What happened to all the 'human' aliens?

[Shawnster]

And it was even cheaper to use footage of Klingon ships as Romulan!

I belive you are proceeding from a false assumption. The Klingon ship very first appearance was "The Enterprises Incident" where it was flown by Romulans. So, from a production expense standpoint it was a new build model and definitely not stock footage.

 

[The Salt Umpire]

I belive you are proceeding from a false assumption. The Klingon ship very first appearance was "The Enterprises Incident" where it was flown by Romulans. So, from a production expense standpoint it was a new build model and definitely not stock footage.

I'll just leave something from Friday's Child

[https://static.wikia.nocookie.net/memoryalpha/images/b/b3/Klingon_warship,_Fridays_Child_remastered.jpg/revision/latest?cb=20081218042704&path-prefix=en

And The Trouble With Tribbles

The Trouble with Tribbles (episode)

The Enterprise is overrun by furry creatures while tangling with Klingons and bureaucrats. The USS Enterprise is en route to Deep Space Station K-7 for assistance with an important assignment regarding a disputed planet. One parsec from the nearest Klingon outpost ("Close enough to smell them,"...

memory-alpha.fandom.com

 

[Christopher]

And it was even cheaper to use footage of Klingon ships as Romulan!

"The Enterprise Incident" featured newly filmed footage of the Klingon battlecruiser, not stock, but they used that miniature for two reasons. One, the Romulan ship miniature had been lost. Two, they'd made a deal with AMT to build the Klingon miniature for the show for free in exchange for the model kit rights, so they wanted to feature the ship in order to promote it. So there was money-saving involved, but not in the way you think.

The Klingon ship very first appearance was "The Enterprises Incident" where it was flown by Romulans.

Only in broadcast order. "Elaan of Troyius" was its first appearance in production order. Although given how long "Elaan" was delayed in the schedule, it's possible the FX shots from "Incident" were produced earlier.

 

[Shawnster]

I'll just leave something from Friday's Child

How does citing anything from the remastered episodes matter in this discussion?

 

[Christopher]

I'll just leave something from Friday's Child

[https://static.wikia.nocookie.net/memoryalpha/images/b/b3/Klingon_warship,_Fridays_Child_remastered.jpg/revision/latest?cb=20081218042704&path-prefix=en

And The Trouble With Tribbles

The Trouble with Tribbles (episode)

The Enterprise is overrun by furry creatures while tangling with Klingons and bureaucrats. The USS Enterprise is en route to Deep Space Station K-7 for assistance with an important assignment regarding a disputed planet. One parsec from the nearest Klingon outpost ("Close enough to smell them,"...

memory-alpha.fandom.com

Neither of which was in the original versions, as the Klingon ship miniature was not designed or built until season 3. The Klingon ship in "Friday's Child" was just an animated blob of light on the viewscreen, and only the Enterprise was seen outside K7 in "Tribbles."

The actual first appearance of the Klingon battlecruiser was in The Making of Star Trek, since the book came out between seasons 2 & 3. Its author Stephen E. Whitfield worked for AMT and was involved in the deal to build the miniature, so he put it into the book to promote model kit sales.

 

[The Salt Umpire]

How does citing anything from the remastered episodes matter in this discussion?

I've accepted the remastered episodes as how TOS would have looked if funding and a better sfx company were available. Consider the superlative sfx Kubrick used at around the same time. Some of the TOS eps sfx were terrible, with nacelle pylons winking in and out of existence and planets looking like the striped glass marbles you found in a bag as an example.

Yes, technically, you are correct. Thanks

 

[Christopher]

I've accepted the remastered episodes as how TOS would have looked if funding and a better sfx company were available. Consider the superlative sfx Kubrick used at around the same time.

I'd agree with that except the "better sfx company" part. TOS had, in total, six of the best visual effects companies in Hollywood working on the show, a far greater assemblage of VFX talent and innovation than any previous or contemporary television series. By the standards of the day, it was the most visually spectacular and groundbreaking TV series ever made. The talent or skill of the artists was never an issue, only the available time and budget, both of which a feature film would naturally have had in far greater abundance.

But you're right that the FX only represented the best approximation of the intent that they were able to manage, and they would've gladly done better given the time and resources. It's best to think of these things as artistic representations rather than literal depictions. Have a dozen artists paint the same model and every painting will look different. Different FX team's interpretations of the Enterprise, or different makeup artists' interpretations of Klingons or Andorians, are like different comic book artists' character designs for Clark Kent or Peter Parker. The character may look very different in different issues, but you accept that it's the same person and the difference is due to the artists expressing their individual styles.

 

[Laura Cynthia Chambers]

Why might any aliens appear human on today's Trek shows?

* Consistency - the same species looked like humans on previous shows
* To avoid fans asking why they look different, which may or may not require devising a reason for it (e.g. augment virus)
* They can change form - human-like happens to be the one they usually/often default to
* To be mistaken for humans/go undercover with little to no alteration (time travel on Earth, etc.)
* Cheaper costuming
* Some other plot reason

* It would mar the appearance of good-looking performers
* Performer can't wear makeup/prosthetic for personal reasons (health, comfort, etc.)

 

[Christopher]

* Performer can't wear makeup/prosthetic for personal reasons (health, comfort, etc.)

That's less of an issue now when digital effects can be used instead of prosthetics, at least in some cases.

 

[The Salt Umpire]

I'd agree with that except the "better sfx company" part. TOS had, in total, six of the best visual effects companies in Hollywood working on the show, a far greater assemblage of VFX talent and innovation than any previous or contemporary television series. By the standards of the day, it was the most visually spectacular and groundbreaking TV series ever made. The talent or skill of the artists was never an issue, only the available time and budget, both of which a feature film would naturally have had in far greater abundance.

But you're right that the FX only represented the best approximation of the intent that they were able to manage, and they would've gladly done better given the time and resources. It's best to think of these things as artistic representations rather than literal depictions. Have a dozen artists paint the same model and every painting will look different. Different FX team's interpretations of the Enterprise, or different makeup artists' interpretations of Klingons or Andorians, are like different comic book artists' character designs for Clark Kent or Peter Parker. The character may look very different in different issues, but you accept that it's the same person and the difference is due to the artists expressing their individual styles.

Well put!!