Like clockwork, we anticipate the deluge of limited releases from brands as the Chinese New Year approaches each year. And like clockwork, brands deliver, for better or worse. Some brands pull out all the stops and deliver something stunning and special, but just as common is a brand that simply gives us a new color of an old watch. For this edition of The Flyback, we’re giving you a little bit of both, from a red Raymond Weil Millesime to an asymmetrical Franck Muller. And not one of them thought to use snakeskin for the strap.

Franck Muller Silhouette CX Snake
Not only did Franck Muller release a Year of the Snake watch, but it did so in an entirely new asymmetrical case. A literal twist on the brand’s signature tonneau case, the 18k rose gold Silhouette CX Snake has a case that bulges at 2 and 8 for a novel look. On the dial, a CNC guilloché pattern serves as the canvas for the handset emerald snake (which, admittedly, looks a bit more like a tentacle). The strap is calf leather with an embossed snakeskin pattern, which shares the green of the dials’ emeralds. The Franck Muller Silhouette CX Snake is priced at $66,00 SGD (approximately $48,000 USD) exclusive to the Asia Pacific market in a limited run of 28 pieces. For more information, please visit the Franck Muller website.

Hublot Spirit of Big Bang Year of the Snake
This marks the tenth year that Hublot has used the Spirit of Big Band as a platform for a Chinese New Year watch. Last year’s Dragon edition was a personal favorite, and this year, the brand once again shows it thinks about more than just a new dial. The dial has a gold-plated snake that winds around the registers, while the hands, markers, and date window share the same color. Moving beyond the typical “Look! We made a cool dial!” (which it did), Hublot has engraved the ceramic bezel with a snake skin texture, which is also found on the strap. The Hublot Spirit of Big Bang Year of the Snake is priced at $35,100 USD and limited to 88 pieces. For more information, please visit the Hublot website.

Raymond Weil Millesime Burgundy
The Millesime was a home run for Raymond Weil, and while the brand doesn’t have much history of market-driven limited editions like this, it’s not a huge surprise that it used the Millesime as the base. That said, this is a watch where all you’re getting is a new dial color, which will likely only cause frustration. After all, why limit such a lovely dial color if you’re not doing anything special beyond the color? Even the “1 of 88” caseback marking doesn’t tell you it has anything to do with the Chinese New Year, the Year of the Snake, or snakes at all. In fact, the only thing that does so is the snake in the background of the press image above. It’s an attractive edition of the Millesime but, arguably, the lazy way of doing a Lunar New Year watch. The Raymond Weil Millesime Burgundy is priced at $1,650 USD and is limited to 88 pieces. For more information, please visit the Raymond Weil website.

Perrelet Turbine Snake
These days, Perrelet seems like a bit of a one-trick pony with its turbine watches that have spinning vented apertures that can show off whatever the brand decides to put beneath. In its defense, this makes for an impressive visual trick. For the Year of the Snake, Perrelet puts a golden serpent on a red background, with a matching hour track completing the look. The 41mm grade 2 titanium case is DLC-coated with a black rubber strap and has a snake on the sapphire caseback, which shows off the in-house COSC movement. The Perrelet Turbine Snake is priced at $5,450 USD and is limited to 88 pieces. For more information, please visit the Perrelet website.

Arnold & Son Perpetual Moon 41.5 Red Gold ‘Year of the Snake’
Perhaps not surprisingly, Arnold & Son shows us how to make a brilliantly elegant Chinese New Year watch, using the existing Perpetual Moon model as a base (the A&S Year of the Rabbit and Year of the Dragon watches are almost identical to this one save for the animal on them) and enhanced for this version with an 18k red-gold snake against a branch of Gingko Biloba, abutting a Chinese temple. The aventurine moonphase disc features an oversized mother-of-pearl moon and the constellations Ursa Major and Cassiopeia, all of which are lumed. The watch is powered by a hand-wound, hand-finished in-house movement. The Arnold & Son Perpetual Moon 41.5 Red Gold “Year of the Snake” is priced at CHF 57,200 and limited to eight pieces. For more information, please visit the Arnold & Son website.
Let us know in the comments what other Year of the Snake releases caught your eye!