DEQ Design Review: Star Wars Ships, Fighters, and Tanks
For nearly half a decade, the Star Wars franchise has been a source of inspiration, delight, and face palms for industrial designers across the known universe. From speeders to starships, there is always something to love and usually something to hate about the design choices made behind the scenes.
The Original Trilogy
Millennium Falcon
Wanna run the Kessel Run in less than 12 parsecs?
The Millenium Falcon tells a story without speaking a word. From the exposed wires on deck to the missing chunk of its nose, (rumored to have been a runaway escape pod) the rough-and-tumble design of this ship speaks volumes about the life of its captain, Han Solo. The ship is, according to Solo, the fastest in the galaxy, finishing the Kessel Run “in under twelve parsecs.” Though his claim cannot be verified, it’s likely that Solo spent cash on any and all mods that would help the starship smuggle contraband across the galaxy. What we like most about the Falcon is that the designers didn’t waste time making the ship look aerodynamic -- because you don’t need to be aerodynamic in space, dummy. Instead they created an iconic, scrappy spaceship we can all root for.
T-65 X-Wing
A fighter jet for the Rebels
The design of the X-Wing is also iconic, though the sad truth is it doesn’t make a whole lot of sense. Twin air-breathing jet engines may look cool, but probably don’t work very well without an atmosphere. Also, if they need droid co-pilots, why not throw a bullet-proof casing over them or something? Seems like a pretty significant oversight. Maybe they just secretly hate droids. There is one neat thing about the X-Wing: the sound they make when flying was dubbed from a P51 Mustang, a single-seat bomber used by Americans in WWII. It’s a cool homage that makes everything we don’t like about the starfighter a little more tolerable.
Tie Fighter
Keep hold of the empire in your rugged dogfighter.
Another example of an iconic, completely impractical design. Sure, they look like something every villain would want to fly. They’re basically eyeballs with wings. Bad guy vibes aside, these starfighters leave a lot to be desired. Imperial pilots apparently do not need peripheral vision or a landing system. Eventually, they solved the landing problem, as demonstrated by the baddie Moff Gideon, who lands one in episode seven of The Mandalorian. But even then, pilots are left in the awkward position of having to ask for a portable stairway to get them down. All things considered, this starfighter would definitely not be certified by the FAA.
The Prequel Trilogy
Anakin’s Pod Racer
You know you want one
Unpopular opinion: the prequels have the most bada$$ vehicles -- with the exception of Bobba Fet’s starfighter, Slave I, a glorified flying nut cup that should be super-lasered by the Death Star and forgotten. But seriously, most of the ships are awesome. Take Anakin’s pod racer, for example. It looks like it was built out of scraps (cause it was), but still manages symmetry and a bit of style. All the pod racers are essentially chariots: two powerful engines in front, one tiny seat in the back, death pretty much guaranteed.
Naboo Royal Starship and Starfighter
A little bling in the galaxy
Far and away, Naboo had the coolest looking fleet in the galaxy. From their chromed-out luxury starship to their sleek, needle-winged fighters, this planet’s design team was lightyears more advanced than others. The royal starship is a work of art from a design perspective, which should come as no surprise when you consider that in formal settings, Princess Amidala is essentially walking, talking couture. The starfighters are just as fabulous, incorporating some of that chromium, but still letting the main thing be the main thing. We have to assume their starfighters are also incredibly intuitive, as a child jumps in and flies one. The only qualm we have is that Naboo pilots were given WWII helmets. Like…why?
The Modern Films & Series (The Sequel Trilogy, Rogue One, Solo, The Mandolorian)
Imperial Assault Tank
You don’t wanna see these roll up to your Rebel hideout
In the film Rogue One: A Star Wars Story, Imperial stormtroopers use these assault tanks to reinforce their occupation of various worlds. Unfortunately for them, the tanks leave two-thirds of the team completely exposed. They also have a “secret” weak spot on the underside, which makes blowing them up a piece of cake. You would think that after the first Death Star the Imperial army would stop making that mistake. But then, these are the same people who gave Kylo Ren a lightsaber with laser cross-guards. Again…why?
Sandcrawler
Jawas troll Tatooine for scraps and pawn all kinds of junk in these impenetrable fortresses. Even Mando couldn’t breach the defense of a Sandcrawler. Apparently they were originally brought to the planet during a mining boom, though it’s not clear what they were mining for…spice maybe? Jk, wrong sci-fi world. Seriously though, credit to the Sandcrawler designers for perfectly combining Star Wars levity with Mad Max-meets-Borderlands vibes.
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