By Anne Taul
The return of
Roscoe Martin has a profound effect on Harm. As he has before, Roscoe again
represents all the forgotten men from the Vietnam conflict, including his
father to Rabb. Even though he knows that getting involved with Roscoe will
lead to trouble, he can’t seem to help himself. Roscoe will, of course, play on
Harm’s respect to manipulate him, just as he’ll use his murder trial to try to
grandstand his issues and exert his strong will.
Roscoe’s will is a
powerful force in “The Martin Baker Fan Club.” He thinks he knows what is best
for not only himself but also for the other patients in the mental ward. And
he’s a force to be reckoned with. The other men in the institution follow him
blindly. He’s very charming and persuasive. The only one who sees through his
motives completely is the staff member he accuses of framing him. Harm, though,
must confront what is really going on when Roscoe and his cronies escape from
the mental hospital and show up at his apartment. Mac and Harm are brought face
to face with the strength of Roscoe’s will and resolve in the showdown that
follows.
The free will that
Roscoe Martin believes so strongly in finally triumphs for him in his own suicide,
which, while sad in its own way, seems a very fitting end to his life. His
seeking this precept of free will throughout the episode is contrasted very effectively
with the subplot of Bud and Harriet trying to find some kind of intervention in
the scare with their pregnancy.
This episode presents a lot
of questions (i.e. how important is free will
vs. the controls of society? Harm’s glorified view of Vietnam vets vs.
their view of themselves, how much intervention is appropriate in a person’s
life?). Roscoe makes a final judgment for himself, but the episode makes no
moral judgment for us as an audience. It does leave us with a lot of questions
about ourselves and our world, making it a worthy entry into the JAG world –
and ours.