King Seiko VANAC – 70’s Glamour from Japan

Architecture makes it or breaks it for a city, it influences how you feel when you live or visit a city. Building, shapes, spacing and everything else. King Seiko VANAC is here to remind us of that. Inspired by Tokyo, which is a city of big contrasts when it comes to architecture with modern tall buildings with neon lights and glass and also with some traditional architecture. 

But enough about Buildings and Architecture, Seiko Launches Kings Seiko VANAC which, as I said it’s inspired by Tokyo architecture and it is somehow a revival of that era, with integrated bracelets and colors inspired by the light that shines over the skyscrapers of Tokyo.

It’s not the first revival, recently Seiko introduced the Prospex 1968 Heritage Diver GMT.

King Seiko VANAC- five dials, five colours that capture Tokyo’s Skyline

The dial of this model comes in five variants: “Tokyo Sunrise” , “Tokyo Twilight”, Tokyo Midnight”, “Tokyo Horizon” and “Tokyo Brilliant Sunlight”. 

And I must say that this is clever, making and naming the colours inspired by the light that reflects on the buildings  in different shapes, intensity and colours during a day. It gives you a feeling of intimacy. But that’s just me, maybe…

King Seiko VANAC Design

Nothing new here, The watch is inspired by the older models launched in the 70’, a period in which Geralt Genta was a God to watch designers and everyone tried to copy him, if they haven’t worked with him directly. This model comes with an integrated bracelet and the shape is like you expected.

The original design from the 70’s was bold and somehow playful with a vibrant dial, multi-faceted crystal and a striking case. Now, it has a more refined approach but it still retains its character. 

King Seiko VANAC carries over the key elements from the 70’s like the integrated bracelet, faceted case and the superb dials. The difference is that now, it comes with a domed crystal and not a faceted one. But it’s ok, it gives the watch a more elegant profile.

I know that we have an abundance of integrated bracelet watches nowadays. It’s full of them, from Tissot to Rolex or Citizen,  everyone is making integrated bracelets. But King Seiko VANAC remains the same for good reason. The design doesn’t replicate a past VANAC and it does not attempt to be a Geralt Genta look-alike. 

It feels fresh and different, even though it has familiar design elements seen on other watches, especially in the subtle details of the bracelet center links. 

The case is highly polished and with the wide facets creates a mirror like effect. The level of finishing is a staple for Seiko watches, Grand Seiko watches mostly, and also rarely seen in Swiss competitors at this price point which is…3000 USD.

Bracelet has the same attention to detail, its links combine polished and brushed surfaces while the polished bevels adds extra refinement.

The Dial

The Dial is divided into three circles and the hour markers are positioned within the central ring. The inner and outer circles feature horizontal striping with wide and thin lines, and the central circle has stripes that double as minute markers. 

What makes the dial more complex are the two thin metallic frames that encircle the central ring, one along the outer edge and one the inner edge. 

As we mentioned before, we have five dial options for King Seiko VANAC, the blue one is a boutique-exclusive edition and the gold one is a limited edition to 700 pieces. 

Movement: Caliber 8L35

Actually it’s a modified 8L35. The older 8L35 was based on the Grand Seiko 9S55 while the new model is based on the current 9S65 movement which has a power reserve of 72 hours, the previous one had 50. 

Another thing that makes the updated 8L35 and 9S65 similar is the winding mechanism, both used a reverser wheel system unlike the older 8L35 which , like 9S55 relied on Magic Lever.

King Seiko VANAC it’s a cool watch, with an amazing story and colours. It makes you want all the colours available in order to have a complete collection. But somehow I can’t get over the fact that it is a 3000 USD watch. I like it, just like the Seiko Prospex 1968 Heritage Diver, looks good, but it feels too expensive to me. 

You can always go on second hand market and get an Omega Seamaster in that price range or even better, a Tissot PRX which is way cheaper and looks much cooler. Also, it’s not Swiss Made , and I know it’s not important but my brain is broken when it comes to pay a lot of money for a watch that is not Swiss.

Grand Seiko, yes, I can agree with a higher price. But for anything else from SEIKO, no matter how good they are, I have a mental blockage that push me to think that any other watch with SEIKO in his name (other than Grand Seiko) it’s not worth more than a couple of hundreds. 

But that is just me, I see that it is a good watch with great movement and colours and materials. Maybe for you guys worth all the money in the world. Just not for me. By the way, the watch was launched in March 2025.

More about this model here