crooked tongues magazine News Features

01feb 12
NSW Manor Premium  image
These aren't usually our kind of thing. The office is split on the Zoom Toki's appeal, and we'd kind of like to see the Sabaku pushed again, with its casual mix of Blazer and Chukka, or a campaign built around the Outbreak (we remember a retro hitting the sale racks a few years back). But the Manor is actually a decent shoe when it's given the premium treatment. We had an inline sample floating around for a while that never inspired us in any way, but these are okay — the key to the appeal is that they're the closest we've ever seen to a Mac Attack retro. Of course, this silhouette isn't made for tennis, the last is far narrower and John would almost certainly bellow at us for that comparison, but that subtly perforated forefoot overlay is straight off the second greatest shoe McEnroe ever wore, which makes the Manor the stylised Mac Attack — that can be perceived as blasphemous talk, but it makes these far, far better than the majority of newer Nike Sportswear releases aiming for that luxury basics coin.

The NSW tongue branding here indicates that they're made to correlate with some equally minimal apparel, and the leather and nubuck is outstanding — if there were more materials like this across the range, we'd moan at least 25% less and it justifies the 'PRM' on the box. That odd little pink detail on the rear of the medial midsole and the tiny smattering of gum, plus the bare-bones approach to padding indicate that somebody put work in on these at design level — making their own mark and dipping into the archives for an occasionally forgotten masterpiece as a reference point all pays off. Would we wear a pair? We don't think we're in the target audience, but that Fresh Mint colourway and luxury feel is appreciated. So now we've got this, when do we get a real-deal Mac Attack reissue?
NSW Manor Premium  image
NSW Manor Premium  image
NSW Manor Premium  image
NSW Manor Premium  image
NSW Manor Premium  image

Comments (4)

Anon on February 6, 2012 @ 09:52

Remind me on Adidas D.B forum mid??

Anon on February 3, 2012 @ 20:19

dope!!!!

Anon on February 3, 2012 @ 15:03

you tell the truth 04

Anon on February 3, 2012 @ 04:29

i'm not usually critical but your review sounds like you're ready to go either way depending on how everyone else feels about them. make a choice and stick with it.

Leave a reply