This was a multi-pass Ambush collection, offering direct wearable access to two distant worlds: 1990s Tokyo clubland and contemporary MMO avatar culture. Chatting down the Zoom (which should with luck be our last, as Runway is reverting to pre-pandemic protocols for reviewing), Yoon observed: “It’s our own rave, a full-on party. I thought about how you put on a different persona when you go out; you pick a player through which to play the game. It also kind of ties into the metaverse and those activities that I’ve been building around Ambush in order to see what kind of clothes can actually eventually become like avatar characters. So it was a collection of all that stuff. But most importantly, it is a rave.”
The bunny-, bear-, and mouse-eared balaclavas seemed like a blatant play on those gaming-platform aesthetics Yoon was riffing on, as did her rebooted version of the ’90s Tank Girl/Buffalo boot that is everywhere, online and off, right now. The metallic personal CD players (actually card cases, Yoon said) and cat-ear headphones were funny throwbacks too. There were woo-woo chill-out-room light-show patterns in sequined shirts and print dresses and skirts. Opaque croc-pressed workwear and A-chain mesh dresses were for more transparently inclined characters. Leather leg warmers, bikini tops in mesh and Lycra, leather chaps with popper-secured side fastenings, corset crop tops, cropped (faux) fur jackets, baggy denim, and podium-poser miniskirts were all pieces you’d love to have at your disposal before a night spent next to the subwoofers.
Yoon added that many of the looks would help you fit in before sunset too: “A lot of the pieces, especially the outerwear, are reversible so you can wear a look as a suit, maybe even go to work in it, and then flip it into something wilder to go out in afterward.” She added: “I had a lot of fun making it. There’s a lot of colors and textures that are clashing with each other in a massive way, like a crazy tune.”
