The Citizen Promaster Dive Automatic Gets a “Fugu” Makeover

Name any type of environment or situation, whether that be diving the depths of the ocean, exploring far-flung terrains, or navigating the skies, the Citizen Promaster without question has a very-capable watch for the job. But given the sheer amount of watches in Citizen’s catalog, their bread and butter remains within their collection of dive watches. Sure, you’ll find a straight-forward steel black dial diver, it’s a must for any watch brand. But just like how you’ll find fish in the ocean, you can also expect to discover a handful of eccentric divers with inquisitive case silhouettes and lume dials that’ll keep up with any bioluminescent organism in the dark. Citizen’s new addition to the Promaster Dive Automatic collection leans more into its marine animal namesake, the “Fugu” which in Japanese, translates to “pufferfish,” with its new dial texture, caseback emblem and a couple of case updates.

Now it’s going to be obvious that I’ve used this introduction for Citizens Promaster Dive Automatic novelties as an excuse to learn more about the pufferfish, so be prepared for some facts about the well-known Tetraodontidae family member. That said, let’s dig right into the updates to the case, shall we? The three new Citizen divers are now fitted with a sapphire crystal and a 120-click unidirectional bezel. With the insert still made out of aluminum, Citizen has changed the bezel system to offer higher timing precision during diving scenarios such as tracking bottom time and decompression stops. Aside, from the updates to the crystal and bezel, the case remains exactly the same – a uniformly finished steel case body spanning 44mm in width and highlighted by a distinct bezel grip design.

The bezel is exactly where the “Fugu” gets its nickname due to the alternating combination of curved and sharp edges. It is reminiscent of a pufferfish when it enables its defense mechanism against larger prey by taking in an exorbitant amount of water, expanding it’s once cuddly frame to a large and jagged unappetizing treat. The new dial texture also draws inspiration from the small but mighty (and romantic) fish.

In order to grab the attention of a female pufferfish, its male counterpart creates these elaborate works of sand art by swimming back and forth in circular and straight motions. The end result is a symmetrical imprint in the sand encircled with various peaks and valleys. The dial is an accurate interpretation of this display, showing off the congruous pattern in relief with a coarse-like consistency throughout. Accompanying the new dial are the same ol’ features we love about Citizen divers – bold luminous hour markers, distinguishable handset, and a day-date complication.

The three new Promaster Dive Automatic models; NY0137-09A, NY0130-08E and NY0136-52L are differentiated by dial color, accents and attending straps. The NY0137-09A sports a fully lumed dial (hold for applause) with gray markers aside from the dial color-matching cardinal markers and a midnight blue bezel. Its case has a black coating over its steel foundation, and thankfully sans the toxic coating found within a pufferfish’s skin (last pufferfish fact, I swear). The NY0130-08E gets the traditional plain steel case and gets a hit of yellow accents on the minute hand as well as the chapter ring. The NY0136-52L is the most conservative of the bunch with its matching navy blue dial and bezel, steel case and accompanying steel bracelet. All three models have the crown positioned at 8 o’clock, are rated up to 200M and ISO compliant.

The trio of Promaster Dive Automatics are currently available online through Citizen and range from $550 to $650. The addition of the sapphire crystal is a welcomed feature, especially if you’re the type to take this thing diving. The 120-click bezel however, I’m not too sure about. I do lean towards bezels with a 60-click system for reasons like tactile preference and being able to know the bezel position without looking down at the watch itself. But again, if you’re using this thing for actual diving purposes, then I can definitely see the use-case for a 120-click bezel to more accurately track different scenarios at depth. The day-date complication on a diver is also another appealing feature for those looking for that sort of configuration, especially since off the top of my head, only a few select brands including Citizen that offer them come to mind. For more information on the new “Fugu” Promaster Dive Automatics, head on over to Citizen.