Adidas Samba RM 'Miami'
Colorway: Pale Nude/Real Purple/Hi-Res Aqua · Style code: EE5505 · Release date: September 27, 2019 · Price: $2452 · Availability: Available now
The RM is the Samba with its floor torn out. In place of the thin gum wedge that has sat under the model since its football days, adidas fitted a Boost midsole and raised the whole shoe, so the silhouette above stays recognisable while the ride underneath belongs to the brand's running department. This version carries the Miami nickname and uses a nylon upper, with the colours logged as Pale Nude, Real Purple and Hi-Res Aqua, a pastel and neon mix that earns the name it was given.
It released on 27 September 2019 at 120 dollars in the United States, a premium over a standard Samba and a defensible one given what is in the midsole. Commercially the RM sat in an awkward gap. People who wanted a Samba wanted it flat and close to the ground, while people who wanted Boost already had the running and NMD ranges, so the hybrid never built the following either side could have given it. That makes it one of the more instructive dead ends in the family: proof that adidas will graft current cushioning onto the last, and proof that the thin gum sole does more of the model's work than it is usually credited for.