The Studio Ghibli x Seiko Presage Nausicaä Of The Valley Of The Wind SPB437

Set in a distant apocalyptic future, Studio Ghibli’s anime fantasy film Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind was released back in 1984, and as such is celebrating its 40th anniversary this year. It tells the story of Nausicaä, the Princess of the Valley of the Wind, who becomes entangled in a fight with Tolmekia, a nearby kingdom that tries to eradicate a jungle of mutant insects caused to spawn by the toxic fallout of the war called the Seven Days of Fire. Our heroine seeks to find a way to better the world and find help in the most unexpected being; a giant Ohm. Seiko captures this adventurous and heroic spirit in its latest collaborative piece, the Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind SPB437, and no, we’re not going to bother you with the insanely long name it officially has.

The watch itself is based on the Presage collection, and more specifically one from the Craftsmanship Series. This means it has a 40.5mm wide and 12.4mm stainless steel case, but Seiko has given it a unique (sort of grained, or sandblasted) texture, protected by a superhard coating. On both the front and back, there is a sapphire crystal to protect the dial and movement. The one on the back also has a special decoration linking it to the film, set in a gold-coloured caseback ring. The crown is also unique in shape, and it has a blue glass crystal insert to further set it apart from regular Presage Craftsmanship Series references.

The blue tone of the enamel dial is taken directly from one of the outfits Prinses Nausicaä can be seen wearing in the film, and the white and red logo on her chest has found its way onto the dial as well. The printed hour indices and minute track are done in white, with leaf-shaped hour and minute hands, and a gold-coloured central seconds hand indicating the time. Being an enamel dial, you can see a gentle orange-peel effect when viewed up close, and the distinct dip surrounding the hands, which adds character.

Driven by a gold-coloured rotor, the Seiko Calibre 6R51 that is used for this limited edition has a very comfortable power reserve of 72 hours. Although it shares the same architecture as the 6R55 and thus runs in the same 21,600vph frequency, it lacks a date indication. As mentioned, time is indicated by a set of central hour, minute, and seconds hands. Although the finishing is rather basic, it would only distract from the artwork on the caseback, which is a direct reference to the movie’s end scene.

This limited edition of 1,500 pieces is presented in a special presentation box with artwork inspired by the animation series. It’s worn on a brown leather strap with a three-part folding clasp and retails for EUR 1,750. Although it might be a tad obscure to most, Seiko often proves that these inspired limited editions are very popular and hard to come by once Seiko boutiques and select retailers have shifted their allocated pieces. The SPB437 will be available from March 2024.

For more information, please visit SeikoWatches.com.