Intro Interceptor - where are the soldiers appearing from?

[NKF]

It might be that I've seen the X-Pony intro a few dozen times now, but it got me interested in examining the interceptor in the normal intro very carefully. That in turn has lead me to wondering where the troops are appearing from once it lands.

 

The launch tubes are in a mostly silvery white surface. At least, the one in front is. The two at the back could be anything, so we have a bit of leeway there.

 

The interceptor's major silver section is in the nose. However most of it is broken up by the gold tinted cockpit and there is a distinct red stripe down the middle of the nose that ends with two red fins. I'm not sure if the fins end before the cockpit, or if they are embedded in the glass. At the end of the intro they look embedded in the glass. Either way, the silver area is broken up too much for a hatch.

 

The only other major silver places on top of the ship are the front half of the wings with the vents. They're not central though, and I don't suppose there's much space for someone to be in the wings.

 

The rest of the ship's body is red, not counting the main fuselage and the engine housing at the rear.

 

I just can't see where the hatches the soldiers are leaping from can be placed. A separate transport is the most likely answer (like the middle of the Avenger's B-unit on the US game cover). However the shot of the interceptor landing gives the impression it's what the troops came in. A bit of a conundrum.

 

The realistic explanation is that the scenes aren't meant to be related too literally, and were done more for the wow factor. Nevertheless, I'm sure we can get them to work together somehow!

 

On a different note, I'm starting to see a lot of the design influence for the Apocalypse ships in this vehicle.

 

- NKF