Jordan IV Black/Red Reimagined - February 17, 2024

[Girl Thats Jules]

CONS:
-Nike Air not centered
-Air in NA font size too big
-Mesh still not correct
-Shape( really cant get to 99 or 89? ) Back collar still too short, toe box, wing still too far forward
-How limited/exclusive?
-Little hope for Militaries to at least be SB shape

PROS:
-Leather looks great
-Slightly better shape that 2019
-Durability with leather vs synthetic
-How limited/exclusive?

Man, this is tough because the 4 is one of my favs, if not my #1 in the Jordan lineup. Decisions, decisions, decisions…

It seems that if anyone outside JB collabs on a Jordan shoe, they can get a lot of details right( Ex. AMM AJ5, SB AJ4 ). But when It’s just JB themselves, they cant get those details right. A lot of big ego’s in the higher ranks at JB…

I think you got it right when you said big egos. A lot of the talk about Jordan Brand messing up shoes is that they're incompetent, but I disagree, they're doing it on purpose.

It's not just to save money either, I think they want a different shape for the 4s. Most of the shape changes in the early 2000s were to "modernize" the designs.

 

[JRepp23]

These next to royals eventually will show the obvious difference between the two pairs. The pics are pretty much what I expected really. Red tucked back, slightly higher on the wings/cut, with leather build. Im still in no question.

 

[AIR J XIII]

Re. the comment about leather being diff b/c it's real leather....nah...we get that. The tumbling being 50% diff from one factory to the other is the problem. It's not about "the properties of leather" it's how they're processing the leather so differently; they shouldn't be THAT diff between one pair of shoes.

My main point was that it's not a new occurrence, one of my '94 cement 3s has the same stark difference between the shoes.

I agree with all that but I believe Nike hasn’t used real leather in over a decade

I 100% could be wrong but eh

It's real, it's just a split-grain now as opposed to the full-grain it used to be. And they like to throw a heavy coating over it oftentimes.

 

[kingsrborn]

It doesn't even matter about all of complaints online today, about the new pictures. Trust and believe these will be hard to get if they're releasing in regular stock #. These are supposedly releasing in Reimagined 3,s numbers, so hopefully they'll be enough to go around on release day and afterwards through restocks. Im not sure if that's 100% true though, hopefully it us for us who really want them.

These came out way better than what I was thinking they were going to look like. I need to see more pictures around release day, to see the variations between different pairs, along with how they look with different sets of pants. I just need to see more of them to decide how good or bad they are, because these are early not so good executed/ua pairs we're seeing right now.

But these might be slightly better than the 2019,s that we received. 2019,s were ok, but they were nothing to write home about as far as shape and quality is concerned. Getting Nike Air on the back of the 2019,s was big because of how long it took Nike to eventually put it back on a OG 4. Other than that, the 2019,s are mid to me.

So it's funny seeing people online saying that they're going put up their 2019,s and beat these up, or that they're going to pass because they have the 2019,s. Im not going to front, these might edge out the 2019,s in my opinion, as far as what I like.

It's like people are acting like the 2019,s are og shape and quality, which they're not. I was satisfied with the 19,s but i was Al's let down by them also.

 

[Boo_Radley_]

Ehhh I’m gonna just enjoy this thread and peak in to read the nit picking comments and after the release to see the crying because their tumbled leather isn’t matching lmao.

I‘m in for a full family pack and maybe a double for myself. These turned out better than I expected , expectations were low. We’ll see if the apps will let me cook like they did on the 3’s .

 

[Boo_Radley_]

For me it’s simple, I’ll always hold the 2019 above these because they used the correct materials on the upper. All of the other discussions about shape, NA alignment or whatever else isn’t really relevant. When I want to wear a BC4 I’m thinking Nubuck not leather. These are nice and I’m grabbing them but they aren’t the BC4’s that I grew up with So they’ll be held in a slightly lower regard. Just like the 11’s they are dropping in December may be cool but they’ll never be Concords.

It doesn't even matter about all of complaints online today, about the new pictures. Trust and believe these will be hard to get if they're releasing in regular stock #. These are supposedly releasing in Reimagined 3,s numbers, so hopefully they'll be enough to go around on release day and afterwards through restocks. Im not sure if that's 100% true though, hopefully it us for us who really want them.

These came out way better than what I was thinking they were going to look like. I need to see more pictures around release day, to see the variations between different pairs, along with how they look with different sets of pants. I just need to see more of them to decide how good or bad they are, because these are early not so good executed/ua pairs we're seeing right now.

But these might be slightly better than the 2019,s that we received. 2019,s were ok, but they were nothing to write home about as far as shape and quality is concerned. Getting Nike Air on the back of the 2019,s was big because of how long it took Nike to eventually put it back on a OG 4. Other than that, the 2019,s are mid to me.

So it's funny seeing people online saying that they're going put up their 2019,s and beat these up, or that they're going to pass because they have the 2019,s. Im not going to front, these might edge out the 2019,s in my opinion, as far as what I like.

It's like people are acting like the 2019,s are og shape and quality, which they're not. I was satisfied with the 19,s but i was Al's let down by them also.

 

[2396bullz]

I think you got it right when you said big egos. A lot of the talk about Jordan Brand messing up shoes is that they're incompetent, but I disagree, they're doing it on purpose.

It's not just to save money either, I think they want a different shape for the 4s. Most of the shape changes in the early 2000s were to "modernize" the designs.

I agree it’s definitely on purpose. Who knows the specific reasoning. You can point to Gentry imo though. Both the shape of the 4’s and NA were changed and taken away under his direction of the brand. After the 99 we haven’t gotten anything close to it until the recent SBIV. I personally think the shape change had to do with Gentry and it being part of his NA takeaway to “preserve it for collectors”. So, if were talking about ego, there hasn't been anyone in a better position who literally admitted to taking that specific action for such a small amount of people, than Gentry. That reeks of egoIsm.

It’s like the higher up employees at JB are doing so from a place of ego and personal choice and what THEY specifically want, rather than what’s good for the brand overall. Retro product is supposed to represent the nostalgia of what MJ did on the court through his sneakers. JB products aren’t supposed to represent JB employees egos and personal choices, who have nothing to do with what MJ did on the court. That idea literally makes zero sense.

 

[headdetective]

Gentry the scapegoat

 

[Girl Thats Jules]

Gentry the scapegoat

He definitely built the culture of trash retros at Jordan Brand.

Is he responsible for this trash release in 2024? Yes.

 

[engineer]

Gentry has earned every single hateful word that’s ever been written about him. He’s the worst thing that ever happened to Jordan retros.

 

[JRepp23]

Giving Gentry too much credit here. It's business 101 for dummies. Nike makes these decisions not him. Cut cost, cheapen material, raise price. Along the way, they realized they can twist a specific shoe several times over and it still sells. This is not one guy doing this , it's all of Nike brass no one knows of calling these shots.

 

[sharpshooter718]

These ain't it

 

[Girl Thats Jules]

Giving Gentry too much credit here. It's business 101 for dummies. Nike makes these decisions not him. Cut cost, cheapen material, raise price. Along the way, they realized they can twist a specific shoe several times over and it still sells. This is not one guy doing this , it's all of Nike brass no one knows of calling these shots.

Nah, I think the shape being off has nothing to do with cutting cost.

I think it has to do with them choosing a shape they like that's more modern. Gentry has talked about it in interviews years back. That way of doing things has just stuck with the Brand.

 

[engineer]

Giving Gentry too much credit here. It's business 101 for dummies. Nike makes these decisions not him. Cut cost, cheapen material, raise price. Along the way, they realized they can twist a specific shoe several times over and it still sells. This is not one guy doing this , it's all of Nike brass no one knows of calling these shots.

And yet we have Nike SB thriving under the same umbrella doing none of the nonsense you mention here.

 

[headdetective]

No one man is calling all these shots.

It’s a group of cats making these changes, or lack thereof.

Gentry just the name yall love to run with in all these threads cause the real cats making the decisions, you’ll never know they names.

 

[Boo_Radley_]

Y’all do realize that we are a super small minority of people that they don’t even really market to right? I appreciate when they do get it right but the fact of the matter is their typical consumer has no damn idea what the difference between the SB IV shape is and those fire red look alikes they just dropped. I have 2 teenage sons and all they know is they want those breds that drop in february, they could be shaped like the 2012’s for all they care. At the end of the day it’s a business, these sneakers are gonna sell out in 2 minutes and they arent losing any sleep over a bunch of old heads on a messaging board dissecting every stitch on a pair of retros. Once I made peace with that I just don’t get riled up over it anymore. If it’s bad enough I’ll just pass.

 

[jordanhead718212]

Yeah he's definitely been responsible for some terrible decisions made by the brand, but he's also been a scapegoat on here for a minute. Two things can be true

 

[JRepp23]

And yet we have Nike SB thriving under the same umbrella doing none of the nonsense you mention here.

It's a color way that would have never moved the needle if it was a general release. So yeah, they know to twist the model enough to get the attention. They also made a fraction of the SB pairs in comparison to what they will do with this release. I can't wait to see these next to SBs side by side. I don't think they will be that much in difference.

 

[2396bullz]

Gentry the scapegoat

He literally cannot be a scapegoat if he’s admitted on video and interviews multiple times to taking NA off J’s For ”collectors”. What that is he himself taking some kind of responsibility and accountability.

 

[headdetective]

Yeah he's definitely been responsible for some terrible decisions made by the brand

Which decisions specially? I truly want to know.

Recent, like the last 2/3 years.

 

[headdetective]

He literally cannot be a scapegoat if he’s admitted on video and interviews multiple times to taking NA off J’s For ”collectors”. What that is he himself taking some kind of responsibility and accountability.

Can you show me this video please? I come in peace.

 

[jordanhead718212]

Which decisions specially? I truly want to know.

Recent, like the last 2/3 years.

Nothing recent can be said for sure, can only speak about the old days.

 

[Girl Thats Jules]

Can you show me this video please? I come in peace.

Read his Sole Collector interviews.

 

[JRepp23]

Can you show me this video please? I come in peace.

He did. It's out there. Still don't change my opinion. He at the time may have honored the collectors, but money trumps all. They are not changing up shoes nowadays to honer collectors. They simply figured out that we all buy them over and over again. Pretty simple.

 

[engineer]

It's a color way that would have never moved the needle if it was a general release. So yeah, they know to twist the model enough to get the attention. They also made a fraction of the SB pairs in comparison to what they will do with this release. I can't wait to see these next to SBs side by side. I don't think they will be that much in difference.

I’m not even talking about the SB4. I’m talking Nike SB as a unit. They pretty much always use high quality materials and have consistently creative designs which they never rerelease. And they have maintained a relatively low price point.

Also, unless the real pairs actually do use the SB4 mold then I don’t understand your last sentence. It’s a night and day difference.