Rewrites: NONE YET
This next model that we are going to take a look at was not an actual starship, but rather a remote control toy owed and operated by Captain Johnathan Archer.
Per Memory Alpha, "A remote controlled model spaceship was a type of 22nd century toy model that could be controlled by remote control. As a child, Jonathan Archer flew a remote controlled model spaceship with his father, Henry Archer. It had a nose and ailerons on either wing, and Archer crashed it several times."
If you would like to read more official stuff on this type of ship, feel free to check out the following links:
Archer's Toy Ship Information: Memory Alpha LINK and NO Memory Beta LINK
Before we get into the review, here is my standard photo shoot of the model.
This entry from Eaglemoss perplexes me a bit. This is the first model of a model that they have given us. One can assume that the model that Archer was flying was of an actual starship, but nothing is ever really set in stone. We only ever see the model, and never the actual ship that it is based off of. Given these facts, I think that Eaglemoss should have devoted the time and materials to bringing us an actual starship for this issue, and just left the toy to be sold as a Bonus Edition model instead.
The sculpting and mold work for this model is pretty good. The main body of the ship is very simplistic with a few raised panels here and there.
The rear of the ship is cool looking with nicely rendered and somewhat complicated looking engine exhausts.
The paint work is very reminiscent of the US based Space Shuttle Program from 1981 to 2011. I am also reminded of the OV-165 model from Issue # 128. What is nice is that the panels and other small details help break up the overall white on grey/black so that the model actually is a treat to look at.
The raised panels are all painted precisely, with no misalignments that I could see. All in all, Eaglemoss did a good job with the paint work as well.
Probably the most exciting part of this model is it's use of clear plastics. And they are not used on the nacelles either. Instead, Eaglemoss has decided to give us a clear cockpit window, much like it was on Johnathan Archer's remote control toy.
This is a very cool feature that Eaglemoss has only done two other times in the Official Starship collection, and that was with the Workbee and the Sphinx Workpod shuttles. My only complaint is that the pilots are not painted, so they sort of just blend into the background with the rest of the cockpit details.
The stubby little nacelles are very reminiscent of those found on The Phoenix and other early era Terran warp capable vessels. The rendering of them is not perfect, but not too bad either. You can see some of the mold seams along the front edges and some of the paint work is not perfectly aligned. The bussard collectors are not made from clear plastics, but rather, painted on. I'm OK with this, because it makes the model more screen accurate since we saw young Johnathan painting them at the beginning of the episode.
And that is all the pictures and comparisons I have to share on this ship at this time. As for pricing, I will continue with the tradition of rounding up the most inexpensive Buy-It-Now prices from eBay at the time of this article's writing (January 29th, 2021). It looks like you can get this model from both eBay as well as directly on Eaglemoss' US Webstore for around $25. Although on eBay, shipping is included in that price.
Is the model worth the cost? While it is not of an actual starship that was seen in the series, it is still a neat looking model. And I suppose we can be thankful that it didn't sell as a Bonus Edition model because then the price would have been $5 more since Eaglemoss somehow justifies raising the prices on those models. In the end, it is a nicely done model. And if you like the Space shuttle look, or have the OV-165, the two models do compliment each other and show more progression of a modern day type of starship. To answer my question, yes, in my opinion, this one is worth the money if you are into these types of ships.
As always, I hope you found this article useful and informative. If you have any questions, comments or suggestions, please feel free to comment below.
So for now, "Live long and prosper!!!"
Additional Links To Photos Of My Collection:
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