Best war TV plot holes of all time

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M*A*S*H picture

I Hate a Mystery - S1-E10

Plot hole: Hawkeye calls a number of people into the mess tent over the PA - the ones he allegedly suspects of being behind the thefts he is suspected of himself. Interestingly enough, Ho Jon, later revealed to be the guilty party, is not on Hawkeye's list - yet he shows up uninvited, just to be ensnared by Hawk's clever ploy. Note also that he had no way of knowing what the purpose of the meeting was, so we cannot ascribe to him the motive of wanting to find out how much Hawkeye knew.

Doc

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Suggested correction: Of course Ho-Jon would come to the tent; it makes perfect sense, since he is the "houseboy" of the Swamp and, consequently, a sort of personal assistant to the Swampmen (Hawkeye, Trapper, and Spearchucker). He simply followed Trapper and Spearchucker to the tent after the announcement, probably figuring they might need him in some way.

It's late evening. It's, as far as anyone knows, an official meeting. Ho Jon isn't "standing attendance", he's sitting at the table (which is very convenient for him to hide his hands later). If he WERE standing attendance, it would be the only time in the series he does so in the mess tent instead of the swamp. It would also be the only time he's attending a meeting anyone called. Also he isn't a "house boy" - that would be totally out of character for Hawkeye, see "The Moose" - he's more an adoptee and roommate who makes himself useful. And last but not least: What a convenient coincidence, that just the guy who turns out to be the culprit would turn up uninvited, because he "might be needed" instead of staying the hell away because he is guilty and suspicious of the whole affair! Had - HAD, which he hasn't - Trapper said "Ho Jon, you better come too", you could call it a Deus Ex, but the way it is, it's just a plot hole, to quote Margaret Houlihan, "period, end of sentence."

Doc

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Hogan's Heroes picture

My Favorite Prisoner - S4-E18

Plot hole: In several occasions throughout the story, e.g. S4E18, Hogan attends parties at Stalag 13 wearing an immaculate US dress uniform. Where did he get that? Dress uniforms are not part of the usual kit a bomber crew brings along with them on their missions.

Doc

Upvote valid corrections to help move entries into the corrections section.

Suggested correction: Considering they have a tailor (Newkirk) and are air dropped everything from explosives to penicillin, a Class A dress uniform would hardly be a challenge to make or receive.

stiiggy

Klink: "Hogan, where did you get that uniform?!" - Hogan: "Oh, I had OSS airdrop it together with our latest shipment of explosives and ammunition. We brought it in through our tunnel last night and stored it there."

Doc

I got it from the Red Cross.

stiiggy

Only a few high ranking intelligence officers are aware of Hogan's mission. Hogan's activities would under normal circumstances be considered fraternisation. While it might be true that he could theoretically obtain a class A uniform via the red cross, doing so would brand him as a collaborator and traitor.

Doc

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Rome picture

Show generally

Plot hole: The ages of the children on the show are really inconsistent. When the show starts in 50 BC, Octavian is around 12, Lucius is an infant and Vorena the Younger is at least 8 (given that she must have been concieved before Vorenus left for Gaul). Three years later Caesarion was born. When Simon Woods takes over the role of Octavian, Octavian is around 19, as stated on the show. Lucius should be seven but looks like he's four and Vorena should be fifteen but still looks eight. Episode 9 of season two takes place in 32 BC, 18 years after the first episode. Octavian might very well be 30, but Lucius (who would be 18) is around seven, Vorena (who would be 26) is a pre-teen and Caesarion (who would be 15) is around eight. Even if the events were moved up so that episode 9 is actually set earlier, the ages of the children still don't match when compared to how much the other characters have aged.

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Transformers picture

Desertion of the Dinobots (1) - S2-E19

Plot hole: Perceptor discovers that the reason for their malfunctioning is because their Cybertonium has deteriorated after millions of years of being exposed to Earth's atmosphere. The key word here being 'millions'. This explains why the original Transformers who crash landed on Earth (4 million years ago) are affected, but newer characters like Perceptor, Powerglide, Hoist, etc. are affected despite the fact that they have only been on Earth recently.

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The Unit picture

Into Hell: Part One - S4-E7

Plot hole: The Unit discovers a soldier who they think is Betsy, tied to a chair. They note that the room is covered with PIRs or Passive Infrared Sensors. They then take out their night-vision goggles and begin counting the number of "infrared lines" they see. However, PIR sensors don't emit anything; they are passive. (00:23:15)

klaser

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Bonanza picture

Something Hurt, Something Wild - S8-E1

Plot hole: Laurie Ferguson is outside the Ponderosa ranch with Joe Cartwright. In an attempt to frame him for sexually assaulting her, she begins screaming. She emits six loud piercing screams before the scene shifts to Ben, Hoss and her father and brother inside the home. It is not until her seventh scream that the four men look up and start to run outside.

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SEAL Team picture

Shockwave - S4-E4

Plot hole: In episode 3 Ray and a CIA agent meet a US Ambassador to Tunisia to discuss placing a Seal team in Tunisia to combat the recent wave of terrorist bombings. The Ambassador was against boots on the ground. In episode 4 when Bravo team arrives to find captured Ray, they land at an airbase in Tunisia and enter a portable type building, on the wall of said building are US Military patches such as 82nd Airborne. Did the ambassador forget America has portables there for their troops?

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Mr. Sunshine picture

Episode #1.20 - S1-E20

Plot hole: At the end of the previous episode, Ms. Haman is shot by a Japanese soldier. The shot is severe enough to make her collapse to the ground and fall unconscious. But in this episode, she appears perfectly fine without any sign of being shot, and without any injury in sight. (00:07:30)

Casual Person

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