Fox decided to kick off the new year in style by premiering their newest comedy series LA to Vegas on January 2. And although the show received mixed reviews, the ratings for the sitcom were the highest they have been since The Mick premiered on January 31 of last year. However, ratings aren’t the be-all and end-all. So here is my LA to Vegas first impression.
What is LA to Vegas about?
But before we jump into the LA to Vegas first impression, here is a little background on the show. Created by Lon Zimmet (and executive produced by Will Ferrell), the comedy tells the tale of the crew and frequent fliers of a low-cost airline “Jackpot Airlines”. More specifically the airline’s flight from LA to Las Vegas and back on the weekends.
The show stars Kim Matula and Nathan Lee Graham and Ronnie Messing and Bernard Jasser, the two main flight attendants for the LA to Las Vegas flight. Dylan McDermott as the flight’s Captain Dave Pratman. And Peter Stormare, Ed Weeks and Olivia Macklin as Artem, Colin, and Nichole, some of the flight’s weekly passengers.
LA to Vegas first impression
Even though I wouldn’t say that the pilot episode of LA to Vegas was my favorite, the show still seemed like a fun Tuesday comedy. Mostly because the humor was there, the characters were interesting enough and the show has potential.
Some of the things that I liked about LA to Vegas. Firstly, the fact that the show’s lead is a woman. And, although she is a flight attendant, there was no sight of raunchy or belittling flight attendant jokes. Secondly, the main cast seemed to already have found their groove as an ensemble. And therefore provided great entertainment each separately and all together. Thirdly, that since the show is about a route that is so short, the core cast includes the flight’s frequent passengers to provide interest to the characters that we are going to see week after week.
And, lastly, that despite it being a comedy, the show still featured some underlying issues that people of all professions have. Wanting to move up the career ladder. Being passed for promotion. Things that could be applied to, but are not specific to flight attendants and pilots.
Meanwhile, among the things that I wasn’t so impressed with were the many jokes about drinking or getting high on the job. Those were mainly cracked by Captain Dave. And I believe that the writes could give him better material.
And the fact that from the very beginning Ronnie was painted as impulsive, hot mess of a woman. Similarly to what I already mentioned about Captain Dave and his humor, Ronnie’s character could be a bit less of a caricature. Luckily, by the end of the episode, it seemed that that is slowly happening already. So, going further, this might not be an issue anymore.
The verdict on LA to Vegas
I’d say if you like fun comedies to end your Tuesday nights with. Or are into workplace sitcoms that have interesting characters, exciting setting and a potential for a lot of crazy scenarios happening. Then you should definitely check out LA to Vegas. The show doesn’t offer any groundbreaking humor or a new take on the workplace comedy genre. But it is still fun to watch. And will keep you entertained episode after episode.