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16 reviews in total

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16 out of 29 people found the following review useful:
They Should Change the Title to "Flaming Bag of Stupid", 27 September 2004
Author: Marcus_Membrane from Connecticut

As a pilot, I find this show to be not only ridiculous, but also insulting. I was quite skeptical when I saw the promos for this show, expecting it to be grossly inaccurate and/or downright silly. My skepticism was well founded. Absolutely nothing about this show has the slightest shred of realism.

I wasn't expecting a documentary but come on, they could have at least indulged us pilots a little. At least refer to the runways correctly. They mentioned 10, 19, and 22 (none of which exist at the real LAX by the way), and they are calling them "Runway Ten," "Runway Nineteen," and "Runway Twenty-Two." Any airport personnel and any pilot would say, "Runway One-Zero," "Runway One-Nine (or one-niner if you want to be really picky), and "Runway Two-Two."

All we see in LAX is Heather Locklear and Blair Underwood bickering like schoolchildren at the elementary school playground. "I run the airport!" "No, I run the airport!" "No, I run the airport!" "I'm more important than you!" "No, I'm more important!" Absurd.

But I guess that this show has as much to do with airports and airplanes as shows like "Silk Stalkings" and "CSI" have to do with crime and detectives. All the audience wants to see is the beautiful people running around in their ultra-stylish clothing, trying to act all witty and important. This show is simply the latest installment of mindless prime-time idiotic crap.

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5 out of 8 people found the following review useful:
messinam, 18 October 2004
Author: MuV-goin from Los Angeles, Ca.

I too am a pilot and I can attest that messinam's comments regarding the reality of the show are correct. The real problem lies within the "nature of the beast" and unfortunately the only exciting thing at an airport is a bomb threat. Other than that, it's just a bunch of planes taking off and landing and the mundane life of the ticketing staff, pilots and ground crew and the excitement in their lives would barely fill a teaspoon. SO .. NBC has created a series of shows that lie about how exciting the airport life really is. My take: If you want to watch something realistic about airports you should watch "Airline" on A&E. It's filmed at multiple airports around the US and focuses on Southwest Airlines. Of course, even this show is at the hands of editors so don't believe EVERY word they say.

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6 out of 10 people found the following review useful:
LAX lacked ER's writing and talent..., 27 November 2004
Author: Chris from Jacksonville, FL

Earlier, a pilot suggested LAX was flawed by a lack of technical accuracy. ER has been a runaway hit for a decade or more, and isn't a particularly accurate portrayal of emergency medicine. They do attempt a certain level of accuracy, but my friends who work in hospitals find it hilarious. I'm also a pilot, while my niece is a flight attendant. We don't speak the same language. Pilots and controllers use one set of terms, airlines another, and airport operations a third. "Niner", "Air Force One" and other terms were invented in response to incidents where pilots and controllers miscommunicated. An Emergency Room deals with hundreds of people per day from every walk of life. An airport deals with hundreds of thousands of people per day, from every nation in the world. LAX had a lot more potential than ER. That being said, it was generally wasted. Thanks to TiVo, I saw a few episodes - and a few of the plot lines I knew to have been actual incidents.

I think the focus on the main actors and not the plot lines was probably the undoing of the show. In reality, the techical life of a pilot is *supposed* to be boring. It only gets exciting when someone makes a mistake. Nearly all the interesting stories are not about the aircrews, but about the passengers. Long flights and free liquor lead to interesting stories. Alcohol is amplified by altitude, as are most medical conditions. Add confined space and being disconnected from the outside world and you get "Cheers", "ER", "Melrose Place", "Big Brother" and a bit of "Survivor" all in one. I think there is no better proof than the fact that "LAX" is in the trash bin, while the documentary series "Airport" is a hit (for cable, anyway). As for my comrade, the days of pilots being romantic heroes died in the seventies. Astronauts are boring to most people - our lives are TOO technical and detail oriented. They also want the feeling that nothing will happen, ever, when they board the aircraft. We haven't been interesting since Roger, Over, and Unger were in the cockpit. So let Frank Abignale get the glory, and the union the drama. I still get a little rush when the wheels leave the ground, and the sim keeps me humble enough to feel a small sense of satisfaction when they are all back on the ground again. As the prayer goes, let me demonstrate my superior judgment rather than my superior skills. Besides, even the interesting stories make us look bad. How many pilots does it take to screw in a light bulb?

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1 out of 1 people found the following review useful:
LAX was below minimus, just like SFO 34 years earlier., 25 February 2006
Author: kerr-g from United States

I spent about seven years of my life as a pilot, airport bum, and air traffic controller. Airports can be very interesting, but that doesn't necessarily mean that the pilots, mechanics, controllers, coyote hunters, plumbers, dish washers, wing walkers, and bums at airports are any more interesting than the people who work and hang out at libraries. The secret to a good story is in the telling. LAX just didn't tell us any good stories, and, as I recall, SFO, the 1970 version of LAX staring Lloyd Bridges, wasn't any good at story-telling either. If you're looking for an interesting career, I can definitely recommend aviation. If you're looking for interesting stories, TV's track record suggests that you steer clear of shows that are set at airports.

Bummer!

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2 out of 3 people found the following review useful:
I Liked It!!, 13 January 2007
Author: dataconflossmoor from United States

This show had a lot to offer the television viewer!! I found this series to be effervescent and entertaining along those lines... Stars like Heather Locklear, Blair Underwood and Paul Leyden made this show on my preferred list during the year that it was on NBC at 10/9c on Monday nights!! Ever since 9/11, security at major airports has been of great interest to the American people... Decorum must be implemented with strict policies about what is allowable and what is not allowable!! Shows have to be humorous yet cover a broad base of social and political issues without being controversial!! LAX did just that and accomplished the task of providing innocuous entertainment to the television viewer in a socially acceptable manner!! I like LAX and I thought the acting was extremely good!! I could see where it would be canceled after a few years, but not after just one!! I thought this television show was much better than that!!

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2 out of 3 people found the following review useful:
Ax LAX, 19 September 2004
Author: nycy2k from JFK

Airport dramas always involve elements of joy, tragedy, and pathos by portraying families reunited, lost luggage and drunken businessmen. LAX enters the foray in entering the 21st century with two strikes against it. Fear and loathing in a giant facility run by pseudo-government types. Look, as much as I want to like this series, it's not really cutting it in story nor pace. It tries to be the dramatization of the more watchable AIRPORT on the Wings Channel or the update of Arthur Hailey's story. Maybe they should do what Jack Webb did when he made DRAGNET and solicit ideas from the public or how about include medics/EMTs and an airport chaplain as additional character development. You might as give the show last rites the way it's going.

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6 out of 11 people found the following review useful:
The best new show! Dramatic, hilarious, suspenseful, and entertaining! TV shows don't get better than this!, 25 October 2004
Author: orexoticscenery from San Diego, CA

The 7 episodes shown so far have ALL been OUTSTANDING. The acting is incredible, the writing is superb, and the overall effect is excellent! I hope that NBC gives LAX a full season order and doesn't read all the negative reviews on here written by people who obviously have not watched the show or watched the show wanting to dislike it. Heather Locklear is entertaining, talented, and fun to watch! Her character, Harley, is quite laughable at times! Blair Underwood has done some incredible acting, especially in the scenes with his daughter and girlfriend as well as the time he is in the aircraft the pilots are losing control of. We haven't seen much of Wendy Hoopes yet but I hope to see more of her! Paul Leyden's character is very compassionate and really represents the good young people willing to hand others a helping hand that exist in this country. Frank John Hughes' character is probably going to guide viewers through a dramatization of alcohol addiction. And young David Paetku's character will suffer much heartbreak but it will fun to see him get used to his sometimes depressing job. LAX is BY FAR the best new show of the 2004-05 season and should be recognized for its amazing talent, writing, and overall effect.

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Unbelievable load of manure, 6 January 2012

Author: (v_tadic) from Belgrade, SRB

*** This review may contain spoilers ***

Gazing at Heather Locklear's skinny bottom is not reason enough for watching this feeble-minded, arrogant an racist series. Pilot episode was sickening enough to kill any desire to continue watching it.

Some facts: Serbia did not exist as an independent state until 2006. There was NEVER an airline with the name "Serb" in it. The only operator was JAT Airways which had an impeccable safety score. Never in the history of this operator (established in 1927 as "Aeroput", renewed in 1947 as Yugoslav Airways) was there a drunken pilot. - When USA put a stranglehold on Yugoslavia (1991) the flights for NY (using DC-10s, not Lockheed Tristars)were discontinued. There was never any flights to LAX. The pilot uniforms were standard with golden rank markings, not those ridiculous multicolored ones. Serbian (Yugoslav)pilots never had any disciplinary problems with airport management.

I am, as the majority of my compatriots, thoroughly sick and tired of Hollywood clichés with Serbs as eternal bad guys. Find another helpless victim to spit on, for a change.

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Horrible, 13 October 2004
Author: Altair444

As a fan of both Heather Locklear and Blair Underwood, I really wanted to get hooked on this show. That was a pipe dream on my part. This show is not only ridiculously far-fetched, it has a hard time making the main character of Random even remotely likable or professional. Even worse, it's not even entertaining in the slightest. Any airport manager (like the one Heather is supposed to be portraying) would be fired for acting out the way her character does. I can really see the F.A.A. and TSA just turning the other cheek casually while some irate bimbo (no offence to Heather herself---a fine actress in a crappy role) stands on an active runway, screeching at an airliner to "get off my runway". Yeah. Right. The only good thing about this waste of time show is the believable chemistry between Heather Locklear and Blair Underwood. I only wish these two fine actors would take their considerable talents to a better vehicle.

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I like it, 29 September 2004
Author: jkd6019 (jkd6019@hotmail.com)

I like LAX, I think it's a decent drama. It's got some humor and some dramatic situations. It's like Moonlighting--a romantic dramedy. I don't think it's any better or worse than similar shows.

I caught the episode this Monday where Blair Underwood is on a plane that is having electrical problems. It had a good deal of dramatic tension, even knowing that Underwood isn't going to be killed. So, we'll see if the show has any legs. NBC seems to be interested in these sort of blockbuster-type TV shows (Las Vegas).

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