T by Alexander Wang was launched with the humble T-shirt, the appeal of which is the jumping-off point for the brand. The nomenclature of the T-shirt within the larger fashion world, with its associations of simplicity, utility and comfort, can be applied to the Fall/Winter 2012 collection at large. These are no-frills looks, with heavyweight sweatpants paired with matching zip hoodie underneath a basic quilted jacket, or a black denim jacket with leather sleeves creating a monochromatic uniform with black woven shirt and black cotton trousers. Fans of the brand will find little to quibble with here, as the collection extends what the brand does best: create comfortable, lived in looks that require minimal thought before putting them on. Much like a favorite tee.

A coat draped over the arm, leather briefcase in hand — these were the details that conveyed the ideal of the gentleman in Postwar America. He was a guy who wore a hat out of doors and had a closetful of grey flannel, and was clearly the basis for Korean label Wooyoungmi’s Fall/Winter 2012 collection. Full of vintage inspired looks, they featured belted wool trench coats, classic cut pleated trousers and crisp white broadcloth shirts with straight collars, but with subtle modernist notes to keep things from feeling stuffy. Added militaristic elements like an olive green pea coat, or the surprising appearance of insulated nylon on an outerwear piece, only heightened a decidedly stoic brand of elegance.

Chitose Abe’s pedigree as an alum of Comme des Garcons is readily apparent in Sacai’s Fall/Winter 2012 collection. Once again, the assortment of patterned knitwear is front and center as the highlight of the various layered looks, seen in appropriately heavyweight shawl collared cardigans and slouchy plaid trousers. Muted earthy hues make up the full extent of the color palette, and the silk-like patterned tops and matching pants represent the high-concept spectrum of a very wearable range. Recurring Nordic prints and wide glen plaids provide classic appeal to some unfamiliar terrain — like woven shirts finished with a nylon drawstring waistband — and foretell the eventual end of Sacai as a cult menswear brand.

Acne’s collection started with predominantly dark colors, highlighted by a black faux leather jacket layered over a black quilted nylon coat and matched with black ankle-grazing trousers. The looks comprised a symposium on layering, with longer hems hanging below shorter ones, and seemingly incongruent fabrications paired together in an uneasy alliance, all without unnecessary bulk or unwieldy proportions. The black shades eventually gave way to bursts of burgundy, copper, bright red and army green, and featured a collision of patterns and textures, before giving way again to black. The collection seemed to offer something for everyone, from slouchy mohair sweaters to sharply tailored topcoats, while maintaining the easy to wear, cobbled-together aesthetic that’s become something of a hallmark for the Swedish brand.

For sheer entertainment value, Thom Browne won men’s Fashion Week in Paris hands down. The tableau was a nightmare cartoon vision of a high school pep rally in which jocks squared off against punks. The jocks were shoulder-padded Frankenstein monsters who lurched down the runway in standard preppy patterns run amok — cable-knit cashmere polos, nautical themed sweaters, a bright seafoam plaid suit with matching argyles socks. The punks were outfitted in suits shrunken down even more drastically than the typical Thom Browne silhouette, as well as bondage accessories straight from the Robert Mapplethorpe collection. Sure, there were supremely wearable pieces beneath the pomp and circumstance, like the scarves and ties, or some of the slim-fitting trousers, but this was more spectacle than exposition. For those in attendance, the show provided ample amusement to round out the week.

“Run Fall Run,” said the invitation for Raf Simons‘ Fall/Winter 2012 show. Backstage, Simons described the notion of daring, then falling and picking oneself up again as part of his m.o. In reality, the phrase seemed to capture the other chord running throughout the show — the recklessness of boys, who have the habit of charging headfirst without any thought to the consequences. The collection certainly exhibited the feel of a boys club, with oversized jackets paired with shorts, as well as knit caps tugged low and face-obscuring hair combed straight forward. The synthetic mesh sweaters, double-breasted coats, dip-dyed sweatshirts — they all appeared two sizes too big, suggesting pieces meant to be grown into. The outsized proportions, plus the use of bright colors on the back of one coat, were stark departures for the designer who started out selling skinny black suits to early-adopter Europeans. The youth movement he celebrated here was about more than just reframing the basic concepts of tailoring, or what it meant to be “formal” or “street” — it seemed to portend a personal sense of renewal for the designer.