Good morning to Paul Mescal, who went straight from his hotel to Monday’s in a rather flimsy pair of bedroom boxers—yet another gem in the crown for the king of thigh chutzpah. Despite , Mescal’s negligible inseam is our Roman Empire, his duelling pins battling it out for our attention. The internet has been swooning over Paul’s thighs since 2020’s .
Henceforth, Mescal and short shorts have become as synonymous as peas and carrots, Woody and Buzz, and cigarettes. The Gucci show was itself a leggy parade of barely there shorts and long limbs (Gucc-knee, if you will), so Paul was only following suit; but something about his shift from short sports shorts (distinctly overwear) to full cotton boxer (distinctly underwear) is both deeply unserious and enthusiastically erotically charged. I don’t want to completely objectify one of our most interesting actors, but we’re also witnessing the internet’s favorite boyfriend in his underpants in front of the paparazzi.
And so, I guess, to men’s legs—specifically men’s thighs, a body part that’s become increasingly muscular as it’s become more public. Twin columns once housed in trousers or board shorts have undergone mini-skirt-ification, now daring you not to gawp as men’s hemlines rise and rise. Where we once had a glimpse of knee, we now have the holy trinity of hamstring, quadriceps, and adductor.
And I get it—it’s nice to have nice legs, and it’s nice to show them off. What are all the squats for if .