Audemars Piguet's Black Panther Watch Reviewed and Revisited

Audemars Piguet Royal Oak. At face value, there's nothing controversial about one of the most lauded luxury watch designs of all time. But the Audemars Piguet Royal Oak Concept Black Panther Flying Tourbillon (26620IO.OO.D077CA.01) became one of the most controversial luxury watches of all time. With its link to Marvel's "Black Panther" franchise, a huge wrist presence, plenty of purple, and an engraved white gold miniature of the T'Challa himself, the Royal Oak Concept waded into controversy from the first. As "Black Panther: Wakanda Forever," rolls into theaters, it's worth examining the initial fruits of Marvel's collaboration with Audemars Piguet. Let's be clear, a $162,000 luxury watch is silly by nature. The literal presence of a comic book character doesn't make the watch any more "comical"; that's not possible! Nobody needs such a thing, so a Black Panther watch isn't less legitimate a "luxury" watch than a comparably priced F.P. Journe Resonance Chronometer. Both are articles of luxury, and "luxury," by definition, is surplus to a person's basic needs. That said, any 42mm purple panther watch is going to stir controversy. Luxury watch collectors tend to be a conservative group. Staid Rolex sports watches outsell the adventurous flights of fancy from Grand Seiko; F.P. Journe's classical designs outsell the avant garde of Urwerk, MB&F, and De Bethune. So a large watch with a prominent superhero on the dial invites obvious second-guessing. Technically speak