just thought i'd update for you who give a shit.
i bought the shoes, ran in them friday and yesterday (as per the manufacturer, to ease into them).
mostly recovered from initial pains, but hamstrings still killing me. this might seem weird, but because the running's essentially flat footed, with each stride hamstrings get about an extra inch of "stretch" (thickness of old running shoe sole), so now they're really sore.
got a few blisters, but that was to be expected. also, i'm not running any faster, but it's a real bitch to run 1.5 miles in these, i'd say i'm more exhausted than running 3 miles in regular shoes at the same pace. not sure if it's mental or what, but it sure feels harder.