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adidas superstar II

July 27th, 2006 | general

Go back about 6 or 7 years. One day while working at a shoe store, whose employees wear jerseys fairly similar to that of Newcastle United home kit or, if you must, a referee, I was rearranging the shoe wall for an upcoming sale. Even though I had seen the shoes on the wall everyday, for some reason I decided to try on and then buy a pair of white adidas Superstar II with black stripes.

For a few years I had the convenience set-up on them, just like all my other shoes…you know, the laces were tied loose enough to slip the shoe on and off, but tight enough that the shoe wasn’t like a pair of flip-flops. The shoe was good, but not great.

About 2 years ago I decided to try tightening the laces on all 20 pairs of my shoes for a better, proper fit. Sure they didn’t slip on and off as quickly, but most were better while wearing. None was better than the adidas Superstar IIs though.

I now believe Superstars are the greatest shoes ever made. First off, when tightening properly the leather forms around the foot so nicely. You have ample room in the toebox area and the heel is shaped nicely to prevent lift. The outsole of the shoe is durable enough to take on all activities (not just basketball as it was originally intended), but yet is soft enough that it won’t turn brittle like some skate shoes I’ve had in the past. The shoe has a nice firm cushioning to them…you don’t feel like you’re walking on clouds, but they cushion your foot enough while providing stable support. Plus they don’t have any air pockets that can pop (after working at a shoe store and seeing the number of problems with blown-out air pockets I’m now anti-air pockets).

The rubber toe is wonderful. It helps with durability when playing tennis and other sports. The rubber toe also helps to avoid a problem I’ve encountered with many other shoes…seperation from the toe upper and the front of the outsole. The way the front of the Superstar is designed the rubber outsole can’t start to seperate from the upper which can happen from the way the shoes bend while wearing.

Recently I’ve been looking at Superstars currently available, along with other similar adidas shoes. Sure there are a few weird colors available, but as long as they keep the standard color combos available I’ll be happy. While some people may call it a trendy shoe, they are quickly becoming my ole’ standby shoe.

I did notice one Superstar version I was really quite interested in…the Superstar Vintage. I’ve seen a few color combinations of this shoe and it’s quite intriguing. But I wonder what makes it worthy of the $120 price tag it commands. I also wonder if it will last as long as my Superstar IIs. I would love to give them a try, but I so far haven’t been able to justify the triple digit price.

So if anyone from adidas is reading this: if you would send me a free pair of the Vintage Superstars to test, I’d be glad to write a review…size 11 (USA sizing) please, any color will do. Feel free to email me (at the bottom of the page).

Until then, I’ll keep wearing my white with black stripes Superstar IIs.

3 Comments

  1. matches
    July 31st, 2006 at 11:56 am

    I could never figure out the difference between the Superstar II and the original Superstar. Regardless, last year was the 35th Anniversary of the original which brought some really cool limited edition colors.

    Personally I’m not huge on the shell-toe, and I don’t much care for Chuck Taylors for the same reason. There’s always the Stan Smith.

  2. Jambo
    August 18th, 2006 at 10:25 am

    I bought a pair of limited edition superstar shell toes, the ones with the stripes that go into the laces, they were the cool ones. i now can’t find them anywhere :’(

  3. kris
    March 18th, 2008 at 2:12 am

    i think the way the 2’s differ is that they are (in my opinion) a little more stout, boxy’er if you will.
    the outsoles are a bit thicker and imo a better fit.
    although i think the superstar skate versions are dope too. the thing that annoys me is, they waste a good run on his artwork being printed on the skate’s than just doing dope subtle colorways.

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