Best 'warp' effect

[JuanBolio]

...or that thunder-and-lightning flash at the end of the warp effect?

Probably Cherenkov radiation. Of course, there is no sound in space...

One thing I really, REALLY liked was the droning noise of the warp engines spooling up from TOS. I hope they bring that back - made the ship feel like it had a freaking monster under the hood, instead of just being a set.

 

[Colonel Midnight]

^ I agree.

Actually, I thought that was one of the things that ENT got pretty right -- the first few times they went to Warp 5... with the ship rattling and seemingly about to fly apart at the seams, the effect was, errr, 'effective'.

Cheers,
-CM-

 

[asdf1]

I liked the NX-01 Enterprise warp effect, it was cool.

I did not like the TNG warp effect, it was one of the worst ones.

 

[Duane]

While not well executed, I like the idea behind the warp effect from The Cage. They didn't have the funds or the know-how to present GR's idea to the audience. It has been years since I read what GR intended, but he mentioned something like "the whole ship becomes transparant as space and time begin to meld."

 

[FredH]

My favorite's actually one that never appeared in a series. In a promotional spot I remember seeing in 1987 for the then-upcoming TNG--so I may be misremembering, though I don't think so--the Enterprise zooms offscreen with the "color trail" behind it, but without the final flash; it just instantly fades into the distance.

 

[The Wormhole]

I liked the NX-01 Enterprise warp effect, it was cool.

I did not like the TNG warp effect, it was one of the worst ones.

Huh? They're both the same thing.

 

[Deks]

I liked the NX-01 Enterprise warp effect, it was cool.

I did not like the TNG warp effect, it was one of the worst ones.

Huh? They're both the same thing.

No they're not.
TNG has a ship stretching into warp, Enterprise NX-01 doesn't do that as it merely leaves a blurry trail behind.

 

[TeutonicNights]

I like best how Star Wars handled it . The ship just rushing away at ridiculous speeds without flash or distortion or any of that.

Never liked the streaking stars either, it somehow made space look too small.

 

[JuanBolio]

^ I agree.

Actually, I thought that was one of the things that ENT got pretty right -- the first few times they went to Warp 5... with the ship rattling and seemingly about to fly apart at the seams, the effect was, errr, 'effective'.

Cheers,
-CM-

Eh, there was a little shaking and rattling, but you never really heard the engines much. Overall the ship was pretty quiet.

 

[Squiggy]

TNG effect

ENT effect

 

[RoJoHen]

I really liked Voyager's from the later seasons, especially "Equinox" when Janeway is chasing Ransom at warp speed and firing torpedoes at him.

 

[asdf1]

I like best how Star Wars handled it . The ship just rushing away at ridiculous speeds without flash or distortion or any of that.

Never liked the streaking stars either, it somehow made space look too small.

they weren't streaking stars

 

[Captain Ryan]

I really liked Voyager's from the later seasons, especially "Equinox" when Janeway is chasing Ransom at warp speed and firing torpedoes at him.

I vote for Voyager as well, but with the origional series in a close second.

 

[UnknownSample]

Here's the first vote for Star Trek: New Voyages. I forget the effects man's name, sorry, but he created a remarkable, sort of surreal effect that fully acknowledges (as Roddenberry wanted I think) the bizarre nature of the warping of space-time involved in FTL travel.

I don't like the movie effects. Too Star Wars. I don't want "wow", I want something for my brain to sink its teeth into. A big glittery visual display is cartoonish to me. On the other hand, the stretching effect in Next Gen was interesting.

 

[Kpnuts]

The warp effect in Nemesis (I think). The Enterprise would leave a visible warp trail and then the flash.

I HATED that warp effect. TRAILS????

For me I've always loved the TNG warp effect. The flash at the end might be a bit cheesy nowadays but the whole effect was very powerful I think.

 

[Broccoli]

I'll also give a vote to the NX-01, particularly by the end of the series. Pretty much a streak of color and then - BOOM - gone.

 

[RobertScorpio]

I'll also give a vote to the NX-01, particularly by the end of the series. Pretty much a streak of color and then - BOOM - gone.

Yeah..they did get that aspect right on that show..totally agree

Rob
Scorpio

 

[BolianAuthor]

My favorite warp effect is the one from DS9... they took TNG's effect, and made it better. When the Runabout or Defiant enters warp, it begins slow, then you see the blue flash of warp light, and then the ship is vaulted forward, FAST, into warp, with a quick flash at the end. Nice.

 

[payndz201]

I quite liked the variation on the TNG effect used in First Contact, which worked especially well with the Enterprise-E's long warp nacelles - the ship basically stretched out to infinity in a neon streak before snapping away.

It looks a bit too 'animated' these days, but I'm still quite partial to the TMP effect as well.

 

[RapidNadion]

My vote is for TWOK, with a close second going to TMP.

A big element is sound. I thought TNG-era warp was a bit too peggable as cheesy 80s synth, whereas with TMP and TWOK, the effect was almost violently loud. I *believed* that space was being stressed and twisted in those films when the (beautiful) refit-01 did her thing. Not to mention that peculiar high-frequency shriek that lasted from right before the warp jump all the way through to the BANG!

TMP gets points for the blue "tire streaks in space," which I always thought was amazing-looking, but loses points for the cartoonish "streaking rainbow dots." TWOK, for me, wins out, beause we've got the combination of the ship stretching, the stars stetching, and even-more-violent warp-howl, and at the end of it, we follow the ship *PAST THE STARS* into a black void. I always like to think that we're being taken through the flash-bang effect in that shot, into subspace.

Honorable mention to the rare "interior-view" shots of the Ent-D going into warp -- esp. from Ten Forward.