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These promo videos for HUF’s new line of footwear have been popping up all over the Internet for a few weeks as a staggered release, so I figured I’d post the whole collection of them for those who haven’t seen them yet.

Netflix, TiVo be damned. You will sit through commercials, and fuck it, you will like them. What does it say about a culture when commercials become a primary form of entertainment? I don’t know, or rather, I don’t feel like flexing my occasionally useful Communications and Media Studies degree at the moment.

More importantly, I’m concerned for the skateboarding subculture. There was a time when it was more insulated from the horrors of money. Of course, that’s ancient history, and now we are witness to an industry where amid a constant deluge of generic clips, a handful of 20 second sneaker commercials seem like some of the most valuable viewing material. Then again, maybe that’s just the strange voodoo of Keith Hufnagel. I always figured there were some kind of dark arts to blame for that legendary pop.

The shoes are reportedly being made with actual skating in mind, not just looking like you’ve got skating in mind, which is a big plus in a sneaker culture supersaturated with people trying to get a slice of the authenticity pie. Which isn’t to say HUF isn’t authentic himself, but it would have been an easy cash grab to market to kids whose sole experience of skateboarding is mall-grabbing, Diamond t-shirts, and video games. Is there room for another skate/lifestyle sneaker brand? Well, probably not, but if anybody could finally do it right, it’s Keith Hufnagel.

And yeah… I apologize for posting up more commercials this week. There is a part of me inside that is dying, right now, as I press the post button. I’ll be fine — try not to lose any sleep over it. But damn, can you imagine how much work a blog must have been before YouTube?