Why the love for Ralph McQuarrie?

[BillJ]

Chicken and egg. The designs were made - then rules were created to explain them - then other designs were based on those rules.

But the rules were bolognium to begin with.

 

[Jedi_Master]

But the rules were bolognium to begin with.

Bolognium.

I like that.
Must be part of the "fanwank" section of the periodic table next to bullshitine and hogwashidine.

 

[BillJ]

Bolognium.

From Futurama.

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[Jedi_Master]

Futurama is one of the best shows of all time. I particularly loved the Time Machine episode.

 

[Jedman67]

I don't really care for the design but the concept is interesting. A little refinement can go a long way, and really stand out as an alternative to the "clean/postmodern" look of trek ships in the 80's and 90's. Since nuBSG and Firefly, the rage has been to dirty up ships and make everything nitty gritty - its the 00's and 10's look now. I want it to be regonizable as star trek, but i want it different enough that I know its something new (and hopefully better) than what came before.

 

[INACTIVEUSS Einstein]

I think RAMA means its fine not liking something on a personal level due to aesthetic tastes - we all have different tastes - but trying to say it's 'technologically wrong' is very dubious, since there is nothing in Star Trek that would forbid a ship like this technologically, or even aesthetically. I mean the Defiant is a far greater departure from Starfleet's visual style, that Matt Jefferies set down.

It actually looks really appropriate as a lost era ship IMO, with a very distinctive generational look, that sets it apart just the same way as you can immediatly identify a TNG era ship.

In many ways it looks, to me, more naturally Starfleet-like than half the stuff we get in B-canon and video games; which usually involves getting the classic shape and stretching or, or rounding it, in a really unimaginative way. It looks like a retro ship from an era between TMP or TOS - which is probably exactly what it is meant to be. I believe people used to explain the MacQuarrie designs as being an early "shuttle carrier", from the days when transporters were perhaps less prevalent - maybe the Discovery needs that huge sweeping secondary hull as a landing deck, for its shuttle-bays, launching lots of them for long range planetary survey missions in deep space?

Agreed.

 

[Tim Walker]

jedman67, I would say that the Discovery design is definitely different.

 

[Jedi_Master]

I don't really care for the design but the concept is interesting. A little refinement can go a long way, and really stand out as an alternative to the "clean/postmodern" look of trek ships in the 80's and 90's. Since nuBSG and Firefly, the rage has been to dirty up ships and make everything nitty gritty - its the 00's and 10's look now. I want it to be regonizable as star trek, but i want it different enough that I know its something new (and hopefully better) than what came before.

Trek ships in the 90's weren't all that remarkable... the Defiant, the Romulan Warbird, and the Breen warships were the only ones that stood out to me in a sea of "saucer and rocket" vessels.

 

[Jedman67]

jedman67, I would say that the Discovery design is definitely different.

I would suggest, if it wont offend anyone here, that water is wet

 

[BillJ]

I wonder if the reddish color means it originated from Vulcan?

 

[Tim Walker]

It actually looks really appropriate as a lost era ship IMO, with a very distinctive generational look, that sets it apart just the same way as you can immediatly identify a TNG era ship.

Yeah, most Star Fleet designs seem to appear in bursts, or distinct generations. Designs from the same era probably appear similar, because they are based on the same technology, And because it takes time to develop new technology, these generations are likely far apart in time.

But what about times between generations?

I can imagine stop gap designs being built to replace old ships. And because these aren't intended to be the new uber ships, the next quantum leap in design, these stop gap vessels may tend to be utilitarian.

 

[eyeresist]

Nope. Most remarks revolve around very pre-conceived ideas and long formed opinions about how a ship "Should" look..that a ship has to look "balanced" when with fictional technology it really doesn't. Then we get a long laundry list of what's "wrong" with the ship that's based on very closely measured distances between pylon and engine nacelles, etc that were are supposed to take as religion and talked about with the same fervor

Nope. Other people, like me, just say that's it's ugly.

 

[SpaceLama]

Yeah, most Star Fleet designs seem to appear in bursts, or distinct generations.

Exactly.

It's why some talk about it not fitting in make no sense. It just follows the longstanding tradition of being part of a distinct generation.

 

[Spike730]

I don't understand why people are happy to see McQuarrie's work featured in Star Trek. All I see from folks are comments about his legendary status, but not actually praising the shape of the ship.

I don't get it either. The ship is just fugly from every angle shown. No saving grace whatsoever. Even the horrible Vengeance looks better.

 

[Kemaiku]

Nope. Other people, like me, just say that's it's ugly.

Exactly. I have no idea what her technological capabilities are, I just think that it's an ugly design.

 

[Jedi_Master]

I wonder if the reddish color means it originated from Vulcan?

That was an Enterprise trope that I hope never reappears in any Trek production.

 

[Kemaiku]

That was an Enterprise trope that I hope never reappears in any Trek production.

Motion Picture, First Contact, the refugee ragtags from Next Generation et al have shown more Vulcan ships as rust red than anything else before Enterprise aired.

 

[Jedi_Master]

Motion Picture, First Contact, the refugee ragtags from Next Generation et al have shown more Vulcan ships as rust red than anything else before Enterprise aired.

My mistake.

 

[Tim Walker]

I think that Discovery may be a generational orphan. A Lost Era ship built as a stop gap, when no other new designs were being built.

 

[The Mighty Monkey of Mim]

Motion Picture, First Contact, the refugee ragtags from Next Generation et al have shown more Vulcan ships as rust red than anything else before Enterprise aired.

The TMP and TNG Vulcan vessels weren't red. But the FC one, yes, and obviously that's where ENT took its cues from.