The Seiko 5 Sports Street Fighter V Blanka LE SRPF23 is perhaps the wildest of the many Seiko 5 Limited Editions released in recent years. It's one of six Street Fighter V Limited Edition models, and is styled after the green skin and orange hair of the iconic video game character.
I purchased this watch from Random Rob. If you'd like to see reviews of other LE watches from the Seiko 5 Sports Series, consider checking out the Sonar, the Brian May Red Special, and the Beatmaker.
Seiko 5 Street Fighter V Blanka SRPF23 First Impressions
The Street Fighter edition takes the dive watch style of the standard 5KX and disregards it. Despite having a rotating bezel, this is not a tool watch. I like some colorful and flashy watches, but this one is very bold even for me.
Seiko 5 Street Fighter V Blanka SRPF23 Details
The timing bezel insert is replaced with a green and yellow lightning pattern, inspired by Blanka's "Electric Thunder" attack.
The green dial features a textured swirl pattern, as Blanka can roll into a ball when attacking opponents.
An orange chapter ring surrounds, and the hands are filled with yellow. The case is finished in a gunmetal color, as are the hands and tooth-shaped hour markers (reminiscent of a 2nd-gen Monster).
The Seiko logos are in black, and a gunmetal piece surrounds the day/date window. It can display the day in English or Roman Numerals.
Wearing the Seiko 5 Street Fighter V Blanka SRPF23
I feel silly strapping the Blanka edition to my wrist, but it is really fun to look at. Besides the bright colors, the dial texture is intriguing to look at.
Like the Compass Monster, it has yellow Lumibrite. In this application, it glows a bright green.
Seiko 5 Street Fighter V Blanka SRPF23 Strap and Replacement Straps
The Street Fighter edition comes equipped with a 22mm green and orange nylon pass-through strap to match the dial.
My favorite strap for it has been the new Lume Green FKM Deployant Rubber. The bright green color of the dial is highlighted, and the bright lume at night makes it even more striking.
Deployant FKM Rubber
That being said a black strap does a lot to tone the watch down and make it more wearable.
The Ridge Rubber also looks great in orange or yellow. I'd recommend adding a Custom Color Keeper in the opposite color.
Ridge FKM Rubber
Here is a list of some more straps that would look great with this watch. You can also view our Guide to Choosing a Watch Strap.
-Deployant Rubber
-Deployant Sailcloth
-Extra Long Ridge Rubber
-Tropical Rubber
-Premium Sailcloth
-Smooth Rubber
-Rubber and Sailcloth Hybrid Straps
-Vented Rubber
-Slim Ridge Rubber
-Waffle Rubber
-Elastic
Seiko 5 Street Fighter V Blanka SRPF23 Movement
SRPF23 uses Seiko's 4R36 movement, as do other recent 5 Sports models. It features automatic winding, as well as hand-winding and hacking (stop seconds) function.
The transparent caseback displays the movement behind a gold Street Fighter graphic.
Seiko 5 Street Fighter V Blanka SRPF23 Conclusion
Due to its wild appearance, I expect this watch to have less mass appeal with watch collectors. There must be a lot of Street Fighter fans in the world; however, as Seiko made 9,999 watches in this (not so) Limited Edition. At $499, it was also priced much higher than other models. It's a moot point now anyway; they are all sold out.
Seiko 5 Street Fighter V Blanka SRPF23 Specifications
Name: Seiko 5 Sports
Reference Number: SRPF23
MSRP: $499
Diameter: 42.5mm
Height: 46mm
Thickness: 13.4mm
Lug Width: 22mm
Weight: 95g
Movement: 4R36
Power Reserve: 41 hours
Water Resistance: 100m
Crystal: Hardlex
Crown: Push-pull
Bezel: Unidirectional, 120 clicks
Strap: Nylon pass-through