If season one of M*A*S*H was the test run for the show (after all, it was based on a movie - the translation wasn't going to be exact) then the second season is when it hits its stride. Perfectly.
Departing from the movie's style of editing and dialing down the tone of the hubba-hubba M*A*S*H not only became a tad more acceptable for prime-time, but it started to show just how smart the writers were. For example, the sexcapades didn't stop, but they got somehow cuter in the second season, which not only made the Frank Burns / Margaret Houlihan (note they dropped the O'Houlihan from the movie) affair stand out it made it look twisted.
Using this less-is-more approach allowed M*A*S*H to get in on its social commentary as early as possible. After all, with a healthy dash of slapstick and Marx Brothers-esque comedy (a favorite of Alan Alda), it's hard to tell you've just been handed a lesson on why racism or sexual discrimination is bad, not to mention the larger message - war sucks.
"Five O'clock Charlie" is the perfect example of the subtle humour of the show. In the lastest bid to bug the hell out of Frank, our favorite doctors and one company clerk arrive on the scene in a mock military march. Trapper, in MacArthur drag, calls for a sound off. There's a moment of silence as it becomes clear that neither Radar nor Hawkeye know who is supposed to go first.
Radar: Are you One?
Hawkeye immediately throws his hand on his hip and with a touch of foppishness replies;
Hawkeye: Yes, are you?
You're brain barely registers that you've just been handed a gay joke (and in 1973 no less) when an uncomfortable Radar mutters, "Cut it out", clinching it.
And that is why M*A*S*H is possibly THE greatest sit-com ever. Issues of equality, race, gender, politics, class, you name it, are all addressed in this subtle, irreverent manner. By the end of the series, the subtly is a bit lost, but in season two, it cuts like a blade.
Video
As with the first season, the second season features beautiful film quality with little to no crap. There is however one thing I noticed. At the start of the title sequence, the music begins, but the picture drags, like the 24 frames per second were stretched out to cover an extra second. It doesn't appear to be an issue with the encoding (it's not a stutter, like the data has a glitch), rather it looks like the first second or two of the picture was missing and the title sequence was pulled a bit to cover the gap. I have no explanation for this, though thankfully it's a minor issue. Other than this the set is excellent.
One thing that I should mention is the restoration of about two minutes per episode. This "lost" footage never appears in syndication as it was removed to make way for modern advertisement lengths per half hour. Given the age of the series and the familiarity reruns have produced, these little episode repairs are a nice surprise.
Audio
Similar to the first season, with two English mono tracks (one with and one without the laugh track) and the original Spanish and French dubs (the Spanish track is a bonus over the first season, which only featured the French).
Well, this time we have a Spanish subtitle track as well as an English subtitle track. But still, nothing. After pondering the glaring omission of extras on the first disc, I went looking around and discovered that besides the outtake reels I'd seen myself, there are also, to use the DVD vernacular, deleted scenes which were cut from the final episodes. Some of these would go a long way to providing some insight into the show. Usually when stuff like this is omitted it's either because the materials aren't archived with the studio (rather they exist only in a box in some editor or director's attic) or the studio wants to present a perfect package. If it's the former, here's hoping someone finally digs the materials up. If it's the latter, I hope the studio comes to their senses and gives the fans a behind-the-scenes look at the series.
Summary
I'll admit, I started collecting M*A*S*H backwards, buying the second season before the first. Initially I wasn't intending to buy any of them, reasoning with myself that it's still on television all the time and that even at the modest prices, eleven seasons is a big investment, but in the end, season two sucked me in - it contains a fair share of my favorite episodes. And I'm happy to say I'm not disappointed. So far the collections surpassed my expectations in the important areas (such as the picture quality and the restoring of removed footage) and while the lack of obvious extras is still disappointing, there's always the next few season sets.
