Nico Leonard vs Christopher Ward + The Biggest New Watch Releases | Wristwatch Weekly Ep.13

In Wristwatch Weekly Episode 13, I’m joined once again by fellow watch collector and TikTok creator GatorCris for a packed episode covering eight of the biggest recent watch releases, leaks and announcements.

We start, as always, with What’s On The Wrist, with GatorCris wearing his Radcliffe × The Mad Watch Collector collaboration and me wearing the classic Rolex Submariner No Date.

Then we get into the watches.

We discuss the return of the Tudor Northflag, the leaked Casio G-Shock that the internet has already nicknamed the “CasioNaut”, TAG Heuer’s new Carrera Chronograph Sport, the insane Oris ProPilot X Gonzo Edition, Breitling’s Miles Davis Navitimer, the return of Gallet, Zenith’s new Chronomaster Solo Sport and the fan-selected Seiko Prospex 1965 Heritage Diver.

And then things get interesting.

We finish the episode with a proper discussion about Nico Leonard calling out Christopher Ward, accusing the brand of borrowing too heavily from other watches and describing it as a “copy machine with a logo on it.”

Is Nico right?

Where does inspiration end and homage begin?

Should Christopher Ward be held to a different standard from Casio, Tudor, Rolex, Omega, Glashütte Original and countless other brands that have used familiar watch design language?

And when almost every watch can be compared to something that came before it, is genuine originality even possible anymore?

GatorCris and I give our thoughts on the whole situation, Christopher Ward’s designs, homage watches, Nico’s own collaborations and whether the controversy is actually helping Christopher Ward more than hurting them. The discussion runs through examples from across the industry rather than treating Christopher Ward in isolation.

Let us know what you think in the comments:

Is Christopher Ward guilty of copying other brands, or is Nico Leonard being unfair?

And which of this week’s new releases would you actually buy?

Make sure to follow GatorCris on TikTok and check out his watch content.

If you enjoy the podcast, please hit the Like button, subscribe to Wristwatch Weekly, and join us for the next episode.

00:00 Welcome to Wristwatch Weekly with GatorCris
00:24 What’s On The Wrist
01:29 Nico Leonard vs Christopher Ward teaser
01:49 The latest watch releases
02:03 Tudor Northflag returns
05:23 The leaked Casio G-Shock “CasioNaut”
11:41 TAG Heuer Carrera Chronograph Sport
15:50 Oris ProPilot X Gonzo Edition
20:10 Breitling Navitimer B09 Miles Davis
23:38 Gallet returns under Breitling
30:46 Zenith Chronomaster Solo Sport
33:02 Seiko Prospex 1965 Heritage Diver
39:17 Which new watch would we actually buy?
40:55 Nico Leonard vs Christopher Ward
41:19 “Copy machine with a logo on it”
43:10 Is Nico actually right?
45:18 The problem with the homage argument
46:07 When big brands copy smaller brands
47:01 Nico’s own watch collaborations
48:14 Can any modern watch be completely original?
49:12 The Christopher Ward Twelve debate
50:58 Does Nico have too much influence?
52:18 Is the controversy actually helping Christopher Ward?
53:03 Why we became Christopher Ward fans
54:28 What watch collectors are saying online
55:34 Nico continues the Christopher Ward debate
57:08 Where does the controversy go next?
57:55 GatorCris outro
58:15 End

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