Two Versions of Serenity (the ship) solved!

POSTED BY: JavidRho
UPDATED: Tuesday, April 19, 2005 14:19
VIEWED: 7790
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KHAZARA

Friday, August 6, 2004 5:56 AM

Wow! Good catch! How could we not have seen this before?!

DAEDALUS

Friday, August 6, 2004 6:35 AM

Here's what I think the lowdown is. The logo changing, more likely than not, an animation error. However, in response to the ship changing, I think this was a very deliberate touch. Throughout the series, the crew goes through economic highs and lows - meaning that things could break, be replaced, or even altered. I think Serenity is very much a work in progress. Mal didn't have much money starting out, and in the same way that people renovate a 'fix-er-upper' house, changes slowly keep the ship in repair, and modify and better existing components.

JUTIN

Friday, August 6, 2004 7:50 AM

I agree. Just as Joss has fixed up the ship for the BDM, since six months have passed and they mave have sold the Lassiter.

SIKKUKUT

Friday, August 6, 2004 8:05 AM

I dunno, those looked like pretty major structural changes, at least to the neck and bow. I'd honestly rather think of it as an animation issue than an in-universe one, but that's just my preference...

____________________________
"You're mean. Firefly's making me reconsider my lifelong devotion to Star Trek." --My mother

LTNOWIS

Saturday, August 7, 2004 2:55 AM

Quote:
six months have passed and they mave have sold the Lassiter.

Or they went back for Early's ship sold it. Or they ripped out Early's shiny, smooth metal and cooler buttons and replaced the interior surfaces of Serenity. Hopefully they'll have some lines about the new interior, to placate people who haven't thought about it.

BIOTECH

Tuesday, April 12, 2005 9:59 PM

Quote:
Originally posted by Daedalus:
Here's what I think the lowdown is. The logo changing, more likely than not, an animation error. However, in response to the ship changing, I think this was a very deliberate touch. Throughout the series, the crew goes through economic highs and lows - meaning that things could break, be replaced, or even altered. I think Serenity is very much a work in progress. Mal didn't have much money starting out, and in the same way that people renovate a 'fix-er-upper' house, changes slowly keep the ship in repair, and modify and better existing components.

Of course that would only work if it didnt swap back and forth in the same episode.

DEADMAN

Tuesday, April 19, 2005 6:28 AM

Hey all. I've been lurking for some time but I figured I'd weigh in on this.

There are actually 3 and only 3 versions of the ship used in the series.

I cant believe no one has figured out till now WHY, but as an aspiring animator myself the reason is obvious: The "boxy" version as you so call it is actually a "low-res" or lower polygon/detail version of the ship. The thrusters for example are mounted on little plates that stick out of the side, rather than being actually cut into the hull itself which costs you more triangles. This version of the ship is the lowest res/fastest to render model probably mostly for long distance shots, yet it was imbued with enough detail that it could be used in closeup shots as needed.

The second version is an "intermediate" version of the ship. The diffrences on this version are a bit more subtle, the wings have some of the detail bumpmapped as opposed to modled, the neck is a diffrent mesh and the swept housing for the spinny thing in the center is diffrent. This version gets used a lot, and they actually tend to swap out parts on it, which is why you think there are 4 models. Sometimes it has an addational ring segment in the back where the tail connects to the ship. Sometimes the tail (the "firefly" area.) which changes radically is the higher or lower res version. But the rest of the model is more or less the same.

The final model is of course, Serenity as we know her. High res, and easily the most complex of the models. The highest res model is also the sleekest interestingly enough.

Anyway, the only real diffrence between the animated serenities and the "live" or set one is a few subtle diffrences in the cockpit windows and the fact that the area in front of the ship pulls back on either side of the cargo bay door, where as on the set version its straight across. So there you have it. 3 Models and the sets.

Personally I'm surprised that the models of the ship are all so diffrent. They would have been built by diffrent people to make the most efficent use of studio time, but I would have thought they'd all be based off the exact same template.

BYTETHEBULLET

Tuesday, April 19, 2005 2:14 PM

I asked in the other thread but I thought I would ask here too...were can I get a wallpaper sized version of the other ships? Any of them. I have the boxy version as my current wallpaper right now.

Thanks,
ByteTheBullet (-:

DEADMAN

Tuesday, April 19, 2005 2:19 PM

Your best bet is either to go with a wallpaper made out of screencaptures, or to go with one of the well done images produced by fans which are based on the high-res version. Treybor's model seems to be a particular favorite.

Either way, check the blue room. Alternately, if you have photoshop skills you can head over to stillflying.net and pick up some screen caps to turn into a desktop.

"Also? I can kill you with my brain."
-River

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