You are pointing to an outlier that is not expensive due to its beauty but historical significance. Typical expensive watches look normal and beautiful:
https://www.iwc.com/gb-en/watches/pilot-watches/iw388106-pil...
https://www.omegawatches.com/en-gb/watch-omega-speedmaster-m...
dang why did I click, they are gorgeous...
Is this trolling or are you serious? Those are all, imo, hideous! They are blocky and unrefined and like they’re uncomfortable to wear.
While I wouldn't call them ugly, I agree that they look just like, well, watches to me. I wouldn't pay a premium for any of them.
Since I'm not into luxury watches, a common occurrence is:
Me to a stranger: "Wow, cool watch! Which one is it?"
Stranger: "Random cheap brand I found on Amazon."
If you've never heard of Omega, Rolex, etc, chances are you won't be able to distinguish a cheap watch from an expensive watch. It's just the brand.
(OK, OK, chances are the material is a lot better - scratchproof, etc - but probably still costs less than 10% to make than what they sell for).