The Complete T-Shirt

Part One

Neckline Detail
I was at home a couple of nights ago having a conversation with my housemates about the exciting topic of t-shirts (it was exciting to me, probably not so much to them). One of my housemates insisted he owned a very cool t-shirt, and not more than a minute later he pulled this beautiful tee out of his room and claimed that he "still hasn't worn it yet". The t-shirt is by a Melbourne-based label called Texas Johnny, and I think it's a great example of how the generic t-shirt can undergo a few simple changes and end up as something completely different.
I started wondering whether this garment should be considered a single t-shirt, two separate t-shirts, or two unidentifiable garments. Is half a t-shirt still a t-shirt when it's put with it's other half? And would you still consider it a t-shirt if it was worn on it's own? I think the answer to the second question depends on the utilitarian purpose that the t-shirt is meant to be serving. If half a t-shirt can still do the job of a t-shirt to someone, then that person will recognize the garment as a "t-shirt" because it does what a t-shirt is meant to do. I think the identity of a t-shirt relies more on the job that it does than how it physically looks. The "generic t-shirt" has an easily identifiable silhouette, but there's millions of other silhouettes commercially available that people still consider t-shirts.
When it comes to this Johnny Texas garment, I think it's still considered a t-shirt because the two parts are sold as one, and because it resembles the generic t-shirt silhouette when the two parts are worn together. However, I'm sure that each part on their own would still be considered t-shirts to someone.