Diamond Select Toys Star Trek: The Original Series: Romulan Bird of Prey Ship

This is the first Diamond Select/Entertainment Earth Star Trek item I have purchased in a few years, bumping my fleet of starships up to 7. It is proudly displayed next to my Klingon Bird Of Prey.My comments on this model are about 98% pro with only a negligible 2% con (just cosmetic).PRO:FINALLY! An iconic ship form the original series joins the original Enterprise. The most beautiful feature is the gorgeous Bird Of Prey markings covering the entire underside with some flashes of color on the trailing edges of the upper portion "wings" or engine pylons, and the dorsal fin.The lighting is very well done. During the playing of the sound samples or when in "constant on" mode, the windows in the vertical band around the hull and on the upper hull all light up. The tips of the engine nacelles are lit with color changing LEDs that slowly pulsate in a cycle of red to orange to yellow similar in manner to those of the original DS/EE TOS Enterprise model. The rear "exhaust" ends of the nacelles are lit with white LEDs. The plasma torpedo launcher lights up red when certain sound effects are played. The "constant on" mode is activated by pressing down on the dorsal fin for 5 seconds. There are actually two "constant on" modes! the first one is with all the lights on as well as a constant loop of hypnotic Romulan "bridge" background sound effects playing. Press the fin again for "lights only" mode with no sound.The sound effects are amazing, and to my knowledge so far, this ship plays the more sounds than any DS/EE ship I've seen so far. With the "bridge sounds" loop included, I count about 20 individual sounds playable. The bulk of these are lines of dialogue spoken by Mark Lenard who played the Romulan ship commander in the Trek episode "Balance Of Terror". Lenard was of course later cast in the original series and later in the movies as Sarek, Spock's father. Other sounds include the firing of the plasma torpedo launcher, weapon hits sustained by the ship as well as sounds of explosions and damage from within the ship. All sounds are reproduced in excellent fidelity. Very clear & legible.CON:This is an issue with the design of the ship itself and can't be helped. The beauty of the bird markings on the underside of the ship can't be truly appreciated unless the ship is displayed on a higher shelf, or suspended from a ceiling where it can be seen by looking up. Same issue with the Klingon BOP ship... gorgeous underside markings that need to be looked up at to be fully appreciated. This also means that the lights on the upper side of the Romulan ship are not easily seen unless the model is taken down to look at. I'd suggest displaying the ship on a mirror of suitable size so both the upper & lower details can be appreciated at once.The next minor issue is some light leakage through the seams of the engine nacelles which hardcore prop & model collectors may want to fix on their own. For me, it is minor for an otherwise great collectible.The last issue is that the dorsal fin/activation switch as installed is somewhat loose. It doesn't detract from the beauty or affect the functionality of the model, but some collectors may find it irritating.All in all, a highly desirable piece of memorabilia. Very well executed. Highly recommended.

The media could not be loaded. I had the original AMT model which, other than the elaborate and large scale warbird decal, was pretty ho hum. This "toy" is in the same classic style.. but what a difference! It is actually one of my favorites. The finish, the effects, the audio... all are just great, just take a look at the pictures and video. I replaced the batteries with Energizer Lithium Ion which may give the whole thing a bit if a boost. It is at a good scale and sits beautifully with 1/650 scale models. I think it is awesome. The new Playmates "Classic" Enterprise is fun (see photo), but this Diamond Romulan ship is cool and sleek. I like it better than the Diamond Select classic Enterprise. The Klingon ship in the photo beside the Romulan craft is a 1/650 K'Tinga battlecruiser model. They look great together, right? If you know an older Star Trek that doesn't have this, he will love this as a gift. It really packs a surprise punch of nostalgia and is more elegant than a mere "toy." The best present is the one you never knew you wanted. Give someone a treat!

I own several of the Star Trek ships made by Diamond Select and Art Asylum but this is hands-down the BEST Star Trek ship they have produced to date.The packaging was simple yet perfectly protects the ship and stand in the box. The stand comes in two parts that pressure-fit together and the base looks like the classic Romulan Star Empire logo from TOS. The stand fits perfectly to the ship without you needing to mess with alternative parts (unlike the frustrating NX-01 Enterprise). The battery compartment is easy to access but is reasonably hidden (yes, there is a seam line around the battery compartment but it's not a deal breaker). The model is sculpted beautifully with perfect detail ... every window is expertly placed and the infamous plasma torpedo launcher looks amazing.What really pushes this ship over the edge is the execution of the light and sound effects. The front of each nacelle glows with a single multi-color red/orange/yellow LED that gives a similar look to the engine nacelles on the Enterprise from TOS. The sounds are PERFECT sound clips taken from the episode "Balance of Terror" and the designers use almost EVERY line of dialogue from the Romulan Commander (Mark Lenard) to bring this ship to life.I cannot praise this ship enough. Diamond Select and Art Asylum have really raised the bar with this one and I hope this sets a new standard for any future Star Trek ships they release. This belongs in every Trek fan's collection. Buy one now!

The media could not be loaded. in perfect condition, looks great.

The ship looks like the Balance of Terror episode Romulan ship from Star Trek: The Original Series. Once I replaced the completely dead/discharged batteries that were included, the lights and sounds functioned quite well. Thankfully, the batteries had not leaked. It looks great functioning in the dark with it's variable colored warp nacelle lights when it is put into it's lighting display mode.