Obsessed for Men
Eau de Toilette, Calvin Klein (2017)

I wasn't planning on trying this one, but it happened. So this is basically less heavy original with a twist of P.R. Invictus style in it. That being said, I find it to be quite a unisex fragrance.

Relatively good quality for that price, but nothing original whatsoever. I have to admit that I'm starting to sympathise it as the time is passing. It is a sweet fragrance but in a pleasant, albeit synthetic way.

Originality 3/10
Scent 6/10
Longevity 8/10
Projection 6/10
__________________
subjective impression 6/10, but rating it "neutral" regardless.

At first smells like a more peary version of Ultra Male. You get pear, patchouli and that blackness of vanilla.

There pear note is potent in here even though it's not listed. It's also not that nice unfortunately when you focus on it. As opposed to how it's done in Gaultier's Ultra Male.

More bad news: Obsessed has a big lack of foundation in the drydown. Patchouli and Black Vanilla just disappear. The base is exclusively Blonde Leather to me. Not a bad note but there's absolutely nothing backing it up.

So all in all it's not that good and it's not that cheap either.

The concept both aesthetically and compositionally for either Obssessed scent is rather interesting: It isn't a reworking of Obsession for the relevant sex, but rather a deliberately nostalgic and "faded" recollection of the opposite sex wearing their version of Obsession. Each scent takes what is believed by Calvin Klein (and their perfumers) to be the most distinguishing accords of the final drydown found on the skin of somebody wearing Obsession for the opposite sex, and subverts it; in this instance, the rich vanilla accord of the feminine Obsession Calvin Klein (1985) is "blackened" to form the core of Obssessed for Men (2017). Christophe Raynaud of Paco Rabanne 1 Million (2008) and Ilias Ermenidis of Jay Z Gold (2013) were teamed, so that's a pretty strong indication of where this is going. Three times must also be a charm for Calvin Klein, as this is the first non-freshie masculine since they started making them again that actually smells well-thought and distinctive. I don't get focus group thinking here, just a drop of nostalgia and mostly conventional modernism. Yeah, the "Kleinisms" are in full force here, so the fragrance note pyramid is really just suggestive of the ingredients, but who cares? This is actually rather nice, but with a few caveats. This is an oriental, but more like the "blond" orientals the perfumers listed here are known for, so no heavy spices, fatty, or woody elements are really to be had here. Secondly, this is still much more generalist than the original Obsession for Men (1986), but by now we've guessed that CK has to please both a generalist audience and it's shareholder overlords so this is about as modern mid-tier designer as it gets.

Obsessed for Men starts with grapefruit and two kinds of pepper, being Sichuan and Black, but damn if I can tell. The opening is ironically not as piquant as that description makes it sound, with "cedar leaves" from CK fragrances past making a return with loads of labdanum and "blonde leather". Whatever these captives are, they lend a semi-syrupy body that sits between the warm blood orange of 1 Million and the blueberry shimmer of Jay Z Gold. Obsessed for Men feels like an amalgam of what made those two gourmand scents distinguished in this mid phase, but in oriental form, for better or worse. A sort of strong juniper berry ghost note conjures in the transition to the base, where patchouli, the "blackened" vanilla, and a metric ton of ambroxan live, giving this the relevant tie-in to competitors like Dior Sauvage (2015), Gentleman Givenchy (2017), or even Bleu de Chanel (2010). Obsessed certainly dials in for the younger man that has never smelled nor would enjoy the rounded spice melange of Obsession for Men, but at the same time, tries to pull the older CK fan of that scent into the future with something modern but more relatable; Obsessed is rich like Obsession, but it's sweetness comes from an entirely different place. Obsessed looks back on Obsession rather than trying to replace it, and is more of the "if we were to do this now" rather than "lets update this" like many things that share a name with an older legendary fragrance, which is why the name is actually different instead of reused. Grapefruit, pepper, leathery synthetics, ghost juniper, and vanilla ambroxan is the core experience; this is a stark and sweet modern oriental that rightly gets called "Smarties" or "Sweet Tarts" by nay-sayers but ends up rounding out at the end. What I like most about Obsessed is it avoids the scratchy and dry norlimbanol woods finish that most ambroxan scents tend to have, and I feel this has a lot to do with the overall "oriental" theme of the scent with the vanilla, labdanum, and juniper-like ambiance in just the right places to avoid that result.

I see Obsessed itself as a pale ghost of Obsession, a "bleaching" of it's natural elements, calcification of it's synthetic elements, and sent back out into the world to haunt a new generation that will likely use this as a club scent. Old die-hard Obsession fans or staunch vintage hardliners will not take kindly to this, but it's not for them and doesn't pretend to be. This is for the folks who enjoy the current crop and fragrances without tastes so narrowly-defined that it might keep them from liking a scent that lists only three natural notes amidst chemistry wonders. Evidently Obssessed did well enough to earn flankers already, and it's "pale oriental" composition is novel enough to earn a thumbs up from me, as I enjoy it's grapefruit/pepper/leather/aromachems cyber-bouquet. It's a lighter and less party-hard alternative to 1 Million, and just office-safe enough that it can be worn on casual Fridays, but definitely has no formal legs to stand on. If judged as the "Obsession as it would be if done today", it really is neither a success nor a failure, just an honest statement about the state of mainstream designer perfumery itself, but as a scent meant to wax nostalgia, it fails on most accounts except packaging and marketing. For a lighter sweet oriental that doesn't stifle in warmer air, this is as good as one is liable to find in this tier of perfumery, and a Hell of a sight better than most in this class, which is where it eventually succeeds to me. Fair warning: this is every bit as much of a sillage monster as Obsession and will last all day. The 80's glory days of Calvin Klein may never be seen again, but the motivational spirit behind Obssessed for Men shows promise for a house that has been too muddled for too long. I hope this is the path the line continues to take, or Calvin Klein moreover, because if it is, they still might have a shot at redemption among more-relaxed hobbyists. Well done.

An interesting retake on the Obsession mystique, though smelling more like Eternity Now than the original Obsession.

Obsessed comes across as resembling Sweet Tarts candy and tangy floor cleaner. The list of notes are quite compelling to read, yet the result is a somewhat pedestrian aromatic citrus scent more fit for younger wearers.

A daring inclusion in the Calvin Klein collection, but a bit average and meh.

Sweet, harsh, fruity opening, reminds me a little of Eternity Now. Synthetic and mass-appealing. You've smelled it before and it probably didn't impress you then either. About an hour in, I start to get hints of cardamom even though that's not a listed note on BN. I enjoy the drydown way more than the opening, but both are very common in modern scents.

Projection seems at least average, maybe better than that. Lasts about 6-7 hours.

This was a thumbs down for me initially: did not smell like a modern, updated Obsession and it had a lifeless thin quality to it with a weak, feminine floral bent.

Then...I oversprayed and really let it come alive. This is essentially a poor man's Creed Royal Mayfair.
They ar enot the same, but hear me out: they are both new age masculine florals that really are feminine but through the magic of aromachems (ambrox super in this case) deepens and finally starts leaning masculine as it dries.

So, for the new type of man, millenial perhaps, but one that is less concerned about being labelled as masculine or feminine, Obsessed is your jus.