posted
Is it me, or were they off with the scale of that thing. It seemed a lot smaller on land than it did in space.
Registered: Feb 2005
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Also, definitely the tall mothership from Homeworld. I'd thought for a long time before seeing it that a vertical ship made a lot of sense (the thinking being that big wide ships resulted in a lot of corridor-space), and to see that huge vertical slash in space (as if to say "We're here!") just has such a different effect than even SW's Executor.
I mean, you know the Executor is big, but there's something psychologically distinct about something being just utterly honkin' tall, at least when viewed on a 2-D screen.
When the time comes for hindsight, despite all the real and perceived problems, I think the shuttle will be viewed as a most impressive vessel. Soon everyone will pretty much be employing capsules, which have their merits to be sure . . . but they are so incredibly utilitarian. The shuttle was designed for utility, too . . . but there's just something about the tapered tips of a soaring spaceplane and the awe of its dive back into the mist that evokes far more romance than the ballistic, mechanical boredom of a capsule dropping to earth like a space turd into the toilet.
-------------------- . . . ceterum censeo Carthaginem esse delendam.
posted
I always though the Trade Federation Droid Control ship to be cool. That big sphere in the middle of that broken ring. Coolness.
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quote:I mean, you know the Executor is big, but there's something psychologically distinct about something being just utterly honkin' tall, at least when viewed on a 2-D screen.
That's one of the reasons why I loved the Alliance cruiser from Firefly...
-------------------- “Those people who think they know everything are a great annoyance to those of us who do.” — Isaac Asimov Star Trek Minutiae | Memory Alpha
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posted
Well I'm not sure what the most impresive one I've seen is but a list of my favourites are:
From Trek my favourite has got to be the Excelsior or refit Ent-B version. It's just simple, and elegant.
The Executor was very damn impresive when you see it for the first time, it's just so damn huge! The Eclipse is pretty impressive design as well.
Those Omega Class Destroyers from B5 were just coolness too. With the big spinning bit, and a menacing look to it!
I loved the Prometheus, from Stargate, especially the first time we see it. It's impressive to think that only a few years before that Earth only had shuttles, and now it's got whopping great space battlecruisers.
As for fighters, I'm kinda torn between Starfurys, X-wings, Tie Interceptors, and Tie Defenders. Although I loved the Pak'than and Vak'toth fighters from Wing Commander.
And the Lexx for the sheer phalic-ness of it!
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Daniel Butler
I'm a Singapore where is my boat
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posted
Two things in relation to Guardian's post: First, have you seen the X-whateverytheycallit, the surface-to-orbit vehicle they want to replace the shuttle fleet? Won't be around for awhile, but definitely not an ugly capsule. Also, what difference would a 'vertical' ship actually make? I mean I know TV SF likes to keep everything oriented on the same plane, and I guess near a gravity well that might make sense...maybe...but out in space there'd be no telling the relative attitudes of the ships. A horizontal ship could look like a big vertical slash in the sky, depending on which angle it came at you.
OverRon, I also liked the Ent-B when I first saw it as a youngun. I remember thinking it looked a hell of a lot less clunky than the Connies.. ;P Like I said before, I'm with you on the destroyers (although I thought the Omega class was too black for my taste - I like the lighter colors of the earlier ones), but not the starfuries, I dunno why. And I never liked the Prometheus cruiser nearly as much as the Daedalus-class battle cruisers. Although really they should be called battleships, shouldn't they? I mean I think they skipped a superclass in terms of size and weaponry...oh well...its the air force, what do they know
Registered: Jul 2005
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posted
I always thought the small EF ships were a little too bright and "clean" looking, and I definetly prefferred the more grungy and darker ships. That ship that Sheridan takes command of (nova class?), to Nuke the Mimbari cruiser in "in the beginning" wouldn't look out of place in the Wing Commander 3 universe, with light greay and blue colour scheme. The shadow-tech Omega-X was just a little bit too much on the dark side for me though.
Well I never really thought of the Prometheus as good looking and pleasing design. But it was very impressive when you first see it, as before then, the Air Force had just been tinkering with Def gliders and 302s, then all of a sudden they've got this honking great battlecruiser sat in an underground hanger! And that scene in Antartica where the Prometheus is taking an insane number of hits from that fleet, and shaking it off pretty well.
The Daedalii look sleeker and nicer but they never really struck as me very impressive, coming after the Prometheus and all. Well not until the Odyssey got Asgard weapons and kicked some Ori arse, that was impressive.
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Daniel Butler
I'm a Singapore where is my boat
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posted
Meh, I thought it was pretty silly, actually. Here the Asgard have weapons powerful enough to destroy Ori motherships in just a few hits - sometimes even one! - and yet they didn't just wipe them out of the sky when they first got there. Indeed, there were several O'Neill class Asgard cruisers present at the Battle of P3Y-229, and they got their tiny malformed asses kicked too. And now where the hell are the Asgard weapons that should be being installed all over the place over in Pegasus what with the Wraith and Replicators letting slip the dogs of war? It really bugs me...
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Daniel Butler
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posted
Now that I've had my first taste of Firefly, vis a vis Serenity, I've gotta say that although the Alliance cruiser didn't strike me as very sexy, it conveyed a very firm sense of "Gentlemen, we mean some damn business."
Registered: Jul 2005
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quote:Originally posted by Mars Needs Women: Is it me, or were they off with the scale of that thing. It seemed a lot smaller on land than it did in space.
It's a lot smaller than a Star Destroyer, so landing's not that crazy.... plus Lucas could care less about stuff like the speed required for that giant ship to break free of a planet's gravity (or any practical science stuff) so just sit back and enjoy the coolness factor.
I still plan on building one with an ISD-style bridge instead of those twin (and rather silly) towers. Love the Republic's laser turretts though!
-------------------- Justice inclines her scales so that wisdom comes at the price of suffering. -Aeschylus, Agamemnon
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Daniel Butler
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posted
Does anyone else think the shield domes on ISDs are just ... silly-looking?
Registered: Jul 2005
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posted
Nope. Looked like a radar dome to me. As for the Alliance Cruiser, are you referring to the ones in Serenity or the ones in the series? I ask because the series cruiser is VERY different and more interesting IMO.
Daniel Butler
I'm a Singapore where is my boat
Member # 1689
posted
Radar domes look silly to me. I don't know why. Giant geodesic domes on a stick just look....cheesy for some reason. I'm honestly mystified by my own dislike, but there are some things in real life that I just want to call up the SFX department and say "What the hell?"
Well, I'm a bit confused about Serenity to tell you the truth. I thought it was a movie made after Firefly was canceled? But the one I saw said (pilot movie) and had the Firefly opening music and sequence and everything after a teaser (although it was a full-length movie). Are there two movies called Serenity or what?
Registered: Jul 2005
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posted
Yeah, sounds like what you saw was the feature length pilot which was indeed called Serenity. Girl in a box, crazy Ivan, Kaylee's dead gag, that sound familiar?
The theatrical movie came later and yes, it was also called Serenity. If you've started with the pilot you might as well finish the series as a few things change and develop.
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Also, what difference would a 'vertical' ship actually make? I mean I know TV SF likes to keep everything oriented on the same plane, and I guess near a gravity well that might make sense...maybe...but out in space there'd be no telling the relative attitudes of the ships. A horizontal ship could look like a big vertical slash in the sky, depending on which angle it came at you.
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