Invictus Aqua

Darn good if you ask me. I am still battling if this fragrance is my personality, but taking me out of the equation, I understand the hype compared to Invictus Aqua that is available now. First the longevity is good. I am currently going on 12 hours and the frag is very vivid and rich. IMO too many perfumers use cheap ozonic ingredients, and on my skin it smells like a wet dog. This started in that direction, but did a nice u turn. So I now question if my mind was reacting out of fear. The aquatic ozonic notes play with the berry notes nice in the beginning. But it feels alittle common and just on par with its competitors. However, what is does is play with those notes longer and gives a more natural experience that it competitors does not. The aqua amber recipe in the dry down definitely is nice yet powerful. Slightly salty. IMO this is where it completely breaks away from its competitors and the current Invictus. IMO this version is all three of the other Invictus fragrances well blended on artistic steriods and superior quality. There are other fragrances that comes to mind wearing this; Acqua Di Gio, Yves Saint Laurent. But I do like this better due the freshness and quality of ingredients. Its a better experience. It does what the great Creed Millesime Imperial does. It transports you. You sense the cool temperature change sniffing this fragrance. Is it worth the inflated price online? Yes! For a true collector that actively wears their collection, I can see this being a frequent reach. Now will I reach? Hmmmmmm. Why hmmmmm! Its very youthful. Paco gave the the under 25 crowd a artistic gem. It makes the older crowd hit a quick workout, get a clean hair cut, put on flops, suck in your stomach, and head to the beach. You know a fragrances is good when you see yourself in the designers vision. After reading my review I'm reaching. This is an alternative to Creed MI. Its not a duplicate by any means, and it is more in the vein of Creed Erofia due to the saltiness. I feel I can wear this in the same type of occassions as MI, but due to the details of the occassion I have a choice.

Invictus Aqua is what the original Invictus should have been. Here the bubble-gum sweetness is toned down a lot and the citrus with marine notes are put into center stage (reminds me of citrus mineral water mixed with some fizzy drink). Still synthetic and generic, yet it is so appealing when it's in the air, definitely a crowd pleaser. Don't smell it too close, as it is strong even though it is aquatic. For the great performance (especially for a summer fragrance) and the likability factor, you cannot go wrong. Get it while you can as it has been discontinued. EDIT: I wore this whilst working out. I found what makes it last so long. Once the citrus, violet leaf, woody and peppery notes dissipate, you are left with the 'sea water ' note. Now I immediately recognized what it was supposed to be. Calone. It smells like water spray at a stormy sea (a bit bitter, salty and gives that mist type of atmosphere). As calone is a long lasting component (about 10h), I believe that is why the 'sea note' is actually calone. Other notes burn out quicker, but calone stays on for a long time. This can be found in Acqua di Gio, L'Eau d'Issey, Cool Water, Every Storm a Serenade and some others. This edit is not a critique or a praise, just a side note for those who like some trivia.

@oceansoflorewi Not Impossible yes invictus aqua is fresher but the characteristic bubblegum DNa is what makes invictus a compliment monster. I personally love aqua and Og equally but I actuall get more compliments with the OG but aqua still is super easy to like by other people but fresher does not always mean more compliments. Invictus is fresh enough to not offense other people yet has this deep aquatic bubblegum feeling. Aqua has more citrusy salty vibe which is good but can't beat the deep aquatic bubblegum. Calling Invictus sickenly sweet and then telling aqua is iconic is absurd because they have 75% similarity. You cant love a fragrance that resembels the one you hate 75%. You mostly got affected by the hype and other peoples reviews and comments so you thing aqua is a superstar while Og is teribble. I know people who won't even know the difference in the air when comparing both aqua and Og. Really ABSURD!

was very excited about this one. And then I smelled the original and this one side by side. In all honest, they are the same. Aqua has more lighter opening, more citrus but it is the same smell. Dries down quickly and it's the same Invictus. I love Invictus so I got the original cuz I think it smells better, stronger and longer lasting. The difference between the two don't justify the hype. If it was indeed quite fresher with only a bit of sweetness, and that it lasted like the original then totally yes. Current version... nope. Not worth it, especially now when the prices is going up like crazy!! It's the same Invictus, just add some sharp fresh yuzu. Still the original is the king so I went ahead and got myself another bottle. They dry down of the original is simply better smelling.

Disappointment. When it came out, I got really impressed cause it's not THAT synthetic, and childish-sweet as the original. And maybe I will not smell this on every second dude in the city. (Because it's a limited edition, and yes, not that sweet) I wore it all this summer, tons of compliments, sick performance. I thought this is going to be my signature summer scent, WHEN IT HAPPENED. In the middle of the winter I was walking around town, and I smelled this on another dude. And few minutes later AGAIN on another guy. Then I realized, this DNA is a champion, just like the original one (let's be honest it is, althought I HATE it). Many cheap brands copied this smell, so I don't want to wear it anymore. Short term relationship, killed by its own success. R.I.P.