Sometime in 1941. Concieved at the end of "The Great War" when naval aviation was still in nappies, a steel Time Lord steams through the deceptively placid Pacific Ocean. A few regenerations already chalked up, USS Arizona is overflown by shiny Brewster F2As from USS Lexington (a battlecruiser make-over for Chrissakes...!!!). Its a salute and also a portent that the rules have changed. Sadly, the Arizona did not grow old. Many of its crew did not see the Arizona's next, much more sombre, transformation... to become a shrine in Pearl Harbor. Meanwhile, her sister, the venerable USS Pennsylvania, got those needed upgrades and joined in the "earthmoving" during the counterattack.... delivering perhaps its missing twin's own share of the ordnance in the process. The days of battleships were numbered- but they were not quite over. Consider the Philippines. At night, in Surigao Strait on October 25th 1944, presumably Admiral Nishimura couldnt know... but his last battleship Yamashiro and the shattered remnants of his "Southern Force" were being served up in the dark to the innocuous-sounding 7th Fleet Support Force. At its core were refitted, rebuilt and in some cases resurrected battleships- the graduating class of the war's tragic first morning. Rendered in Vue 8 Esprit USS Arizona- Chris Schell's splendid model of course. www.theschell.ca the "fleet" -my lo-res Clemson-class destroyer and San Fransisco-class heavy cruiser the "water buffalos" - My model of the export knock-off "Buffalo" pretending to be the original, the Brewster F2A carrier fighter, textured in "Lady Lex" warpaint. Thanks for viewing.