Ultraviolet Man (2001)
by Paco Rabanne

CRAYON! That's just about all I'm getting out of this. I've worn this when staying home as I do when I first test anything and I've been afraid to actually go out with it on. My days of smelling like a box of Crayola are long since gone. I just can't think anyone could smell this on me and not wonder if I've been staying within the lines.

Still though, I cannot give this a negative for one reason. It is unique. It's also not entirely unpleasant and very interesting which will keep you sniffing yourself after you've sprayed it.

I just don't really want to smell like crayons.

A very sweet yet spicy and slightly soapy. Wow this is intense. There is no development other than that but it still smells pretty good.

I give much love to Paco for creating such a sensual masterpiece!! I liken this Roma Uomo in some ways that I can't pinpoint. Women literally attck in clubs when I wear this scent around them. Guys... if you want some positive attention from the lovely ladies, look no further.

i've always dismissed this as something i might not like, but today i decided to get aquainted with ultra violet man.

At first i get a wash of sweet fruit, a juicy peachy note which is quite pleasant, underscored by a driving metallic/eucalyptus accord (the 'liquid mint' perhaps?) which stops the fruitiness being too feminine and lays the first stones of UVman's stark, synthetic olfactory experience. Then i start to detect what i think might be the 'gray (grey!) amber', which to me is piqued by the lingering pine-air-freshener (not unpleasant) into what i can only describe as being almost like savoury marzipan, almost almondy yet spiky and interestingly weird. From then on, the fragrance is indeed quite linear, mellowing from this to a more rounded 'gray amber', and what smells to me like cedar, or cedar-lite - all the while with a persistent metallic note evoking hard, shiny surfaces and neon light. it's a light fragrance which manages to persist on my skin, the 'moss crystals' in the drydown being yet another alien reproduction of a classic fragrance note, here a mossy softness which never quite feels real.

the overall feeling from ultraviolet is, it seems, quite deliberately wholly synthetic in concept and execution, as Milamber said it 'has a certain vibrancy to it that is almost teasing but monotonous. It fades very quickly but lingers for hours.' herein perhaps lies the ultimate failing of UVman perhaps - it's rapid fading. conceptually i think it's a very interesting and valid exercise, but all that wonderful weirdness and synthetic reality just isnt quite weird enough for long enough.
Nonetheless i think it provides a welcome occasional diversion from luxurious, beautiful 'real' scents into an outer space starkness that remains surprisingly sultry, utterly inorganic yet nevertheless vibrant with sexual energy. and so I think this defines its use - it's absolutely perfect for clubbing; pulsating strobe lights and filthy electronic music.

not perfect, but buy it. UV rave clothing optional.

A fragrance that I’ve reassessed. With each wearing of Ultraviolet Man, I like it a little better. It is completely synthetic, but that no longer bothers me because its synthetics are attainable and pleasant; in fact, they fit well into the theme and apparent marketing plan of the fragrance. Ultraviolet Man is an attempt, it seems, to progress into the future of men’s fragrance. I find it very refreshing that a company is interested in its place in the total scheme of things as well as being concerned about its bottom line. Or might it possibly be a marketing decision? UV Man is a very light scent on my skin and one I don’t have to be concerned about in application. Its lightness is apparently a sort of linear progression into the future predicting more and more discreet (almost indiscernible), synthetic fragrances. It’s a difficult fragrance to describe because the notes are “Gray Amber,” “Liquid Mint,” and “Moss Crystals” …those don’t mean a thing to me...and I’m sure that is the intention. After all, why give traditional labels to notes that are obviously synthetic concoctions? Those given names are a version of truth in advertising as well as a marketing ploy. The fragrance starts out synthetically aromatic and ends sort of synthetically mossy. There is very little change between the beginning and the end because the scent is quite linear and, in spite of its lightness, manages to have a modicum of strength and longevity. It is basically unexciting except for the mild intellectual intrigue of its marketing ploy (a prediction of the technological future?); but the suggestion of its unspoken story and its futuristic persona give it a value that I can somewhat appreciate. I have come to actually enjoy it…some of the time. It is a very unusual and unique fragrance and a might try to those who are philosophically inclined.

I'm seeing purple hype! Sweet and synthetic? Yes, also eminently forgettable. We're getting silly with this one. Not fun-silly like Quasar or Nostalgia, just silly.