8. Cowboy

November 12, 1972 (J-309)

Written by: Bob Klane
Directed by: Don Weis
Guest Stars: Billy Green Bush as Cowboy. Joe Corey as Goldstein. Mike Robelo as the Cook. Jean Powell as Nurse Baker.
Semi-regulars: William Christopher as Father Mulcahy. John Orchard as Ugly John. Patrick Adiarte as Ho-Jon, golf caddy to the commander.

Plot: A hot-shot chopper pilot, the Cowboy, brings in lots of wounded, and is wounded himself. He spends some time in the hospital waiting on a letter from his wife, who he suspects is cheating on him. He asks Hawkeye if the injuries are enough to let him go home - Hawkeye wants to let him, but Henry says no. Henry also denies Trapper permission to take a jeep out for some hanky-panky with a nurse. Hawkeye decides that the reason Henry is being so unreasonable is that he's been working too hard, and tries to take him out to cheer him up, but they get shot at playing golf, from the direction of the camp. A runaway (driverless) jeep later crashes into Henry's tent. He blames Trapper, who denies all knowledge. Henry then gets blown up in the latrine. He appears to be jinxed, and people (including Radar) start avoiding him for their own safety. Hawkeye and Trapper advise him to take off to Seoul for a few days till the heat is off, but before he goes his desk chair explodes. Nobody wants to volunteer to drive Henry to Seoul, but the Cowboy, who is now ready to leave, volunteers to fly him. Almost as soon as they leave, Hawkeye and Trapper discover booby-trap bits under the Cowboy's bunk. In the chopper, the Cowboy is now trying to throw Henry out without a parachute. The Cowboy's letter arrives, and the boys call him up on the radio to read it to him. Despite the letter starting with Dear John (the Cowboy's actual first name), and talking about his wife being tempted, it is all good news and the Cowboy decides not to kill Henry. He gets shipped home with combat fatigue, to rejoin his wife.

AWOL: No sign of Hot Lips.

BIMOL: Burns doesn't do much.

Great Lines: Hawkeye to Radar: 'Get me some coffee.' Radar: 'Anything else?' Hawkeye: 'Yeah. Two blondes, sunny side up.'
Trapper, when Burns is blocking his jeep: 'Move!' Burns: 'Over my dead body.' Trapper: 'Great idea!'
Henry: 'Trapper, would you believe me if I said I was going to miss you?' Trapper: 'No.' Henry: 'Smart guy.'>

Comments: Father Mulcahy blessing Goldstein in Hebrew is just damn cool.
It's nice that an episode where somebody is worried about their partner's fidelity can end with the fidelity being stronger than the temptation. (Most of the episodes of that format do turn up later than this, I suppose). The booby traps were funny, but mostly the performances were fairly average. And I just couldn't take the Cowboy seriously; not in that hat. Whoever decided that a hat the size of a large bucket would be a symbol of masculine power, anyway? It defies all logic. Anyway, that's just my pet peeve.

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