101. The Nurses

October 19, 1976 (U-809)

Written by: Linda Bloodworth
Directed by: Joan Darling
Guest Stars: Linda Kelsey as Nurse Baker. Carol Lawson Locatell as Nurse Gaynor. Patricia Sturges as Nurse Preston. Gregory Harrison as Lt Tony Baker.
Semi-regulars: Mary Jo Catlett as Nurse Walsh

Plot: With a horrible heat wave going on and no showers available, everyone is grouchy. The nurses are all getting up Hot Lips's nose, as she's being over-sensitive to everything. She springs them making fudge and boozing in their tent - against regulations. They have a bit of a set-to, especially Lt Baker who tries to punch Hot Lips's eyes out. Baker is confined to her tent. Meanwhile her husband Tony turns up, having managed to get a 24hr pass from his unit. The boys devise an elaborate plan to enable the Bakers to spend the night together - Hawkeye quarantines Tony in Hot Lips's tent (for the plague, apparently) with the plan of Lt Baker sneaking in after lights out. Unfortunately, Hot Lips decides to bunk in with the nurses since she can't sleep in her tent. The boys try to get Burns to get her out of the way but it doesn't work. Baker sneaks out anyway and spends the night with her husband. Hot Lips catches her coming back in the morning and promises to throw the book at her. In a showdown with the nurses, Hot Lips finally cracks - she's been feeling really badly treated by the nurses who don't like or particularly trust her and has been Army regulating them to death in response. When the Colonel tries to blow the whole thing wide open, Hot Lips steps up and puts an end to the investigation. The nurses start trusting her a bit more and the tension is eased.

Glitches: Lt Walsh changes position next to the door when she's keeping lookout.

BIMOL: Poor old Father Mulcahy - maybe he had a lot of praying to do.

Great Lines: Lt Baker: 'I always dreamed I'd honeymoon at Niagara Falls.' Lt Walsh: 'Ah, Richard and I had the bridal suite there.' Baker: 'Really?' Walsh: 'Yeah. If we ever get married, I'd really like to go back.'
Baker: 'Hot Lips in our tent? That's gonna be like sneaking past a watch-dog!' Walsh: 'We'll chloroform her kibble.' Preston: 'We'll rock her to sleep.' Walsh: 'With a real rock.'
Burns: 'When I see her, crawling across the compound on her hands and knees, you know what that'll mean?' BJ: 'She ate in the mess tent?'
Tony: 'Take care of yourself, sweetheart, OK?' Radar: 'OK.'

The Klinger Collection: A lovely pink gingham dress with helmet for guard duty - he's also got a red scarf tied to his rifle. Baker bribes him to let her pass with her lavendar peasant blouse with matching scarf.

Je ne parle Korean...do I? BJ has apparently figured out a few words of Korean - most likely 'Don't worry, you'll be fine.'

Comments: A slightly lacklustre episode, this was still an interesting turnaround. Instead of the old 'the senior officers are mean and don't understand the troops' song, this once again showed a lot more humanity in Hot Lips than we used to see. A really nice performance from Loretta Swit in this one.

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