There Are Pandas, and Then There Are Pandas.
And this isn't either of them! The Pandas we're talking about here, are watches, not bears. And what got me thinking about them (again) was a link posted this morning by @cm.rook who pointed a few of us to the very attractive (and not terribly priced) Yema "Rallygraph" Panda which, in it's most traditional arrangement, looks like the one on the left, but can also be had in the version on the right: The model on the left is a true Panda, while the model on the right is called a reverse Panda. The reason for that distinction is clear--Panda bears, only come in the first arrangement. Now at this point, everyone should be thinking about the most well-know Panda, The Rolex Panda, which is actually a Daytona, and among Rolex Daytonas, the most famous of which is the Paul Newman Daytona, which was famous first, because it was Paul's, and second because it sold at auction for $17.8 million (US Dollars). The story of that auction is well-known so I'll only...
Nov 8, 2019
What about looks? I find this "deluxe" version so simple it can be mistaken for their annual special edition like the Dark Lilac or something like that. It really doesn't scream luxury and hopefully, it isn't Lamy's motto!
Beside the exotic nature of the barrel material, I don't understand the calling of luxury and I find this pen is for Lamy collectionneur or anyone without an Al-Star already. From an European fountain pen user point of view, I hardly can understand the marketing behind but I'm no economist so who am I to judge?
That said, it's shiny, it's limited, it's from a solid brand, it's somewhat "luxurious" and it features everything an Al-Star can offer. At standard price point, I'd rush for the Platinum or the Rose Gold one!