WOK Reliant - Nacelle lighting?

KitSmasher

KitSmasher

Sr Member
RPF PREMIUM MEMBER
I can't seem to find any references that show the blue lighting in the nacelles for the Reliant in WOK. I see plenty of modelers have added it, but I haven't seen any grabs from the movie that show it's there... *shrug* Does it exist?

I'm not talking about the Miranda class later on in TNG- I mean specifically the Reliant in Wrath of Khan.
 
TrekCore is great for screencaps.

twokhd0479.jpg


Folks may be misremembering the shot where an Enterprise photon torpedo blows off one of Reliant's nacelles. It is lit from within by the explosion.

twokhd0916.jpg


twokhd0918.jpg
 
Last edited:
SmilingOtter said:
The inboard sides of the engines only glow when at warp - the only times we see the Reliant is when she's going sublight.
Click to expand...

Very good... but in this shot, just after the Enterprise has recognized that the Reliant is rushing toward her

twokhd0419.jpg

twokhd0420.jpg


We see the stars moving in perspective. Reliant is at warp.
 
The multi-plane star effect was a mistake, my one big gripe with the film. The ships were not at warp when approaching each other. The effect is also seen while the reliant hovers around waiting on Kirk to gather the Genesis data, they weren't at warp here either.

The multi-plane effect was a call back to the original series, where the stars often moved in perspective whether the ships were at warp or not. Also the star fields in TWOK were all CGI, I guess ILM was playing with their new toy and got a bit carried away.
 
My recollection is that (at least in the first few movies) the inner tracks on the engines glowed purple (not blue) and only when the ship was at warp, and appeared dark (black) at other times. This is the case with Enterprise at least. Maybe we just never see the Reliant at warp? I think the lights did eventually change to blue but I forget when. Could have been 4, 5, or 6. Or even 2 or 3 for all I recall. Wouldn't surprise me if ditching purple for blue was an ILM decision starting with TWOK.

Now I'm more interested in the Enterprise lights than the Reliant ones!

--Alex
 
Right, the Reliant was never seen at warp so the nacelles weren't lit up.

As for the Enterprise, there are pics of the model at an early stage with purple/violet lit nacelle panels. Many other details were different at this stage, the B\C deck and bridge were different and there was a lot more red pin striping. These details and the nacelle lighting color were changed prior to shooting, the warp panels are blue in TMP. However there was a bit of purple, the nacelle grills were made from machined aluminum and were delivered with a purple coating that is commonly used in metal working. The effects crew liked the effect of the purple color with the aluminum shinning through so they kept it. The purple coating was dull and a bit dark, but the metal would gleam through from certain angles making the panels appear to be faintly lit in purple.
 
Welp, looks like I'm gonna have to trudge through all six Star Trek movies now, watching for engine colors. Thanks, guys.

(Just kidding, I love all those movies. Even number V)

--Alex
 
A while back, a member here had an Enterprise model with both inboard and outboard sections lit up. That led to a discussion of why it was only on the inboard sections.

To get a definitive answer, I emailed Steve Neill, figuring he'd either know the answer, or someone who did. Much to my surprise and delight, I got a response from Andrew Probert who designed the Enterprise for TMP (as well as the Cylons from BSG, Airwolf, did work on the Delorean design for BTTF...) Anyway, his answer:

there is (initiated in this movie) only an interaction between the two engines in the inboard areas. The outboard grill is a different material and helps in collecting ‘stuff’ to help the process. There is a ‘slight’ white glow on those outboard areas coming from their forward areas, shinning back.

Originally, there was to be a rather prominent interaction visible but that idea was dropped when Robert Abel lost the contract…
Click to expand...

He included a piece of concept art, which I can't seem to bring up in the email anymore, but luckily found online:

https://s-media-cache-ak0.pinimg.com/736x/a0/63/5a/a0635a5c00ac1e15efb81bc7465b3b17.jpg
 
Awesome! Thanks for the help, guys!

The two head on shots of Reliant above really show off the copper highlights of those ribbed bullet shapes on the nacelles... :thumbsup
 
On film, The Miranda/Avenger class ships were never shown with lit-up warp nacelles in any of the movies or even TNG. That started with DS9.

Pictures of the studio model from the Christie's auction however show what looks to be blue tint on the inboard grills.
http://www.ex-astris-scientia.org/scans/christies/miranda-christies1.jpg
http://www.ex-astris-scientia.org/scans/christies/miranda-christies3.jpg

And slightly older pictures show what looks to be more purple tint like the refit
http://www.ex-astris-scientia.org/scans/mechanics/saratoga3.jpg

Whether the engines were designed originally to light up or replaced/modified later is anyone's guess. But I don't think the main Reliant studio model was ever filmed with it's engines lit.
 
This thread is more than 8 years old.

Your message may be considered spam for the following reasons:

  1. This thread hasn't been active in some time. A new post in this thread might not contribute constructively to this discussion after so long.
If you wish to reply despite these issues, check the box below before replying.
Be aware that malicious compliance may result in more severe penalties.

Similar threads

Entropy80
AMT USS Reliant - Aztec Decals
Replies
3
Views
900
edge10
edge10
Lupano
1/1000 USS Reliant Build
Replies
12
Views
2,030
publiusr
P
COlson
Bandai 1/48 scale Snowspeeder model build with lighting
Replies
8
Views
1,007
stussy
stussy
JNordgren42
MIND BLOWN! Wireless induction LED lighting....
Replies
5
Views
937
Muzza
Muzza
modelerdave
Question about frosting Enterprise nacelle domes
Replies
4
Views
799
pengbuzz
P
Back
Top