The sport or tool watch genre is pretty well matured at this point, with brands large and small riffing on the concept in the same manner restaurants gussy up a burger. All in all, it’s pretty hard to screw up if you stick relatively close to the script. But what happens when a brand like Ming, not exactly known for sticking to any kind of script, begins taking the genre seriously? We’ve seen it before with the 37.09 Bluefin, which felt like a mesh of the brand’s trademark quirks with a few dive watch hallmarks thrown in. It worked, but there was clearly more to be fleshed out with the idea. This week, we’re getting the next step in that evolution with the 37.11 Odyssey, and this watch feels more like a conceptual deconstruction of a tool watch as it sidesteps the expected elements, focusing instead on more ethereal qualities.
The 37.11 Odyssey is a sport GMT watch, according to Ming, though it doesn’t exactly read that way at a glance. There is no chunky bezel with an obvious 24 hour scale, no blocky hands and hour markers, no matte black dial, and no date in sight. In fact, many of the qualities you might look for in a good toolish GMT watch aren’t present here. Instead, all the vital elements are almost deconstructed in a manner that forces you to pause and appreciate them. Of course, things like legibility suffer as a result, but it’s a unique experience nonetheless. If we go back to the burger analogy, this might be like getting a square cube of lamb on brioche with an aerosolized tomato foam and a pickled carrot slice on top. A new experience, and arguably one worth having, but not really a substitute for your day in, day out burger needs.
The Odyssey does feature many enviable qualities, and indeed is a watch that prizes on wrist ergonomics. The 38mm case is constructed in grade two titanium, and the head weighs a mere 42 grams. The flared lug design remains, and the whole thing gets a brushed finish. A pair of crowns adorn the three o’clock side of the case, one for winding and setting, and the other for rotating the dial itself. Moving into the dial is where we really find the most peculiar details waiting.
The minute track is etched into the underside of the crystal, and keeps the alien-like design that we’ve seen before from the brand. The only marking present on the dial itself are a 24 hour scale at the perimeter, with the ‘day’ side in a warm hue, and the ‘night’ side in a cool hue. The entire dial rotates instead of a bezel structure, allowing the user to adjust the 24 hour scale on the fly (this is a ‘caller’ style GMT). The 24 hour hand itself is pretty easy to miss, with only its tip being visible, and it forgoes a familiar triangle in favor of a more conceptual rocket or fin shape. It’s a shape followed up in the hands themselves, which accrue more white lume at their tips to create a fade effect. Finally, the whole situation is set over a translucent surface, allowing a view of the movement within.
Rather than prioritizing ‘at a glance’ legibility, the 37.11 Odyssey seems intent to pull you in for a closer look to revel in the experience itself. And given the surfaces and design elements at work, you’ll find a highly dynamic view depending on your surroundings and your viewing angle. This is the real draw of the watch, and one that sets it apart from the otherwise well fleshed out landscape of options in this genre. Further, the watch boasts a 300 meter depth rating, and can be had on Ming’s revolutionary new grade five titanium polymesh bracelet, an item that pushes it over the top all on its own.
Ming is using a custom SW330.M2 from Sellita for this watch, with anthracite skeletonized mainplate, bridges, and rotor. If you’re not keen on the polymesh, it will also be offered on their universal titanium bracelet, and an FKM rubber strap. Pricing begins at CHF 4,950, and goes up to CHF 5,950 on the polymesh. Ming
