Milan Fashion Week

Antonio Marras is a talented storyteller. He would probably make a good movie director or set designer—he’s well versed in various forms of artistic expression.

The titles of Giorgio Armani collections aren’t the pontificating, mysticism-wrapped epithets other designers favor. “Up to Date,” he called his Fall 2016 menswear Emporio Armani show. Isn’t that what fashion should always be?

Andreas Melbostad is a solid, competent designer. His work as creative director has served Diesel Black Gold well, rebuilding its foundations, putting it on a sure footing, and conveying a compact message.

Fashion can sometimes exist in a bubble — insulated from the gloom and dreariness of world events. In the case of Thom Browne’s Moncler Gamme Bleu collection for fall, the bubble was a particularly big one — and the effect, unnerving, given the heightened security measures at the Milan shows this season.

Does it make sense to show men’s and women’s collections on the same runway? A growing number of designers here in Milan are saying “yes,” including Miuccia Prada, who explained her motivation thus: “When working on the men’s collections, I am always interested and very much enjoy investigating the various different ways men and women react to the same idea with total freedom.”

The show on platform 22—due for departure at 8:00 p.m.—was delayed by 35 minutes. That’s life come the climax of Milan menswear Sunday, the most densely packed show day in the calendar.