When Walter White, the formidable character from the hit series “Breaking Bad” hit it big time with this drug empire, one of his first purchases was a watch. Did Walter White go for a solid gold Rolex? Patek? Royal Oak? None of the above. Ol’ Heisenberg himself chose the Tag Heuer Monaco. The Monaco is one of Tag’s most recognizable watches, and for good reason. It has a square case, a rarity in the watch world, and the bold red, white, and blue dial colors catch the eye and don’t let go. Unfortunately for most of us, we don’t have the disposable income of a meth dealer, and that is where one of the Watch Clicker staff’s favorite brands come in. EMG has updated its homage to the Monaco with a manual winding movement, a refined case and dial, and all the value you expect from EMG. Let’s jump in.
On the Wrist
The Horizon V2 isn’t a big watch, but it isn’t small, either. At 38mm wide, 46.5mm lug-to-lug, and a little bit of slabby case thickness at 13.45mm, the Horizon can achieve as much wrist presence as you desire without looking like a block of steel on the wrist. Compared to the V1, the V2 looks remarkably smaller on the wrist, thanks to the front of the watch not being entirely dial. There is now some brushed steel to help break up the front of the case.
While the Horizon can look slab-sided, it doesn’t translate to how it looks on the wrist. EMG added enough chamfers to the sides of the case to help break up the sight lines, and with a wrist-to-crystal of 12mm, this is an extremely comfortable chronograph.
The Tag Monaco is a chronograph born of racing, hence the name. The Horizon V2 captures the spirit of the Monaco with the Seagull ST1901 movement. The movement is reliable and serviceable, but the real win comes down to having all that mechanical feedback you want from a racing chronograph. Snappy pushers and a smooth sweep on the chronograph hand make the Horizon a joy to time things with.
EMG Horizon V2 Specs | |
Case Width 38mm | Lug-to-Lug 46.6mm |
Case Thickness 13.8mm | Wrist-to-Crystal 12mm |
Lug Width 22mm | Weight 86g |
Water Resistance 100m | Strap Leather Strap |
Crystal Sapphire | Lume Super-LumiNova BGW9 |
Movement Seagull ST1901 | Price $400 |
Dial Details
The dial is fitted into a TV-esque-shaped cutout. Although the main parts of the dial are circular, the subdials complement this cutout shape and provide a cohesive design.
The two subdials are a running seconds and a 30-minute totalizer. The bright white hands contrast against the dark blue dial color and allow the subdials to remain readable at all times. The central chronograph hand is red and stands out prominently on the dial.
The hour and minute hands are simple stick hands with lume applied to the center. My only complaint about the hands is that they are a little thin and can sometimes get lost in the dial. There is also lume applied to each hour marker.
EMG opted for simple branding (which I’m a big fan of) with their logo at 12 o’clock and three lines of branding text at 6 o’clock. The text at 6 o’clock is small and discreet.
Case and Strap
Looking at the Horizon V1 and V2 side-by-side, you can see the elevated finishing on the V2. The brushing is crisp on the V2, but it felt slightly blobby on the V1. The chamfers and polished areas are all perfectly finished, and the transitions are sharp.
The crystal peeks out just above the case, which has a small step down to the front of the case. I suppose we could call that a bezel, albeit a very tiny one.
The pushers angle in as they extend toward the top and bottom of the case, creating a sleek look and feel that is great to use. The angle allows them to push in ever-so-slightly easier than if they were a consistent height. The crown is sized well at 7mm, which makes it wonderful to wind the watch.
Usually, a lug width of 22mm on a 38mm watch would be heresy, but it works perfectly on the Horizon. Because there isn’t a circular part of the watch narrowing down to the lugs, the 22mm strap looks right at home on the Horizon. EMG includes a rally-style leather strap, and while this style of strap isn’t my jam, it works well with the Horizon and is something you would likely find on a Monaco. I’d love to see EMG offer a bracelet option for the Horizon in the future.
Final Thoughts
$8,000 is a lot to ask for a watch, regardless of its historical significance or appearance in popular TV shows. The Monaco is such a watch and unaffordable for 99% of the population. Even those Breaking Bad fans who might spend a paycheck or two on props and merchandise from the show would have a hard time justifying that price tag for the Monaco.
The Horizon V2 is $400. You read that right, four-hundred dollars. You get a manual winding chronograph, modeled after one of the most storied chronographs in history, for basically the price of a PlayStation 5. That value proposition is hard to beat, and I’d argue that is EMG’s bread and butter. They put out fantastic watches that fit right into the budgets of those who also like to save for our kid’s college funds. The Horizon V2 is a prime example of refinement over the previous iteration of a watch, and it might just be EMG’s best release yet.
Check out more EMG reviews at The Watch Clicker here
Check out the EMG website here the Kickstarter page here
