Was there a TMP Enterprise outrage ?

Discussion in 'Star Trek Movies I-X' started by Belz..., May 23, 2013.

  1. J.T.B.

    J.T.B. Rear Admiral Rear Admiral

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    It's something that doesn't come over as well in photos, but in person they definitely had a more chopped-off feel, which is why I could twig what Trevanian was talking about. A cousin of mine had one and it was a real POS. Buick dealerships sold them. Their hidden headlights were worked by a hand lever on the console, and instead of moving back and forward they rolled over sideways.

    Going back to an earlier post, the only negative I remember talking about was the transporter effect. It was so different and kind of dark compared to the original, I remember it being called "ugly" by some friend or another. The flyby, however... There was the star destroyer fly over in Star Wars and then the tour around Enterprise... You just hadn't seen anything so huge, detailed, solid, believable and grand on screen before. It was more than a decade before I ever heard the sequence criticized as too long.
     
  2. starburst

    starburst Fleet Captain Fleet Captain

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    I always thought that too when I was younger, although didnt think it was a bad thing just noted a similarity.
     
  3. Tau Ceti III

    Tau Ceti III Lieutenant Commander Red Shirt

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    To me, that ship would have made a decent Next Generation Enterprise, 1701-D, compared to what we got

    As to the refit Enterprise in TMP, it was love at first sight, still my favorite incarnation
     
  4. Warped9

    Warped9 Admiral Admiral

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    Back in '79 I had mixed feelings about the TMP refit.

    I flat out love the original MJ design. I still do. Based on pre-release art and pics (of what was the Phase II version) of the TMP ship I wasn't sure what to expect as I wasn't totally won over by the images we were seeing in magazine articles (like Starlog).

    When the movie came out I was blown away. The finalized version up on the screen was sooo much better than the images I'd seen earlier. Everything was well proportioned and well integrated. And the SCALE of it all. The film really brought the Enterprise to life. There was an added layer or two of realism and detail to it all.

    Now that said there were elements I had reservations about. To this day I'm still not fond of the Christmas tree effect of spotlights all over the hull. I understand the reasoning behind them, but I still don't care for it. At first the new style nacelles kind of irked me, but mostly in terms that I don't think they had enough width to them---didn't look as visually balanced (in my mind) as the cylindrical nacelles. The pristine white colour overall was also something I wasn't totally sold on.

    So overall I'd say I was about 90% pleased with the refit primarily because even with my reservations it all went together beautifully.

    Inside was a mixed bag. A lot of it looked like a credible evolution of the TOS sets, but I also missed the spaciousness of the TOS ship. The original ship allowed me to believe the crew could spend five years within those walls, but the TMP version, particularly the corridors, looked too confining to accept as something you could see yourself spending extended periods in. This was supposed to be a starship on years long mission and not a submarine or naval vessel on patrols lasting a matter of months. On the other hand I thought the main rec-room was oversized.

    In many respects the new interiors looked convincing, but I would have liked to see a bit more colour to them. Also some of the interiors could look somewhat unfinished, but then that fit in with the ship being launched ahead of schedule. I found the transporter room to be too dark and claustrophobic so I think that one was a miss along with the transparent partition between the control console and the materialization platform---it just didn't look right.

    The Bridge - quite nice overall, but again I'd like to have seen a bit more colour. Not too much, but maybe paint the turbo lift doors and the railings red (a bit darker than the series version).

    Main Engineering - okay this I still don't really care for. It struck me as just too divergent from the TOS setup and it looked like it took up a lot of room.

    Sickbay - fine as it seemed a logical evolution from what came before.

    Transporter Room - no, I think they missed here. It was just too dark and claustrophobic and welcoming. I could easily see why someone like McCoy would feel like they were within an instrument of death in that room. The death of Sonak and Lori Ciana certainly reinforces that anxiety.

    Hangar Deck - we really don't see much of it, but it looked okay but maybe a bit too open and oversized. I got the feeling Main Engineering and the Hangar Deck took up most of the secondary hull.

    So with the interior overall I was about 60-70% or so happy with it.


    I don't really recall any controversy about the TMP design. I recall discussion, but certainly not outrage. In regard to the new look Klingons and the vamped up new Klingon battle cruisers I got the impression they were largely a hit with audiences. That opening scene of the film is still probably the best of all the films.
     
    Last edited: May 24, 2013
  5. Belz...

    Belz... Rear Admiral Rear Admiral

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    Well I'm a big fan of 1701-D, but my thought seeing this one was that it's a TMP-era version of the D.
     
  6. C.E. Evans

    C.E. Evans Admiral Admiral

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    To me, it seems this particular render could still be used for a future Enterprise (perhaps 25th-Century).

    But I remember the original sketch by Ralph McQuarrie was said to have more a "Star Wars" vibe to it by some.
     
  7. Belz...

    Belz... Rear Admiral Rear Admiral

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    I'm imagining the TOS movies with this model instead, and I don't dislike the results. ;)
     
  8. R. Star

    R. Star Rear Admiral Rear Admiral

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    The refit Enterprise remains my favorite version of the ship. Granted it's more than a little campy to basically take the vessel apart, rebuild it with new parts and call it the same ship though.

    Honestly the little spinners on the TOS version annoyed me. They just remind me of those tacky rims people spend a lot of money on but look utterly ridiculous. ;)
     
  9. Therin of Andor

    Therin of Andor Admiral Moderator

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    'Cos it was added in TAS, due to fan complaints that there was only ever one access point to the bridge.
     
  10. F. King Daniel

    F. King Daniel Fleet Admiral Admiral

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    Unfortunately, a few weeks ago somebody pointed out the crosses on the front of the TMP Enterprise nacelles, and now I can't stop seeing the USS Jesus Christ, flagship of the Space Missionaries.:ack:
     
  11. trevanian

    trevanian Rear Admiral

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    ... in the name of the father, the son, & the holy ramscoop ...
     
  12. TheSubCommander

    TheSubCommander Fleet Captain Fleet Captain

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    I was very young when TMP came out, but I do remember its release. I don't remember my parents saying anything negative about the Enterprise's redesign. The one thing I do remember them saying was they didn't like the then "new" uniforms all that much, and complaining that the communicators were replaced with wrist band, though.

    And honestly, I don't understand the hate for the TMP Enterprise from some people. It is STILL my favorite incarnation of the Enterprise! I like them all, don't get me wrong (yes, even NX01!), but I have always had a special affinity for the TMP Enterprise. Probably because as a kid, I grew up building models of it. And at the time when the only Star Trek that existed was TOS and Star Trek 1,2, and 3, I used to think how old fashioned it made the TOS Enterprise look to me, with its Saturn 5 rocket-inspired nacelles, and its radar dish-inspired deflector dish.
     
  13. Belz...

    Belz... Rear Admiral Rear Admiral

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    There's hate for the TMP Enterprise ?
     
  14. publiusr

    publiusr Admiral Admiral

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    It was lovely. Star Wars level detail in the aztec but ST swan forms both--the ultimate starship.

    Now I remember drawing swept back pylons before the movie came out on loose leaf paper. Mine didn't work out so well...
     
  15. F. King Daniel

    F. King Daniel Fleet Admiral Admiral

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    There certainly was when the nacelle pylons of my AMT kit snapped off for the dozenth time:mad:
     
  16. Warped9

    Warped9 Admiral Admiral

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    I'd say that was more a case of AMT rather TMP hate. :)
     
  17. Belz...

    Belz... Rear Admiral Rear Admiral

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    Shouldn't that be "twelfth" ? ;)
     
  18. CorporalCaptain

    CorporalCaptain Fleet Admiral Admiral

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    Nah, dozenth is a word. I've heard it often, too.

    — doz·enth adjective​
     
  19. TheSubCommander

    TheSubCommander Fleet Captain Fleet Captain

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    I'm referring to those who slam the TMP version VS the TOS version. I am not saying they are in the majority or anything.
     
  20. Allyn Gibson

    Allyn Gibson Vice Admiral Admiral

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    I can't imagine how such a thing is possible. :wtf:

    To me, Andy Probert's redesign of the Enterprise for TMP is perfect. There is nothing about that ship that I would do differently. It is my favorite Star Trek ship design. I accept Matt Jeffries' original design, but to me that's the rough draft on the way to bliss. :)