[ SECRET POST #2601 ]

[case]

⌈ Secret Post #2601 ⌋

Warning: Some secrets are NOT worksafe and may contain SPOILERS.

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Notes:

Secrets Left to Post: 04 pages, 098 secrets from Secret Submission Post #372.
Secrets Not Posted: [ 0 - broken links ], [ 1 - not!secrets ], [ 0 - not!fandom ], [ 0 - too big ], [ 0 - repeat ].
Current Secret Submissions Post: here.
Suggestions, comments, and concerns should go here.

Comments

[skippydelicious]

I put the blame on Henry, he should have broken that crap up day one but he was too useless and gutless to do anything. He was a shit CO whose absence improved the camp remarkably, sadly for Frank it was too late though because the pattern of provocation and dickish behavior on both sides was too entrenched by the time someone competent took over.

TL;DR Sharing the Frank was a dick and that Hawkeye was an equal dick sentiment, but blaming the CO who let it fester.

+1

[(Anonymous)]

I have nothing to add, because you summed up my feelings perfectly.

[intrigueing]

While IA that Henry was a crap CO, I think that's a completely unfair assessment of the situation. Henry never asked for the job, in fact, he expressed nothing but complete hatred and unease bordering on horror with his job, nor did he ever make a mistake out of arrogance or self-satisfaction or a refusal to listen to reason. He made mistakes because he was utterly unqualified for the job and had no one was qualified to help him. He was not anyone with leadership experience, or with a leader's nature, nor was he a career army man. He was a doctor who had been drafted and promoted up to the rank of Lt. Colonel and dumped into a leadership position he had no desire to be in. And therefore he a) was a terrible leader, b) knew full well he was a terrible leader c) hated his job with a passion d) lacked the ability to change his job and e) had no access to anyone whom he could ask to help him do a non-crap job. All he could do was solder on and pray that Radar would stop him from letting everything go up in flames, because he knew full well that screaming to HQ for help would result in nothing.

Henry's probably the character I feel most sorry for, because while everyone else could have made different choices about how they did their jobs, Henry had basically no choices available to him at all, except for the choice between his brand of incompetence and Frank's brand of incompetence. Henry's incompetence was never due to anything like arrogance, or contrariness, or dickishness, or unwillingness to listen. He was simply stuck with a job he was hopelessly unqualified for. Henry's absence wasn't what improved the camp. It was the presence of Potter, a guy who was highly experienced and qualified in army leadership and who was a natural leader who liked leading -- y'know, someone who was actually capable of doing a non-shit job -- that improved the camp.

[thistlechaser]

Your comment makes me want to watch the show again. So many layers I missed as a kid!

[abharding]

All very true.

To me the biggest "problem" Hawkeye and Trapper liked Henry they never really respected him as their leader.(Respected his skill as a surgeon, yes. But as a leader - no.) Not just because he was not good at the job but in part because he was more a peer then a boss. And I think that was point. It was a war - and at times good people - through no fault of their own - were put into jobs they weren't necessarily qualified for.

And I agree Henry - more than any of them - knew he was wrong the person for the job. While I don't remember the entire quote there was an episode where Henry lamented that back home his biggest decision were something "...and whether to get the cat fixed."

Potter commanded respect pretty much from day one - and his rank only had a small part of doing that. He was the boss of that camp and everyone knew it.