Miklós Kátay, a spoiled, peppery gentleman, changes to his advantage when he joins the military. He is helped by his old acquaintance, Sergeant Menyhért, who is courting his cook, and a new recruit, Balázs, who becomes his friend. In the barracks, he chats and chats at first, but at the front, where he is now an ensign, he is a hero. He is welcomed back by his friend Éva, the Colonel's ugly niece, and by another Éva, the beautiful daughter of a retired Colonel.