Will the real serenity please stand up?

POSTED BY: biotech
UPDATED: Tuesday, April 12, 2005 22:19
VIEWED: 3370
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BIOTECH

Tuesday, April 12, 2005 9:02 PM

While trying to improve my 3D model of Serenity I came across an excellent site offering DVD screengrabs of all episodes, and I saved all the pictures I could of our favourite firefly class vessle.

What I found was rather puzzling, I always knew that the 5 views printed on this site didnt match up with the most famous shot of Serenity that was on all the publicity images, but I put that down to being a version used as a test, and not used in the show, but I was wrong, two distinct Serenities are used in the show, which I have nicknamed "Tray" and "Prong"

Some episodes feature them both, even swaping back and forth between them with different angles of the same shot, the train robbery being the biggest culpret of this.

Anyway the evidence...

The big image is Tray, so called because the entire engine housing is held in a tray, notice also the nacells have rounded details, rather than feathered details.
The inset is prong, where the ship has the much smaller prongs under the main engine housing, its not a one peice.

Tray is the inset in this picture, notice the "barn" is flat with the top of the ship, there is no complex side structure for the landing legs as there is in prong (the main image)

Now I dont know if it was two effects companies sharing the load, or if the load was shared between two teams in the same company, but there were definatly two models in use that were similar, but not identicle, and I'd love to know how that happened.

http://still-flying.net/images/index.php

Is the site for the screen grabs.

ZEEK

Tuesday, April 12, 2005 9:19 PM

I'm not seeing much difference at all, if any. It looks like all the shots are just from slightly different angles to me. Could you be more specific about where the differences are? What do you mean by the "barn" anyway?

BIOTECH

Tuesday, April 12, 2005 9:23 PM

The barn is the main cargo area, I call it the barn because it is painted to look like a barn.

SERGEANTX

Tuesday, April 12, 2005 9:28 PM

Hmmm.. I'm not seeing the difference either. ( Also, what are the 'nacells'? )

I'm sure they had different models as the series progressed. There were definite tweaks to the interior as thing went along.

SergeantX

"Dream a little dream or you can live a little dream. I'd rather live it, cause dreamers always chase but never get it." Aesop Rock

BIOTECH

Tuesday, April 12, 2005 9:32 PM

The main engine is the large elongated sphere at the rear that glows yellow when they do a full burn, at the end of that is not a lot of detail in the tray version, and a ton of detail in the prong version, the back of the prong that turns into a loop around the rear also has much more detail in the prong version.

Nacelles are the engines to either side, they stick out on arms, and can swing down, and also revolve back to front.

The rear of those are different in both versions.

AURAPTOR

Tuesday, April 12, 2005 9:40 PM

I'm not seeing the difference. Just the same thing seen at different angles with light/shadow variations.

You don't have any pics of UFO's or 'Nessie', do ya?

" They don't like it when you shoot at 'em. I worked that out myself. "

BIOTECH

Tuesday, April 12, 2005 9:42 PM

Would it help if I drew a picture round the differences?

I guess most people just dont look at the ship as closely as someone thats spent the best part of a year making it in 3D

BIOTECH

Tuesday, April 12, 2005 9:49 PM

RHUTTNER

Tuesday, April 12, 2005 9:51 PM

There were 2 versions used in the series.

This was discussed last year. See this thread for more:

http://www.fireflyfans.net/thread.asp?b=2&t=6588

If you click the link to the Blue Sun Room thread thats in the first post, you will see 2 pictures of Serenity that makes it very clear what some of the differences are.

SERGEANTX

Tuesday, April 12, 2005 9:55 PM

Going back, I do see some differences in that central engine nozzle. I think the 'nacells' are articulated and flare out or in depending on what the thrusters are doing at the time (perhaps).

So how is the model coming?

SergeantX

"Dream a little dream or you can live a little dream. I'd rather live it, cause dreamers always chase but never get it." Aesop Rock

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