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Riots, Store Closures, and Pepper Spray: The Swatch Royal Pop Had a Rough First Day
We’ve seen this before. In 2022, Swatch partnered with Omega on the MoonSwatch and launched it exclusively through boutiques with limited stock. The result was global chaos, long lines, injuries, and an eventual pivot to wider availability. Four years later, Swatch did the exact same thing with the Audemars Piguet Royal Pop Collection, and somehow the fallout was even worse. People were pepper-sprayed at a mall on Long Island. Doors were broken down in King of Prussia, Pennsylvania. Stores across the UK never opened. And in India, launch events were formally cancelled after crowds were described in terms I’d rather not repeat. This is bad.
The Citizen ATTESA Was Already a Sleeper Hit. Now It’s on Jack Ryan’s Wrist.
For years now, I’ve been one of those people who pays way too much attention to what’s on an actor’s wrist during a movie or show. With the Jack Ryan series on Amazon, it was no different. John Krasinski made for such a convincing Ryan that I found myself pausing frames to identify the Hamilton Khaki Field Chrono and the Vortic Military Edition he wore throughout the show’s run. So when Citizen announced that their Citizen ATTESA CC4055-65E would be the watch on Krasinski’s wrist for the upcoming full-length feature film, Tom Clancy’s Jack Ryan: Ghost War, I was stoked. Citizen is one of my favorite brands, and seeing them step into this kind of high-profile placement is an interesting move.
The 5 Best Seiko Releases of 2026 So Far
Seiko has spent the last few months doing something the brand doesn’t always get credit for: listening. Across several recent releases, there’s a noticeable shift toward more enthusiast-friendly sizing, cleaner execution, and product decisions that feel less driven by marketing churn. Some of these watches revisit familiar territory. Others push into stranger corners of the catalog. Either way, I think Seiko’s current lineup feels more focused than it did a few years ago, even if a few lingering frustrations still follow the brand around. Here are five recent Seiko releases that caught our attention.
Marathon’s New Military Watch Celebrates America’s 250th With a Blacked-Out Automatic
Marathon has been one of those brands we’ve always had a soft spot for here at TBWS. Well, at least me. They’ve been making mil-spec watches for the U.S. military since World War II, and that history speaks for itself. Now, with 2026 marking the 250th anniversary of the United States, Marathon is celebrating the occasion with a limited edition automatic pilot’s watch. It’s called the U.S. 250 Anthracite Stainless Steel Navigator with Date, and at first glance, it’s a lot of watch to take in.
The Iconic Seiko Astron GPS Chronograph Gets a Slimmer Case and Luxury Features
The Seiko Astron line has always been a weird one for me. I’ve spent years admiring it from the sidelines, fully aware that Seiko’s quartz flagship represents some of the most advanced timekeeping the brand makes. Still, the older GPS Solar references always felt like a lot. Too many features, too many subdials, too much going on for a guy who tends to gravitate toward simpler tool watches. The latest update changes the math a little. Seiko has slimmed things down, cleaned up the dial, and added a feature I didn’t see coming.
