Talk to any major watch retailer and one of the trends they will likely mention in customer buying habits is that younger generations are starting to collect watches in big ways. As those new generations join the collector game, it’s inevitable that the cultural touchstones they resonate with and feel nostalgic for will also change. Where once Snoopy and Popeye reigned supreme, new characters are emerging on watch dials. One such character is SpongeBob SquarePants, which Spinnaker had a huge amount of success with a few years ago. Now they’ve teamed up again for the Spinnaker SpongeBob SquarePants DoodleBob Limited Edition Capsule.
For those unversed in SpongeBob lore, DoodleBob is an evil doppelganger of the titular character created by a magic pencil. He goes around beating up the inhabitants of Bikini Bottom and generally causing mischief until SpongeBob traps him in a book. This mischievous character is now causing chaos across the dials of three Spinnaker watches, so let’s dive right in.
Spinnaker Hull California Automatic ‘Patty Parade’
Starting with Spinnaker’s 42mm cushion cased Hull California Automatic, it features the signature SpongeBob typography across its display. The playful, wonky style emphasised by the use of multiple types of markers due to its California layout with Roman numerals across the top half of the dial and Arabic numerals across the bottom, separated by bar indexes at 3 and 9 o’clock.
DoodleBob stands proudly at 6 o’clock holding the magic pencil with which he causes chaos in the air. He’s surrounded by a pile of Krabby Patties, all of which are lumed to glow in the dark. Additionally, six watches per variant will feature additional UV-activated lume graffiti on their dials as if they have been tagged by DoodleBob – a lucky ticket type of six-piece special edition within the broader limited edition capsule.
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Spinnaker Croft Mid-Size Automatic ‘Minute Sketch’
Second is the Minute Sketch edition on the 150m water resistant Croft Mid-Size Automatic with 40mm steel case. We see again the wonky SpongeBob typography across the dial, this time with the circular hour markers of a dive watch and central Mercedes style hands. Although the minute hand has been replaced with the magic pencil, hence the name Minute Sketch for this model.
DoodleBob is again presented at 6 o’clock but here he is holding the Spinnaker logo. Mirrored on the dial at 12 o’clock is the inscription “Me Hoy Minoy”, which is the main phrase that DoodleBob says during the episode before he learns to call himself SpongeBob. The same illustration of the character is seen on the rotor of the Miyota 8215 movement.
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Spinnaker Fleuss Automatic ‘Ripped Reality’
Third and final is the Spinnaker Fleuss Automatic Ripped Reality. It’s an open-heart display where DoodleBob has burst through the dial to reveal part of the movement below. What’s actually most impressive is the attention to detail on the burst paper effect around the aperture, which looks great. There’s then the same set of character references as seen on the other models including the typography, signature voice line inscription and magic pencil.
It also stands out for its two-tone 60-minute bezel, which is split between black and a lumed white section. That, in combination with it being the only watch in the capsule collection to house a Seiko movement rather than Miyota alongside the open-heart display, contributes to this being the most expensive of the trio. But even then, it’s only $525 (approx. £400).
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More details at Spinnaker.
