New Balance M850 Bo

In recent seasons, NB's output has stepped up after a few shaky ENCAP steps into theme-pack territory back into considered greatness with some of the nicest shoes we've seen in a minute, and after speaking to those in charge, it sounds like they're one of the few brands giving the fans what they want - classic footwear, well-built and retros well realised when it comes to a resurrected range of what the brand does best. But it's not all '80's suede, mesh and nylon comfort zones either - when we saw the 990 last year we knew the reissue roll out was evolving beyond the standards.

Apparently, the advice of CTer and walking running shoe dictionary 157 helped confer the 850's return, and we couldn't be more grateful. The dimpled rubberised material still looks great, the tight patterned mesh is nicely reproduced, the '850 NB' lettering is a strong look and the build is solid enough that it probably wouldn't qualify for Lightweight Performance Series status nowadays ompared to NB's contemporary brace of stealthy athletic technologies, but they don't get much more banging than this.