As Disney fans, we wear our fandom literally and figuratively on our sleeves. My closets and drawers are certainly full of Mickey Mouse shirts and Walt Disney World Clothing that find their way out and about on a consistent basis. They're like badges of honor. It's great when another fan notices something you're proudly brandishing and you acknowledge each other.
You've all been there. You're proudly wearing that Haunted Mansion sweatshirt, or Expedition Everest jacket and another fan spots you. Maybe they comment. Maybe they just give you that all encompassing nod that signals they're in on the same secret that you are. Sometimes showing just how much of a fan you are can help you out in small ways.
Case in point are the watches that I'm featuring today. I found my first Star Wars watch at, of all places, GameStop. While shopping with my sons for the latest addition to their Wii U library, I spotted a display case of collectibles. There amidst the videogame and superhero figures were a few boxes that obviously contained watches. I'm pretty sure that it was the Batman and Flash watches that initially caught my eye. Then I spotted the familiar coloring of everyone's favorite bounty hunter, Boba Fett. It was impressive enough to instigate an immediate purchase and I've been happy with it since.
The boxed Boba Fett watch. Photo by Chris Barry.
Boba Fett out of the box. Photo by Chris Barry.
The Boba Fett watch made it into heavy rotation and it garnered many comments from a wide variety of admirers. One recent afternoon a few months ago at the Genius Bar at our local Apple Store, I was fretting over problems with my wife's laptop. I already had our iMac there for a bad hard drive and now the laptop was acting up. When the Genius came back to the counter with the bad financial news on both repairs, he caught a glimpse of Boba on my wrist. He said, “That's an awesome watch. Where'd you find it?”
We began chatting about the watch and the soon-to-be-released Episode 7. The conversation turned to the original trilogy, Star Wars videogames, and the recent New York Comic Con that we both happened to attend; before I knew it, the problem with the laptop that wasn't under warranty was now suddenly being covered. I'll never know for sure if the Boba Fett watch was really the cause of my fortune that day, but once we started talking Star Wars, the ice broke, the tide turned, and I saved $200!
I've documented my love of Mickey Mouse and Disney watches here on MousePlanet before. My extensive collection continues to grow and I do my best to rotate them in and out of daily service. People know that if I'm wearing a watch, it's going to be a Disney watch. Boba Fett was my first foray into Star Wars watches, and, of course, they now count as Disney watches, don't they? That said it was a given that I had to make sure that the rest of this Star Wars watch collection found its way into my watch drawer.
“Santa” Diane helped complete my quest. My wife made sure that the remaining two watches were under the tree on Christmas morning. I may have hinted extensively, but hey, she's always looking for gift suggestions for me, so I sort of nudged her into GameStop on a holiday shopping trip to the local mall. She knew what that meant.
These watches are nothing too fancy, but they're not exactly cheaply made either. The bands are actually a hard rubber material with stainless steel accents. There is a Star Wars logo and a Lucasfilm trademark on the back. The Accutime Watch Corporation based here in New York City makes them. As it turns out in addition to this Star Wars line and the DC Comics line I saw at GameStop, they also produce Marvel and Disney watches. That's my kind of company for sure.
The Darth Vader watch has the famous helmet of the infamous Sith lord on its face as well as the Empire logo.
The boxed Darth Vader watch. Photo by Chris Barry.
Darth Vader out of the box. Photo by Chris Barry.
The R2-D2 watch is “R2 Blue” and features his likeness and the Rebellion logo on its face.
The boxed R2-D2 watch. Photo by Chris Barry.
R2-D2 out of the box. Photo by Chris Barry.
These very cool watches retailed for around $34 before the holidays. They have already been reduced and I've seen them on sale for as low as $17.99. At $34 they're a great collectible. At $17 they're a downright bargain. I can't comment yet on the longevity or durability of these timepieces, but so far, so good. They are comfortable to wear, easy to read, and every time I wear them, I receive positive comments. For the time being—with all The Force Awakens excitement in my life—these have become my new favorite watches. However, I'm quite sure that the Mickey Mouse watches will make it back. It's probably just a matter of time.
