It is functional. It's a little tricky but it works just fine. You can't flick it with your middle finger though, you need to dig your thumb into the hole and push the blade out.
Was actually opening the knife amongst the problem listed by people not liking the design back when?
I dont have any problems opening my Southard.
Its a great knife, which was wildly anticipated. Many of us liked the look even in the pre-release pics. I for one was not disappointed by the Southard. It remains one of my favorite Spyderco knives.The shitstorm gathered speed after its release, though its a good knife. Its an internet thing.
General observation; Im not saying, that any Spyderco is perfect but in some instances, a few youtbe apostles deliberately get a ball rolling, then lean back and watch the sorry debacle, as people jump on the bandwagon.
Be it an opening mechanism or the case of the Southard or what ever, they choose to latch on to.
For some reason, Spyderco seems to be the target of much of this 'attention.'
Yes, design faults should be pointed out.
No, a company product should not be deliberately trolled.
NB NOT saying you are trolling Spyderco.