Sneaker Grails: Let’s Go To Japan And Find The Air Jordan 5 “Tokyo 23″ (And Jordan CP3.IV Too)

Sneaker Grails is a recurring series on Kicks On Fire where our Editor-In-Chief Juan Martinez pines/complains for kicks that he will either never own or will have to go through extraordinary lengths to get. Previous entries have included the Bill Murray’s adidas Team Zissous, the other Nike Air Penny 1 OG colorway and the Air Jordan 1 “Chicago”.

According to every possible analytics service about sneakers on the internet, a roundtrip ticket to Japan from Los Angeles is significantly cheaper than a pair of the Air Jordan 5 “Tokyo 23″. As a matter of fact, the difference between the ticket and the sneakers is enough to pay for a few nights at a decent hotel in Akihabara. If presented with the choice of either owning the kicks (Jordan Brand also made a Jordan CP3.IV that’s pretty cool as well) right now or an all-expense paid trip to Japan, I would probably choose option C, which is fly to Japan on my own dime and buy the pack in Japan. Because I want it all. Also, I’m an idiot…

Sneakerheads romanticize the camping out experience and the bonding among friends and family that take place on those freezing cold nights. On the other hand, I personally find the whole idea of risking health (and possibly life if you’re really unlucky) to be crazy all for the sake of an “authentic” sneakerhead experience. It’s supposed to be a badge of honor when you brave the elements to cop a pair, but whatever, it’s not like you unlocked some sort of achievement or award that people will see besides pneumonia. I’ll wait by the store for an hour or get in line for 20 minutes just for f**k of it, but anything beyond that is just not for me.

However, the “Tokyo 23″ Air Jordan 5 is a different story and I’m willing to go to stupid lengths to get a pair in its home country for the “authentic” experience. Again, idiot…

The rise of Air Jordans in Japan started out as simple as could be, with a handful of kids really getting immersed in the sneaker world and hoarding whatever pairs they could get their hands and feet on. As the legend of Michael Jordan grew all around the world in the early 1990s, more people wanted a piece of His Airness any which way they could and that included his kicks. Air Jordans became such a sacred cow in Japan that it even made its way into the popular culture.

Both “Tokyo 23″ Jordans were supposed to release stateside. The original plan was that they were going to drop in time for the Tokyo23 streetball tournament in Yoyogi Park and eventually make their way to retailers across the world. The appeal of the shoe is obvious from the start. It’s not everyday that you see a bright yellow Air Jordan that isn’t a bootleg and certainly you don’t see any with a unique 23 embroidery on the heel done in a Japanese crest style. The symbol is even more prevalent on the CP3.IV as it is printed onto the shoe’s toe box.

Sadly for the rest of the world, but awesome for the Jordan fans that live there, they have remained exclusive to the region this day. That little tidbit has certainly contributed to its appeal, but for me, it’s all about the Japanese connection. If they were a Quai54 release or even something exclusive to a city like the recent “Chicago” Air Jordan XX3, it wouldn’t have the same draw.

As a kid I was fascinated with all thing Japan. Unlike most of the people in their 20s and 30s reading this, I grew up playing Family Computer (NES) and Mega Drive (SEGA Genesis) games, watching Japanese travelogues on TV and buying magazines in kanji just to look at the pictures of new toys and gadgets that will never make it to the Philippines. From Shigeru Miyamoto(Nintendo) to Yu Suzuki (SEGA) to Akira Toriyama (Dragon Ball Z) to Shinchiro Wantanabe (Cowboy Bebop) to Yoko Kanno (Cowboy Bebop’s soundtrack), a great many things pop culture that I love were either created or were heavily influenced by Japanese minds. So yeah, an Air Jordan inspired by Japan is going to get all love from me.

Since my lone trip to Japan when I was kid, I’ve always made it a point to go back there someday when the time was right. And whenever that time will be, I’ll be coming back here to the states with a size 11 pair of both “Tokyo 23″ Jordans, the Air Jordan 6 “Slam Dunk”, vintage video games, toys, weird flavors of Kit-Kat and a significantly smaller bank account.

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