cetacean ops in whitefire blueprints

[Enabran]

I hate to start yet another thread, but I have been looking over the whitefire blueprints, and I can't find cetacean ops anywhere. Was that an addition in Sternbachs blueprints later on? Or am I just blind? Because I guess cetacean ops is kinda canon after geordi's comment and the random background announcement...

 

[Timo]

Wildfire's blueprints would predate the episode "The Perfect Mate" that mentioned the dolphins, by about two years. So the artist probably wouldn't know this early Probert idea would ever see the light of day.

(Whether it did, we don't know. Perhaps the dolphins LaForge wanted to show to the Ferengi were the stuffed ones on Picard's cabin wall?)

I think we're lucky enough that Probert did those cool sketches that can be found on his own site.

Timo Saloniemi

 

[Richard Baker]

The Whitefire Blueprints are wonderful but they show a much different interior to the Enterprise- the giant open recreation section several decks thick in the front of the saucer for example. Personally I like his take on the interior.
The Cetacean section in the other blueprint set never made much sense to me- like Seaquest DSV it seems a lot of structure to devote to an aquatic species that may not be able to contribute much practically..

 

[Ithekro]

Maybe it was for some Aquatic Xindi.

 

[Orphalesion]

I've read the idea was that cetaceans, being used to moving in a 3D environment were supposed to help with navigation in space. How exactly... perhaps by studying their movements? You think that could be better done on Earth.

I like Itherko's idea that it housed crew members from aquatic species.

 

[vulcan redshirt]

Cetaceans are probably valuable for away missions on water worlds and diplomatic missions involving other fully aquatic species.

 

[Timo]

Or then not particularly valuable, but no worse than the average humanoid. Starships dedicate awfully lot space for those, too, even when the humanoids may not be able to contribute much practically.

Timo Saloniemi