Why is it that the best warp drive effect happens to be in a 40-year-old movie, TMP? It really, really conveyed the feeling of going abnormally fast with that rainbow-flaring-flash effect and the Enterprise "tracer" being so detailed. Then in Star Trek II, the warp drive effect was similar but more modest. Then with each movie the warp-drive visual effect kept getting lazier and lazier, like they didn't care. Although First Contact has a fair warp jump near the beginning leading up to the Borg battle (but nothing like TMP's).
Warp Drive Withering?
- Thread starter Defiler-Of-Redshirts
- Start date
While I do like TMP's warp drive effect, my favorite is the effect from Into Darkness. I love the engines getting louder, the nacelles partially stretching before launching, leaving behind contrails. Honorable mention also goes to the end-of-Trek II/III/IV streaks of light behind the ship effect. I'm also a fan of Discovery/Kelvin Trek disco-tunnel warp effect over the streaking stars.
My favourite is the ST'09/ID effect, in cinema. The deep, thundering boom as a ship vanished or appeared, and a blue hyperspace effect while at warp making a clear difference between it and sublight. Disco is doing a TV version (obviously not as spectacular, but they're trying) so I'm happy.
Any version of warp speed which features stars fluttering past the ship like dust motes causes me physical pain.
Any version of warp speed which features stars fluttering past the ship like dust motes causes me physical pain.
Not to mention uncontrolled. Perhaps the ST:TMP rainbows were an artifact of a badly tuned engine, too? Warp ought to radiate mankind's mastery of this fantastic form of propulsion!
The run towards Yorktown in Beyond was both pretty and serene. Although again perhaps an artifact, this time of the dense nebula they were flying through...
Timo Saloniemi
That entire scene was just fantastic. It really sold the sheer scale of the Federation to an audience that may not have been that familiar with Trek.
Doesn't exactly accurately reflect the effects of blueshift.....
Where have you seen dust motes flutter that fast?
Off topic for this thread but the coolest effect I can think of is looking through the viewscreen of the Millenium Falcon as it jumps to light speed. Beats just about anything Star Trek. As far as ST is concerned, I never really thought about the effect as ships go into warp. Thinking about it now I don't really care much either. I can think of other things in ST that could get me riled up way more than that.
I've never liked the "Hyperspace Tunnel" version of Warp that the movies and disco use.. Warp isn't hyperspace..
I like the 90's version of streaking stars.. makes battles at warp, better.
Best warp effect? It was in infinity war, with the Guardians ship warping to rescue thor.. the Benatar at ftl showed a kind of tunnel like thing, but can still see streaking stars and the sun as you pass.. great effect!
I like the 90's version of streaking stars.. makes battles at warp, better.
Best warp effect? It was in infinity war, with the Guardians ship warping to rescue thor.. the Benatar at ftl showed a kind of tunnel like thing, but can still see streaking stars and the sun as you pass.. great effect!
Like anything in Star Trek it seems this has a wide range of opinions.
I personally liked the streaking star effect of TNG through Enterprise the best, esp. as they refined it through the years to add a bit more dimension to it (it felt more 3-d later on).
TMP was fine, and I liked the tail streak effect of 2, 3 and 4 (and VI actually joined the movie streak effect with the streaking stars--V tried to emulate that effect as well but...well it was V and virtually all the effects there looked bad).
Star Trek (2009) and STID seemed too similar to Star Wars for my tastes, though I did like the going to warp effect--the only thing I would have done is add that ending flash that they did in TMP and TNG-Ent shows, only because that effect was also virtually identical to Star Wars going to hyperspace--an ending flash would have added a Star Trek mark to the effect.
Beyond and Discovery are ok I guess.
I personally liked the streaking star effect of TNG through Enterprise the best, esp. as they refined it through the years to add a bit more dimension to it (it felt more 3-d later on).
TMP was fine, and I liked the tail streak effect of 2, 3 and 4 (and VI actually joined the movie streak effect with the streaking stars--V tried to emulate that effect as well but...well it was V and virtually all the effects there looked bad).
Star Trek (2009) and STID seemed too similar to Star Wars for my tastes, though I did like the going to warp effect--the only thing I would have done is add that ending flash that they did in TMP and TNG-Ent shows, only because that effect was also virtually identical to Star Wars going to hyperspace--an ending flash would have added a Star Trek mark to the effect.
Beyond and Discovery are ok I guess.
Okay! This effect from Toxic Avengers.. Loved this warp effect!
I like it for sentimental reasons, in that it reminds me of my first screensaver.
I can understand that; for 1979 Star Trek: TMP was the most expensive Trek production of all with its $40 million price tag (when you adjust for today's cost, it would probably be in the hundreds of millions). And those expensive productions values certainly showed, including the warp drive.
But still, the TMP "rainbow" warp drive was so much fun to look at.
I did enjoy that star-stretching Millenium Falcon hyperdrive effect in Star Wars. Those effects are fun, they add a nice visual "jolt" to a big space adventure. For me, the crazier faster-than-light drives sort of increase the movie's tempo.
