I’m personally a big fan of the late TMP designs like the Excelsior and Centaur, what do you guys like?
No one’s shown any love for my favourite ship design yet, so I’m gonna speak up about my love for the Intrepid class. Voyager just looked so sleek and graceful compared to other ships of the era — the comparatively lumbering Galaxy glass, the oddly square shaped Defiant class, or the cold and sterile Sovereign class.
The Dominion/Borg/DS9 era of ships. The Akira, Steamrunner, Defiant, Prometheus, Sabre, and Sovereign are awesome (and the Galaxy even though that came earlier). It represented a reality check when Starfleet finally snapped out of complacency.
The DS9-Prodigy (~2370-2385) era gave us several lovely ship classes-- the Sovereign, Intrepid, Parliment, Obena, and Protostar classes come to mind for me
I’m going to get crucified for this, but I really dig Discovery’s design language (both the show in general and the ship herself). In particular (I’m ready for those nails), I like their take on the Enterprise in season 2 (and subsequently SNW). In my mind it’s tied with late-TNG era stuff which is what I grew up watching. I have mad respect for the older designs, but I find that modernizing the classics isn’t diminishing my enjoyment even though I’m very acutely aware of the canon issues.
I *really* hate the transparent consoles they use in new Trek. I would be so angry being forced to work on one those ~8 hours per day. How can you see anything with zero contrast and background disruptions?! Like trying to read a web page with a movie going on behind it.
My computer terminal is at 75% opacity just for the novelty and visuals, but it makes it harder to work with. I wouldn’t have it if I were working in the terminal all day.
My only problem with Discovery era is that the areas are made to be more spacious than TNG, which was supposed to be cruise ship quality. The design language is modern, but it feels way too spacious.
I bet if you sailed on a late-80s unrefurbished cruise ship, it’d feel dinky and small.
Probably, but that isn’t the feel.
I’m just saying, our definition of luxury has moved since they built those sets in 1987.
That’s really my point as well. The modern updates of ships are because our expectations have definitely shifted. I feel like disparate design languages of the shows don’t necessarily have to detract from the shared universe. Though, don’t get me wrong, Star Trek is many things but one thing it isn’t, and has never purported to be, is a documentary. By that I mean that the set dressing, the costumes, our “presence” as the audience, everything about the way the shows are produced tells me we’re watching a dramatization of the “real” events. Contrast that with something like the 2000s era Battlestar Galactica which had a lot of elements in its filming that were designed to make it feel more like a documentary and we, the audience, were watching footage captured of “real” events.
Maybe this is blasphemy but I liked the ENT era ships. And since its now canon, the NX-01 refit especially.
TMP Era is just the best looking classic Star Trek experience some of the designs in my opinion were in things like Starfleet Command the video game like the Akula class, but I have a soft spot for the DS9/First Contact/Star Trek Armada period.
The TMP nacelles are very 70s (lol), but the rest of the ship looks so good that it makes you overlook it.
I’m partial to the Galaxy class. It’s big, sleek, and luxurious, which is great for when you need to be diplomatic. “Join the Federation! We have abundant resources and advanced technology, like this cool starship.”
For when you don’t need to be diplomatic, it’s also got plenty of firepower (enough to melt 20% of an unadapted Borg cube in one phaser blast) and speed (it can soundly outrun a D’deridex).
I think that’s the first time I’ve heard the Galaxy class called “sleek”.
I thought it’s the fat one
ENT era.
Externally speaking Starfleet ships march to the beats of NACA/NASA X-planes, Klingon embrace a very soviet yet alien look in contrast, Vulcans look advanced and sleek yet ancient and mythical with the biggest pointiest toys on the block.
Internally speaking construction is depicted as having limits, tech and interfaces are familiar to real world, cramped ship like rooms are the norm, and there’s no handwaving over how everything might fit inside the ships.
Probably the TNG films… or maybe call it “post Wolf-359?”
Defiant, Steamrunner, Luna, Akira, and my dear, sweet, beloved, gorgeous Sovereign; everything produced in response to The Borg just looked so fuckin’ good.
Honestly? Probably the ‘Lost Era’ between TOS and TNG.
Excelsior and Ambassador classes were excellent.
The fat one
@Digital_Cam The II - VI OG movie era. Harder lines but upgraded from the series. There was a harshness and realness to the ships, almost armored looking which fits the more conflict oriented tone of those movies.
For ST, the Voyager looked good, but I didn’t like the moving nacelles. The updated Enterprise from the first movie was my favorite iteration of the Big-E.
But, my favorite ship is the Omega class destroyer from Babylon 5. (sue me)
But, my favorite ship is the Omega class destroyer from Babylon 5. (sue me)
Please forward your address so we know where to send the process servers.
TNG movie era - Sovereign, Sabre, Steamrunner, all of it!
A user of taste and discernment, I see.
It peaked with the Excelsior.
The Enterprise F we briefly saw was also an absolute beaut.
The long line ships of STO are beauties, I agree.
I wish Terry Matalas hadn’t been so keen to push them out of use in Picard.
The Vesta class is also a favourite of mine. Mark Rademaker’s designs are very compelling.
The Excelsior was definitely a good-looking ship. VI remains my favorite of the movies. (Slightly controversial, I know.)
