The prodigal son has returned to Roberto Cavalli's house. Designer Peter Dundas, who left the label a decade ago, is back. His debut collection for the brand had him slipping into the rock and rock, animal print sexy styles the company is known for with an ease that made it feel as if he had never left. 

Truth be told, Dundas pretty much brought this exact aesthetic with him to Pucci, so this show was really just a continuation of an approach to fashion the designer has been refining over the years – meaning this first collection read more like two high school sweethearts who were trying to give it second go. 

And this time they might just make it. 

For his first outing as creative director, Dundas took all the staple styles that made the Cavalli brand a success for so many years and filtered them through an 80s sieve. The founder's love of denim was given a colorful acid wash treatment, tricked out with metallic fringing, and cut in slightly "I stole this from my boyfriend" sizes. Dundas took the brand's core commitment to animal prints and went right to the source with a lion's head motif he used on everything from metal mesh crop tops and jacquard suits to second skin high-waisted pants and one voluminous silk skirt designed to trail behind a mini front. 

The idea to mimic leopard spots on perforated suede tops was another original way to honor the heritage of the house. As were the sexy form-fitting leather dresses with skin exposing straps held taunt to the side of the body with D-rings. 

If there was one area of Cavalli's past that perhaps didn't need revisiting, it was those final few looks where Dundas used tulle to create an almost topiary hedge effect to outline short cocktail dresses. That's a style that needs to stay well buried back in the 80s. 

What is that old saying about never being able to go home again? Today Dundas's homecoming proved that sentiment to be untrue.