The Air Max 95’s 30th anniversary has brought about the return of some of the model’s best colourways. It’s also brought about a completely unexpected collaboration with Yu-Gi-Oh! This collab is inspired by the Yu-Gi-Oh! manga’s Air Muscle, a fictional sneaker heavily inspired by the Air Max 95.
The name ‘Air Muscle’ may be a nod to Sergio Lozano’s original anatomical inspiration for the design. Highly coveted, the shoe even got its own storyline, which drew from the real-world ‘Air Max Hunting’ phenomenon. This was an unprecedented wave of muggings and sneaker thefts that took place in Japan during the peak of the AM95’s popularity in the mid-90s.
Following this ripped-from-the-headlines story arc, the shoe was worn by one of the series’ main characters, Jonouchi, also known as Joey Wheeler in the English dub. Both these character names are used for the two upcoming AM95 colourways.
The ‘Joey’ colourway comes in a blue gradient colourway on its leather and mesh upper. The classic Air Max pill logo is swapped out for Air Muscle tongue tags, while the insoles sport unique Yu-Gi-Oh! graphics. The midsole features the 95’s OG Big Bubble Air units, and is even painted with scratch marks to look just like the pair worn by Joey.
The Japan-exclusive ‘Jonouchi’ colourway is much the same, but comes in a manga-inspired black-and-white finish. Both pairs come with special co-branded boxes and official, playable Nike x Yu-Gi-Oh! trading cards.
The Nike x Yu-Gi-Oh! Air Max 95 QS ‘Joey’ drops worldwide on the 12th of September. As always, if you miss out on the official release, be sure to check out the listings available on the KLEKT app.
