crooked tongues magazine News Features

Nike Dunks are so rinsed these days that the best makeups catch us unawares. This pair seemed to spring out of nowhere. We've seen no indicator that they're part of a pack. Maybe they are, but these do what the Dunk AC does well, but without the unnecessary step backwards of a vulc sole. The canvas upper on these seems to be waxed for water resistance, and the canvas around the sole unit is reminiscent of Bruins or Dunks at their late '70s best. Zoom Air is a nice touch too, as more and more SB touches seem to spill inline. We still find it hard to find another word on the Dunk that hasn't been used here before, such is the ubiquity of post-2002 takes on a shoe we used to be able to keep track of. But we'll try anyway.

While the majority of this makeup is orange, the blue and white details are appreciated too. Gum soles and tonal leather branding are decent, but how much appeal they hold is down to how jaded you are with this shoe. Nike's Dunk output seems to have cranked up quietly in the last couple of seasons. If you feel it's a little late to salvage the shoe's level of appeal, we understand, but there's a good reason these became the footwear face of a collector movement that reached saturation point and it isn't just numbers — they look timeless on the foot, and are as comfy as hell. Why the heck didn't versions like this drop before Dunk fever was in its death throes? Between this pair and the Koston efforts, we can feel ourselves taking interest in the shoe that helped build Crooked Tongues all over again, and they're on sale in the Crooked Tongues Store now...