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The Nike Air Current is a better shoe than the Nike Air Flow. We base that grand statement on the way the shoe just looks less awkward in its transition from a more conventional rear to that neoprene toe. We also think this 1989 masterpiece is the granddaddy of a whole lot of our favourite shoes - the lack of swoosh here is certainly a primer for what the Huarache made into mass appeal 2 years later. Bruce Kilgore is a genius and his contribution to the Sock Racer and Sock Trainer is present in the Air Current's colour blocking and forefoot strap (we think the Sock Trainer is pretty much a dummy run for the Current). This is a shoe that's not quite laceless, but with 3 eyelets to the Flow's 6, it feels like the training option of the duo.

Once upon a time, when yellowed, glue marked examples of this eccentric moment in Nike design were scrutinised and bought to keep rather than wear, we never thought this would ever come back, but when the 2008 Air Max 90 Current dropped, we got the feeling that a retro was imminent. We also know a few advocates for this silhouette who certainly had discussions with those with the power to bring classic Nikes back from the dead and after last summer's Flow reissue, we knew Nike would want to get the most out that tooling. While we're happy that the Flow's audience was big enough to justify further dips into the vaults, with the shoe being spotted on the feet of a crowd that's way beyond the small band of diehards who dreamt of it coming back, but it's not an easy shoe to pull off, is it?

We wide foots suffer at the hands of the neoprene's habit of leaving nothing to the imagination. With the Air Current, the darker colours can hide the shape of your foot. It's far more versatile and lacks the Mr. Motivator vibe of its sibling. The three colourways here follow the DNA of the OG colourways, with the Black/Volt being pretty damned close to the Black/Fluoro Green original and a Black/Infrared version (not pictured) being an homage to the Black/Pink edition. Without this, we probably wouldn't have the Huarache or the Presto or the Woven or the recent Flyknits. It's a bit of history, but crucially, they're wearable and we'll be getting some of these colourways in the Crooked Tongues store next month...