Ya Basic!

Before watches, there were comicbooks. Thus, much of my collecting behavior is informed by the lessons I learned collecting comics in the past. Of course, everything is different. But everything is the same. Neil Gaiman: “Omnia Mutantur, Nihil Interit. ‘Everything changes, but nothing is truly lost.”

It may come as a shock to watch collectors that there is no such thing as entry-level comics. Comics are collected by issues. There are key issues wherein significant events happen–the first appearance or death of a character, for instance, maybe there is big fight or a costume change, it’s the first work of a soon-to-be-a-rockstar artist, things like that–and those tend to be harder to find and more expensive in the second-hand market.

But by no means are there “next level” issues in the same way that watches seem to be categorized. Yes, there are more expensive comics than the regular type. But these are premium because of their format. Hardbound, softbound, prestige, absolute editions–these exist. But the prices are dictated by the materials used in the production. The “premiumness” of a comic is dictated by the impact of the story. The same story told in different paper types is the same story. I would add that there is a huge segment of the comic-collecting population that prefer the original newspaper print of certain stories over re-colored, better paper reprints. Some of my most premium comics are first prints with tattered corners, creased spins, yellowing paper. I could buy a recolored reprint but those are deemed diminished copies of the real thing.

I don’t understand so-called entry level watches.

Well, I get it but I don’t get it. What I get is that some watches are more complicated (hah!) than others. It’s not just the difference between a datejust and a chronograph, there’re also the materials used. Yellow gold or white gold or platinum or just stainless steel? There’s also the intricacies on display or hidden in the movement. Does the machine than runs the watch have a perlage pattern, for instance? Guilloché anyone? So I do get why some watches cost more than others. They’re just harder to make and more expensive to produce. I get that.

What I don’t understand is the putdown “entry-level” watches seem to inspire from people. As if there’s shame in owning the least expensive watch in a brand model lineup. These days basic is a pejorative to put down people. So, your watch is basic? Ya basic.

But… Basic doesn’t mean inferior or uninspired, it means starting point. And picking a basic watch does not mean one can’t afford a more complicated one. See, to me, complications and materials are matters of style, not economy.

I’m not a fan of complicated dials. I generally don’t like chronographs (with the exception of my Omega Speedmaster Automatic). I’m sure I’m not the only one. So, yes, chronographs tend to be more expensive and are more complex movement-wise. Does that mean most of my watches are lesser watches because they’re “basic”? Is my Speedmaster a better Omega than my Plain Jane De Ville?

Is the Oyster Perpetual less of a watch than the Daytona? Think about that question for a second and dig deep. You can like the Daytona more, sure. You can argue that the Daytona has more features than the Oyster Perpetual and, of course, you won’t be wrong. Of course it’s more “useful” (if watches are actually useful to begin with in this day and age). Of course. But. Is the Oyster Perpetual less of a watch than the Daytona?

A person can get a knock-it-out-of-the-park chronograph for less than the price of an Oyster Perpetual. Again, the reason for the cost discrepancy between the Oyster Perpetual and the Daytona isn’t that one is basic, it’s that the other one more expensive. Watch prices as a hierarchy go up, not down. While the Daytona may be an upgrade, the Oyster Perpetual is most certainly NOT a downgrade. The default isn’t the Daytona, it’s the Oyster Perpetual.

Semantics? Maybe.

But it’s a very important distinction. A typical cheeseburger is patty, buns, and cheese. That’s the default. That’s the baseline. Adding bacon, egg, truffles, whatever does not make a plain cheeseburger any less of a cheeseburger, it just makes the upgraded cheeseburger special. The bacon truffle cheeseburger with egg is not typical, it’s atypical. Same with watches as far as I’m concerned. The default is the Oyster Perpetual, not the Daytona.

I don’t have a lot of friends who are into watches. But the few that I can talk watches with aren’t aware enough about different brands let alone different models within brands. To them a Rolex is a Rolex, an Omega is an Omega. It does not matter what the movement is inside, what the features are, or how much less it cost than other models.

I’m not saying you should care about what other people think about your collection. I’m just saying it’s liberating to think the way other people view your collection. I’m just saying. Have a little bit of humility. It’s not an IWC Portugieser Eternal Calendar Watch, it’s an IWC watch that’s only better than any other IWC watch to only a certain small segment of the population.

Love what you love and you should only buy what you love. But maybe unless you’ll die if you can’t have that Patek Philippe Grand Complications, maybe a Calatrava would suffice?

It’s annoying that something that cost thousands of dollars would be referred to as entry-level. All watches are inferior to something else. It’s a hierarchy that has no apex. I’m not sure there’s a bottom either. We’re all playing in the middle somewhere with some slightly higher than others. One person’s treasure is another person’s trash. Or as I like to think of it, your Rolex Submariner is someone else’s Casio Duro. What then is the point of calling anything entry level? I look at my watches the same way I once looked at my comics. There are regular issues and there are key issues. There are regular watches and there are key watches. None of them are entry-level, not even the ones that are made of steel, only manual wind, no second hand, and the crystal is not sapphire.