RE: What were they thinking?
First of all, it isn’t well done, even within the parameters of that genre. It's more of a Buck Rogers/Ming the Mercilous look rather than the latest Gundam.
Second, why would a company want its top product line to aim at an audience of people with a one minute attention span?
Design is a language, albeit a visual one. A product can communicate the values and qualities that a company wants it to. If you are JR, make a list of those qualities you want your new design to communicate - precision, quality, latest technology, service, ergonomics, etc. Make another list of what you don’t want it to say – cheap, trendy, flimsy, unreliable, etc. Then design an elegant and APPROPRIATE solution to hit the mark. It doesn’t have to look conservative to hit the target.
I suspect the serious 3-D and heli guys will find it embarrassing to show up at the field with this thing, just as I would.
Of course JR makes good products and that can carry them far. It will just be a little difficult moving ahead with a bullet hole in their foot.