We’re back with a look at the first of two new Kelvin Timeline starship models due for 2018, Eaglemoss’ new Star Trek Beyond refit edition of the USS Enterprise!
The ship got its start in the 2009 Trek film, and was redesigned for Beyond under the eye of director Justin Lin, something we first covered in 2016 when the starship’s new look first debuted — the Enterprise was streamlined from stem to stern in anticipation of the confrontation above Altamid.
Eaglemoss has brought the Beyond starship to life in this new model, which features a great deal of the Enterprise upgrades in its 8″ length — and unlike some of the model line’s other variant releases, this is a totally new sculpt compared to their Star Trek (2009) model which debuted in 2014.
This new build is a definite necessity thanks to the number of changes to the original ship, which include added textural details to the saucer and secondary hull, the completely redesigned warp nacelles and swept-back struts, and stretched neck connecting the two halves of the ship. Even the rear shuttlebay door has texture, compared to the smooth dome seen on the 2014 model.
The one detail that isn’t very well represented is the new phaser emitters on the Beyond refit, however; the digital model in the film had nearly double the weapons banks of the original ship, beefed up for the Swarm Ship battle in the film, but there’s no sign of them on the saucer of the new edition.
While this version of the Enterprise only had a short life on the big screen, destroyed in the first act of Star Trek Beyond, it certainly seems to have a life to it that the original Kelvin Timeline Enterprise didn’t — with the reduction to the big, bulbous warp nacelles, now shifted away from the saucer, it really gives the Enterprise the ‘hot rod’ feel that was intended from the beginning of the Kelvin Timeline film series.
As for the window alignment issues that’s affected previous Eaglemoss releases? Well, this Enterprise is almost completely spared from that issue, thanks to having only a very few sculpted windows on the secondary hull… which don’t match the black paint that go with them. (Sigh.)
Here’s some more images of the new model:
We’ve also put together this comparison to the 2014 Enterprise model, based upon the ship as it appeared in the 2009 Star Trek film.
In addition to the structural changes, the Beyond edition also has a bit of a different color tone to the hull, and sports a number of additional spots of grey and blue in its design.
As for the Enterprise-A seen in the final moments of Star Trek Beyond? Don’t expect a physical model of that ship anytime soon, as Eaglemoss director Ben Robinson told us last summer that the company won’t be building that ship until they know what the future holds for the adventures of the Kelvin Timeline crew — something only recently starting to crystallize at Paramount.
That being said, if you’re on the hunt for another new Enterprise model, the new Star Trek: Discovery variant of the Constitution-class ship is expected from Eaglemoss within the next year.
In the meantime, this Star Trek Beyond refit of the Kelvin Timeline Enterprise is available now from the Eaglemoss web shop ($45 in the US and £24.99 in the UK), if you’re up for expanding your Federation fleet with this new variant.
Keep an eye on TrekCore as we’ll next be taking on the Kelvin Timeline special Klingon Battle Cruiser warship!