Kylo Ren Command Shuttle Photo Review - Revell

JeffBond said:
I initially had no interest in this until I saw a buildup and saw how big it is. It is beautifully molded and detailed and very accurate. I don't know about making the wings move but it's not too difficult to change the position of the wings--I just used some plastruct quarter-inch tubing as a joint and secured the wings with brass rod. I sincerely doubt that Bandai will do this subject since in 1/72 it would be even larger and this kit is several times the size of any of the Bandai kits released so far.
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1/144 would work OK-
I like the main shuttle body but for me the wings are twice the size they should be- kinda reminds me of the Shrek joke about castle compensation...
I could get a smaller kit of this subject for completeness but it is great to see Revell make a good crisp kit instead of what they have been offering so far...
 
I find this design confusing. What are those wings for? Besides looking kind of menacing like anything that's towering they are clearly not meant for flying, so are they solar panels? Also it looks like a long eared bat's head, so I guess it could be reappropriated as a batplane? ;)
magazine-fall-2012-bat-j-scott-altenbach.jpg
 
Had similar issues with the design so I decided to make an edged, menacing B-Wing out of it, still WIP tho. And it will for sure receive the original B-Wing paint treatment in the end ;) image.jpeg
 
basementdweller said:
I find this design confusing. What are those wings for? Besides looking kind of menacing like anything that's towering they are clearly not meant for flying, so are they solar panels? Also it looks like a long eared bat's head, so I guess it could be reappropriated as a batplane? ;)
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I could be wrong, but I thought I read somewhere that there was all kind of scanning equipment in the wings which extend out while in flight (they are actually two part wings, with the top retracting in a bit when landing) A secondary purpose being a bit of arm buffer from getting shot on the sides?

And yes, everytime I see that thing I think of a bat
 
blakeh1 said:
I could be wrong, but I thought I read somewhere that there was all kind of scanning equipment in the wings... A secondary purpose being a bit of arm buffer from getting shot on the sides?

And yes, everytime I see that thing I think of a bat
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Thanks for taking the time to post. I guess scanning equipment gives it a bit more credibility if only just a little. I get that it's a design inspired by the lambda shuttle - I just have a very hard time with spaceships that have massive wings with no actual aerodynamic lift capabilities in the atmosphere. I had to check and this is what came up on starwars.com - pretty much what you said.

The First Order’s top officers travel in Upsilon-class command shuttles that look like grim birds of prey. These ships’ massive wings are packed with defensive systems to protect their valuable passengers. The upper wings contain advanced sensor suites that scan for enemies, while the lower wings house efficient shield projectors and powerful jammers. Upon landing, the wings rise from flight mode and then retract, encasing the upper wings’ sensor arrays in thick armor.

Huh - so it IS a big eared bat's head! The lower wings can't be packed with anything since they are essentially a sheath for the upper wings. Ahh, so wi-fi range extenders and tons of extra weight for extra power consumption to counter the added momentum + a larger hit surface from the side and no extra protection in the rear when actually in a dogfight. I suppose it's fine if the wings get shot off though since they don't really make a difference to the flight capabilities, it might even improve without them. Apparently it also deploys a genius cloaking mechanism when landed, blocking off it's sensor arrays by encasing them with thick shielding - If I can't see you, you can't see me! Got it ;)

I guess it's a matter of cool enough to suspend disbelief and the model does look crisp. Thanks for the great pics of the kit and the review goes to the OP!
 
Based on the pre-production designs in The Art of The Force Awakens book -- which show tons of new and cool designs that were suddenly put on the shelves once JJ agreed to direct the film -- the design philosophy for the shuttle seems to be: "We need a design that looks pretty much exactly like something from the Original Trilogy so that fans who hated the prequels will feel vindicated that we're making a movie full of fan service for them and, frankly, we're all too gutless to try to come up with something original because we don't want to have to listen to those same fans complaining about us for the next forever like they did George so, screw it, just make all the ships look like the old stuff the fans like and we'll call it a day." "You're a visionary, JJ!!!"
 
The book has great stuff in it, including some wicked triangular TIEs that would've been a logical design progression after ROTJ, but it's also disappointing to see what could've been. You can see that the designers (likely under George's direction before he decided to leave) were anxious to stretch themselves and show new worlds and ships, but almost none of it ended up on screen when the call came down to just slightly tweak the old OT designs.
 
Hmm! Large, worn fabric, sagging cushions, comfy- chair...comfortably numb.

'You can have your FOrd in any color as long as its black...'
R/ Robert

-----------------------------------------------
FOrd = First Order Ford... ;^P
 
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Hunk a Junk said:
The book has great stuff in it, including some wicked triangular TIEs that would've been a logical design progression after ROTJ, but it's also disappointing to see what could've been. You can see that the designers (likely under George's direction before he decided to leave) were anxious to stretch themselves and show new worlds and ships, but almost none of it ended up on screen when the call came down to just slightly tweak the old OT designs.
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That's usually how it is, the pre-production stuff in art books are usually way better than what we get.
 
Wes R said:
That's usually how it is, the pre-production stuff in art books are usually way better than what we get.
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That's usually true. In this case, I would add, that once Disney took over the main motivation was recouping their investment -- which meant getting all the butt-hurt fans who hated the prequels back on board. So that meant giving those fans an OT orgasm -- the Falcon, X-Wings, standard TIEs, stormtroopers (in real costumes even though many were replaced with CG later in post). It also included throwing George Lucas under the bus by throwing out his storylines, getting rid of the writer he'd hired, and creating an entire marketing campaign around "practical effects" (which anyone who has seen ILM's deme reel knows was complete BS) to, in essence, signal to fans: "Yeah, we hated the prequels too, but we're not making THOSE movies. We're making Star Wars the RIGHT way." So instead of expanding the story with new ideas, Disney Star Wars just recycles itself. George used to look for inspiration from all kinds of places -- history, mythology, WWII, Japanese samurai movies, car racing -- but now Star Wars just takes inspiration from itself. Which brings us back to why Kylo Ren's shuttle looks the way it does. That said, I may pick up the Revell kit someday (if it's cheap enough) if for no other reason than I like the challenge of figuring out how to make the wings move and retract the way they do in the movie.
 
Hunk a Junk said:
I may pick up the Revell kit someday (if it's cheap enough) if for no other reason than I like the challenge of figuring out how to make the wings move and retract the way they do in the movie.
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I was sure you were gonna say for no other reason that assembling it in a way that is interesting. Like the B-wing type mod earlier in the thread.
Oh wow retract? You'll need 2 kits at least...

Personally I'd like to see the RC community try and make it fly. Preferably without turning it into a qaud.
 
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