Pioneering Japanese streetwear label A Bathing Ape, or BAPE, has amassed a formidable following since its founding in 1993. To mark the 25 years since, the cult brand has tied up with over 30 major brands – from Adidas to Barbie to Montblanc – for the BAPE XXV Anniversary Collection.

Bell & Ross is the only maker of mechanical watches in the line-up (the watch brand collaborating with BAPE is G-Shock), chosen for its strong military identity, a parallel shared with BAPE’s emblematic camouflage theme.

A Bathing Ape

Founded by Japanese designer Nigo, BAPE gets its name from a Japanese idiom that loosely translates as “a bathing ape in lukewarm water”, meant to be an ironic reference to the consumer culture of modern Japanese youth.

Like most of today’s biggest streetwear brands, BAPE built its success on hype constructed from an intentional mismatch of supply and demand. The manufactured scarcity was taken to the extreme in 1998 when BAPE aborted its wholesale business, eliminating 40 points of sale across Japan, leaving just a single store in Tokyo. 

The BAPE XXV exhibition in Tokyo

The G-Shock BAPE XXV

The strength of BAPE has led it to numerous collaborations beyond fashion, including a Pepsi soft drink, Rimowa luggage, and the camo-clad Sinn EZM 1 in 2002, with the BAPE XXV collection being the biggest collaborative effort yet.

A pair of limited edition Bell & Ross watches are part of the monumental capsule collection: the BR03-92 25th Anniversary and the BR03-92 Green Camo.

BR03-92 25th Anniversary

Being the more understated of the pair, the BR03-92 25th Anniversary is almost identical to the BR03-92 Nightlum, save for a few tweaks.

It has the same 42mm circle-in-square ceramic that’s made of scratch resistant ceramic, but boasts a “sandwich” dial with the hour markers being cut-outs on the upper dial that show the green Super-Luminova on the lower dial disc. Naturally the dial is also double signed, with the Bell & Ross logo and the BAPE ape head, both rendered in Super-Luminova.

The BR03-92 25th Anniversary is delivered with two straps, one in black rubber one featuring the BAPE logo in lime green, and the other in grey camo-print calfskin.

Also unique to this 25 piece limited edition is its Pelican case housed in a grey camo outer box.

BR03-92 Green Camo

BAPE’s styling is more evident in this watch, resulting is a far bolder aesthetic. The brand’s signature green camouflage pattern dominates in an otherwise stealthy watch in black ceramic.

The dial also has a “sandwich” construction, with its lettering and markings in white for contrast against the camo surface.

This model is delivered only with a rubber strap, inside a generic Bell & Ross box that’s contained in green camo outer box.

Concluding thoughts

Both watches are extremely compelling, especially for a streetwear fan, managing to embody the spirit of Bell & Ross and BAPE.

Though by no means a hardcore BAPE devotee, I feel the allure, especially for the more restrained BR03-92 25th Anniversary. Its double-branding is reminiscent of jeweller-signed watches, like a Patek Philippe wth “Tiffany & Co.”; discreet but prominent enough.

The limited number made and unique accessories complete the package. The 125 watches across both editions will no doubt will be gone in a flash.

Price and availability 

The BR03-92 25th Anniversary (ref. BR0392-BAPE-25-CE) is priced at S$6,200 and the BR03-92 Green Camo (ref. BR0392-BAPE-GN-CE) is priced at S$5,600.

Both are available only at Bell & Ross boutiques via balloting, or BAPE stores.

Specifications

BR03-92 25th Anniversary
Limited Edition of 25 pieces.

Movement: Calibre BR-CAL.302. Automatic mechanical.

Functions: Hours, minutes, seconds and date.

Case: 42 mm in diameter. Matt black ceramic.

Dial: Matt black. Hands, numerals and indices coated in Superluminova®C3.

Crystal: Sapphire with anti-reflective coating.

Water-resistance: 100 metres.

Straps: Black rubber with APE® logo and Bape grey camo® calfskin

Buckle: Pin buckle. Black PVD.

BR03-92 Green Camo
Limited Edition of 100 pieces.

Movement: Calibre BR-CAL.302. Automatic mechanical.

Functions: Hours, minutes, seconds and date.

Case: 42 mm in diameter. Matt black ceramic.

Dial: Bape green camo®. Hands, numerals and indices coated in white Superluminova®.

Crystal: Sapphire with anti-reflective coating. Water-resistance: 100 metres.

Straps: Black rubber with APE® logo and ultra-resilient black synthetic fabric.

Buckle: Pin buckle. Black PVD.

Nicknamed after its chunky, round case (which made for a droll April Fool’s), the original Seiko “Tuna” of 1975 is perhaps one of the most uncompromising dive watches ever created. Despite having been conceived for professional saturation divers, it has since spawned numerous, 200m “Baby Tuna” variations destined for terra firma, including the new Prospex ‘Street Series’ created with young urbanites in mind and, typical of a current fad, sold exclusively online.

Featuring solar-powered quartz movements, the Prospex Solar Diver ‘Street Series’ is essentially a “Baby Tuna” in olive, grey or blue, paired with a textured silicone strap.

The original Seiko Professional 600m ref. 6159-7010 – designed by noted Seiko engineer Ikuo Tokunaga – notched up several world-firsts, including a monocoque titanium case and a protective ceramic shroud, or outer case. It also relied on a patented L-shaped gasket to eliminate the need for a helium escape valve.

The ‘Street Series’ retains the same look and robustness, but does away with the professional features.

Measuring 47mm wide and 12mm in height, the case wears considerably smaller due to its short lugs. Unlike the high-end “Tuna” dive watches that have ceramic or composite shrouds, this utilises a plastic shroud.

Though its massive profile means it makes a statement on the wrist, the ‘Street Series’ adopts a muted aesthetic, taking the visual impact down a notch. Its inner steel case is black-coated while the plastic shroud has a grained, matte finish in the same colour as the bezel. Both the silicone strap and dial are textured to evoke unfinished concrete.

And the elapsed time bezel has been reduced to just baton markers, with the first 15 minutes of the bezel being recessed, sitting one level down.

The ‘Street Series’ is fitted with Seiko’s proprietary Hardlex crystal (mineral glass with a hard coating) and are water-resistant to 200m. Inside is the cal. V157 Solar Quartz movement that harnesses solar energy in order to recharge the battery. When fully charged, it will run for up to 10 months.

Price and Availability 

The Seiko Prospex ‘Street Series’ Solar Diver is available in navy (ref. SNE533), olive (ref. SNE535) and grey (ref. SNE537), priced at US$450 each. It’s available at Seiko boutiques and retailers in most countries, and in the United States it is only available online at seikousa.com.

Correction December 29, 2018: Availability varies according to country.