"Challenger"

[Admiral Buzzkill]

Every time I near the end of one of these projects I think of that cliche aphorism about art being "abandoned, but never finished."
Well, after adding a couple more textures and tweaking the lights some more, sometime in the next 24 hours I hope to abandon this guy.
Until then I guess it remains a work in progress.

 

[David cgc]

Pretty cool. Do you have, like, a backstory for it or something? In your head, is it the expression of some JJVerse design concepts as they came out in the Prime Verse, or the other way around, or was it just a cool 50/50 meld conceptually?

 

[Admiral Buzzkill]

No, I never really come up with much backstory for these things - just combine the design elements that I like (I'm obviously not adding much original other than details).

I've seen a couple of old meshes I did years ago listed at various sites as "pre-TOS" through "TNG era" - the same meshes.

I think I'll dub this one an "Abrams class starcruiser," though.


The engine nacelles on Church's design are my favorite part of it - they pretty much update the TOS nacelles while bypassing the following forty years. The nacelles on the TMP ship are the only part of it I've never liked much. So...

 

[YARN]

Looks great.

You made the Abram's style nacelles fit in well with the TMP design.

It almost seems like you are playing it too safe here. It looks like the TMP ship kit-bashed with the new nacelles. It would be nice to see some hints of the TOS ship thrown in with a few more allusions to the new design.

It is an appealing and balanced look though. Very nice.

 

[Vektor]

These are gorgeous. Great lighting and rendering quality.

I wouldn't mind seeing the Enterprise's nacelles slimmed down a bit in the next movie as you have done here. They look mush better proportioned this way.

 

[Admiral Buzzkill]

Thanks.

I had those nacelles every different size while I was working on this. As they are, they're a little greater in diameter through the domes than the TOS ship, and a little less long than TOS nacelles. The contours of these things give a different impression where size is concerned than most Trek ships, IMAO.

 

[Admiral Buzzkill]

David cgc, incoming PM.

 

[DestinyCaptain]

I like yours better...

 

[David cgc]

David cgc, incoming PM.

I tried to reply, but the system yelled at me. Suffice it to say, thanks, and watch this space.

 

[Kelso]

Looks great.

Without a profile shot, it's hard to tell how far the deflector sticks out from the neck. That's one aspect of the new Enterprise that I really just don't like. Looks like you might've bridged the gap with the torpedo launcher... but, like I said, hard to tell without a profile shot.

Also, could you please post a profile shot?

 

[Kaiser]

freakin awesome design there

 

[DFScott]

Reiterating something I've said here before several years ago, but which others may not have seen: Dennis, I think maybe you understand the proper proportions of the Constitution class cruiser better than any modeler out there, including those who have worked at Paramount/CBS. You can do any number of variations on this theme, from subtle to bold, and yet they all still manage to maintain this "golden mean" that Matt Jefferies set forth. My personal favorite has been the Venture NCC-1946/Challenger NCC-2099, which looks (probably intentionally) like a Constitution class refit refit, to keep going into the era of the Ambassador class. Although your slightly retro Phoenix NCC-800 is also strong.

So looking at this version of Challenger NX-1799, my first thought is. . . ah, that's better. I cannot get over the whap-jaw appearance of the STXI Enterprise, like it has baggy eyes and an overbite. This rendition, at least, applies some of Abrams' "hot-rod" ideas to a model at the correct proportions.

But you know. . . Even with the 1799's pylons seated at the proper angle, with round, red Bussard collectors, they're still not my favorite. Compared to the 2099's red bullet-nose pylons with the Sovereign-like struts, I still can't get a feel for Ryan Church's design choices of baggy, Bill Clinton-like eyes, and the half-shell with the cyan lights peeking through. With every other "official" design, I could always ascertain some purpose for the visible design elements; these things still look like poorly planned disco lights to me.

What I think your new model proves is that the Enterprise didn't need these particular design additions; and that the jutting forward of the nose, extension of the dish, and flapping up of the wings didn't justify their existence. Even something whose differences are more aesthetically subtle, like your Intrepid NCC-1986, would have been more pleasing for me to look at on-screen. Making the Enterprise wear these bags on the big screen is like casting Sophia Loren in the starring role but making her wear a chicken costume. Sure, it's still Sophia, but why ruin such graceful lines with poor adornment?

DFS-2010/A

 

[Admiral Buzzkill]

Looks great.

Without a profile shot, it's hard to tell how far the deflector sticks out from the neck. That's one aspect of the new Enterprise that I really just don't like. Looks like you might've bridged the gap with the torpedo launcher... but, like I said, hard to tell without a profile shot.

Also, could you please post a profile shot?

Just for the hell of it, I thought I'd post a profile shot.

 

[Kaiser]

very majestic buety shot there

 

[Admiral Buzzkill]

DFScott, thanks for the kind words. I'm a big fan of the JJPrise, myself - what I do with this kind of thing is hardly design, just close variations on other people's work.

And you're mentioning models that I don't even remember. I need to go over to Foundation3d and do a search on my own stuff.

 

[Kaiser]

Reiterating something I've said here before several years ago, but which others may not have seen: Dennis, I think maybe you understand the proper proportions of the Constitution class cruiser better than any modeler out there, including those who have worked at Paramount/CBS. You can do any number of variations on this theme, from subtle to bold, and yet they all still manage to maintain this "golden mean" that Matt Jefferies set forth. My personal favorite has been the Venture NCC-1946/Challenger NCC-2099, which looks (probably intentionally) like a Constitution class refit refit, to keep going into the era of the Ambassador class. Although your slightly retro Phoenix NCC-800 is also strong.

So looking at this version of Challenger NX-1799, my first thought is. . . ah, that's better. I cannot get over the whap-jaw appearance of the STXI Enterprise, like it has baggy eyes and an overbite. This rendition, at least, applies some of Abrams' "hot-rod" ideas to a model at the correct proportions.

But you know. . . Even with the 1799's pylons seated at the proper angle, with round, red Bussard collectors, they're still not my favorite. Compared to the 2099's red bullet-nose pylons with the Sovereign-like struts, I still can't get a feel for Ryan Church's design choices of baggy, Bill Clinton-like eyes, and the half-shell with the cyan lights peeking through. With every other "official" design, I could always ascertain some purpose for the visible design elements; these things still look like poorly planned disco lights to me.

What I think your new model proves is that the Enterprise didn't need these particular design additions; and that the jutting forward of the nose, extension of the dish, and flapping up of the wings didn't justify their existence. Even something whose differences are more aesthetically subtle, like your Intrepid NCC-1986, would have been more pleasing for me to look at on-screen. Making the Enterprise wear these bags on the big screen is like casting Sophia Loren in the starring role but making her wear a chicken costume. Sure, it's still Sophia, but why ruin such graceful lines with poor adornment?

DFS-2010/A

Venture NCC-1946/Challenger NCC-2099
Intrepid NCC-1986
Phoenix NCC-800

Where can i see these ships?

 

[YARN]

Just for the hell of it, I thought I'd post a profile shot.

Looks gorgeous.

The profile shot reveals what I think is a weakness with JJ-Prise design. The nacelles create the optical illusion that they are droopy/curved like they were made out of candle wax and melted a bit.

Still, it is a much better balanced version of what we get in the film. It is like the JJ-Prise made pretty.

 

[Gepard]

I can't believe I'm about to say this, but -- in that side view -- I think the nacelles should be bigger.

But it looks gorgeous. It nice use of the new film's (lovely) styling while avoiding the...odder...aesthetic choices of Church's design. I will echo the upthread sentiment that the refit body could be altered even more, though.

 

[Bryan B)]

Looks great.... freakin awesome.... gorgeous.... I like yours better...

Ditto to all the above. This is what I expected to see in STXI... and what we should see in XII!

If you want to avoid any more saggy-eyes comments or Bill Clinton references, you could delete or shrink the nacelle cradles under the bussards. Just a constructive alternative--by no means a critique.



Captain Jean-Luc Picard: [about Data's recent violin concert] Your playing is quite beautiful.
Lt. Cmdr. Data: Strictly speaking, sir, it is not my playing. It is a precise imitation of the techniques of Jascha Heifetz and Trenka Bron-Ken.
Captain Jean-Luc Picard: Is there nothing of Data in what I'm hearing? You see, you chose the violinist. Heifetz and Bron-Ken have radically different styles, different techniques, and yet... you combined them, successfully.
Lt. Cmdr. Data: I suppose I have learned to be... creative, sir - when necessary.
Captain Jean-Luc Picard: Mr. Data, I look forward to your next concert.

 

[Kelso]

I definitely like what you did with the neck/deflector area. Did you bring the deflector in a bit or does your variation on the torpedo launcher just help that much?

Just for the hell of it, I thought I'd post a profile shot.

You read my mind.