Phaser

[Eagle]

Look whats coming out this month.

http://www.entertainmentearth.com/prodinfo...er=PL61851#desc

[phase pistol]

Yeah, the phaser from the new JJ Abrams movie.

For the most part, we old-school Trekkies are not impressed. In fact, the thing looks downright silly.

Says nothing about whether the film is any good... actually I hope it is fantastic. And maybe the phasers look better on screen (the real prop is not so chromey and has different proportions)

[dratomic]

I was definitely disappointed when I saw the new phaser. It feels over designed, and yet somehow still too generic. It looks like something you'd find at Sharper Image. And WAY too much of an anime influence.

I pronounce it: Bleh.

;)

[Phil R]

it's interesting to see the design evolution of the phasers from the beginning, Wrath of Kahn, ST6, STNG, Voyager. Now a quandry, how do you make the prequel weapon without having it be a mismatch to the special effects? Make it as though it's the next design! Makes sense to me! As to the film, if the trailer is any indication, it should be super!

[Andyman]

The way I see it, this is Star Trek re-imagined and redesigned. It doesn't have to fit in any existing "official" ST timeline.

That phaser design doesn't sing to me though. We'll see how it fits the art direction of the movie.

The irony here is that we may be expecting something a little more retro because of it being based on a retro-classic TV series even though it still takes place in the future.

[dratomic]

At first, I was annoyed that it looked more futuristic than the stuff found on the original series -- after all, it's supposed to take place earlier than the original series. It's the same problem I had with the space ships and stuff in the Star Wars prequel -- they all looked way fancier than anything seen in the later movies.

However, you're right, Andy -- it's a re-imagining, and doesn't have to stick to some sort of timeline, especially in terms of design. So I've learned to live with the production designers' decision to approach it fresh. That's all fine.

Unfortunately, it's no excuse for sucking... And I've found a lot of their decisions re: sets and props to be sort of a let down. Not in any way that scuttles the film for me -- I still really want to see it, and from the previews and what I've read, I think it'll be a great science fiction adventure flick. But still... I think everything suffers from that need to overdesign. It's like someone said, "If it doesn't have enough extraneous widgets, plates, flaps, blue lights, chrome, or glass, no one will believe it's from the future." So the deck of the Enterprise looks like an Apple Store, the ship itself looks like something out of Robotech, the communicators look like the phones you get for free when you sign up for service with T-Mobile, and the rest of the props all look like they came out of a Sky Mall catalogue.

ON THE OTHER HAND...

Maybe that's where we're heading, design-wise. Everything will look cheap and generic, or based on Apple's design ideas. That's how it all tends to look today, so maybe Star Trek is in fact a natural extrapolation of that aesthetic.

*sigh*

[Andyman]

The problem I'm having is why mess with the original? Why is Hollywood so obsessed with remaking everything? Are original ideas drying up like our oil reserves? :unsure:

[phase pistol]

When I try to post my actual reply with photos I get an "Internal Server Error".

But this post (all text) is obviously OK.

[Eagle]

Other than the original series and the one Karl posted .I don't like any of them. I like weapons that look like weapons. Functional . However I can't judge what the Phaser from the time period of the new movie should look like. I agree with you guys,,,so I'm asking. Andy, Doc, Phase Pistol. You guys are all artist. Especially Karl for this medium. WHAT should it look like ?? Put your thinking caps on and give it a shot. Other than original, there isn't one of those Phasers that I would have been proud of designing and building. They would have never left the shop. :huh: Now think about it. This has to be a weapon that looks ominous , it has to be holstered easily, have a light but powerful energy source. Be light and rugged for combat duty. The Phaser you poster Karl meets that criteria. The only thing I would have changed its the texture and the trigger. It looks too much like a chromed hood ornament.

[Phil R]

Tell me if I'm wrong, but most of the problem I have with the phasers is the grip and trigger mechanism. I realize it's imbedded in our minds that handguns have a grip and trigger. I think the problem is the original phaser. The functional parts of the guns are ok. I especially like the original because the hand phaser can be disconnected from the phaser gun to be used separately. I especially like the assault phaser. But the tube grips are lame. Why can't they design a better grip to fit the hand? How lame is a button for a trigger? Even in the new gun it appears that there is an extended trigger device in front of the grip. Those later phasers with the button trigger on top are even more lame. I believe it's a continuing design problem that no one has the guts to change. ;)

[phase pistol]

Here's an enhancement I made of the prop shot so you can see the Abrams-movie design a bit better

[phase pistol]

I actually liked the phaser designed for Star Trek III the Search for Spock. This one captures the feeling of the TOS phaser while being sleeker and larger.

The prop was reused for the Next Generation episode "Final Mission", this time with brown leather wrapped around the grip (it was supposed to be an "old fashioned" phaser at that point).

[phase pistol]

One thing I just don't like about the Abrams phaser is the zigzaggy jagged contours. I think if you painted it brown it would look like a Klingon or Cardassian weapon, but it doesn't really fit the "Starfleet" vibe in my opinion.

The most recent TV series that was made, "Star Trek Enterprise", was set in an era some 100 years prior to the days of Captain Kirk. For that show the designers went for a more gunlike and "nuts and bolts" look, which seemed practical and not terribly advanced. The phase pistol for example has got an awkward "upright" grip, and it seems oversized and bulky, indicating that it is a more primitive piece of technology.

The phase pistol has to be opened up to insert the power cell, which glows red when activated. This harks back to the power "clip" which is loaded through the grip of the Trek 5 Assault Phaser like an ammo clip.

[phase pistol]

Of course, to be strictly "canon", in the "Captain Pike era", they really OUGHT to be using these "laser pistols" that were seen in Star Trek's pilot episode, "The Cage"

[phase pistol]

In contrast to all these gunlike props, for The Next Generation (set 150 years after Captain Kirk), the designers felt that the phasers should look less like weapons and more like tools. So no pistol grips or dangerous angles. The "Dustbuster" phaser used in the first two seasons of TNG was rather bulbous and appliance-like.