Designers Respond To Fan Reactions

[ancient]

To call a criticism "valid" or "legitimate" is not the same as to pronounce it the truth and something that must be agreed to.

I've found very little of the "valid criticism" in this case to align with my own responses or taste.

Thank you.

 

[scotthm]

There is nothing wrong with having the ship look like that, its that attitude of the fans that dictate it MUST look like that!

The fact is, the new Enterprise must not look like any earlier incarnation because the art director and designers have to justify their salaries, and of course the director wants his fingerprints on everything too.

They're all within their rights to do so, but the ship is still ugly.

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[slappy]

Oh rubbish. Those are vaguely general qualities that can serve any era, from steampunk to the far future. They define structural qualities that are functional, as opposed to replacing elements with "wicked-cool glowing patches" and stuff.

The basic functional qualities are the same. The fact that the added details look wicked-cool is just a bonus.

Well, you're generalizing a bit too much. I'm not the only one who's criticized the new Enterprise on the grounds of self-conflicting design ethos. And several have pointed out that they don't like the new nacelles because they look "yawning" or "uncircumcised". "Droopy" comes up a lot. These certainly don't sound like the concerns of drooling fanboyz, but rather people who post legitimate criticisms of the new design.

Trek fans tend to be some of the most intelligent fans there are as well as some of the most emotionally irrational individuals. Oftentimes they are both. Anything about Trek that is changed from the sacred established facts gets picked apart unfairly, if very intelligently. A person can find ANY reason to nitpick and make a convincing argument of it. It's still nitpicking.

Scientific scholars and writers have, in the past, absolutely trashed TOS as little more than unrealistic bunk. The fans pick and choose what they're willing to accept as legitimate criticism based on emotional response. What I've seen so far regarding these new photos is very much emotional.

 

[Alidar Jarok]

The fact that they said the buzzard collectors aren't lit up is intriguing. I think it'll look better after that (assuming a red glow).

 

[Inquisitive]

Yeah, well I guess that is fair game, but looking at the photoshops seems to indicate a certain group of people want a more "traditional" design, and by that I mean that it looks very close to the TOS Enterprise.

Well there's something extremely unexpected.

I really still have not heard one effective criticism of the new ship yet, which is partially what agrivates me, because it makes it look like some people are complaining just because this new ship does not meet their preconceived notion of how a Constitution class ship should look.

Effective criticism? What is that, exactly? There are plenty of valid criticisms about the new design which have little to do with making the ship more traditional. Differing tastes are not something you should be frustrated by if you hang out here. What are you hoping for, a concensus? Obviously, it will be the new design elements that will be picked through by the more design orientated fans.

Yeah, you make a good argument. I concede that expecting a consensus on the design of the ship is a bit ridiculous given the subjective nature of design. There will just be certain designs that will appeal to one group of people and not to another.

 

[Qonos]

Yeah, well I guess that is fair game, but looking at the photoshops seems to indicate a certain group of people want a more "traditional" design, and by that I mean that it looks very close to the TOS Enterprise.

Well there's something extremely unexpected.

I really still have not heard one effective criticism of the new ship yet, which is partially what agrivates me, because it makes it look like some people are complaining just because this new ship does not meet their preconceived notion of how a Constitution class ship should look.

Effective criticism? What is that, exactly? There are plenty of valid criticisms about the new design which have little to do with making the ship more traditional. Differing tastes are not something you should be frustrated by if you hang out here. What are you hoping for, a concensus? Obviously, it will be the new design elements that will be picked through by the more design orientated fans.

Yeah, you make a good argument. I concede that expecting a consensus on the design of the ship is a bit ridiculous given the subjective nature of design. There will just be certain designs that will appeal to one group of people and not to another.

I predicted mixed reviews....

At the end of the day more fans will go see the movie than not. Some who said it will be shit will like it, some won't. Some who are optimistic will be let down. Other will think they reached nirvana... and we will all continue on none the worse for wear.

 

[Disco Bones]

I have to admit that I'm a little put off by the new design, reboot considered. This off-putting is of course tempered by the fact that I haven't seen the film yet to contextualize the design within canon (with which I hope it somehow kludingly dovetails).

It is however reassuring to see that the designers kept in mind the best intentions (and some inviolate conventions) regarding ship design and have produced a ship that is still superficially recognizable as an Enterprise.