NX-1701-A: The Enterprise That Never Was...
| Zine | |
|---|---|
| Title: | NX-1701-A: The Enterprise That Never Was... |
| Publisher: | Michael Alexander |
| Editor(s): | Michael Alexander |
| Date(s): | 1993 |
| Medium: | |
| Fandom: | Star Trek |
| Language: | English |
| External Links: | |
| Click here for related articles on Fanlore. | |
NX-1701-A: The Enterprise That Never Was... is a 16-page zine of blueprints for a Star Trek spaceship. It was created by Michael Alexander.
...in 1989, I built a little business called SOLARIS DESIGNS. It was started from the unexpected exposure of my NX-1701-A design in Starlog magazine. Several dozen calls from around the North American continent expressed interest in the NX and any other ideas on standby. In the midst of my chaotic but controlled life. The drive to create new starship designs sprang forth from my mind. It was like 7th grade school all over again (circa 1970). But this time I was equipped a huge 4 x 5 ft drafting board, copy/blueprint machines and beyond my boyhood dreams, access to a Computer Aided Design (CAD) workstation with plotter...all located at my job. After my regular work was done, I would stay into the night to imagine, conceptualize, Illustrate and render starship designs of all kinds. Which by then I wanted to showcase my ships with the 200 something people that reached me by mail. I ran ads, flyers and made phone calls for anybody who was interested.
My family and friends are still amazed at my continued fascination with Star Trek, and even more amazed with the longevity and popularity of the genre. Now, at the age of thirty-five, I am still able to enjoy as I did at age nine the derring-do of heroes who somehow get the job done in less than an hour. As a five-year-old in 1962, I watched the televised Mercury launches as well as animated and live-action science fiction programs. This combination of viewing was to create a lasting Impression, one which would ultimately lead me to pursue a career in the aerospace industry, and a zeal for drawing futuristic vehicles of action/adventure in my spare time.I enjoy designing new elements of Star Trek, but there are other '60s fantasy icons that perpetuate nostalgic romanticism. How many of us fondly remember the Seaview, Flying Sub, Fireball XL-5, Jupiter 2, Stingray, Voyager, and the Mach 5? In 1970, I read Stephen E. Whitfields The Making of Star Trek, and it began to sink in that ail these fantastic vehicles were designed for just one purpose-to facilitate the telling of a story within the constraints of a TV show or motion picture budget. But even after years of real-world comprehension, the magic of these creations still remains.
I learned that an artists concept can be altered or deleted at the whim of studio executives. Reading behind-the-scene publications (e.g., Cinefantastique, Cinefex, American Cinematographer, Starlog) informed me that the destruction of the Enterprise in Star Trek III was partially attributable to a special effects supervisors distaste for its design. On the other hand, we Treknology fans try to translate studio production glitches (dramatic license) into Star Trek sense. Using "bogus science and techno-babble," one might be able to "explain" how an antimatter spread comes from a phaser array, or why a phaser beam emanates from a photon torpedo launcher tube.
Wherever possible, I have taken pains to extrapolate personal Star Trek interpretations from the work generated by the professionals. Designs such as the NX-1701-A are my own extension of a particular scenario. I enjoy the challenge of drawing a ship with functional, flowing sylph lines or, conversely sharp, jagged ones. The theme naturally dictates the design. A decade ago I created some hydraulic pump drawings for NASA's space shuttles. But, as an aerospace draftsman, my work is presently geared toward the "aero' portion of my profession. My visionary drawings are intended to fuel the imagination...and imagination is where all ideas begin, whether based in fantasy or in reality.Right after the Enterprise went down in flames in Star Trek III, some of my aerospace co-workers came to me in sniggering overtones about it. "Well Mike, we like to offer our condolences." "You're probably taking it harder, than the death of of 'what's his' name with the pointy ears." I would go along with the ribbing by feigning mock sorrow and hysteria. But right after our laughter, I began working on my version of next the Enterprise. The general configuration was completed in November 1984. I was a bit surprised that the next Enterprise was not an Excelsior class vessel. But, from a economic and marketing standpoint, I can understand why Paramount carried over the movie design in Star Trek IV. Another reason was, the Next Generation, with its NCC-1701-D, was a year away from the first airing. In 1988, when Starlog magazine began to showcase various ideas and opinions on how revision W should look, I refined my variation and submitted it to Starlog, where ft was published in the July 1989 (No. 144) issue.
As with most of my drawings in this retrospective, these designs were generated on personal time at work. With access to a large drafting board and a CAD setup, it was the logical thing to do.
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