Surprisingly, this watch has been living not rent free but rather rent subsidized in my head

So being a new watch collector, I decided to have some fun while leveling up my learning. I just finished reading “The Watch, thoroughly revised” which gave me a pretty good background on the major historic brands, some insight into movements, collecting, etc. Following many more YouTube videos and web pages later, I ordered an intro level Seiko and Laco Pilot watch. Which was me getting my feet wet intentionally without breaking the bank. Now to the unintentional part. I decided, against the chagrin of probably any ‘serious’ collector, to let watch gang send me a rando platinum tier watch for a few months while I also make some intentional purchases and see what surprises me. This Nubeo Quasar shows up as the first watch they send and it is on a beast of a bracelet and my wrist is 7 3/4 inches. I opened the box and was immediately annoyed with it and watch gang for that matter... BUT I am committing to truly experiencing different things rather than just stick with a tried and true sequenced playbook like, Seiko, Tissot, Longine, Tudor, Rolex, Breitling, Oris, AP etc. (which I hope to also someday collect, try, sell as well). My first wear of this Nubeo, I didn't like it. My second wear was with a black long sleeve shirt and I decided the black put some balance to the crazy black plate on the dial. So on a hunch, I ordered and swapped in a Nato strap. Then the watched seemed more balanced and I starting thinking about its design choices. It's made by the Dartmouth group which is in turn really backed by Hong Kong’s Solar time. They go out of their way to hide themselves and the origins of their brands. Just be yourself Dartmouth. I am not ashamed for your Hong Kong roots. The hide and seak cheapens you. Anyway, the Dartmouth/Solar time designers are pushing out AVI-8, Spinnaker, RGMT and their executive board brought in a senior VP from Timex into management. Back to the watch, the NH35 movement is fine for what the price is, but the semi transparent overlay on the date is actually engaging. I don’t hate the black insert, but it feels like it is likely cheap plstic. However, when paired with a black natural band, it really does unify the design elements into some level of order that is chaotic with a large steel band. The designer gave the wearer a big FU regarding any serious determination of the minutes between the 3, 6, 9, 12. If think I would correct that if I designed a v2. The hands are huge and annoying, but somehow they work when wearing and cease to bother you after a while. The lume could have been fantastic, but they pulled back. I thought I would abandon this watch, but I keep dwelling on what it got right and what it could do better. It's like watching a creative young watch designer that doesn't have any oversight/boundaries but also doesn't have an old guard mentor. They seem to swing blindly for the fences with mid level material, and they need Crash Davis to get them to the majors. It's kind of fascinating. I went from initial dislike, to being entertained by it, and it is still making it into the rotation. What watches changed for you over time and why?