In one episode of the recent CNN series, “The History of the Sit-Com,” several commentators debated over what was the best sit-com of all time-either Seinfeld or Friends.

Oh good grief. Whatever merits those classic shows had, they didn’t come close to the ultimate sit-com of all-time- M*A*S*h.  No other television program comes close to being seen by more people, year after year, to the present day.    No other program evolved as much as  M*A*S*h during its 11 year run of 256 epfisodes; no other program offered so much situational comedy/ medical drama laced with social commentary;   no other program made as many cutting-edge creative choices over the years as M*A*S*h.   In short, not many shows warrant an over 800 page analysis of their legacy like Ed Solomonson & Mark O’Neill did for M*A*S*h.

To be fair, it’s hard to believe anyone could ever supersede this deep-dive analysis into all things M*A*S*h.  For one thing, the tome is chock-full of interviews with the creators and participants going behind-the-scenes of the show’s creation and production process. As the years go by, many of those participants have left us and this book documents many of their observations for perhaps the last time.

But not leaving any stone unturned is an often mixed blessing.    How many viewers ever cared about registration numbers on the jeeps? Or how the colors of bathrobes weren’t always consistent? Or the origins of every scrap of music heard in the series, whether recordings or performers singing or parodying popular melodies?  Or the professional histories of bit players who appeared in only one episode?