Generra

This time, in our occasional look at pop culture trends: critter-clad hipsters, flat-footed bikes and Canadian singles willing to come to the rescue of lonely left-leaning Yanks.

Before you invade Urban Outfitters in search of a Lacoste or Le Tigre shirt, call your mom first. Maybe there are still some in your basement.

Lacoste
Been a while, crocodile

Recycled style refuses to relent. Just as '80s fashion giants Jordache and Generra reassert themselves on boutique shelves after a two-decade hiatus, a menagerie of familiar animals are again lounging on shirts. USA TODAY charts the comeback of critter logos, tracing their evolution from bourgeois status symbol to ironic retro icon to sexy sartorial statement.

Lacoste: The 72-year-old green reptile gnashed its way from the tennis court to the prep school to Gwyneth Paltrow's shirtdress in 2001's The Royal Tenenbaums, which imbued the crocodile with cool credibility. Lacoste is "a fashion basic in the best sense of the word," says Bruce Pask, style director of Cargo magazine. The crocodile stays vibrant by sinking its teeth into today's brash limes and citrines.

Original Penguin: In the '50s and '60s, the penguin was more fuddy-duddy than fresh. Big with the golf crowd, the winged waddler was for "the mature man with the pressed sport shirt," says Pask. Now the suburban staple has been reinvented as a fashion-forward sportswear line for his grandchildren.

Retro Fox: Around the time of the tiger, Mr. Fox wasn't so fantastic, either. As J.C. Penney's answer to the crocodile, the fox was about as low on the logo totem pole as it got. The latest critter to come crawling out of its embroidered cave, the fox is set to scurry through stores such as Macy's and Up Against the Wall. The fox's resuscitators are a bit more sly this time around, giving winks to the past (throwback pique polo shirts) as well as nods to the present (body-conscious silhouettes).

Le Tigre: Back in the '80s, Le Tigre was, um, not a "super-desirable label," Pask says. The tiger shed its black-sheep image, though, thanks to an edgy fit that's very at home in stores such as Urban Outfitters. Socialites have been known to pair a Le Tigre polo with a taffeta ball skirt and voilà: an irreverent black-tie ensemble. read more...

By Olivia Barker and Marco R. della Cava, USA TODAY