Shuttles 5: Movie Dominance

It's a bit of a shuttle bonanza this month from SKoST with sets two, five and six all getting featured over the next week.

While there was a more TV themed selection in set two which we looked at recently, set five turns much more towards the big screen.

Classed as instalment 17, the Air Tram is a product of The Motion Picture, delivering Admiral Kirk to Starfleet Command. While that introduction is impressive, the model less so.

A combined two pieces of plastic form the shape of this oblong transport. The aztec paint job, the blacked out windows and the decaled registry and UFP logos do help it stand out but tragically its 1970's design is the ultimate let down. OK, it's better it turned up in this set than as a standalone (or is it?) but this is probably the most uninspiring shuttle from the whole seven sets produced to this point in time (still sets four and seven to add to the collection but we'll get to them I'm sure...). 

Its onscreen likeness is captured perfectly well with the resultant model showing off the sleek shape and bisected with that red horizontal stripe also concealing the join. The red edging on the numerical decals too isn't very precise when it's sitting next to the Starfleet Tug and the Galileo. It's just ok if truth be told and yes, the nav lights and thruster points are all in the right place but the Air Tram is totally outclassed by the other three craft contained in the pack.

In contrast the Starfleet Tug is a weathered, slightly battered affair that immediately indicates its working nature. There's a bit of a sheen to the curved viewscreen at the front but the rest of this little craft is modelling excellence. It also shows up all the problems that face the 100% plastic Air Tram. Once more combining metal and plastic, the Tug paintwork has a mottled and uneven effect all the way across its distinct panelling. The "5" decals on top and sides also have a near perfect red edging effect that's evenly spaced to the central number PLUS the cross hatch pattern lies precisely along that rear edge. 

Even to the rear, the worn paint work comes through and on closer inspection of the hatch tape you'll spot that even that is showing slight signs of wear and tear. The black decals to the top are a little too clean as are the darker grey curve sections at the back but Eaglemoss have achieved a good recreation of such an often (in the movies) seen piece of Starfleet tech.

Applauding the Tug is one thing however the Voyager Type-8 shuttle is a mixed bag of all that is good and bad with this set. The recreation of the physical item is pretty decent. The panelling isn't perhaps defined enough for me but there's a good balance on the colours and attention to detail when it comes to the placement of the decals and the choice to go with the translucent blue plastic for the warp engines. Some of the venting detail on the sides and the RCS thrusters are marked in well BUT...

The paint and quality of the decals on this one is almost shocking. The window black is chipped in places and doesn't completely fill the frames, the red of the impulse engine intakes has bled out of its shape and most disappointing is the legibility of the decals. Ok, the Starfleet pennants are in the right place and crisp but everywhere else the markings are horrid. Borders are misaligned, blurred  and in the case of the blue script under the side windows it's even impossible to make out the letters. Yuk. 

To a degree even the paintwork feels a slight bit dirty and rushed on this one. I like the design here but its the finishing touches which don't add up to something better than the individual parts. Second dip of the pack - can we at least draw a 50/50 result with the final one of the set?

Keep everything crossed because this one's a favourite of mine; the Galileo from The Final Frontier. Let's get the jokes out of the way first. The film isn't Trek's finest hour but the shuttles (Galileo and Copernicus) are among some of its sprinkled highlights. Indeed, these shuttles would have an impact that can be seen in both TNG and in Generations where the original full-sized versions were hacked about to be used for other ships.

The horrid bit of the Galileo is that central, horizontal join line that screams at you every time you turn her sideways. On the port side it's also wider than starboard but that's my biggest criticism of a ship we haven't seen in model form other than as part of the AMT USS Enterprise refit for The Final Frontier and The Undiscovered Country. There's also a sprue point that's not been sanded out enough but I only spotted that in a super closeup check. This scale work better for the shuttle too with a decent single colour paint job providing that matte finish. The blacked window is properly coloured in and the RCS thruster ports are also painted in perfectly along the central lip of the ship.

The decals themselves from the pennant along the side to the "5" numbering is also spot on and evenly printed so you can actually read it. What I also do love are those blocky movie style engines hanging out to the sides. The support struts are a lot stronger than on the original TV Galileo model from set one although the painting of the grilles to the front and sides is patchy. 

The Galileo here has a distinct shape to her and one we would, of course, see again in several chopped up forms so it's good to get up close with the original version. I'm a little saddened that the lights underneath aren't painted in but it's a step up from the quality of the Air Tram and the rushed nature of the Type-8's paintwork. This one does have a super smooth finish that's not tarnished with lumps and bumps. It's also annoying that the Tug probably trounces this one for top dog in the set if only down to its build quality which doesn't give too much away.

As with all previous sets, each shuttle comes with its own lithograph LCARS print to display with it and a small mini (MINI) magazine. Each details purely the in universe appearance of the craft in question with some nice images from screen appearances and new CG created specially for this release. As with all of the sets I'll again note that some form of designing articles wouldn't have gone amiss with these!

Check out all our Starships (and shuttles!) posts HERE

You can find out more on the Star Trek: The Official Starships Collection by visiting the Hero Collector website HERE

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