BUT I really felt that well-meaning tribute was “cheapened” (for lack of a better word) significantly by the comedy that was injected into it in what I perceived to be an effort to make the overall package more “mainstream.”

You are so off-base. This is certainly the best of the
WWII films, and Van Johnson holds it together with his abundant
talents, humorous ways and spirit and looks of the All-American
Boy!
That you, reviewer anon, could not fathom this is just
symptomatic of your unperceptive views.

The Battle Of The Bulge veterans, a hardy breed, still
around, loved this movie, and continue to watch it to this day.
Every one of the players is a credit to his craft, and, thanks to
producer Dore Schary, and his persistance to make the film, it
exists, today, as a legacy of the Golden Age of MGM.