Hallmark Gets It Absolutely Right The Perfect U.S.S. Defiant Ornament!

The Good: GREAT sculpt and detailing, Perfect balance, Great lighting effect, Seems more limited
The Bad: None!
The Basics: A perfect Hallmark Keepsake Star Trek ornament, the U.S.S. Defiant has perfect balance, light effects and enduring value, making it an ornament to get while you can!


So, as I prepare to leave to visit family for the holidays and wishing I could just drive out to see my new love instead, I am dropping one last review for the day. I am capping this little section of retro ornament reviews off with the best I am reviewing for now, the Star Trek ornament that I am happy to rate as perfect. Fans of my many reviews will find it comes as no real surprise that my perfect Star Trek ornament is from Star Trek: Deep Space Nine. And the ornament is the U.S.S. Defiant!

For those unfamiliar with the U.S.S. Defiant, this was one of the defining starships of Star Trek: The Next Generation era in the Star Trek franchise. Introduced in the Star Trek: Deep Space Nine episode "The Search" (reviewed here!), the U.S.S. Defiant instantly made an impression as the only Federation starship with a cloaking device. As well, the Defiant was an anomaly for a Federation starship; it is unabashedly a warship! Unlike other Federation ships, this one foregoes the saucer/engineering hull/warp nacelle design in favor of a sleek, compact starship that is maneuverable, fast, powerful and is one of the most distinctive starships in the Star Trek universe! The starship captured the imagination of fans and was one that made for an obvious choice from Hallmark and Hallmark got the sculpt perfectly!

Basics

The "U.S.S. Defiant" ornament faithfully recreates the dangerous Federation starship in solid gray plastic. The ornament, released in 1997, is a masterwork in terms of the amount of surface details and coloring. Measuring four and five-eighths inches long, three and five-eighth inches wide and barely and three-quarters inches tall, the U.S.S. Defiant ornament is one of the essential Star Trek ships and most fans of the ship and the franchise quickly realized that $24.00 was a steal for the ship, especially given the quality of this ornament.

The Hallmark "U.S.S. Defiant" ornament is made of a durable plastic and has the starship on its own, as is typical for Hallmark's starship line of Star Trek ornaments. Like most previous Star Trek ornament releases, this one has the date painted on it, in this case on the bottom dome that houses the escort vessel's shuttlepod. This ornament plugs into the standard light strand of Christmas lights in order to light up.

The U.S.S. Defiant is detailed impressively. So, in addition to the warp nacelles and deflector dish being molded in different colored plastic (in this case blue and red) on the edge of the primary sensor array are pinprick holes representing a few of the windows on the battleship! As well, the U.S.S. Defiant has amazing surface paint detailing, like the ablative armor panels and sensor discs being painted right onto the surface of the starship. The detail work is actually incredible!

As well, the U.S.S. Defiant has a number of paint details that are faithfully recreated on the ornament. The starship - like most Federation vessels - has call numbers, the ship's name and such painted on. Hallmark accurately recreates every racing stripe and paint detail on the surface of the U.S.S. Defiant on this ornament!

Features

As a Hallmark Keepsake ornament, the "U.S.S. Defiant" has a light function. Fans of the ornaments might be a little disappointed that this ornament has a light function, but no audio one. Many of the Star Trek ornaments both light up and play a sound clip. The "U.S.S. Defiant" does not and I think that's fine because I find the audio functions wear out the intrigue quicker than people think. It does, however, have a five inch cord that is attached completely to the underside of the ornament. This green electric cord is embedded into the bottom aft section and it allows the ornament to be plugged into a Christmas light strand.

Plugging the ornament in (one needs to remove a single light bulb from the strand, then slide the male end from the ornament into the female end on the strand) activates the light effect on the "U.S.S. Defiant." The light effects on this starship ornament are perfect, in part because the U.S.S. Defiant is not the most lit Federation ship we see of the franchise. Hallmark gets the light effect absolutely right in that the impulse drive lights, forward and aft warp ports, and main deflector dish all light up. As well, there are blinking aft running lights and white lights that come through the forward window holes, making this an incredibly realistic version of the Defiant. In fact, the only part that is not lit that would have to be to make this perfectly accurate is the bridge dome and it cannot be (see balance).

The light effects help establish this as a perfectly designed Star Trek ornament!

Balance

As with all ornaments, the intent of the Hallmark Keepsake "U.S.S. Defiant" ornament is to be hung on a Christmas Tree. And for those creating the ultimate Star Trek Christmas Tree, the "U.S.S. Defiant" ornament is an essential piece. The ornament has the standard brass hook loop embedded into the top of the bridge dome. As a result, the ornament, when affixed to a tree with a hook, hangs perfectly balanced from that loop.

As well, when plugged in to activate the light effects, the Defiant remains perfectly level, making it one of the few Star Trek ornaments to have the same sense of balance plugged in as it has simply hung!

Collectibility

Hallmark Keepsake began delving into the collectibles market in 1991 with Star Trek when it introduced the exceptionally limited edition U.S.S. Enterprise ornament (reviewed here!). Since then, they have made ornament replicas of almost all of the major starships from the franchise- as well as some real minor ones - and they have all been more mass produced than that first one. The "U.S.S. Defiant" ornament was a commercial draw; fans bought it and some of the general public invested in it as well. The result was that it was gobbled up rapidly and this one seems to have been relatively less produced than many of the others, so it remains one of the harder ones to find on the secondary market. It has been years since I have seen a Defiant ornament at lest than the original issue price, with many dealers selling the small craft at $50 or more! In other words, this was a success for Hallmark and a decent investment for collectors.


Overview

Fans of the Star Trek franchise, the Federation and the U.S.S. Defiant are likely to be excited by this starship ornament and I can think of no better way to end (for now) my Hallmark ornament reviews than declaring the Defiant a perfect ornament and wishing all a happy holiday!

For other Star Trek ship ornaments from Hallmark, please check out my reviews of:
2011 U.S.S. Defiant (New York Comic Con Exclusive)
2011 Romulan Bird Of Prey
2010 U.S.S. Enterprise (Star Trek refit)
2009 Klingon Battlecruiser
2008 U.S.S. Reliant
2006 U.S.S. Enterprise (reissue)
2005 U.S.S. Enterprise NCC-1701-A
2003 Scorpion Attack Craft
2001 Deep Space Nine
2000 Borg Cube
1999 Runabout Rio Grande
1998 U.S.S. Enterprise NCC-1701-E
1995 Romulan Warbird
1994 Klingon Bird Of Prey
1993 U.S.S. Enterprise NCC-1701-D
1992 Shuttlecraft Galileo

10/10

For other ornament reviews, please visit my index page by clicking here!

© 2011, 2008 W.L. Swarts. May not be reprinted without permission.
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"I'm An Ornament, Not A Doctor!" How Hallmark Failed With Dr. McCoy!

The Good: It doesn't explode?!
The Bad: Not a great likeness of Dr. McCoy, Expensive for the quality, Slight balance issue.
The Basics: Lacking in realistic coloring detail or a distinctive McCoy pose, the Dr. McCoy ornament from Hallmark is a low water mark for Star Trek ornament fans.


Sometimes, I find myself mired in a few of the Star Trek ornaments that did not live up to the exacting standards of Star Trek fans. Let's be honest, fans of the Star Trek franchise - and I am one - can be meticulous and demanding. The thing is, we have good reason to be; Star Trek items tend to be expensive to pay for the licensing fees and as a result, we want our collectibles to look good and hold up over time! Unfortunately, with their ornaments of crew members from Star Trek, Hallmark began to put profit above quality. It is possible the perfect example of this is with the Dr. McCoy ornament.

For those unfamiliar with Dr. McCoy, he was the chief medical officer aboard the U.S.S. Enterprise for almost every episode of Star Trek (click here for my review of the series!). Played brilliantly by DeForest Kelley, Dr Leonard McCoy became in iconic character in popular culture with his acerbic wit and the interplay he had with the ship's first officer, Mr. Spock. McCoy was defined by his compassion, medical brilliance and loathing of the transporter. So, it makes a lot of sense that Hallmark would make Dr. McCoy the third in its series of original Star Trek ornaments right behind Captain Kirk and Mr. Spock. Unfortunately, this incarnation of Dr. McCoy is a poor showing.

Basics

The "Dr. McCoy" ornament poorly recreates the famed Chief Surgeon of the Enterprise in solid plastic. The ornament, released in 1997, is a thoroughly disappointing work, lacking in detailing, realistic shading or even a pose that is essential or insightful for McCoy. Measuring five inches tall, one and three-quarters inches wide and one and three-quarters inches deep, the Dr. McCoy ornament is a poor representation of the doctor and a lousy excuse on the part of Hallmark to demand $20.00 from the fans of the series. As a result, discerning collectors at the time waited and many would not even buy the ornament after it went on clearance because of the quality. When actor DeForest Kelley died, there was a jump in the sales of this ornament, though.

The Hallmark "Dr. McCoy" ornament is made of a durable plastic and has the doctor standing on a transporter platform looking like he is ready to beam down. He is colored correctly with his blue Medical and Sciences shirt and the transporter pad looks good, whatwith its sparkly background.

Dr. McCoy is detailed adequately, for those who are casual fans and those who are just considering this an ornament. Star Trek fans, as mentioned before, tend to be a bit more demanding, though. McCoy is not scowling, which was pretty much the only way he looked when on a transporter pad, so the smile is completely inappropriate. Rather than having McCoy holding a hypo or appearing to scan with a medical scanner, Hallmark chose to have him on a transporter pad and that was a poor choice for the character depicted on this ornament.

Even worse, though, is the depiction of the character. This is an ornament, yes, but the skin tones are brutally pale and lack any definition. This, in fact, looks more like the way Dr. McCoy looked on Star Trek: The Animated Series than he did when Kelley portrayed him in the live-action shows. The paint job on the ones I have opened were hardly impressive and details like the eyes are missing, so there is a rather generic, general sense that this is McCoy rather than being a true likeness. Moreover, the ornament is lacking in details like the fingernails or coloring on the Tricorder. Having seen what Hallmark CAN do, it is astonishing they did not do it for this ornament.

This ornament remains ridiculously easy to find in the secondary market, due largely (one suspects) to its lack of popularity when it was released, owing to the poor "construction" of it.

Features

As a Hallmark Keepsake ornament, Dr. McCoy could have a function like a sound chip or light effect, but does not. This is just an ornament, a low-cost (comparatively) option for those who might not want to shell out for the starship series of Star Trek ornaments. This is McCoy, attached permanently to the transporter pad, all it does is hang.

Balance

As with all ornaments, the intent of the Hallmark Keepsake "Dr. McCoy" ornament is to be hung on a Christmas Tree. And for those creating the ultimate Star Trek Christmas Tree, the "Dr. McCoy" ornament is one that may be safely avoided. The ornament has the standard brass hook loop embedded into the top center of the transporter backdrop. This "base" is essentially a tube and the loop is in the top, center of that base, which is where it ought to be the most stable.

However, the Dr. McCoy ornament is unbalanced; the person is standing near the front of the alcove and as a result, the ornament tilts. The ornament, hanging from the loop leans forward some, so it always seems like McCoy is about to fall forward. The ones I have hung pitch forward about thirty degrees, which is quite noticeable.

Collectibility

Hallmark Keepsake began delving into the collectibles market in 1991 with Star Trek when it introduced the exceptionally limited edition U.S.S. Enterprise ornament (click here for that review!). Since then, they have made ornament replicas of almost all of the major starships from the franchise and when they started on the personnel in 1995, they were quite a bit more mass produced than that first one. The "Dr. McCoy" ornament was a colossal failure commercially. Despite the popularity of this character with fans, the general public which is not as familiar with Star Trek largely passed this one by. As well, fans of the series and of the ornaments were generally disappointed by the sculpt, coloring and overall quality of this ornament.

Overview

Fans of the Star Trek franchise, DeForest Kelley and Dr. McCoy are likely to be largely disappointed by the Dr. McCoy ornament; it is a poor recreation of one of the most lovable characters from one of the classic science fiction television shows of all time. Everyone deserved better treatment from Hallmark than this. It was certainly within their ability and for the price tag

For other character ornaments from the Star Trek franchise, please check out my reviews of:
2010 Legends Of Star Trek Captain Kirk
2009 Lieutenant Ilia (limited edition!)
2005 Khan

1/10

For other ornament and toy reviews, please visit my index page by clicking here!

© 2010, 2008 W.L. Swarts. May not be reprinted without permission.
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