Star Trek Discovery

[Tosk]

Like many, I've never been a fan of the McQuarrie design. But that won't stop me from waiting for DISC with excitement.

 

[FlapJoy]

If I were to ever try to date this series to a particular era of trek based on the ship design alone, I would guess post ENT pre TOS, possibly to put it in a time frame that technically would still be canon to the new film universe just like Archer's Enterprise is. However the ship has many similar lines and features of the Motion Picture Enterprise. The spot lighting on the hull and registry areas, thick TMP style lines running thru the outer saucer, and other art deco features, frosted panels, and the way the sunk-in forward dish illuminates as the ship begins powering up, plus a slight hint at an early "aztec" style skin pattern. I wonder in those ridged areas on the saucer section generate a rudimentary deflector shield, hinting to a pre TOS design before the embedded shield emitter grid we see in Kirk's Enterprise. But the nacelles seem to be a mid-way design, with (three?) red pulsing Bussards, pre-dating the "grill" design of the TMP nacelles. But, the hull of the ship has a very unpainted, heavily industrial, feel of the NX Enterprise, including other outer and connective features of that ship, calling back to a direct lineage there. And no glowing sensor domes of the TOS ship. Could this be an NX ship created in the pre-TOS era? A prototypical next evolutionary step, with the classic NX bits combined with "concept car" style improvements that would later be infused to future refits of TOS ships like the USS Enterprise for the TMP era, had not Nero destroyed the Kelvin and changed everything.

And, YES those are some EXTREMELY Klingony D7 elements, way too obvious to ignore. Even the musical cues are pointing to that direction. But other features display a similar design ethic to Kilingon ships, like erratic hull patterns with sharp and ill regular corners. Maybe the Starfleet R&D reverse engineer a few captured D7's and lift some design features. Similar to the Romulans adopting the D7 design for their fleet of war birds in The Enterprise Incident. Maybe in Starfleet's case, they discovered the Kilingons had a better impulse drive section design, and this is the first ship to utilize the upgrade to the Starfeelt design. Hinting once more that this an experimental ship. And what better place to hide an experimental top-secret ship design project then a secluded deep space, McQuarrie influenced, asteroid base? Instead of, in full-view, orbiting Earth or Mars.
But I have to think this design is a result of the Romulan war, with Starfleet entering into an uneasy truce to combat a shared enemy. However fleeting the partnership may last, it's possibly a main plot point in the series. After all, I'm pretty sure Starfleet has a peace treaty with the Klingon Empire by the TOS era, this series may depict the events that lead up to the signing of that treaty.

 

[dswynne1]

Here's an idea: what if this ship was cobbled together from two ships due to a situation where a Federation crew and a Klingon crew have to work together, but both sides have their misgivings, so they use old technology for a unity project?

 

[RAMA]

 

[Overgeeked]

That kind of thinking always irritates me. I see it alot in reference to what happened with the Star Wars EU. It's missing the point completely. No one actually thinks that, for example, CBS will come confiscate my copy of Voyager: Full Circle. The worry is that they would quit making MORE books in that continuity. That's the whole point.

Well, the books largely don't get acknowledged on screen and only at times bother with the TV/movie continuity as is. Hell, some Trek novels have Number One from the Cage described as some forehead alien species that actually appeared on screen. They might as well be an alternate universe.

 

[Jerikka Dawn]

And, YES those are some EXTREMELY Klingony D7 elements, way too obvious to ignore. Even the musical cues are pointing to that direction. But other features display a similar design ethic to Kilingon ships, like erratic hull patterns with sharp and ill regular corners.

Not sure what to make of the TNG era cloaking device sound effect at the very end of the trailer. Maybe it doesn't mean anything, but it's there.

 

[elric428]

Here's my theory. The new ship is part of a new Romulan, Klingon, Federation alliance in order to defeat a Borg invasion.

 

[Overgeeked]

If we went just off the promo reel of ENT and didn't know it was a prequel, no one would have placed it so far before TOS. Most would have assumed (and did) that is was maybe pre-TNG due to it basically being the Akira with old-school nacelles.

 

[USS Triumphant]

I like everything I saw in the teaser except that registry number. It worries me that this is going to be set at some point other than either A. after Nemesis in the Prime Universe* or B. after Star Trek Beyond in the Kelvin Timeline. I prefer things that move the story forward - I don't like knowing things that haven't happened in the story yet, even if they don't seem directly related. Just knowing that the universe continues to exist is a spoiler for a show like Star Trek.

* actually, I'd prefer "after the current events in the Prime Novel-verse" but that's probably asking too much.

 

[steam235]

To me this says TMP era. The RMQ design wasn't for a pre-TOS ship it was for a movie era project, the blue dish and other details make me think movie era not pre TOS.

 

[uniderth]

Bases on the look of the ship alone this would be placed between TMP and Enterprise B (Movie era). The only problem is the color. It seems more NX-01.

I'll say it again. I love the design. It's different enough that it looks cool.y only beef is this grills over the Nacelle domes. Sorry(no I'm not) but they arent Bussards unless it's Ent-C era or later.

 

[tomalak301]

I tend to like what we saw. But it isn't enough to make any judgements. Though the thought of more Klingons doesn't exactly have me excited.

The Klingons feel as overused as the Borg. The big reason I wanted it in he Movie era was because we could get some stuff on the early Cardassians. Granted DS9 did a lot with them but it's better than yet another Klingon troupe.

 

[Turbo]

Never been a fan of the McQuarrie design but as others have pointed out, using something based on it, while also upgrading it to have features of the Ambassador-class and Klingon ships (among other things) really shows off the fact that people familiar with Star Trek are running this thing. Quite excited.

 

[FlapJoy]

To me this says TMP era. The RMQ design wasn't for a pre-TOS ship it was for a movie era project, the blue dish and other details make me think movie era not pre TOS.

I would say yes it's very TMP refit in some regards, but that's why I wonder if it's a TOS concept ship utilizing developments that won't be introduced to future designs until the TMP era. So much of the ship has a heavy connection to the ENT design ethics, making it an experimental hybrid of NX components with TMP style upgrades. But with so much Klingon influence that it could be a brand new animal in the dark unseen past of Starfleet ship design development.

 

[DigificWriter]

Wow, there's a lot of complaining in this thread.

I personally think the ship design is neat-looking, and different and distinct enough that it gives the show its own identity while still being evocative of what the franchise has given us in the past.

 

[elric428]

Something about this reminds me of the aborted animated series Star Trek: Final Frontier

http://www.startrekff.com/

 

[CorporalCaptain]

TV Guide.

Next question, then. Does anybody have a link to that online (TV Guide from 1999 showing the same ship)?

 

[SeamusShameless]

I've never been a fan of the Planet of the Titans Enterprise design, but mostly because it didn't work as what it was designed to be, i.e. a refit of the 1701. Also, Ralph McQuarrie's original concept art looked out of place in relation to Star Trek. That being said, I think the Discovery has potential. It takes the basic shapes and lines of the McQuarrie Enterprise and updates them in a manner which brings the ship more in line with a Star Trek design aesthetic. Is it the best looking ship I've ever seen? No, but it isn't the travesty that many are making it out to be either. Also, we don't know anything about this ship aside from it's name, registry, and what it looks like. Until I see definitive evidence of the negative, I'm optimistic about Star Trek: Discovery!

 

[Believer Bob]

Just a thought: if DISCOVERY were to take place between ENT and TOS, it would then actually be in both Prime AND JJ verse... as it's been announced that it is in Prime universe, can that at least place it sometime after the birth of Kirk, if not later? (I'm still heavily leaning towards post-DS9).

 

[TheFlutteringHorde]

Ehhhh. I didn't really like it, but I think most of that is due to the fact that it's very much in the early stages. The general shape, and details, can work. I think it'll fantastic once it's fully finished, if they stick with this design. From the bottom in particular it looks fantastic.

Don't really care about the registry because lol those never made sense, wouldn't expect them to start now.

I'm definitely seeing pre-TOS, post-ENT.

Maybe it's...Axanar era