Balancing Act: The Controversy Surrounding Juvenile-themed Luxury Watches.

I for one welcome it, when done well. We spend much of our adulthood trying to recapture our youth, including spending frivolously on watches. Reducing the existence of these watches to juvenile is insulting to all parties involved. Obviously, I don’t take your comment as literal, but it could be perceived as a slight on those amongst us still buying pop culture themed objects. Again, I don’t think that was your intent.

To me, it is okay to have themed products aimed at a wealthier, older audience. Not everything has to be obtainable for all. I also have a collection Hot Toys and Sideshow Figures, items costing hundreds into the thousands for a single “toy” that are not meant for kids, nor should they be.

I think you're coming at this from the wrong angle, and making a couple of false assumptions.

1. There isn't really any controversy. There is manufactured "controversy" from watch media and influencers who need to stir the pot to generate clicks. They get paid for their ability to generate clicks, so making controversies helps them make money. People who agree with their take will click to voice their support, and people who disagree will rage watch to argue in the comments. All of this makes the content creator more money.

2. The target audience of a $5K watch is clearly not young people... Most young people can't afford that sort of frivolity, but as @AllTheWatches said people who want a "youthful" reminder of years gone by will spend money on it. There are 62 million millionaires in the world, just because a toy is expensive to us normal people does not mean it is expensive to everyone. AP didn't make that many Black Panther watches in the grand scheme of things.

3. Luxury brands have made novelty items since the existence of luxury brands. It has not harmed their brand reputation in the least, and sometimes helps them expand beyond their core audience. Rolex made the leopard Daytona long ago, and some people will still beg an AD to put them on a waiting list...

As for point 1, a huge reason that I love WatchCrunch is that it's not monetized(as far as I know), so it tends to be filled with regular people expressing genuine opinions. Platforms that are monetized encourage "hot takes" and "controversy" for the sake of clicks, meaning you may not be getting genuine opinions, rather just what people think will get them more money. Which is entirely fair if you income comes from talking about watches, we all work to make money.

Like it or not, our passion is going out of style. The watch companies would probably concede the that Apple watch will, if not already, oversell, their annual inventory every year moving forward; just take a look at the wrists of the people around you. These themed releases are intentionally done to promote interests in watches in the younger market. Though, I personally would never buy the green Kermit Oris, the multicolor Rolex, or the Snoopy Omega, others will. I don't have any criticism as long as these manufacturers continue to make models that compliment their history, traditions, and design genetics.

In this context, I think something being okay because it’s “cheap”, is a bit of a fallacy.

Why is it okay when it’s cheap but not “expensive”? They are nothing doing the same thing just at different price points…that just kinda sounds like hating to me 🤷

Cheap and expensive are relative. For most people in the world, $200 is extravagant purchase for a wrist watch and something that would be a big deal.

Yes it’s silly spend $25k on a toy watch but for a lot of people $25k is like $200. That disparity in wealth in of its self is silly but that’s a whole-nother topic….

I get where you’re coming from as these man child watches are kinda polarizing but I don’t get how being more attainable makes the idea any better or worse.

As a whole, society is moving from formal & reserved to more casual & open.

Watch brands are following suit.

Besides, it's not like AP or Oris (highlighted brands in your chosen pics) have gone exclusively to offering the fun & quirky. You can still buy a more reserved watch if you want to.

I think, maybe, the likes of Oris just do it because they can, they are not planning to sell to many compared to the rest of the line. It’s like showing ( off ) how succesfull you are and having a bit of fun.

What about Omega's snoopy edition?

I agree that most of the ones you have shown aren't particularly tasteful. However I would provide an alternative opinion.

These luxury watches aren't aimed at the next generation for youth. They are aimed at the mature market, who have nostalgia with some of the things they grew upto. Snoopy, Kermit etc

It's well known that she you hit 35 to 55 you hit peak earning power and that to crave the iconic stuff of your youth and pay a premium for it.

Think thunder birds, power rangers, Pokémon, snez, harry potter original books etc this stuff goes for an awful lot of money now.

But I agreed the Spiderman one is just a bit austentascious 🤣

I think it has a point to introduce younger generations to the brands not necessarily that watch also it can be a heritage as a nostalgic type of thing

IWC has been doing this for a long time with the Pilot series... Patek has too - but they say something to the effect. "You only take care of it (the tiempiece) for the next generation..." Paraphrasing here.

Didn't TAG have a Super Mario smart watch?

I found some of the releases a bit over the top ( spidey and black panther)

But really like some of the fun nostalgia that connects to fun times of my youth. I grew up with Kermit on TV, saw Star Wars in theatres in ‘77, etc.

Note: the diving pip on my Oris 😉

One of these days I’ll get a Seiko x Ghibli, as my family has loved those movies for decades

@AllTheWatches - had to google ‘what is sideshow toys’ - looks like nice stuff 👍 Having lived in Japan, seeing shops selling high end / artistic models geared for adults is routine.

Also note Lego is getting huge with adults (and Watchcrunch members), my daughter and I want the ATAT 😂