Whether You Love Or Hate Abrams' 2009 Enterprise, QMX's New Artisan Replica Is A Sight To...

Merrick here...

A few weeks ago I exalted the breathtaking virtues of QMX's Enterprise Refit Artisan Replica (HERE) - which appears to be the best Enterprise replica ever created. In that piece, I mentioned that a similar Artisan replica - representing the Enterprise re-design for 2009's J.J. Abrams STAR TREK film - would be coming soon.

And now it's here.

The replica looks amazing...and in the same way the Artisan Refit Replica is unquestionably the finest commercially available iteration of the NCC-1701 from the "classic" TREK movies, this is...without a doubt...the best version of the 2009 Enterprise you're going to find on the market.

Many folks don't like this design. Frankly, I struggle to understand why. As deeply attached to the original STAR TREK series as I am...and despite my assertion that the Enterprise which appeared in original cast TREK movies #1-6 is the baddest-assest spaceship ever put on screen...I rather like the "J.J.prise." It comes from a different thought process, indeed, a different timestream/universe than the Enterprises before it. It looks more like a machine than the previous iterations of the vessel...nicely in keeping with the industrial/functional approach of that ship's interiors. It's a little bit STAR WARS, somewhat FLASH GORDON, a touch of Hot Rod, but it's still Enterprise. And it still says power. To me, and I say this fully realizing the heretical nature of the notion I'm about to advance, the J.J.prise feels more like a HUMAN Starship than TNG's NCC-1701-D ever did - a design I also love in principal, but it was part of a universal aesthetic that frequently felt a bit cold to me.

Some complain about the J.J.prise's ample nacelles - "They're too long!", "They're too big!", etc. But here's the way I look at it: those are part of the ship's drive unit. They look like devices...mechanisms capable of generating the enormous energies required to move a vehicle through space at incomprehensible velocities while holding the resulting time distortion at bay...which is what warp drive is supposed to do. That they appear large, and more muscular, doesn't feel wrong to me - and even makes a touch of sense when approaching the matter in a dorked-out sorta way.

I've noticed an understandable trend regarding how people react to the 2009 Enterprise: people who like the movie tend to like its ship. People who don't like the movie...don't care for the new Enterprie design at all. Suggesting that how one perceives the J.J.prise may be inextricably, but understandably, entwined with how one perceives the film itself. Which was a stressor to some viewers, and a source of great exhilaration and relief to TREK fans yearning for the restoration of energy and adventure to the franchise.

Personally, I think TREK 2009 is a great film. It nicely embodies STAR TREK, although it's not always always great STAR TREK. It is TREK-flavored entertainment more than a slavish re-interpretation of conceits and concepts - and I can live with that. Considering how dull TREK had become in the years preceding 2009's release, "entertaining" was a welcome and much needed change of pace. After all, "Classic" TREK, THE NEXT GENERATION, DEEP SPACE NINE, etc. are still around via streaming, DVDs, Blu-Rays, and whatever - they aren't aren't being stricken from the obelisk like the original cuts of those poor STAR WARS movies. So what do we have to lose? Different universes...different generations...different flavors. Infinite Diversity in Infinite Combinations.

I didn't mind hopping on-board J.J.'s Enterprise one damn bit and will eagerly do so again, provided they actually get around to filming another installment (four years is too long guys...) Below: some lovely images of QMX's Artisan Replica of the Enterprise from J.J. Abrams 2009 STAR TREK film. The grandest space vehicle to grace movie screens in many years, and the last truly iconic vessel to be seen in theaters. Or am I forgetting something?

QMX's site says...

Our Artisan Enterprise features approximately 200 custom-built lighting effects that truly bring the starship to life. These effects include:

Static interior and exterior lighting.
Anti-collision and formation lighting (flash and strobe).
Fluid plasma effect inside the impulse engines.
Bussard collectors – Custom circuits and motion effects reproduce the look of the forward end of each warp nacelle.
Illuminated deflector dish – The dish itself is a specially-built lighting element – not just lit up by a bulb – with light lines radiating out from the center of the dish, just like in the movie.
Interior lighting for the shuttle bay.
Four-function remote control – The QMx Artisan Enterprise comes with a custom remote for interior, warp and impulse, formation and auxiliary lighting.

Superior Construction

The QMx Artisan Enterprise replica is constructed with only the best materials available, including resin, laser-cut acrylic and styrene, and features an internal network of brass tubing and steel rods that help ensure rigidity and longevity. Only the ship’s registry number and name are applied as decals: All other graphics are hand painted.

Dimensions:

34" long x 15.75" wide x 7.5" high
Stand adds 5.25" to the overall height

The wait list is now open - preorders begin October 31. You can learn more about the replica, and find wait list/ordering information (including QMX's nifty eLayaway program) HERE.

Many images are EMBIGGENABLE !!

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Whether You Love Or Hate Abrams' 2009 Enterprise, QMX's New Artisan Replica Is A Sight To Behold!!