Carrier

"Count your blessings as Americans" says the Admiral as he addresses the 5,000+ crew members of the USS Nimitz as it approaches home after six months at sea and in a combat theatre.

After watching these ten hours, I consider every member of the Nimitz crew one of my blessings as an American.

At first I was disappointed. I was expecting and hoping for a detailed viewing of the ship itself, its airplanes and all the gizmos that make the marvel of technology work. Instead the ten hours focused on the people, the crew from the guy who mopped the floors to the men and women flying aircraft into combat zones, the deck crew, the cooks, the hundreds of occupations it takes to make this colossus function.

Above all, I am surprised that this was on PBS: it wasn't anti-war, anti-American, didn't celebrate left-wing dictators. It was a paean to the United States of America in it is wonderful.

Little time (unfortunately in a way) is spent on the ship and its operations. Most of the time is spent in interviews and voiceovers with the crew. It is stunning that so many of the crew are so young. Teenagers or barely out of their teens. Many tell the stories of their short lives, stories they freely admit could have turned out horribly. Kids moving down the wrong paths in life - and entering the Navy helped them straighten out their lives.

There are personal stories of how some of these people go off on a months long deployment, leaving families and loved ones behind with sometimes hurtful circumstances. How do you react when your wife miscarries while you are thousands of miles away in the Arabian Gulf? Your pregnant girlfriend doesn't communicate with you. Your divorced spouse is fighting with you over the custody of the kids and won't send you photographs of your youngest child's first day at school.

And yet these people serve. They do their jobs for their nation and for their families: their real families and their Navy family.

There are so many stories in "Carrier", not a one of which ultimately comes up empty or trite. The directors and editors have done their job extremely well. The story that ultimately comes across is not of the ship itself, but of these heroes - yes, they are heroes - who serve their country.

As the Admiral says "Count your blessings as Americans". The more than 5,000 crew members profiled in "Carrier" are indeed blessings to the United States of America. This is a wonderful production.

Jerry

My son is in the Navy and has been on several aircraft carriers, up on the flight deck. Words can only describe so much. To actually be taken aboard ship and shown around what my son experiences, gave me a great insight and respect for all our service men and women. I would highly recommend this to anyone who knows a sailor.

This ten-part series offers a unique portrait of life aboard the floating city, the USS Nimitz. Daily lives and back stories are filled with drama, whether you are a glamor-boy fighter pilot or the lowly seaman who sorts the ship's trash.

I was left with a newfound respect for the US Navy as an institution trying to teach and empower its members. It is not perfect but the Navy tries to offer opportunities for many.

I am left with gratitude and admiration toward those who make huge sacrifices undertaking hard and nasty jobs for backbreaking shifts for months at a time, thousands of miles away from their families. Whatever they are earning with benefits, it's not enough!!

A 21-gun salute for "Carrier"!!!

This was a VERY comprehensive documentary that accurately depicted everyday life aboard a U.S. Navy nuclear aircraft carrier, the USS Nimitz, CVN-68. It was gratifying to me personally because I served four years on active duty aboard another nuclear carrier, the USS Enterprise back in the 70s.

Unfortunately, I could not relate as much to this documentary because it did not delve into the Nuclear Propulsion areas of the work done by those crewmembers aboard such ships. I guess the Navy has not yet seen fit to declassify such shipboard operations. However, I don't know why as the reactors aboard the Nimitz are based on over 50 year old designs.

Those guys who work with the Nuclear propulsion equipment are a special breed, aka "Nukes". They work down in the engine rooms, far below decks, deep down in the bowels of the ship. They have completed a year or more of highly technical training in order to qualify as Rx Operators. These sailors are some of the most educated people in the Navy, both as officers and Enlisted. They are hardly the nerdish types while serving in the Navy but often can be seen to glow in the dark. j/k

The rest of crew was well covered in this documentary. The reoccurring storyline of various crewmembers, including some of the officers, dealing with family separation issues was very well done. In this regard, Navy life oboard ship on overseas deployments, has not changed much since my days in the Navy. It is still quite monotonous, arduous work, and emotionally challenging to be away from your loved ones back home.

The full ten hours of this documentary held my interest and some episodes I felt compelled to watch twice! Whenever any "documentary" can do that, it deserves FIVE STARS.

Kudos to the producers of CARRIER for making such an honest, personal introspective of the Navy, that is both educational AND heart wrenching. Most of all "thanks" to all the men and women serving in the U.S. Armed Forces protecting our country and helping to keep all Americans safe and free.

This was a well made series. The producers tried to cover different areas of the Carrier life. I understand the story line, because I was stationed aboard the USS Nimitz, when I was in the Navy from 94-98. The only problem I have with this video is that they spend too much time with people who are not satisfied with Navy or carrier life, or have other issues going on. There should have been more time spent with sailors who enjoyed the Navy/carrier life. I enjoyed my time aboard the USS Nimitz, even though I was only apart of the air wing. That is the only complaint I have about the video. Overall though, it was a great series to watch and I would recommend it.