Border Worlds: Flag vs. Roundel

The topic of Wing Commander IV's texture files recently came up and a question came up: what's that spiky logo on the side of the Vindicator? If it's intended to be the Border Worlds logo, why is it so different from the circular 'phoenix' seen elsewhere?

The answer is that it's a roundel which represents the Union of Border Worlds Navy! It differs from the more familiar Border Worlds logo which represents the entire Union of Border Worlds. Compare the United States flag to the roundel used on military aircraft, for instance:

The Border Worlds roundel is actually more common than you think. It appears throughout the game, including on many Border Worlds ships (including all the fighters):

It even shows up inside the Intrepid where it's intended to match the FMV... unfortunately the texture is mirrored incorrectly!

It's also pretty distinct in gameflow, where it represents an available mission briefing on and again shows up clearly on the Banshee.

It even appears on two ships cut from the final game but left in the files: a Border Worlds space station and an R-type shuttle in Border Worlds livery.

Its similarity to the band Metallica's ninja star logo also can't be ignored!

The 'flag' logo appears throughout the game, too. It's on the uniform shoulder patches, in the Intrepid's UI and shows as the default comm video for Border Worlds capital ships! I've always liked the amount of thought that went into the logo, with the colonies, a moon, appearing with a phoenix rising from the Confederation star.

The logo must predate the union, though, as it actually makes an appearance in the background of the Wing Commander movie! It's displayed on one of the Tiger Claw's bridge monitors and can be seen most clearly behind Captain Sansky when Blair delivers the message from Tolwyn. It's easier to pick out once you've seen it in BTS footage.