Happy Friday, folks! Today we’re going to continue bringing you new colorway releases with the Total90 Laser IV in Challenge Red with Anthracite and White. Be sure to also note that this is the Kanga-Lite version of the boots. Maestri loving fans will also notice the return of the Challenge Red, which from our experience proved a very popular color.
It doesn’t take a well-trained eye to know that the Laser IV is distinctly different from the Laser III. Version IV has a more streamlined look to it with a flow the III just couldn’t match. The initial colorways were ok in my eyes, but they were lacking that extra intangible to push them into greatness. Most of the pieces were there, but there was just something keeping the boot from looking like something greater than the sum of its parts. The challenge red colorway changes all of that. Without a doubt, this is my top colorway for the Laser IV. The diffuse luster of the red Kanga-Lite combined with the white stripe at the toe and an almost dagger-like white inner heel bring my eye back again and again. I’m all about juxtaposition, and the red/white is just perfect. The combination connotes a level of reservation while also giving a wink to flair. Perhaps the most curious thing about these soccer shoes, at least to me, is that they simply wouldn’t be as great without the adaptive shot shield. The black rubber shield gives these boots a necessary level of grit while still being utilitarian. On the whole, you can look at the boot from any angle and it still holds its allure. On the outer foot, you have a white heel that gives way to a white Swoosh, which continues the flow to the toe, and this is all capped by a black leather piece just under the laces; on the inner foot, the same flow occurs between a continually-narrowing white band and the warrior-esque shot shield. Even from underneath, you have crisscrossing gray lines at the arch with gray cleats bordering the sole. Finally, from above, you get to see the shoe in all its glory. The red, the white, the shotshield, the off-center laces, the sock-liner; all of it just draws your eye in. Great work, Nike.
The construction end of things is still top-shelf for these boots. As I said, they’re made with Kanga-Lite, which is always a plus. The synthetic leather will soften up and form to your foot the more you use them. The soleplate is flexible while also sturdy, and the bladed cleats will give you plenty of traction on the pitch. You’ve got a comfortable insole, though not as comfortable as the Maestri and a sock liner with proper stitching to keep the insides together. The boots are narrower than an Adidas boot, but not quite as narrow as the Vapor, so keep that in mind. For $220, these boots are more for competitive play, and you can expect them to last the season with some overspill. I wouldn’t expect them to last a complete two seasons on average, though there will certainly be some pairs that do. If this colorway for some reason doesn’t appeal to you, be sure to check out the traditional T90 synthetic colorway as well.
Written by: Kris Dyer, soccerprose.com
