that The Simpsons has had a stronger relevance in the culture is simply inaccurate. MASH ruled the world when it was on the air. The fate of Major Burns at the end of the third season was as water cooler a moment we'd ever had - BEFORE there were water cooler moments. Famously, it lasted almost three times as long as the war it was depicting - but of course, it wasn't about Korea at all. The very first episode of TV to be told in real time was on MASH. Letters home eps, the cinema verite eps where the actors answered without scripts, whole comic episodes taking place in an operating room with blood everywhere while bombs dropped nearby. I respect the Simpsons and I recognize its monumental achievement. But MASH helped me become a better human. And millions more like me.
M*A*S*H* was a more consistently entertaining show, but when it comes to continued relevance and sheer staying power, I have to give it to The Simpsons. I still tune in every year for Treehouse of Horror, even if I abandoned the regular episodes over a decade ago.
The Simpsons would win if it were the first seven seasons of each show. But MASH never went downhill as badly as The Simpsons. If it wasn't funny, it was because they were not trying to be funny. Can't say that for Saddlesore Galactica.
M*A*S*H ought to win the whole thing.
First of all, Gina Dalfonzo is right and MASH should win this whole thing. Secondly, to say that The Simpsons has had a stronger relevance in the culture is simply inaccurate. MASH ruled the world when it was on the air. The fate of Major Burns at the end of the third season was as water cooler a moment we'd ever had - BEFORE there were water cooler moments. Famously, it lasted almost three times as long as the war it was depicting - but of course, it wasn't about Korea at all. The very first episode of TV to be told in real time was on MASH. Letters home eps, the cinema verite eps where the actors answered without scripts, whole comic episodes taking place in an operating room with blood everywhere while bombs dropped nearby. I respect the Simpsons and I recognize its monumental achievement. But MASH helped me become a better human. And millions more like me.
OK. I'm done.
M*A*S*H* was a more consistently entertaining show, but when it comes to continued relevance and sheer staying power, I have to give it to The Simpsons. I still tune in every year for Treehouse of Horror, even if I abandoned the regular episodes over a decade ago.
The Simpsons would win if it were the first seven seasons of each show. But MASH never went downhill as badly as The Simpsons. If it wasn't funny, it was because they were not trying to be funny. Can't say that for Saddlesore Galactica.
Man oh man I mean Mash (I'm lazy that's how I write it) is undeniably the better show, but is it the better comedy?