Line #21 Recap/MashS5E12Exorcism


1	One [[TemptingFate Friday the 13th]], Col. Potter orders the removal of the camp spirit post. The rest of the day is plagued by incidents of bad luck, prompting the camp to call in an exorcist.
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3	!!Attention all personnel! Col. Potter has asked for the removal of the following tropes:
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5	* AmbiguousEnding: The bad luck comes to an end after the exorcism, and Potter suggests putting the spirit post back where it was. Radar informs him that he already had, calling into question which act was the solution, assuming there was anything supernatural happening to begin with.
6	* BrickJoke: At the episode's end, a truck stops and the driver honks loudly. We then see a Korean ride by on his bicycle, waving to the driver in thanks, clearly using the same maneuver to ward off evil spirits.
7	* EvenTheGirlsWantHer: Margaret's reaction to the mudang is barely concealed lust.
8	* FlatEarthAtheist:
9	** It is strongly implied Colonel Potter started off the whole episode by having the spirit post removed. He becomes a believer the more strange and weird events occur.
10	** Frank Burns, but then again, that should be no surprise.
11	* InsultBackfire: Frank accuses Hawkeye of being the most unmilitary man at the 4077th. Hawkeye smiles and shrugs it off.
12	* ObfuscatingDisability: Frank assumes that Kyong Ja's grandfather threw himself in front of an ambulance as a way to make money, similar to Whiplash Hwang in Season 2's "[[Recap/MashS2E13DealMeOut Deal Me Out]]". It turns out he (and other elderly Koreans) do it to scare away evil spirits that are following them and hope the driver will understand and stop.
13	* ReasonableAuthorityFigure: Of the spiritual kind. Unlike most priests of the time, Father Mulcahy is eager to see the exorcism take place.
14	-->'''Frank:''' You can't go through with this!
15	-->'''Potter:''' I can if I want to. And it won't be you I apologize to, it'll be the good Father.
16	-->'''Father Mulcahy:''' Why me?
17	-->'''Potter:''' It's not exactly what they told you to expect in chaplain school.
18	-->'''Mulcahy:''' I wouldn't miss this for the world.
19	-->'''Frank:''' (''stunned'') Not ''you,'' Father!
20	-->'''Mulcahy:''' Yes, Major. Me.
21	-->'''Hawkeye:''' Why, you spiritual thrill seeker, you.
22	-->'''Mulcahy:''' Wondrous is man and mysterious the ways of God. And I would have no one shield my eyes from the glory of His works.
23	-->'''Frank:''' (''skeptically'') What does that mean?
24	-->'''Mulcahy:''' It means there's more than one way to skin a spirit!
25	* RememberTheNewGuy: The camp's spirit post does not appear before this episode and is never seen again.
26	* ShownTheirWork: The regalia worn by the ''mudang'' (shamaness) and the dance she performs are entirely accurate. May cross over with CastTheExpert; the lack of a reference to her in the credits suggests that she was a real ''mudang''.[[note]]This was filmed in southern California, so they wouldn't have had to look very far for traditional Korean practitioners.[[/note]]
27	* SuperstitionEpisode: The removal of the spirit post prompts everyone to share their routines to ward off bad luck.
28	* TemptingFate: After a series of mishaps happen in the O.R. and the [=MASHers=] discuss between them whether they’re all coincidence, bad luck, or the work of evil spirits, Colonel Potter puts an end to it by declaring nothing else is going to occur. The lights in the O.R. short out.

Context Recap / MashS5E12Exorcism