Character watches are a niche of the watch industry that is constantly evolving as the characters that people relate to and are interested in change. Currently the characters on top are Snoopy, Mickey Mouse and Popeye, though brands like Spinnaker are ditching the nostalgic icons with the likes of Spongebob Squarepants. For their latest character watch though, it’s back to a classic with the Hull California Automatic Popeye Sailors and Sweethearts Limited Edition.
Out of the box, which is appropriately Popeye themed in its decoration, the first thing that stands out about the watch is the signature cushion case of the Hull model. It’s a substantial bit of kit measuring 42mm x 15.5mm with 100m water resistance, so it’s not particularly shirt cuff friendly but with its tool watch aesthetic it’s not designed to be. Instead, it has a strong mid-20th century charm thanks to the cushion shape and the use of a California dial display.
A California dial is a type of dive and tool watch display with one type of numeral on the top half of the display and a different one on the bottom. Spinnaker have opted for the most common California variant with Roman numerals and Arabic numerals. Each of the hour markers is lumed for low light legibility. Crucially though, the California display is embellished with the presence of Popeye at 6 o’clock and a can of spinach at 9. That’s because the version I have here is the ‘Sailors’ edition, rather than the ‘Sweethearts’ version with Olive Oyl and a love heart.
The Sailors version features a blue dial base where the Sweethearts is red. Looking closer at the dial though you’ll notice that there’s a slight texture across the display in a seemingly random pattern. Break out a UV torch though and give it a shine and those tiny textured lines light up to reveal a panoply of Popeyes. The same pattern is visible on the inner lining of the fabric strap. The UV also makes the lume on the indexes, hands and particularly the anchor-shaped hour hand go ballistic, which is also fun.
Turning the watch over reveals an exhibition caseback through which you can see the Seiko NH35 automatic movement with 41-hour power reserve. It’s an absolute staple across a wide range of brands offering everyday accessibility. For this special edition it has been given a spinach-laced Popeye-themed rotor. I do find it amusing that while Olive Oyl has love hearts, Popeye has spinach – the man clearly has his priorities in order. And who can blame him after the number of time Olive swaps affection between him and Bluto.
It’s priced at $375 (approx. £230) in a limited edition of 600 pieces for the Sailors model and 300 for the Sweethearts. It’s available from January 30th, just in time for Valentine’s and a characterful his & hers collection.
Price and Specs:
More details at Spinnaker.
