Relationships around the country are being tested by cargo shorts, loosely cut shorts with large pockets sewn onto the sides. Men who love them say they’re comfortable and practical for summer. Detractors​ say they’ve been out of style for years, deriding them as bulky, uncool and just flat-out ugly. …

Around 2010, slimmer men’s shorts started to replace baggy silhouettes. By then, the backlash against cargo shorts was well underway …

Travis Haglin, who has worked in the retail industry for more than 15 years, including atRalph Lauren and J. Crew, said he has never felt comfortable wearing cargo shorts because they “don’t look cool enough.”

“Men want to be like James Bond,” Mr. Haglin said. “Bond never wears cargo shorts.”