I will honestly say it: At the beginning, I was not mad at all for this watch.
Yes, it is a strong watch, and as every strong watch, it won't be everyone's taste.
But is it such a bad thing?
I mean, if all the brands began to release watches for everybody's taste or expectations, it would start to be boring.
Technically, Jerome, you said all, it is one of the Extrem Lab Son, indeed.
The sense of Innovation is geniously expressed, here, with this watch, and JLC, for once, also thought about giving it a technical buckle, and a very pleasant one.
Without forgetting the TiVan case...
Nor the movement:
The real question is not on the technical ground, but on the Aesthetic...
On the first pics I saw, I was quite passing on it, judging the dial to busy, too complex, too far from what I expected...
I guess the first approach is always the reflection of our tastes, and it may be sometimes an inconvenient, as you may feel a negative a priori, before seeing it in the metal.
That was exactly what happenened with this watch.
I have to confess that I was wrong.
This watch is a concept, and, as it is often the case with a concept, it may aesthetically not be of your taste, the matter is very subjective.
I surprised myself to begin to like it.
Big, it is, as well as thick ( 46, 8 mm x 16, 5 mm ).
But once under your eyes, it looks like an average 44 mm watch:
1st surprise.
The dial and the whole watch is not really photogenic, but in real, it is muuuuch better.
Here, the form matches with the Function, IMO, and the design is coherent with the purpose of the watch, a complex toolwatch.
Between the 2 versions, I much prefer the Titanium one, but here again, it is the reflect of my personal taste.
Here, they are:
The RG:
I much prefer the colder, sportier look of the Titanium version:
2 last things:
1/ The Extrem Lab II is a very comfortable watch to wear, mostly in titanium, as this last one is very light, and the articulated strap is a real pleasure.
2/ I still think that the use of the name of the Géophysic is a mistake, on this watch.
I see the relation, which is the Adventure, but it is a heavy name to wear, as it refers to a Mythic watch from the JLC Past, and everybody had maybe something simpler in mind.
This is not fair for the Extrem Lab II, which naturally borrows more elements from the Extrem Lab than to the much simpler but mechanically sophisitcated Géophysic.
One has its life behind it, the other has all its life in front of it...
Long life to the E.Lab II!
Best,
Nicolas