As the founder and lead designer of Vario, Ivan Chua has consistently turned out thoughtful and beautifully executed watches so it is no surprise that when he had the chance to do a Popeye watch, he didn’t take the easy route. Sometimes, you need to go where your muse takes you, and in this case, Ivan’s muse led him to create a single-hand, jump-hour for Popeye, which is the first watch in what will be Vario’s maritime-inspired ИAVI collection. Please note that the review sample was a prototype that has seen some tinkering on Ivan’s bench so forgive any stray stuff under the crystal. Rest assured, that is not the way Vario ships its finished products.
It starts with a Seagull ST1721, a 26-jewel, 21.6k bph automatic with an hour disk, minute hand, and small seconds indicator. As you have no doubt already noticed, Popeye appears in full form, and in rather a dynamic pose; rearing back in laughter, one knee bent, his left arm pointing while he spins a can of spinach with his right hand. Yes, the spinach is the small seconds! Of course, his right arm is the minute hand. The hour appears in an appropriately nautical porthole above him. This leads to a quirk in the design as Popeye’s weirdly muscular arm completely obscures the porthole for about five minutes at the top of the hour. It’s not ideal, but I consider it to be a small price to pay for an hour window.
That porthole is just the first of several clever elements that tie this watch to the sea. The magnifying lens over it calls to mind a drop of water. The main surface of the dial bears a textured wave pattern. Turn your eye to the perimeter and you will note that those pill-shaped silver hour markers are set into the stadium-style rehaut and extend over the contrasting, light blue index. Refocus on the entirety of the dial and you can appreciate how those markers suggest an old wooden helm. It is a beautiful dial.
Ivan put no less thought into the case. It is 38mm wide, 46mm long, and just 11mm thick from the caseback to the flat, AR-coated sapphire crystal. These are comfortable proportions for most wrists and just about perfect on my 6.75″ wrist.
It is longitudinally brushed with a rounded coin-edged bezel and drilled bombé lugs. The fluted crown tapers at the base and has a domed crown. A sailor’s cap, perhaps? It doesn’t screw down but it is sealed for a good 100m water resistance so there is no reason why you can’t take the ИAVI to sea. I’d show you the case back, but the design is not yet finalized. It will be solid and decorated.
I got the chance to sample a few different 20mm straps with this watch. I preferred the vintage vibe of the blue Cordura pass-through with Zulu hardware and steel grommets but the quick-release, two-piece silicone is a fine choice too.
In addition to the blue watch shown here, Vario is considering gray and white dials, as well as a non-Popeye, single-hand ИAVI without the jump-hour window (see below). If you are interested in these variants, Ivan asks that you complete this survey. I, for one, hope the one-hander gets some traction. As nice as the Popeye version may be, it is a niche product in a limited run of no more than 400 pieces. I think this dial layout and case really have the potential for much broader appeal.
