NOTE: You can click on most pictures to get a larger view of them.
Eleven months ago (July 2022), I posted a link to an article that talked about Eaglemoss going into what we call in the United States, a Bankruptcy. On August 5th, 2022, the rumors became true and I came to realize that my collecting of Eaglemoss models had ended. There were rumors that some models were produced but never released, and we might get a chance at purchasing these "lost models", but I am a firm believer of "I'll believe it when I see it." And so I quietly retired from writing reviews, thinking that I'll never get my hands on anything new.
Enter Master Replicas and Real Merch, two UK based companies that managed to acquire Eaglemoss' stockpile of models from around the world. As models have become available for purchase through these sites, it has been a feeding frenzy trying to get one's hands on certain models. Lucky for me, I am only after a select few ships and stations, and it seems that my competition for those items wasn't as fierce.
And so, it was with great excitement that while on a camping trip, I was able to purchase the Caretaker's Array and not be gouged by Internet (eBay) Scalpers. It was a bittersweet moment as I added the second non-human space station to my collection.
We first get to see this starship in the Star Trek: Voyager episode called "Caretaker".
Per Memory Alpha and Beta, "The Caretaker's array was a large space station in the Delta Quadrant not far from Ocampa. It was seventy-five thousand light years from the Badlands and fifty thousand from the galactic core. Built by the Nacene and powered by a tetryon reactor, the array served as a location from which the Caretaker could protect and serve the Ocampa. It acted as an energy source for the underground Ocampa settlements and continually pumped energy into the Ocampa city for nearly 1,500 years."
If you would like to read more official stuff on this type of ship, feel free to check out the following links:
Caretaker's Array Information: Memory Alpha LINK and Memory Beta LINK
Because the Eaglemoss model never made it into the wild as a regular Eaglemoss release, the magazine was never published for it. If you are good with Google Search, you can find the magazine online in various places as a PDF.
Before we get into looking more closely at the Eaglemoss model, I'll share two quick photos of the very rare, and rather pricey ($85 or more) MicroMachine version of the Caretaker's Array.
Up until Eaglemoss produced thier model, the only way to have the Caretaker Array in your collection was to shell out a lot of money for a tiny piece of plastic. Well, now, you can shell out twice as much money for a larger piece of plastic.
When I first learned of this model from Eaglemoss, I had some concerns about it. The production model that was shown to collectors appeared to have accurately made "antenna" branching off of the main hull. Rather than painting the see through areas black like MicroMachines did, we would be able to actually pass something through those things. This of course led me to believe that we could be dealing with a rather fragile model like the Bajoran Solar Sailor. If you have read my review of that model (Check it out at
THIS LINK.), you will remember that the model was very prone to breakage during shipping. Eaglemoss was very generous to people in replacing broken versions of that model and my concern was that Eaglemoss might go bankrupt ( 😐😐😐 ) replacing broken versions of this model. My concerns for the model were unfounded however, as Eaglemoss opted to go with different packing materials and encased the model in a very safe manner.
The other thing that wasn't clear from the first look pictures, was the size of the model. The Caretaker's Array is being released as a Special Edition line model, and as such, we were expecting something larger than the Standard line of models. After coming off of the previous station, the very large Ty'Gokor Orbital Facility, I, like a lot of collectors, was surprised at the size of the Caretaker's Array. It looks small when you first look at it coming out of the box, but this is just a result of them scaling it to fit thier Special Edition sized packaging. Let's face it, it is wider than Jupiter Station, so scale would come into play and affect the overall size of the model.
Sculpt and mold wise, this is a pretty cool looking model. Eaglemoss managed to etch a lot of tactile features in the station. Tiny lines are scratched into many of the surfaces giving a very panel like appearance to those areas. The upper area of the primary hull is clearly defined, and is completed with little greeble like appendages sticking out of the neck.
The bottom of the central section carries on this tradition of finely detailed parts. Sadly, as has become normal in later Eaglemoss releases, the magazine was devoid of any labeling of the different sections of the model, so I can not adequately call this bottom area by its rightful description.
The Array's panels that stick out from the central spire are constructed well. They are not flimsy, nor do they droop. The fact that the panels are cut out was an amazing feat on Eaglemoss' part, and quite the financial gamble considering that these could have been the model's weak point.
The paintwork does a great job of conveying the station's simple purpose. An off color of yellow brown is lightly speckled across the entire model, and paired with some well placed dirty grey patches, gives it a heavily used and aged look.
The model does not contain any of Eaglemoss' signature clear plastic parts to denote "glowing" areas, and instead opted for a ring of yellow to highlight an area of importance.
The mottled paint work carries over to the primary and secondary panels, thus giving the entire thing a uniform look.
That wraps up my commentary and pictures of the Caretaker's Array. Normally, at this point in my article, I would help you find the best place to purchase one, however, those days came to an end. Other than keeping an eye on eBay of a nicely priced one, you can check out one of the following sites (Click on thier logo to go there.) to see if they are carrying it.
In the end, I ended up liking this model. It is well made and looks cool among the other Eaglemoss stations. It is a shame that the Caretaker's Array ended up being released under such sad circumstances, such as a bankruptcy.
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:
Eaglemoss MicroMachine
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