(written from a Production point of view)
Star Trek Universe: The Official Starships Collection is a British partwork magazine and product line that premiered in March 2021 [1] and is published by Eaglemoss Collections under its Hero Collector imprint.
The line is available to the UK, EU, and US, and will be marketed in a number of other countries. Subscriptions are available to select countries,[2] and products are widely retailed by the company's international webshops and other retailers.
Each issue includes a sixteen-page magazine (measuring 168 × 217 mm [3]) and a 150 to 240 mm-long hand-painted [4] scaled replica of a starship from Star Trek: Picard and/or Star Trek: Strange New Worlds.
Also featuring vessels from Star Trek: Discovery as part of its scope, this line will supersede the Star Trek: Discovery The Official Starships Collection [5], and may grow to encompass future Star Trek projects that are currently in production.
Received directly from the shows' VFX teams, production-used CGI studio models are adapted for use as printable 3D miniatures (and for 2D renders in the magazines) and converted into CAD files by Fabio Passaro's Meshweaver Productions, under the supervision of Eaglemoss' Development Manager, John Ainsworth. [4]
Cast in ABS and die-cast metal, a number of starship designs are reproduced here (as miniatures) for the first time by any manufacturer.
Once again, Ben Robinson is the senior manager of the project and a co-author and co-editor of the accompanying magazines, which currently bear the titles, Star Trek: Picard The Official Starships Collection and Star Trek: Discovery The Official Starships Collection.
Magazine spread
Gift premiums have been released to subscribers and larger Special Edition starship models have been scheduled. Additionally, XL Edition models of some popular "hero ships" from the aforementioned Star Trek shows are available in the Official Starships Collection.
A number of starship profile articles from this series were also published in the second edition of the Star Trek: Shipyards - Starfleet Ships 2294 to the Future reference book.
A sister publication of the Star Trek: The Official Starships Collection, Star Trek: The Next Generation Build The USS Enterprise NCC-1701-D, and Star Trek Online Starships Collection lines, it is authorized and licensed by CBS Consumer Products.
| Eaglemoss Collections/Hero Collector publications |
|---|
| Starship collections: Official • Discovery • STO • Universe • Lower Decks |
| Other collections: Build the Enterprise-D • Busts |
| Book series: A Celebration • Designing Starships • Graphic Novel Collection • Nerd Search • Shipyards • Illustrated Handbook |
| Other books: Mr. Spock's Little Book of Mindfulness • Star Trek Cocktails • The Book of Grudge |
Contents
Issues
| No. | Cover | Title/Contents | Model | Lng* | Scale |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| (01) | 
|
La Sirena
07/03/2021 [6]
|
|
190 mm l 122mm w |
1:450 |
| (02) | 
|
USS Zheng He
09/03/2021 [7]
|
|
209 mm l 105 mm w |
1:3019 |
| (03) | 
|
Romulan Bird-of-Prey
09/05/2021
|
|
116 mm l 146 mm w |
1:788 |
| (04) | 
|
Seven of Nine's Fenris Ranger Ship
28/06/2021
|
|
220 mm | 1:76 |
| (05) | 
|
Romulan Vessel
19/07/2021
|
|
110 mm l 216 mm w |
1:76 |
| (06) | 
|
Narek's Snakehead
24/09/2021
|
|
145 mm | 1:58 |
| (07) | 
|
Wallenberg Class Tug
04/09/2021
|
|
214 mm | 1:1383 |
| (08) | 
|
Romulan Flagship
30/09/2021
|
|
124 mm l 136 mm w |
n/a |
| (09) | 
|
Section 31 Deimos-Class
11/2021 |
|
~216 mm | |
| (10) | 
|
Romulan Warbird
12/2021 |
|
~216 mm w | |
| (11) | 
|
USS Discovery NCC-1031-A
01/2022 |
|
||
| (12) | 
|
Book's Ship
02/2022 |
|
||
| (13) | 
|
USS Voyager NCC-74656-J
2022 |
|
||
| (14) | 
|
USS Nog NCC-325070 | 
|
||
| (15) | 
|
Constitution class (31st century) | 
|
||
| (16) |
|
Synth Ship | 
|
*Starship length as measured from bow to stern, where applicable.
Confirmed upcoming issues
| Temp. cover | Title | Image |
|---|---|---|
|
|
Hunhau Transport Ship | 
|
|
|
USS Curie NCC-81890-J | 
|
|
|
USS Dresselhaus NCC-325019 | 
|
|
|
USS Tikhov NCC-1067-M | 
|
Bonus Edition issues
On 16 November 2021, the first two "Bonus Editions" of the Collection were added to the company UK and EU webstores, after one of them debuted at Destination Star Trek London between 12-14 October 2021. It concerned two variant Inquiry-class sister vessels of the USS Zheng He, the USS Varian Fry (β) and the USS Maui (β), both part of the fleet that forced the Romulans into a stand-off in "Et in Arcadia Ego, Part 2", the first season finale of Star Trek: Picard. Each model came with its own individual livery deco and was retailed with the same magazine and stand as issue 2 and gift issue 6 (listed below). The releases for the European webstores were limited to 200 copies each. [6] [7] They were added to the US webstore on 30 November 2021 as regular, non-limited releases.
| No. | Box | Title | Model | Lng* | Scale |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 180px | USS Varian Fry (NCC-87883) (β) Limited Edition Variant
16/10/2021 |
|
209 mm l 105 mm w |
1:3019 |
| 2 | 180px | USS Maui (NCC-96761) (β) Limited Edition Variant
16/10/2021 |
|
209 mm l 105 mm w |
1:3019 |
Pin badge set
First previewed as a forthcoming retail product through the company's US webshop in early 2021, this set is also distributed as a gift premium.
| Title | Set |
|---|---|
| La Sirena Pin Badge Set | 
|
Limited Edition prints
The line's first Limited Edition print began to ship to UK subscribers in July 2021 and is limited to 850 copies. EU subscribers began to receive the print between issues 4 and 5, in an edition limited to 3500 copies. [8] The second print was released along similar lines in November 2021, though this time around limited to 570 copies for the UK and 2500 for the EU.
Each 30 × 40 cm (including the border around the 19.5 × 26.5 cm image) print's artwork was created by DIS starship designer Ryan Dening, and is reproduced on 310 gsm Hahnemühle German Etching paper, also including a Certificate of Authenticity.
The subscriber email announcement claims of being subscriber "exclusives", was somewhat watered down when both prints, now called "Giclee Art Print[s]", became offered for sale to the general public in the company's webstores from early November 2021 onward.
| No. | Title | |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | "USS Discovery NCC-1031-A" | 
|
| 2 | "Starfleet 3189" | 
|
Gifts
Gift premiums are dispatched to subscribers at predetermined delivery milestones during the duration of the partwork's run and vary in different territories.
| Delivery | Title | Gift | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1st | La Sirena Pin Badge Set (early subscriber bonus) |
| |
| 2nd | Collector's binder | 
| |
| 3rd | 'The Speed of Light Club' metal plaque (USS Leondegrance) |
| |
| 5th | Metal mug with Starfleet Headquarters logo [9] (early subscriber bonus for UK/EU) |
| |
| 6th | 
|
Inquiry-class (USS Toussaint)[10]
|
|
| 8th | Star Trek Universe (La Sirena)-themed print (UK/EU) |
||
Background information
Intro "boost" insert
In July 2020, the company announced that its Discovery starship line and its subscriptions would be suspended after the release of issue 33, due to production delays with the third season of DIS and the resulting lack of new CG assets.
Eaglemoss further reported in October 2020 that it planned to release more starship models from DIS in a future starships line, combined with ships from Picard and Strange New Worlds, [8] and later indicated that the 32nd century Federation fleet from the third season of DIS would be produced. [9] Additionally, a number of unused Klingon starship designs from the DIS partwork may eventually be put into production. [10]
Box art mock-up
In February 2021, Robinson reconfirmed that the Universe line will begin with ten ships from Picard and then pivot to Discovery vessels. Robinson had yet to receive any CG assets of starships from the Strange New Worlds production but revealed that he had received four variants (two unique physical models in two distinct liveries) of the Inquiry-class starship from PIC's producers. [11]
Appendices
Footnotes
- ↑ Originally slated to premiere on 1 April 2021, limited quantities of the first two issues were inadvertently shipped to some UK customers in early March.
- ↑ As had been the case with the preceding Discovery Starships Collection, non-British EU customers were allowed to take out a subscription through the UK website, if a local official website was not available to them in their home countries, which had been the case for countries like the Netherlands, Belgium, and Denmark. Subscription services to US customers only became available on 1 December 2021, almost nine months after the Europeans were afforded to. [1]
- ↑ The partwork's A5 format magazines are the same size as those from the preceding Star Trek: Discovery The Official Starships Collection.
- ↑ The models are painted freehand and with the use of paint masks (templates), alongside pad and tampo printing processes. From CAD files made from conversions of the original CGI studio models, the earliest prototypes are 3D printed in resin and, once approved by Eaglemoss and the licensors, are tooled and manufactured in China using a variety of injection, vacuum, and compression molding techniques. [2]
- ↑ Alongside a few Discovery (XL Edition) ships in the Official Starships Collection, this partwork will present the company's future (regular) DIS starship releases, following the release of the thirty-third numbered issue of the Discovery Starships Collection.
- ↑ Originally slated to premiere on 1 April 2021, limited quantities of La Sirena were inadvertently shipped in early March to some UK customers.
The UK releases started to regularly experience delays beyond the release dates as initially planned by the company for all their partwork releases from early 2020 onward due to the COVID-19 pandemic and the Brexit-inspired move of the company's warehouse and distribution centre from London, UK, to Waghäusel-Kirrlach, Germany, later on in early January 2021. (see also footnotes of main article) It has resulted in a delay ripple effect for not only the launch of the Universe collection, but for the international releases as well, since the UK release was leading for the others – even for Germany and the EU, somewhat ironically. The post-January 2021 release dates mentioned in all tables, are therefore indications of intent rather than the actual release dates. - ↑ Originally slated to premiere on 21 April 2021, limited quantities of the USS Zheng He were inadvertently shipped in early March to some UK customers.
- ↑ The Limited Edition print is part of the partwork for which customers have taken out a subscription and should not be confused with the "Star Trek Universe-themed" print (gift premium) shown above. This out-of-the-ordinary element of the collection was almost certainly introduced as a means to keep collection releases going for subscribers in order to mask experienced/expected reception delays of production assets for the publication. Subscribers were not impressed by this scheme as evidenced by the falling "exclusive" copy numbers, which resulted in the unsold/returned/canceled copies becoming offered for sale through the company's webstores to the general public.
Incidentally, the variant release numbers for the UK and EU editions, reflect the company's respective customer base sizes; see also the footnotes of its main article in this regard. - ↑ The metal mug is identified as a "Starfleet Archivist Beverage Container" on its box.
- ↑ The USS Toussaint variant of the Inquiry-class model features a different nacelle design than some of its sister ships (like the USS Zheng He) from the same class. Both variants were seen on-screen, and each design was rendered with two distinct liveries. [3]
Additionally, some variants display red nacelle elements rather than yellow parts, as rendered in the second edition of the Star Trek: Shipyards - Starfleet Ships 2294 to the Future reference book. All these variants were also showcased in the in-universe chapters of the magazine that came with this gift issue and the two later released class variant bonus issues mentioned above, though the design chapter was lifted one-on-one from the magazine that came with regular issue 2.
See also
External links
- Eaglemoss.com – official international webshop
- HeroCollector.com - official collector portal
- Star Trek Universe - official YouTube playlist with model turnaround videos
- Ben Robinson (project manager) at Twitter
- HeroCollector Star Trek & Sci Fi Collections Fan Group at Facebook – unofficial fan forum
- Wixiban.com – Star Trek Universe index
