This is a project I’ve had on my mind for a long time. Finally started working on it.
I’m a big STAR TREK fan, a big comic book fan, and a big John Byrne fan. I think his licensed TREK comics by IDW are top-notch. I particularly enjoyed his CREW (2009) minseries, which detailed the early career of Number One, a decade before “The Cage”. In the first issue of the series, young Cadet One found herself in a bit of trouble aboard the shakedown cruise of an uncommissioned Constitution class starship, the second to be constructed. Of course, this ship would go on to be the U.S.S. Enterprise, NCC-1701.
For all intents and purposes, this (non-canon) story represents the very first appearance of the Enterprise and its very first adventure. The thing which really intrigued me, though, was Byrne’s depiction of the brand-new, slightly unfinished ship. He began with the first pilot version of the ship, and worked backwards to create a slightly less-refined version:
*A bare-metal, unpainted hull, with visible paneling (akin to TOS Remastered, but not TOS proper).
*No livery or markings, aside from the temporary “NX-0002” registry on each nacelle.
*Clunky, much more detailed intercoolers on the nacelles.
*Clunky, much more detailed reactor loops and inner nacelle trench detailing.
*One long vent structure on each inboard nacelle pylon, instead of the familiar four vents.
*Rear nacelle endcaps with panels removed, revealing exposed inner workings.
*An inset area of greeblies within the B/C housing on top of the saucer.
Inspired by OTOY choosing to model this iteration (along with numerous others) for the Roddenberry Foundation, I’ve begun preliminary modeling work on drop-in replacement parts for the 1/1000 Polar Lights model. I built a simple replica of the TOS intercooler design (which was also reused for the reactor loops and incorporated into the inboard nacelle trench greeblies), and then began working to reverse-engineer it into a more primitive version.
Byrne’s artwork for these areas is vague and inconsistent from panel to panel. Just lots of layered horizontal shapes and bits of detail, as is his style for drawing complex tech. Reminiscent of Jack Kirby’s tech. As a result, I’ve had to make up most of the detailing myself, while still keeping the general feel of the artwork in mind.
Down the road, once the parts are finalized and 3D-printed, the model with be masked with a panel pattern and painted in metallic shades. While ENTERPRISE is not a show I like to think of as canon pre-TOS, this design does present an opportunity to link the “naked” NCC-1701 with the look of the NX-01-era ships.
I’m a big STAR TREK fan, a big comic book fan, and a big John Byrne fan. I think his licensed TREK comics by IDW are top-notch. I particularly enjoyed his CREW (2009) minseries, which detailed the early career of Number One, a decade before “The Cage”. In the first issue of the series, young Cadet One found herself in a bit of trouble aboard the shakedown cruise of an uncommissioned Constitution class starship, the second to be constructed. Of course, this ship would go on to be the U.S.S. Enterprise, NCC-1701.
For all intents and purposes, this (non-canon) story represents the very first appearance of the Enterprise and its very first adventure. The thing which really intrigued me, though, was Byrne’s depiction of the brand-new, slightly unfinished ship. He began with the first pilot version of the ship, and worked backwards to create a slightly less-refined version:
*A bare-metal, unpainted hull, with visible paneling (akin to TOS Remastered, but not TOS proper).
*No livery or markings, aside from the temporary “NX-0002” registry on each nacelle.
*Clunky, much more detailed intercoolers on the nacelles.
*Clunky, much more detailed reactor loops and inner nacelle trench detailing.
*One long vent structure on each inboard nacelle pylon, instead of the familiar four vents.
*Rear nacelle endcaps with panels removed, revealing exposed inner workings.
*An inset area of greeblies within the B/C housing on top of the saucer.
Inspired by OTOY choosing to model this iteration (along with numerous others) for the Roddenberry Foundation, I’ve begun preliminary modeling work on drop-in replacement parts for the 1/1000 Polar Lights model. I built a simple replica of the TOS intercooler design (which was also reused for the reactor loops and incorporated into the inboard nacelle trench greeblies), and then began working to reverse-engineer it into a more primitive version.
Byrne’s artwork for these areas is vague and inconsistent from panel to panel. Just lots of layered horizontal shapes and bits of detail, as is his style for drawing complex tech. Reminiscent of Jack Kirby’s tech. As a result, I’ve had to make up most of the detailing myself, while still keeping the general feel of the artwork in mind.
Down the road, once the parts are finalized and 3D-printed, the model with be masked with a panel pattern and painted in metallic shades. While ENTERPRISE is not a show I like to think of as canon pre-TOS, this design does present an opportunity to link the “naked” NCC-1701 with the look of the NX-01-era ships.
Last edited:
