Across the last few years there has been one conversation in the watch industry that never seems to be far from anyone’s lips. And that conversation centres around the Swatch x Omega MoonSwatch. A collection of hyper accessible watches in bright and bold colours that caused a major splash when they landed in the spring of 2022. The key to their success (or cause to hate them) is the fact their aesthetic design is heavily influenced by the Omega Speedmaster Moonwatch. An officially branded Omega Moonwatch (just ignore the S in the middle) for less than £300? The success was quite literally overnight.
Swatch decided that the entire collection would only be available to buy in select bricks and mortar boutiques with no online availability whatsoever. This led to queues through the night and frequent complaints of a lack of stock. At the same time, scalpers quickly posted watches on pre-owned sales platforms online and people who either could not make it to one of the boutiques or didn’t get the specific model they wanted skyrocketed the prices. At the height of MoonSwatch-mania that spring I recall seeing watches with retail values of £207 being sold for around £1,500.
Predictably, this invited criticism from collectors who disagreed with the ethics of scalping as well as those who simply did not like the idea of mass market editions of iconic watches. To them, MoonSwatches represented Omega selling out on their heritage and devaluing the brand name. However, regardless of if you’re a MoonSwatch fan or a MoonSwatch hater, the incredible publicity and sales meant follow-up collections were inevitable and sure enough the MoonShine Gold, Snoopy and Earth Editions followed. So, let’s take a look back at every Swatch x Omega MoonSwatch released so far.
The Original Moonswatch
With bright colours inspired by the prominent celestial bodies in our solar system, all 11 MoonSwatches provided the archetype for what is now a well established collection.
Mission to the Sun
As bright and vibrant as the sun, this yellow MoonSwatch is dedicated to the fiery ball of gas at the centre of the solar system.
Mission to Mercury
With a grey dial and black subdials, the Mission to Mercury is an interesting variation on the colours traditionally associated with the Speedmaster.
Mission to Venus
The Mission to Venus introduces a more feminine aspect to the MoonSwatch thanks to a pink case and jewel-like decoration.
Mission on Earth
With a green and blue design, the Mission on Earth is a tribute to this beautiful blue marble we call home. This model eventually inspired a sub-collection launched in 2024.
Mission to the Moon
The Mission to the Moon is based on the traditional Omega Moonwatch design with a monochrome black design on a steel-grey case.
Mission to Mars
Dedicated the Red Planet, the Mission to Mars has a red case with a white dial. The style of it is based on the famous Omega Alaska Project design.
Mission to Jupiter
With the sandy beige tones of the swirling gas giant and an orange hand to represent the famous red storm, this is the Mission to Jupiter.
Mission to Saturn
Mission to Saturn takes a more literal approach to its planetary namesake by featuring the iconic rings around the 6 o’clock subdial.
Mission to Uranus
With a light blue colour reminiscent of ice, Mission to Uranus feels cold and frosty, like the void of space.
Mission to Neptune
Mission to Neptune has a special place in the history of the MoonSwatch because a manufacturing issue led to the vibrant blue colour marking some people’s wrist, resulting in it being removed from production – it’s therefore the most exclusive edition and the most expensive on pre-owned sites.
Mission to Pluto
With a cream and burgundy colouration, the Mission to Pluto has always reminded me of raspberry ripple ice cream.
Mission to Moonshine Gold Special Editions
After the success of the original MoonSwatch, throughout 2023 Swatch released a special edition of the Mission to Moon every month dedicated to the cultural theme of each full moon.
Mission to Moon: March
Kicking off the monthly special editions was the Mission to Moon in March, known as the Mission to Moonshine Gold. As with all these special editions its chronograph hand is made from Moonshine gold and was produced on the day of the full moon in the previous month.
Mission to Moon: April
In April, Swatch reproduced the Mission to Moonshine Gold from March, which led to the start of a huge period of MoonSwatch fatigue from watch collectors. In general, the Moonshine Gold editions are regarded as some of the least inventive MoonSwatches capitalising on the success of the originals.
Mission to Moon: May
Starting from May, Swatch began introducing a monthly variation to the golden chronograph hand, starting relatively subtly with a pink lume tip.
Mission to Moon: June
In June they started to get more adventurous with night blooming flowers on the golden hand for the Flower Moon of May, although interest in the monthly releases was waning.
Mission to Moon: July
The Strawberry Moon of June edition (released in July) was the first of the MoonSwatch Moonshine Gold editions to really pique an interest due to its more playful style, harking back to the original bright colours.
Mission to Moon: August
August saw two Moonshine gold editions, the first of which was dedicated to the Swiss National Day with a Swiss flag motif.
Mission to Neptune: August
The second Moonshine gold released in August was a Mission to Neptune variation, which as mentioned in the section above is one of the most enduringly popular models due to its perceived exclusivity.
Mission to Moon: September
For the Harvest Moon that took place in August, Swatch dressed the September edition with barley grain. At this point, few news outlets even bothered to talk about MoonSwatch releases because the industry was so saturated with them already.
Mission to Moon: October
Arguably the most interesting of the Mission to Moonshine watches, but one of the least talked about is the Mission to Moon from October, which features a very cool, retro lollipop hand.
Mission to Moon: November
The Mission to Moon for November is inspired by the Beaver Moon, hence the counterweight portion of the chronograph hand appears to have been gnawed.
Mission to Moon: December
Fitting for December, the final Moonshine Gold edition features a snowflake motif on its golden chronograph hand.
Mission to the Moonphase
After the Moonshine series, Swatch really had their work cut out for them to reignite people’s interest in the collection. Something they achieved quite successfully with the build up to and launch of the two Snoopy editions, each dedicated to a phase of the moon. Subsequently they released a non-snoopy edition of the Mission to Moonphase too.
Mission to the Moonphase Full Moon
First of the Snoopy edition is the Moonphase Full Moon edition, a completely white design with a depiction of Snoopy sleeping on a moonphase subdials. Additionally in low light conditions a lumed inscription reads “I can’t sleep without a night light”
Mission to the Moonphase New Moon
Opposite to the bright white Full Moon, the New Moon edition is full black across the case, dial and strap. Interestingly the moonphase has been rotated 90 degrees to put the New Moon at the top of the subdial, rather than the full moon.
Mission to the Super Blue Moonphase
At time of writing, the Mission to the Super Blue Moonphase is the newest addition to the MoonSwatch family. It features the same layout and moonphase complication as the Snoopy editions above but without the loveable character being present. It has multiple shades of blue in reference to the August super moon and is only available during that month.
Mission on Earth
This trio of MoonSwatches are dedicated to natural phenomena observable here on Earth and as such are a subcollection of the original Mission on Earth model. Their bright designs mark a return to the original concepts that made the series popular to begin with.
Mission on Earth Lava
With the name Lava, the inspiration behind this red and black edition is clear. It also makes for a sporty combination that reminds me of Ferrari and motorsport.
Mission on Earth Polar Lights
The Polar Lights edition combines the unique green colour of the aurora with the twinkling of stars courtesy of an aventurine-esque dial. A tribute to the beautiful patterns seen in the night sky at the polar caps of the planet.
Mission on Earth Desert
Somewhat reminiscent of the Mission to Jupiter, the Mission on Earth Desert has a sandy colour paired with khaki tones.
