What's your favorite Wah Ming Chang prop?

[Michael]

Inspired by TrekMovie.com's article on the new TOS communicator toy, I am curious, what might be the most famous Trek prop of uncredited TOS designer Wah Chang? I tried to cover the most important if not all of his designs.

 

[Shatmandu]

Balok Puppet: "A vote for me is a vote for CHANGE!"

 

[JNG]

Balok puppet is excellent work, but it's hard to beat that Bird of Prey!

 

[Sir Rhosis]

Wah Chang designed Lawrence Montaigne!!!!?



Sir Rhosis

 

[Shatmandu]

Balok puppet is excellent work, but it's hard to beat that Bird of Prey!

Yeah, that's true.

I'd like to change my vote from Balok Puppet to the Bird of Prey.

Joe, Super-Delegate

 

[Basill]

I have to go with the classic communicator. Though it was a hard choice between it and the phaser. I guess because they were used so much and helped define my vision of Classic Trek rather than those items used only once or a very few times.

 

[Maurice]

The tricorder...it's beautiful and actually functional (as it was originally imagined as a three-function recorder of sorts). I love the communicator, but its controls are nonsense.

BTW, technically, some of those aren't "props". The BOP's a filming miniature, some others are costumes or makeup pieces.

 

[M'Sharak]

Wah Chang designed Lawrence Montaigne!!!!?

Who knew?

 

[Michael]

Wah Chang designed Lawrence Montaigne!!!!?

Who knew?

Want to see concept drawings?

 

[Sir Rhosis]

Kidding aside, I voted for the phaser, with the communicator and tricorder a close second and third. All are clean iconic designs. Sure the tricorder looks bulky to our 2008 eyes, but for its day. . .

Sir Rhosis

 

[Outpost4]

The one I've always wanted to own was the phaser, but not because it's a great prop. I'd want a working one for the obvious reasons.

Just for beauty, I'll take the communicator.

 

[Garth Rockett]

I voted for the phaser, because you get the two-in-one combo of the type 1 and type 2. I love the sleek look, too.

The communicator comes in second for me. I bought my Motorola Razor solely because it reminded me a bit of the original communicator.

 

[blakbyrd]

Balok Puppet: "A vote for me is a vote for CHANGE!"

Agreed!

 

[cooleddie74]

A narrow win for the Tricorder.

Ahead of its time and still looks fairly futuristic if you don't pay much attention to the little black-and-white TV tube. When the prop was recreated for the DS9 Tribble episode and then later for the ENT Mirror Universe two-parter it still looked fashionable and neat.

 

[Kegek]

First, one of the best polls I've seen in ages. Actually, the best. Naturally, this was a hard choice; so many of Wah Chang's designs for the series are simply iconic...

But I'll have to go for the salt vampire as my all time favourite. A repulsively strange monster which nonetheless seems vaguely tragic, capturing much of the episode's own ambivalence.

 

[Michael]

First, one of the best polls I've seen in ages. Actually, the best. Naturally, this was a hard choice; so many of Wah Chang's designs for the series are simply iconic ...

Wow, thank you. You're too nice.

 

[Temis the Vorta]

The TOS communicator because we all carry around (smaller versions of) that today.

The Vulcan lute was a beautiful design, tho...

 

[Philo]

^ and yet, no cell phone designer has yet to approach the style of the original. Someday I'll get around to taking the innards out of a cell phone and shoving them inside a communicator.

This seemed like it would be a hard choice because everything he designed was fantastic but that communicator is just so iconic and well designed.

 

[Mallory]

The phaser gets my vote.

 

[Kagan]

Favorite? Are you kidding me? There is only one that can be set to stun or kill! The TOS Hand Phaser is what every kid in my neighborhood wanted.

BTW, will this poll have a runoff? Or will TOS Hand Phaser and TOS Communicator have to form a coallition government?