Watches can be serious, traditional and impersonable, but when it wants to be lighthearted, fun and approachable, they mean serious business too. On the face of things, watchmakers might have cracked the code to being relatable and to dial down the highbrow elements of fine watchmaking. How? With the unlikely help of cartoon and comic characters.
Nostalgia is a powerful tool and even though their minds are geared differently, watchmakers and marketers know this for a fact. It presents an opportunity to connect with consumers by tapping into the feel-good factor of their past. Curiously, the word nostalgia comes from the Greek words nostos (return) and algos (pain), and literally means the pain of wanting to return to a place of comfort. Instead of tapping into different sources of nostalgia, the world of cartoons and comics is perhaps one of the most universal. At some point in our lives, we would have come across a Disney character or Marvel superhero and more often than not, it was during the carefree childhood and teenage years that most would gladly relive.
Of the many cartoon characters to grace watches in the past, none had the impact and influence Mickey Mouse had. There is not much surprise about this either since Mickey Mouse is perhaps one of — if not, the most — iconic cartoon character ever. Five years after it was animated and brought to life by Walt Disney, the glove donning smiley mouse became the face of a range of then-American brand Ingersoll Waterbury Company’s watches in 1933.
However, Ingersoll’s and Walt Disney’s partnership was forged as a means of survival as the two ailing companies suffered the effects of the Great Depression. The timing could not have been better as America was going through the economic crisis and any form of a serotonin perk-me-up was a welcoming respite. Safe to say, the partnership was a major hit. Whether it was lady luck’s smile or a stroke of genius, Ingersoll was dragged from the clutches of bankruptcy while Walt Disney basked and lavished in the licensing fees.
Mickey Mouse’s creation in 1928 marked the start of and propelled cartoons into the golden age of American animation as fellow Disney casts such as Minnie Mouse, Donald Duck and gang later joined the fray. Other iconic cartoons such as Fleischer Studios’ Betty Boop, MGM’s Tom and Jerry and Looney Tunes’ Bosko and Buddy, and more would be created during this era which roughly coincided with the first comics published by DC Comics and Marvel Comics. While these creations provided entertainment, their significant influence on popular culture swelled exponentially over the years to the point of shaping lifestyles and consumer behaviours. Walt Disney’s mouse would go on to create headlines again when the late Japanese Emperor Hirohito — an ardent fan of Disney — was presented with an official Disney Mickey Mouse watch during his visit to Disneyland in 1975. It became one of the monarch’s most prized possessions and was later buried with him and other keepsakes during his passing in 1989.
It was not until 1984 when Mickey Mouse had his first taste of fine watchmaking when his controversial introduction to the traditionalist watchmaking industry was met with heavy scrutiny and criticism. The watchmaker that led the vanguard was the design maestro of Audemars Piguet Royal Oak and Patek Philippe Nautilus fame, Gérald Genta himself.
Genta made the watches under his eponymous brand with Mickey Mouse and the Pink Panther modelling themselves on the watch dial. While the pieces were certainly tongue-in-cheek touches that enarmoured themselves with Disney fans, the watchmaking community at large was incensed by having a cartoon character grace and cheapen Swiss watchmaking. There were merits to their anger as the Quartz Crisis allowed for cheap, mass produced watches for licensing and merchandising avenues media conglomerates to tap into. Swatch, the saviour of the Swiss watchmaking industry ironically tag teamed with Keith Haring in 1986 on a series of Mickey Mouse themed watches that remain some of the most collectible Swatch watches today.
“Gérald really loved the Disney characters, emphasising how much joy and happiness they were bringing all over the world. Thus, he was immensely happy to feature them on the dials of his watches after starting the collaboration directly with Disney CEO Mr Eisner. He proved a true visionary to blend pop culture and high watchmaking, this already in the 1980s!” remarked Evelyne Genta.
Genta persisted with his vision and other Disney characters including Minnie Mouse, Donald Duck, Goofy would later find themselves gracing Genta’s watches in different timetelling animations and complications. After the Gérald Genta brand changed several ownerships including The Hour Glass in 1996, and Bvlgari in 2000, the brand is restored back to its glory days under the tutelage of Michel Navas and Enrico Barbasini at La Fabrique du Temps Louis Vuitton in 2023. The full circle moment comes after the duo — who worked for the brand with Mr Genta in the 1980s — made a fitting tribute to the legendary designer to celebrate Gérald Genta’s 50th anniversary and Disney’s 100th anniversary with the unique Gérald Genta Only Watch 2023.
Fast forward to the present day and the advent of cartoon-led watches — not just Mickey Mouse — have really taken off as watch brands wielded the power of nostalgia and pop culture to push various creations. One brand that positioned themselves at the forefront of cartoon watches was Omega when they unveiled the Omega Speedmaster Snoopy in 2003. The world’s most famous beagle’s relationship with Omega originated with NASA who adopted Snoopy in 1968 as its safety watchdog. A Silver Snoopy pin was awarded to NASA workforce who have made valuable contributions to safety and mission success. Omega was awarded the pin in 1970; after an on-board explosion on the Apollo 13 Command Module where the crew relied on their Speedmasters to time the critical burns required for safe re-entry into the Earth’s atmosphere. Since then there have been three Snoopy commemorative editions released by Omega.
Tribalism and today’s social media-led narratives pushed these “childish” niche creations past circles of critics into wider acceptance. Seiko’s Japanese roots allowed them to tap into and collaborate seamlessly with the anime and manga industry estimated to be worth USD 34.22 billion in 2024 to create capsules with the likes of One Piece, Naruto, Studio Ghibli and Street Fighter.
One brand to truly exploit this double whammy combo was Audemars Piguet who launched the infamous Royal Oak Concept “Black Panther” Flying Tourbillon in April 2021 at the height of the pandemic. Whether one was on the waitlist for a Royal Oak, a Comic-Con nerd or someone in between this spectrum minding their business, they would have come across the release given the gargantuan scale of the Marvel Cinematic Universe franchise. Timing played into the hands of Audemars Piguet — the watch was released at the height of the pandemic and came after the unfortunate passing of Black Panther actor Chadwick Boseman. Needless to say, Audemars Piguet received a fair amount of stick but like they say, there is no such thing as bad press. Since then, the Le Brassus manufacture has released a Spiderman sequel in its Marvel partnership.
Interestingly, while comic book characters have no place on Rolex watches, they have become nickname alter egos of different iterations. It is hard to pinpoint exactly when the phenomenon happened but it most likely happened in watch forums, created by the collector communities. Nomenclatures such as Bart Simpson, Smurf, Kermit and Hulk were reference number specific models and precursors to the more recent Batman, Batgirl, Bruce Wayne nicknames. Speaking of Kermit, memories of Oris’ ProPilot X Kermit Edition from 2023 still burns fresh in many’s memories as the Oris Watches & Wonders booth was swarmed with curious and excited journalists hoping to catch a glimpse of the viral watch.
Not all cartoon and comic character watches make it. Every brand hopes their collaboration hops onto the hype train, goes viral and sells out in minutes. Not all manage to reach the dizzying heights of success but for nostalgia’s sake and bringing a smile to someone’s face, the runway and future for such watches burn bright.
Gerald Genta Arena Retrograde
Gerald Genta presents a flashback of the ages in 2021 with the Gerald Genta Arena Retrograde. The watchmaker goes full circle to where it began, with a beaming Mickey Mouse headlining the watch. Just as Mr Genta himself conceived the idea for a lighthearted and disruptive appeal, the brand follows in his vision with Disney’s iconic symbol. The whimsicalness of the watch centres around the time display as Mr Genta’s creative solution for Mickey Mouse goes beyond having it take up real estate on the dial. An aperture on the rhodium sunray dial indicates the jumping hours while Mickey Mouse’s hand points to the minutes in a retrograde arc. At the stroke of every hourly change, Mickey Mouse’s hand resets to zero while the hour disc changes instantaneously. With only 150 examples produced, this could well be the world’s happiest watch.
Omega Speedmaster “Silver Snoopy Award” 50th Anniversary
After unveiling two previous iterations of the world’s most famous beagle, Omega’s third edition was met with great anticipation as the brand celebrated the 50th anniversary of its Silver Snoopy Award awarded by NASA on 5 October 1970. Snoopy reprises his appearance in the Speedmaster “Silver Snoopy Award” 50th Anniversary in October 2020, this time donning the exact spacesuit as the Silver Snoopy Award pin in the 9 o’clock subdial. Other beagle touches include Snoopy piloting the Command and Service Module (CMS) on the caseback. Engaging the chronograph, Snoopy begins his trip around the moon, disappearing behind the mysterious side of the moon before reappearing later. The Earth disc, connected to the small seconds hand on the dial side, rotates once every minute.
TAG Heuer Formula 1 X Mario Kart
TAG Heuer’s Formula 1 lineup takes on Nintendo’s fantasy and gaming world of Mario Kart to celebrate the adrenal rush of motorsports. After the Swiss avant-garde watchmaker unveiled the TAG Heuer Connected Mario edition in 2021, it followed up with a fitting mechanical expression of the partnership in 2022. The limited edition model featured Carrera-esque touches with an expressive red outlined dial and counters mirroring the speedometers of race cars. Much of the attention will naturally gravitate towards the tourbillon for all the right reasons — one being a watchmaking mechanical marvel and the other, Super Mario racing away from the spiked Spiny Shell and Bullet Bill head missile.
Tissot PRX Grendizer
Tissot taps into manga UFO Robot Grendizer for a 1970s hit of nostalgia in its recently unveiled cult Tissot PRX lineup. The manga was released in 1978 and surprisingly was a hit in Europe the year it was released. That same year marked the birth of the original PRX iteration, making the collaboration more meaningful than any other marketing gimmick. A blue dial inspired by Grendizer features a silhouette of the robot which glows a resplendent shade of yellow in the dark. A Harken-style second hand acts the finishing touch to the dial while an engraved rotor and Grendizer’s Japanese title engraving “UFOロボ グレンダイザー” underscores the authenticity of the collaboration between the Swiss brand and the Japanese manga.
Oris ProPilot X Kermit Edition
Oris roped in Kermit the Frog from The Muppet Show for a collaboration to not take time as serious as it needs to be. Born with the goal to entertain, Kermit brings unadulterated joy, and that is the aim of the guys at Oris as well. On every first day of the month — or “Kermit Day” as it is coined — Kermit appears in the date aperture as a reminder to chill out and take things slow. Housed in Oris’ no-nonsense ProPilot X lineup, Kermit’s lime green colours the dial — blending seamlessly with the cool grey tones of the titanium case. Despite its cheeky guise, the collaborative piece is no slouch, as the Calibre 400 provides five days ’ worth of chronometric accuracy, anti-magnetism and reliability guaranteed by a 10-year warranty.
Boldr Voyage Pokémon
Picking your starter Pokémon got even tougher now with Singapore watch brand Boldr Supply Co. thrown into the mix. Boldr’s Voyage collection — a refreshed take on its Voyager series — takes on Pallet Town and beyond with its tough, adventure watch style. Clad in a stainless steel case and matching integrated bracelet, an inky black dial is offset with a silhouette of Pikachu — Ash Ketchum’s starter Pokémon — and its electric bolt tail second hand. The automatic watch is dive-ready with its 200m water-resistant case designed to take on the harshness of all adventures. Other pieces in the collection include Venusaur, Blastoise and Charizard to complete Pokémon’s signature quartet with an ombré light blue, ombré orange and ombré blue dial respectively.
Konstantin Chaykin Minions Watch
Universal Pictures’ favourite henchmen — Minions — reprise their mischievous selves as the lead of Konstantin Chaykin’s Minions Watch. The watchmaker’s signature expressive Wristmon Joker lends a good laugh this time round with Minion’s goggle eyes and cheeky smile. Time is read from the pair of eyes. The left indicates the hours and the right for the minutes, and with the passing of time, Minion’s expression becomes more silly. Its cherry red tongue acts as the moonphase indicator, swivelling through as the moon progresses. Further touches of the yellow henchman are present throughout the watch, such as the Minions alphabet engraving on the bezel and a custom rotor created by Konstantin Chaykin.
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