ReviewStar Spectrum: Zenith Introduce Eight New Colours In Their Defy 21 ‘Ultra Colour’ Box Set

Whether enthusiasts love or hate the aesthetics of the timepieces housing it, Zenith’s El Primero 21 movement does command tremendous respect in the world of horology. Even the manufacture’s pride in their horological achievement shines through in each new release. With the success of their Defy 21 Ultraviolet in the year 2020, followed by the Defy 21 Ultrablue in 2021, this year, the brand unveil an entire spectrum of colour in their Defy El Primero 21 series, with an ‘Ultra Colour’ box set. Against a matt titanium case that has been micro-blasted for a monochromatic and anti-reflective effect, eight new shades now colour the movement of the open-worked watch, making the latest Ultra Colour iterations from Zenith’s Defy 21 series brilliant, to say the least.

A Revolution On The Wrist

Introduced in 1969, the original El Primero movement didn’t garner the response the brand had hoped for, what with the competition releasing their own versions of the automatic chronograph. While Zenith’s was still the first integrated automatic chronograph, it didn’t make the impact then that it eventually did. This was also because the infamous ‘quartz crisis’ followed soon after.

To know the story of how the brand survived this troubling time in the history of mechanical watchmaking, click here

Almost 50 years later, Zenith reintroduced their newer, much improved version, the El Primero 21 movement—named for its inevitable upgrade into the 21st century—and this time around, it did find success. The watchmaking world is better for it, for it now measures not just 1/10th of a second but 1/100th, and the star-ended chronograph counter whizzing around the dial once every second is testament to that.

Like the Ultraviolet and Ultrablue (seen here) versions of the Defy 21, the eight new coloured movements can be admired through the display caseback of the watches

The movement has two independently-regulated escapements, each with its own gear train. The escapement for the timekeeping function operates at 36,000vph or 5Hz (impressive, considering the industry average of 3Hz and 4Hz), while that for the chronograph operates 10 times faster, at a whopping 3,60,000vph, or 50Hz. Today, while versions of the El Primero movement tick inside most of Zenith’s timepieces, this revolutionary movement is best displayed in the manufacture’s Defy 21 series.

Intregrating Precision And Ultra Colour

In the year 2020, Zenith introduced the Defy 21 Ultraviolet, with an intent to ‘express the notion of high-frequency precision through frequencies of light and colours’. Set in a 44mm titanium case, the open-worked watch had chronograph counters in a complementing shade of grey, but it was the movement that shone through in a vivid shade of violet. It’s still not common to find such vivid hues on the internal parts of any movement.

The Zenith Defy 21 Ultraviolet was introduced in 2020, with an intent to ‘express the notion of high-frequency precision through frequencies of light and colours’

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In 2021, Zenith showcased their Defy 21 Ultrablue, set in a matt 44mm titanium case, but this time the movement was in a rich shade of blue

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The year after, Zenith showcased their Defy 21 Ultrablue, with a similar concept, but this time the movement was in a rich shade of blue. In 2022, the brand announced a limited released of their Defy 21 Chroma Chronograph. Unlike the Ultra-series, this one was set in a white matt ceramic case, and had hues of the rainbow on its skeletonised movement, as well as on the applied indexes on the dial.

Colours Of The Rainbow—In A Box

This year’s ‘Ultra Colour’ timepieces have the same matt-finished lightweight titanium case as the 2020 Ultraviolet model, which allow the prismatic movement to shine through. The effect of shifting light on the metallic hues against the stark grey adds volume and vitality to the vibrant series.

In the same monochromatic shade of grey as the case, are the raised chronograph counters on the Ultra Colour timepieces, with the 30-minute and 60-second recorders at three and six o’clock respectively, the small seconds sub dial at nine, and a power reserve indicator at 12 o’clock. Facetted hour markers and hands are rhodium-plated and coated with Super-LumiNova.

Much like previous Ultra versions of the Defy 21 timepieces, these eight timepieces feature a display caseback, through which the singular El Primero 21 automatic high-frequency chronograph movement can be admired. While the 50-hour power reserve is sufficient when using the timekeeping function, it is significantly reduced when the chronograph is in use. This is inevitable, considering what Zenith CEO Julien Tornare told The Watch Guide in an earlier interview, “In the Defy 21, when you press the button, it goes so fast that it almost feels like a toy. People press it to show it to others. And that’s important. There’s animation that makes the product fun to look at, and enjoy.”

The caseback features a number from one to eight for each of the timepieces in the set, instead of just one serial number for all eight timepieces. The brilliant, metallic-coloured movements within the set are in orange, pink, blue, turquoise, violet, green, khaki and black. Each of these is mounted on a matching cordura-effect rubber strap with a micro-blasted titanium double folding clasp. The Ultra Colour set is delivered in a transparent acrylic case that refracts light at different angles to showcase various colours. This edition is limited to only eight sets of eight watches each.