A new nurse, Margie Cutler, arrives at the camp, and both Hawkeye and Trapper become enamoured with her. Seeing her as a distraction, Major Houlihan has her transferred out of the unit effective immediately. Meanwhile, General Barker is trying to arrange a boxing match with the 4077th. When Henry Blake can't find a volunteer, he strikes a deal with Hawkeye and Trapper that if one of them enters the match, he will get Nurse Cutler back. At first, Hawkeye and Trapper refuse until they see Margie leaving in a Jeep. Hawkeye, learning of Trapper's previous history in boxing, press-gangs his friend to enter the match, only to realise as Trapper practices and when the opponent arrives with General Barker that they may have bitten off more than they could chew.
Attention, all personnel! Prepare for the big match by reviewing the following tropes:
- Bait-and-Switch: Henry watches as Radar enters his office, picks up his mug, and pours it full of coffee.Henry: [reaches for the mug] Thank you, Radar.Radar: [hands him a pile of forms] Sign these, sir. [drinks the coffee]
- Beef Bandage: Sported by Trapper, at the end of the episode.Trapper: Kinda hard to see through.
Hawkeye: Sorry, I couldn't find a prescription steak. - The Boxing Episode: Hawkeye and Trapper convince Henry to override Nurse Cutler's transfer in exchange for Trapper representing the unit in the boxing match.
- Cheaters Never Prosper: Inverted because, let's be honest, cheating was the only way to win that boxing fight. The other guy's got almost a hundred pounds on Trapper and clocks in at 6'5".
- Earn Your Happy Ending: Trapper has to win a boxing match for the 4077 in order to get a nurse he and Hawkeye both like back.
- Even the Guys Want Him: Played for Laughs with Trapper.Hawkeye: Who says you're not in shape? You've got a cute body. I've seen guys sneaking peeks at you at calisthenics.
Trapper: Which guys are sneaking peeks at me?
Hawkeye: I'd rather not say. Some of them are married. - Exact Words: As Hawkeye and Trapper are trying to talk Henry into helping them:Trapper: If you say no, we'll tell everybody that your brother's in jail.Henry: My brother is a warden!Hawkeye: We won't say that part.
- Funny Background Event: After Henry tears up the blank pages that he signed, Radar hands him more blank pages while Henry is on the phone. This time, Henry signs them without a second thought.
- Giant Mook: Sgt. Flacker.Radar: If he wanted to, he could be a platoon.
- Hoist by His Own Petard: After the ether is added to Trapper's glove, Flacker falls out of the ring and onto Margaret.
- Hulk Speak: Trapper, when shaking hands with Flacker:Trapper: Easy. Me doctor. Need hands. Operate.
- Hypocrite: Margaret, who's in a Secret Relationship with the married Frank Burns, suddenly takes issue when Hawkeye and Trapper fancy the new nurse Margie Cutler, and transfers her out of the unit citing her as "a distraction".
- Insane Troll Logic: As Radar bamboozles Henry into signing blank sheets of paper.Henry: What are these?Radar: Papers.Henry: Blank papers?Radar: Yes, sir.Henry: Is that a good idea?Radar: It's to cut down on your workload. You sign them now, later you don't have to bother.*Beat*Henry: But should I have really signed blank papers?!!Radar: I can't answer that, sir. You're the one that signed them, I didn't.
- Instant Sedation: Ugly John accidentally does this to himself when demonstrating to Trapper how to use the ether-soaked boxing glove.
- Kick the Dog: Frank and Margaret's reason for attempting to ruin Hawkeye's plan to win the match seems to be none other than watching Trapper be beaten senselessly.
- Mildly Military: While they watch Nurse Cutler run off to get ready for O.R., Hawkeye accidentally (yeah, right) keeps the towel she was wrapped in. As they watch her run away, both Hawkeye and Trapper throw their first A1, GI-issued, red-white-and-blue, military salute.
- No Sense of Personal Space: Hawkeye constantly touches Nurse Cutler – not to mention Trapper and Henry – in this one.
- Oh, Crap!: Trapper (and the others') reaction on meeting Sgt. Flacker, who he's going to face in the boxing ring.
- Pop-Culture Pun Episode Title: After the teleplay/film Requiem for a Heavyweight.
- Sad Clown: Hawkeye dirty coward jokes that he's in pain most of the time but doesn't want to burden his friends. Turns out he's not wrong.
- Shout-Out: Henry sacrastically refers to Hawkeye and Trapper as "Dr. Jekyll and Dr. Jekyll" when they enter his office.
