Watch companies have always wanted their work on the wrists of heroes, because we men are silly enough to believe that somehow a bit of that magic will rub off on us if we wear the same watch as an explorer, soldier, sportsman, or astronaut. And so it is with make-believe heroes and the new generation of superhero themed wrist fancies. Of all the branded merch that a superhero franchise will churn out, there’s something about a wristwatch that brings out the little kid in even the haughtiest connoisseur of haute horology.
The Citizen watches Avatar collection celebrates the launch of the James Cameron movie Avatar: The Way of Water with three new watch styles: Men’s Wave, the Ladies’ Tree of Souls and the Unisex Wave all powered by the Japanese brand’s ‘eco-drive light technology’ – which means it’ll never need a battery, and which chimes with the film’s ecological message. The ‘Men’s Wave’ dive watch features a ‘leonopteryx’ on the dial, a creature used for transport by characters in Avatar, while the The Unisex Wave features the landscape of the magical Pandora and the oceans and reefs where the characters reside.
At the other end of the price spectrum, the Royal Oak Concept Black Panther Flying Tourbillon features an imposing Black Panther figure lunging out over the hour and minute hands, just above the tourbillon. Made out of white gold, the figure has been intricately laser carved and hand painted to reveal alternately matte and mirror surfaces. Powered by the Caliber 2965, a hand-wound mechanism with a flying tourbillon, the watch comes with 72 hours of power reserve. The 42mm case features the iconic octagonal bezel of the Royal Oak franchise while the purple rubber strap is another reference to the Black Panther franchise. This crazily over-the-top remix of the Gerald Genta classic has been worn by Stormzy and The Weeknd.
All of which has got us thinking – what’s in store for next year’s big superhero releases? Perhaps Chris Pratt might have something even zanier up his sleeve the next installment of Guardian of The Galaxy? What about a limited edition Rocket Raccoon Royal Oak complete with proprietary laser gun complication? Will Oscar Isaac wear his Montblanc 1858 Iced Sea Automatic, Bulgari Octo Finissimo or Cartier Tank Francaise for Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse? Our money is on a collab with the Rolex Milgauss, an antimagnetic watch designed in the '50s for engineers in power plants, medical facilities, and research labs. It’ll keep on ticking so that our radioactive Spider Man won’t miss dinner with his beloved Aunt May. Perhaps there’ll be a crazily overhyped Swatch collab for the forthcoming Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania?
Although not quite a superhero, this year’s limited edition Mario Kart Chronograph collab with TAG Heuer, which now retails at circa £22K on the resale, completely sold out within weeks of its release. So look out for weird and, let’s face it, somewhat preposterous superhero-branded watches in 2023 that follow suit from Citizen watches.
