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The Air Jordan III is widely considered by many connoisseurs to be one of the greatest design achievements in the history of sneakers, and it’s pretty much a fact that nothing will ever replicate the magic of those original four colorways. In a day and age when a popular model may be released in ten or more versions, the focus on particular color schemes gets diluted by the overload of variety, and a shoe is often remembered more for the overall model than for specific colorways. In the case of the original Air Jordan releases, you could count on about three or four different colorways to be released, and because there were only a handful of them, it automatically made each one memorable with a personality all its own. As a result, whenever an original Jordan colorway is re-released, it’s a foregone conclusion that a piranha frenzy will clear them out of just about any sneaker store on release day.

Such was the case when the long-revered True Blue Air Jordan III was originally re-released in 2001, but the plan didn’t go quite as most expected with the 2009 Retro return. In a move that still has many Jordan die-hards scratching their heads, Jordan Brand

decided that the shoes would only be released in Europe and Asia, completely skipping over the always Jordan-hungry United States. Needless to say, more than a few people were distraught over the bad news, and there began the overseas hunt. This past summer, the True Blues began to pop up for sale at Asian and Euro retailers, prompting plenty of US sneakerheads to pay well above retail price to ensure that the legendary kicks wouldn’t pass them by yet again.

While some were willing to go the extra mile to get their pair, a ton of US Jordan collectors were left in the dark, causing some harsh words and feelings to be cast in the direction of Jordan Brand for the controversial choice. The end result though, can be interpreted in different ways depending on which side of the True Blue fence you wound up on. For those who missed out, an understandable bad taste in the mouth was left behind, but for those who put in the leg work and copped a crisp new pair or two, the victory was extra sweet knowing that, unlike some other Retro releases, these were guaranteed to be a little more special thanks to the slim availability. With so many Retro models so readily available, it’s refreshing to know you’ll see these on a few less feet this time around.