Collaboration has been at the core of watchmaking since the early days with the etablissage system on which the artform was founded joining together craftspeople of all disciplines to bring a watch to life. In our modern era, collaborations have become more formalized between watchmakers as well as with other brands, artists, athletes, and even the most unexpected partners. Yes, collaborations have taken some wild twists and turns, and the work between Micromilspec’s founders Henrik Rye, Alexander Kadin, and Kim Ellefsen alongside industrial designer and materials specialist James Thompson AKA Black Badger definitely falls in that category.
The group first teamed up one year ago for the inaugural installment in the Project Sabotage/Time Wars series, but what makes this collaboration so unique is that it extends beyond the watch itself and to an accompanying alternate anime universe. Here, Micromilspec and Black Badger have taken the concept of storytelling in watchmaking to a whole new level, placing their co-created timepiece in its own world where Black Badger himself takes his animal form. As you might guess, the creative process throughout such a collaboration is anything but ordinary.
I sat down with Black Badger himself just ahead of the announcement for the second edition in the series the Broken Hour, whose one-time, 24-hour sales window is officially open and closes at 12pm ET on May 30. “Henrick and I were just together finalizing the storytelling elements,” he shares, “We met in Oslo at this retro coin operated Japanese arcade.” The location is fitting for the next piece of the saga in which Black Badger is lost in feudal Japan and hunted by the Syndicate in a haphazard journey through the space/time continuum. Enter his trusty companion – his wristwatch – which may be his only way home.
“So many brands today can be too heavy handed or on the nose with storytelling, and sometimes those stories aren’t even theirs to tell. We wanted to ensure the watch itself told a story and to make that story just as collectible as the physical watch,” Black Badger explains. What’s a more collectible vessel for storytelling than a comic book? Its serial nature is the perfect fit for the project. However, it was also crucial that they not get too lost in the story – the pair had to create a compelling watch too. “We were careful to make sure Black Badger was not just a character but a design element that translated to the watch,” he clarifies.
So, let’s get down to some particulars about the watches themselves. Both models use a GMT as the base. The original employs Micromilspec’s popular Milgraph with its left-side (destro) layout, and the new Broken Hour uses the brand’s simpler and sleeker Dualtimer with a standard right-side crown. While we get two different compositions – the original in titanium and the latest in stainless steel – the finishings draw parallels giving each oversized 42mm case a matte look. Both iterations reprise the brand’s characteristic QuadGrip bezel with its signature four deep indents. In addition, the white and orange color palette extends across both examples throughout the dial and rubber strap (though there’s also a bracelet option for each). Of course, the model wouldn’t get Black Badger’s stamp of approval without thoughtful and thorough lume application with indexes and hands powered by high output X1-grade Super-LumiNova that glows an Ultramarine color in darkness and has been specially designed by Black Badger with RC Tritec in Switzerland to look as good in the dark as it does in the light. Under the hood of the new Broken Hour is the Sellita SW330-2 automatic GMT caliber with manual winding and hacking seconds along with a 56-hour power reserve.
Altogether, you have what truly feels like the next evolution of the saga with materials, colors, and design elements creating a clear through line while presenting a new and distinct offering from the original. “We have a map – a synopsis – of the story for the Time Wars series, but instead of being rigid and saying, ‘okay, now we have to design a specific set of watches that fit perfectly into that story,’ we’re letting the process be very organic and almost reactive when it comes to the watches we create,” Black Badger explains.
In the second chapter, we meet Black Badger in a period of flux and destruction. He’s being pursued by the Crown Guard, and he gets blown through a time portal. As he’s being blasted through time and space, his watch gets damaged. So as a result, he doesn’t know where he’s going to end up – he doesn’t know when or where he is – but he ends up in feudal Japan. Here, we have the explanation for the key design elements of the timepiece – the details that give the watch its name Broken Hour: the broken hour hand, damaged GMT hand, and blasted date window. This story comes to life in the official comic book that accompanies the watch thanks to character creation by James Thompson, an original story written by Micromilspec, and yet a third collaborator, with illustrations by Norwegian comic artist Henri.
The Broken Hour, with its companion comic and signature dog tags like those that came with the first edition, are available to order now until 12pm ET on May 30. All orders placed during the sales window will be honored, but once it closes, the Broken Hour will never be offered or produced again. Pricing starts at $1,950 for the orange rubber strap or $2,200 for the matching microblasted stainless steel bracelet. To get yours, head over to Micromilspec
