The Razor-Sharp Citizen Tsuyosa x seconde/seconde/

By now, I think most watch enthusiasts should be familiar with the work of Romaric André, a French artist with quite a sense of humour, who has turned himself into a prolific watch customizer under the name seconde/seconde/. The idea behind his creations is often lightly-toned, conceptual, mischievous and takes one of the aspects of a watch into something both visual and quite… literal. The latest victim of his slightly provocative approach? The Citizen Tsuyosa, an accessible 1980s-inspired sporty-chic watch, whose name means “power” and “strength” in Japanese. And instead of a classic sword-shaped hand, the Citizen Tsuyosa x seconde/seconde/ has a true sword hand. And it has caused quite some casualties on the dial.

So, if most of you, readers, are familiar with the work on seconde/seconde/, then the Citizen Tsuyosa should hardly need an introduction anymore. This watch, first presented in 2022, is directly inspired by some of the brand’s classic 1980s and 1990s watches, and has become a true commercial hit thanks to its accessible take on the concept of the sporty-chic watch with a (sort of) integrated bracelet. Over the years, the whole idea has evolved with new (sometimes bold) colours, new coatings for the case, a smaller diameter with the Tsuyosa 37 and, recently, a slightly more upmarket evolution with the Tsuyosa 60 Automatic. And while we’ve seen some fun editions in the past, nothing in the vein of the new Tsuyosa x seconde/seconde/ Limited Edition.

Externally, no major evolutions to be noted. This collaboration model is based on the classic 40mm Tsuyosa, with a stainless steel case alternating between polished accents and brushed surfaces. What was good about the standard versions remains – an overall pleasant quality for the price, a sapphire crystal with magnifier over the date, a reasonable lug-to-lug measurement – and what’s a bit more debatable also stays – a 50m water-resistance that could be improved, a crown at 4 o’clock that might be a bit too recessed, a thickness of 11.7mm that we’d love to see below 10mm. But then again, in this price range, no one really does better than Citizen.

What sets this Tsuyosa x seconde/seconde/ apart is the dial… And there’s an undeniable sharpness to it (pardon my lame jokes). The whole idea was to take the concept of the sword-shaped hand to a literal sense, and not only to shape the minute hand like a sword (and in a pixelated style, classic from Romaric André), but to have it do the job of a sword to the strictest sense. The result, which is also printed on the back, was that “being smaller has never stopped minutes from slicing hours into pieces”, and then, the sword minute hand has done some damage on the dial, as all hour markers have been sliced and torn into pieces. This playful design of the sword and the indices is set on top of a gradient, sunray-brushed dial, and despite their “sliced in half” position, the indices are still coated in luminescent material.

Underneath the partially tinted crystal caseback, with a message from seconde/seconde/, is the Citizen in-house calibre 8210, a true workhorse that beats at 3Hz and stores about 42h of power reserve. Here, however, it features a slightly more appealing look than the non-coated brass movement found in the standard versions of the Tsuyosa, as this limited edition comes with an openworked rotor and silver-toned bridges and plates. It’s certainly nothing haute horlogerie, but it looks better than it used to.

The Tsuyosa x seconde/seconde/ is worn on a 3-link steel bracelet with brushed and polished surfaces, and closed by a folding clasp decorated with the two parties’ logos and sword slashes. A limited edition of 3,600 pieces, immediately available, this rather cool collaboration retails for EUR 449 or USD 475. For more details, please visit CitizenWatch.eu or CitizenWatch-Global.com.