- SHARE:
After picking up the several ZX8000s, I wasn’t sure what the next adidas were going to be for the collection. The adidas ZX 8500 Overkill is a is a collab between Berlin based online shop and style mag Overkill and adidas.
These are part of the adidas A-ZX series, representing the “O” in the alphabet, which stands for Overkill. The series pairs each letter of the alphabet with a model of Adidas ZX in either a collab or theme. The 8500 is a hybrid ZX model that fuses the ZX8000 and ZX9000 together. Overkill decided to literally go with overkill on their approach to creating this graffiti themed shoe. This is reflected in the variety of colors, materials and details on the sneaker. The colorway is largely based on the colors of Montana Gold graffiti cans.
Personally I love this colorway! As soon as I saw these were going to release, I marked my mental calendar and made sure to get a pair. I was able to grab mine off of Bodega on day of release for retail. while I am a fan of more plain luxurious shoes such as the ZX8000 Qualitat, I also love a quirky and wacky colorway. This type of shoe is perfect in the collection for when you want to throw something flashy on feet. I like how the mismatched elements are more details and laces than the actual main colors of the shoe. Even though the colors are loud, the shoe is still relatively consistent from left to right.
Details/Materials
Starting off we have an adidas logo with Overkill branding featuring black stitching and a red nylon tongue tag. The branding is flip flopped between the two tongues. The tongue itself is a pinstripe mesh with a light blue suede at the bottom.
We have a pinstripe mesh toebox with 3M overlays in black and silver.The 3M is a nod to chrome bombers or quick throwup tags with chrome paint filling. There’s also with a green bit of leather at the top of the toebox. There’s a grey suede mudguard with Overkill overlaid at the edge.
Moving to the side we have more mesh and green leather. The 3 stripes done in a bright textile. We see ZX 8500 in green stitched onto the sides near the ankle. Towards the back we have a plastic heel cage with a Trefoil logo on one side and the OK logo on the other. The rear of the shoe features another 3M hit with some suede for a backtab. We also get a hybrid flammable warning and Overkill logo embroidered on a leather panel. The inner-facing green panel on represents the chain link fence that needs to be hopped to find the best graffiti spots.
The insole is white on one shoe with the adidas brand with the three stripes messaging in grey overlaid by the hybrid flammable/Overkill graphic. The other shoe’s insole is black with Overkill in red and the OK logo over it in silver. The outsole is black with a green torsion bar displaying the Overkill quote logo in addition to the adidas trefoil.
What’s Included/Extras
These ship with green and black checkered laces in two mismatched shades of green as well as a white spotted lace and a green plain lace. All laces read Overkill on the aglets. These also include multiple deubrés in green and clear featuring various versions of the OK, Overkill and flammable logos. The shoes ship with 2 black shoe shrouds with green drawstrings and OK logo branding, in order to keep the spray paint from getting on ones kicks. These come with some adidas care tags and the typical white A-ZX series box with A-ZX branding on the top and rear.
How is the Quality?
There’s a lot going on with this shoe but the main materials are smooth leather, suede, mesh, 3M and the textile used on the stripes. The leather used around the sneaker is thin but seems decently soft. I wouldn’t call it plush but it’s actually not bad for a basic smooth leather. The suede near the toebox is fairly rough and barely feels like suede, although it makes sense here since this is a shoutout to the concrete buildings in Berlin one might graffiti on. The suede at the base of the tongue however is very soft to the touch. On the backtab suede we get a more basic texture, nothing exciting here. The mesh, 3M and textile on the stripes all seems to be of decent quality. While I’m not going to say we’re getting top of the line premium material quality here, the craftsmanship and variety of textures still amounts to a very nice package. I’d say individual material quality takes a backseat to everything else that’s going on with this shoe as far as colors and details.
How Do They Fit?
I normally wear a size 9.5 in most adidas. I consider that my true adidas size. For comparison I usually get a 10 in most Nikes. These to fit fine at a 9.5 so I recommend whatever you normally get in adidas just stick with that same true to size. Given that the upper is mostly suede and mesh with a thin, pliable leather, I find these to be very comfortable as far as the upper. It fit fine right away with no break in.
Underfoot these have similar cushioning to other Adidas casual retros as far as I can tell. The ZX line for me are comfy to wear all day, with the torsion system adding that extra rigidity and stability to make this a solid casual sneaker. While the recrafted Air Max 90 is still my all day sneaker of choice, the ZX series for me is about the equivalent as far as adidas retros. Particularly the 8000 and now this 8500. Overall I’d say anyone looking for a comfy shoe for the long haul will likely be feeling these.
Conclusion
I’m so glad I started paying to the ZX series and adidas again as a brand as they’ve really been killing it, particularly on these retro and retro-inspired releases. I’m loving the theme and all the details and lace options for this shoe. This is definitely a great add to the more wackier colorways in my collection. The details and adherence to the theme on these is amazing, few other sneakers I own come close. While the materials aren’t the best I’ve ever seen in my life, they are at least varied and provide plenty of different textures for the shoe. Also, these shoes feel premium even though each individual material might be relatively basic. I really enjoy the fit on these similar to other adidas ZX retros. Most of all, these turn heads on feet and just look awesome.
Where To Cop the Adidas ZX 8500 Overkill
As of the writing of this article, you can find them on eBay or shop new ZX on Adidas’ website.
Colorway: Crystal White / Signal Green / Core Black
Style Code: GY7642
Year of Release: 2021
MSRP: $140