I just don't get it.

Well, it was when I was age 0-8, so it will always be the most nostalgic era to me. Many others seem to think the same, or wish they had lived it. To put it short, they were just alot of fun, in that "cheesy but great" way.

In a way, it has the perfect distinction of being far enough away to have a "mystique" to it, or a wishing to go back, but also still recent/similar enough to the present to be relatable.

P.S. I'm sure in 1986, if the Internet had been around, there'd be people saying the same stuff about the '50s and '60s.

I guess I just can't get past it being the decade where America embraced Reagan.  That forever taints the entire thing to me.

It was also the decade Mtv came about(a negative to me), and in this decade America started moving away from the progressive social attitudes of the 1970s.  I just about hate the 80s, infact.

Also, the hair and fashion was really ugly.  Especially for women.  The hairstyles were SO unattractive! :o

Do you think if MTV never came to being, music would ultimately be better today?

On one hand, that was, like, the cornerstone of my later childhood (well, especially, age 9-12). I just loved the colorful/cheesy but fun '80s videos. I can hardly imagine what the '80s would be like without them. However, perhaps the fascination with image led to it being the way it is today. The industry in general, I mean.

BTW, I'm pretty Liberal, so I agree about Reagan (he actually seemed like a nice man, I just don't agree with alot of his politics). However, I guess we'll just have to agree to disagree about the decade in general.

It's hard to describe to someone who didn't experience it the way I did, but when you're under 13, I think you just get imprinted by what you enjoy or what you believe, whatever that may be. And, that's how it was for me up through 1994 or so. ;)

It's the decade my formative years filled up.  I mean, I turned 7 in the last year of the decade, so I already had about 4 years of cogent memories locked up.  Also, the decade reminds me of being young, so I've always loved 80s music and 80s TV/movies.

I reckon this thread goes most of the way to answering it.  Majority of the people here were born in the 60's or early 70's so the 1980s are the their teen years.

I reckon this thread goes most of the way to answering it.  Majority of the people here were born in the 60's or early 70's so the 1980s are the their teen years.


Again, it all depends on the person. ;)

1994-2001 are my "teen" years, and yeah, I like quite a bit from then, but I always disliked the notion that I only liked it because I was that age. Or that I was "supposed" to, over other time periods.

People tend to love the decades they grew up in. I was an 80's kid, so the 80's to me represents innocents and playfullness. When all I had to worry about is will my grape juice stay cold in my METAL Dukes of Hazzard Lunch kit!! Now it's bills, bills, bills, bills. I miss my 80's :\'(

Again, it all depends on the person. ;)

1994-2001 are my "teen" years, and yeah, I like quite a bit from then, but I always disliked the notion that I only liked it because I was that age. Or that I was "supposed" to, over other time periods.
I think you might well change your mind in 10 or 15 years time. I think it tends to be as you get towards middle age that you get way more nostalgic. There I things I hated about the 80's when I was in my 20's or say music I didn't like at the time that I do now because of the nostalgia.

The whole politics thing, yes you can look back now and see that the politics or economics of the time were bad but when you are a kid or teenager stuff like that rarely means anything at all to you. My prime example of that is a fantastic T.V show that has been on in the U.K  called 'Life on Mars' about a guy who is a cop in 2006 who gets hit by a car and finds himself as a policeman back in 1973. Whilst I love the programme, I have been horrified at the sexism,violence, the crooked police etc. It seems such a dark and depressing time with strikes and blackouts. I don't remember any of that, I remember it always being sunny and all the fun things I did as a kid and that is exactly how most people feel about the 80's.
I don't mean this to be patronising to Elduderino but you were only just born in the late 80's so you didn't live through the era and don't have the memories.

I'm fascinated by the 80's because that's when I was born, and I cant really remember much from the decade. I'm a little more fascinated with the early 90's though. The 80's weren't that bad I mean every decade has its flaws and the 80's had plenty but things weren't so bad and Reagan wasn't the worst president ever.

I love the '80s in many ways culturally, but not sociopolitically (in that way, they were a backwards step into the situation we've been in for 25 years and are mired in now.)

I agree with most of the sentiments on here, especially of Gis, Sister Morphine and Marty Mcfly :0) 7 1/2 years of my childhood were also spent in the 80's, even my first memories of school (up until 2nd grade), so I have a lot of stuff piled in my memory bank from that time. It seems with each year now, the older I keep getting the more fondness I feel for that time, not JUST because of it being the 80's, but just because I was a kid and have my kid memories which happen to be right smack dab in the middle of the 80's.

Plus, Gis is right, it seems the older you get the more nostalgic you become. That seems like a natural progression, I suppose. I could've cared less for the 80's when I was 17 or 18. There were some things I had an affinity for, but it was still too close by to really feel anything for it. Now that we're nearing 20 years on the year 1987, it's kinda weird to think that I was 5 that year and saying that stuff happened at age 5 and I actually remember those events from 20 years ago starts to creep me out.

Start watching "The Big Chill" and you'll see how nostalgia can be for a lot of people in their late 20's - early 30's.

I love the '80s in many ways culturally, but not sociopolitically (in that way, they were a backwards step into the situation we've been in for 25 years and are mired in now.)


Let's face it, politics is more about BS than real substance. That's one reason I'm so disgusted with both parties and refuse to denounce my "Independent" status. Everybody's out for themselves and too often forget that they're working for us. Me, a cynic? Not a chance!  ;)

As for nostalgia for the 80s, I guess I'm in the "what's the big deal?" category. I spent most of my school days in the 80s, so as a result, I'm too close to the decade by sheer experience to view it as anything out of the ordinary. Sure, there are things about my childhood I miss, but I'm happier now than I've been at any other point in my life.

My father graduated from high school in the 50s, so growing up, I was naturally curious about his experiences during that period. I was surprised when he told me he wouldn't want to be a teenager again. Of course, your mileage may vary, as the saying goes... 

I like the '80s because I was born in 1990, thus they are a time on the very fringe of my existence.

Unlike the '90s and '00s, which I have been around for enough of the former and all of the latter to know and not be fascinated with, and unlike the '70s and before which are so long before my time that I don't really care all that much. 

Plus, most of the music I like is New Wave and I like the teen movies from the '80s.  The politics I'm not crazy about, but the '00s aren't any better.

I reckon this thread goes most of the way to answering it.  Majority of the people here were born in the 60's or early 70's so the 1980s are the their teen years.


The 2000s are my "teen years" and I hate them.  *shrugs*

I think I would have rather been a teenager 1964-1970 than 2001-2007.

I think I'll probably end up looking back more fondly on my 20s than my teens and childhood.

The 2000s are my "teen years" and I hate them.  *shrugs*

I think I would have rather been a teenager 1964-1970 than 2001-2007.

I think I'll probably end up looking back more fondly on my 20s than my teens and childhood.


My teen years are 2003-2009, plus a bit more than two weeks of 2010.

I can think of one good thing about the 80s though..

1.21 jigiwatts!? :o

I can think of one good thing about the 80s though..

1.21 jigiwatts!? :o


brokeback to the future?

;D ;D ;D ^

;D ;D ;D ^


There's actually a video on YouTube that makes Marty McFly and Doc Brown look gay, titled that.  If you're interested I can post a link.

No thanks I have dial-up.

There's actually a video on YouTube that makes Marty McFly and Doc Brown look gay, titled that.  If you're interested I can post a link.


There's a video that makes me look gay? ;D ;D

No thanks I have dial-up.


Oh, okay.  :)

There's a video that makes me look gay? ;D ;D


Yup  ;D

The 2000s are my "teen years" and I hate them.  *shrugs*

I think I would have rather been a teenager 1964-1970 than 2001-2007.

I think I'll probably end up looking back more fondly on my 20s than my teens and childhood.


I agree with this, I'm not very happy about being in high school 2004-2008 and will probably be much more fond of my 2010s in the 10s than anything else. Particularly middle school, which was 2001-2004, and REALLY blew.

I agree with this, I'm not very happy about being in high school 2004-2008 and will probably be much more fond of my 2010s in the 10s than anything else. Particularly middle school, which was 2001-2004, and REALLY blew.



Yeah high school 2001-2005 sucked for me too. Middle school though 1998-2001 was pretty good.

For me - the 80's was the last decade were we as a culture, as a race didn't suck. This pop idol instant gratification culture where everyone is so petty and mean to each other has only developed over the last couple of decades. The music, movies and television has been focused grouped and demographiced into a puerile mess that's only fit for the lowest common denominator. Now I'm not saying that A-Team or Knight Rider was an outstanding example of class and sophistication, but it's thousands of times better than the crap Big Business forces upon us today.

I weep for what we have become - slick, overproduced, overmarketed fast food culture.

And yes - Regan was a complete asshole when it comes to politics, but he was the last truly presidential president we had. I didnt agree with him at all, but he had the stature to carry the mantel of office.

I feel Clinton was a great President myself.  163 IQ baby.  Smartest ass to ever sit behind that desk in the oval office! ;D

I agree with this, I'm not very happy about being in high school 2004-2008 and will probably be much more fond of my 2010s in the 10s than anything else. Particularly middle school, which was 2001-2004, and REALLY blew.



The 2000s are my "teen years" and I hate them.  *shrugs*

I think I would have rather been a teenager 1964-1970 than 2001-2007.

I think I'll probably end up looking back more fondly on my 20s than my teens and childhood.


Yes but possibly what you 'hate' is been a teenager.  You can't say now what you will look back on fondly when you are older because you do not know.

There are lots of things I hated as a teenager, I had a few problems back then but I look back on the pop culture of the 80s with fondness on the whole.  And this is what we are discussing here.

I don't know why there is such a fascination with the '80s. All I know is that people generally tend to sit around going "You know, things were better 20-30 years ago." Back in the '80s people had a fascination with the '50s and 60s. In the '90s, 70s nostalgia was really big.

I guess people want to escape the problems and trials of the present by remembering a "better" time, that usually wasn't all that good. There were a number of things that I loved about the '80s, but there were also a number of things I would not want to return to, being older and wiser.

Yes but possibly what you 'hate' is been a teenager.  You can't say now what you will look back on fondly when you are older because you do not know.

That's exactly what I was going to say. I never thought I would look back fondly on my teenage years but now that I'm approaching 40 I do. I suddenly love music or t.v shows I hated at the time because it's nostalgia ! I know it stinks to pull the age card on you but you are only 18 it's amazing how different things look 20 years down the line.

I suddenly love music or t.v shows I hated at the time because it's nostalgia !


Absolutely! I will buy and sit through the worst and cheesiest sitcoms on dvd just for the nostalgia!  ;D

Yes but possibly what you 'hate' is been a teenager.  You can't say now what you will look back on fondly when you are older because you do not know.

There are lots of things I hated as a teenager, I had a few problems back then but I look back on the pop culture of the 80s with fondness on the whole.  And this is what we are discussing here.


I agree. I'm not really old enough to say I'm a sage about these things, but even now that it's been 10 years since I actually began highschool, things look a lot more different. You think you know so much at that age, and you look back and think, "Wow, yeah, I was smart - but it takes a lot of "living" to actually be wise about things"

When I watched "Good Will Hunting," the examples that  Robin Williams gave Matt Damon's character were superb about actually experiencing things rather than reading them in books, movies, etc.

The '80s were my pre teen and teen years, and Air Supply hit the US at the start of the decade

I agree with everyone else. My teenage years were in the 80's and I didn't get it back then either. A lot of kids I knew started to really get into the 50's and early 60's kind of stuff when the movie Stand By Me came out. Now as I look back on the music, movies, hairstyles and clothes I realize that wow, I used to dress like that or that was my favorite movie. I think for those of us who were at the age to really grow up and mature during that time, I mean it takes us back to our innocence. My parents grew up in the 50's and still listen to old 50's music, talk to someone older and they still listen to Benny Goodman. The 80's were our time and I think it somehow keeps us from feeling old. I think MTV coming out revolutionized the music industry. My first memory of Adam Sandler is when he played a character called Stickpin Quinn on Remote Control. I remember staying up late on Fridays to watch Friday Night Videos. Some of the best movies came out of the 80's, they just don't make movies like they used to. You had to have been a teen during that time to get it. ::)

I think everyone has a fondness for the past.  It's probably not cool to live in the past, but it's cool to reminisce and to revisit memories and to remember our formative years.  I always wondered why my parents loved the late 50s and early 60s so much.  Now I know.  8)

Yeah high school 2001-2005 sucked for me too. Middle school though 1998-2001 was pretty good.


If it's any consolation - adulthood 2001-2005 still kinda sucks.  And I say that, having secured my retirement form a few well-chosen investments in the War Without End.

And speaking of suck (as I take a sip from a dram of $200/bottle whisky (don't worry, you'll get your chance to appreciate it!)) - I'm with the poster who said the 80s were the last decade we didn't suck.  I remember, once upon a time, when the Russians were bad guys.  Anyone too young to remember when the Russians were the bad guys... would do well to read almost any Reagan-era history textbook, and see *why* we thought the Russians were the bad guys.

The 80s were the happiest point of our culture - whether you were a new-wave synthpopper or a glam/hair-metal headbanger.  The 90s were the happiest point of our economic growth - whether you were a computer geek with a neat idea and some venture capital, or just some guy who got lucky with his stock options.

Sorry we screwed it up for y'all.  Still a few bucks to be made in computational molecular biology (whether you're on the healthcare side or the bioweapons side; if you get an education in one, you'll be employable in the other :). 

Anyways.  Yeah, my generation screwed the pooch.  Our bad.  Still - you owe it to yoruself to enjoy the ride down.  As PWEI put it...

"Let's catch the last rays of civilization..."
  - Pop Will Eat Itself _X, Y, and Zee_, Cure for Sanity (1990)

I'm a child of the 80s, so it's a nostalgic decade for me. It was a good decade to grow up in. we had the best of everything(at least compared to children born in the 90s and beyond)

Also, I think, we want to go back to the '80s and '90s because compared to now, they look safe. We already know what happened - there are no nasty surprises lurking around the corner.

I love the 80's, yet never actually grew up in them.  I was born in 1989.  However, my parents were very young when they had me.  My dad graduated from high school in 1983 and my mom graduated in 1984.  As a result, I got exposed to a ton of 80's things in my childhood.  My childhood was some weird half-80's, half 90's childhood.  Because of that, the 80's will always be nostalgic to me in some way (as well as the early 90's, which I got exposed to in a different method after they had already occurred).  I know I'm not the only one either.  Something is up when Student Council decides to have the music for a pep rally be all 80's hair bands.

That's exactly what I was going to say. I never thought I would look back fondly on my teenage years but now that I'm approaching 40 I do. I suddenly love music or t.v shows I hated at the time because it's nostalgia ! I know it stinks to pull the age card on you but you are only 18 it's amazing how different things look 20 years down the line.


I know what you mean about nostalgia changing your attitudes about past stuff, either for the 80s or 90s.  I'll give an example regarding the 90s, I used to HATE Beverly Hills 90210 with a passion back in the early and mid 90s.  I hated it!  I thought it was such a shallow, snobby stupid teen soap opera series.  Today I am age 30 and I catch the reruns of 90210 every once in a while and I actually get into the series a lot more then I did back then.  Why?  Nostalgia.  I'm older and I like watching this show that reminds me of a time when people around my age had our annoying teenage show hijacking the airwaves the same way The O.C. does today.  I miss the first half of the 90s many times, the characters on the show were exactly my age (class of 1993) and now I watch it and don't think of it as the mega idiot series that I used to.

On the 80s,...well I grew up back then with my childhood and very early teenage years.  So it's a special decade to me.  As I'm older I've realized the first half of the 1990's are nostalgic times for me as well.

I know what you mean about nostalgia changing your attitudes about past stuff, either for the 80s or 90s.  I'll give an example regarding the 90s, I used to HATE Beverly Hills 90210 with a passion back in the early and mid 90s.  I hated it!  I thought it was such a shallow, snobby stupid teen soap opera series.  Today I am age 30 and I catch the reruns of 90210 every once in a while and I actually get into the series a lot more then I did back then.  Why?  Nostalgia.  I'm older and I like watching this show that reminds me of a time when people around my age had our annoying teenage show hijacking the airwaves the same way The O.C. does today.  I miss the first half of the 90s many times, the characters on the show were exactly my age (class of 1993) and now I watch it and don't think of it as the mega idiot series that I used to.

On the 80s,...well I grew up back then with my childhood and very early teenage years.  So it's a special decade to me.  As I'm older I've realized the first half of the 1990's are nostalgic times for me as well.


What about the second half of the '90s?  Sorry I just love annoying you  ;)

^I wasn't a teenager in the late 90s, not even an older teen.  I'm sure I'll grow to like it more as time goes by, but right now 1999 (and sometimes 1998) still feel about the same as 2002 or '03 to me.  I was still a kid during the first half of the 90s, that's why it's nostalgic times for me.  I may have still felt like a teenager during the late 90s, but I actually wasn't one....I was an adult in my 20s. 

Plus it's just neat for me to sit down and remember stuff when I watch something like 90210, remember when we had our dumb O.C. like show.  And then I realize, hey wait a minute, I used to HATE this show.  I was like intellectually above such a piece of moron TV and back in the early-mid 90s and I never saw more then 2 episodes and even then I never sat through an entire episode.  This was my mentality circa 1993.  Now I take it as the entertaining fluff it was that I looked down upon as a kid but don't view so harshly as a 30 year old.     

I can think of one good thing about the 80s though..

1) Superb choice for music:  Pop, Rock, Metal, New Wave, Punk, Electro, and Rap before it sold out
2) Music and fashion that was progressive (i.e moved on to something new within 2 years or so)
3) Fashion that just didn't give a stuff, and refused to conform to type
4) Films that broke new ground
5) Trends that were innovative and fresh
6) Computer classics that are still played today

8)

^I wasn't a teenager in the late 90s, not even an older teen.  I'm sure I'll grow to like it more as time goes by, but right now 1999 (and sometimes 1998) still feel about the same as 2002 or '03 to me.  I was still a kid during the first half of the 90s, that's why it's nostalgic times for me.  I may have still felt like a teenager during the late 90s, but I actually wasn't one....I was an adult in my 20s. 

Plus it's just neat for me to sit down and remember stuff when I watch something like 90210, remember when we had our dumb O.C. like show.  And then I realize, hey wait a minute, I used to HATE this show.  I was like intellectually above such a piece of moron TV and back in the early-mid 90s and I never saw more then 2 episodes and even then I never sat through an entire episode.  This was my mentality circa 1993.  Now I take it as the entertaining fluff it was that I looked down upon as a kid but don't view so harshly as a 30 year old.      


Ah, I see.  But you've said before that all of the '90s, except for 1999 is old school in its own right, right, but you like 1990-1994 best in a retro way?  Sorry, this is personal to me because the '90s are my formative years, particulary 1994-1998.  Of course the early '90s is old school now, because it's 11-16 years ago which is a long, long time for anyone under like 35.

I think I won't look fondly upon the 2010s much, because those will be my 20s, however my time is probably the late 1990s to the early 2010s.

Also, I've said it before and I'll say it again, but I think 1997 and 1998 have a new school element to them.  1996 and before is very old school compared to now, but 1997 was really when the '90s was almost a wholly different era from the '80s, as you got the new wave of teen pop, South Park, anime, ubuitiquous Internet, etc.  But 1999 is really where it becomes like 2002 or '03.

Also, I've said it before and I'll say it again, but I think 1997 and 1998 have a new school element to them.  1996 and before is very old school compared to now, but 1997 was really when the '90s was almost a wholly different era from the '80s, as you got the new wave of teen pop, South Park, anime, ubuitiquous Internet, etc.  But 1999 is really where it becomes like 2002 or '03.


But what do these have to do with the 80s :D

Also, I've said it before and I'll say it again, but I think 1997 and 1998 have a new school element to them.  1996 and before is very old school compared to now, but 1997 was really when the '90s was almost a wholly different era from the '80s, as you got the new wave of teen pop, South Park, anime, ubuitiquous Internet, etc.  But 1999 is really where it becomes like 2002 or '03.


I think 1997 and '98 had new school technology and pop culture, but an old school feeling. They made it possible for the '90s to transition into the '00s.

In other words, imagine if we had gone right from 1996 to 1999 (meaning that 1997 had 99's pop culture). I don't know if the mega, worldwide success of the boy bands, Pokemon, Ricky Martin, Jerry Springer being a household name, etc etc. would've been quite as possible or successful in "1997". Sure, it probably still would've been, but it would've been too jarring all at once to have been embraced the way it was.

Of course nobody could've known it at the time, but when I look on it now, I do see 1997 and '98 as a state of, "Alright guys! Let's get used to this cool new stuff, because it's gonna be really big in a couple years! But, we'll still hang on to some of the things we liked as far back as 1992 before we say goodbye for good!"

Then again, I could be wrong - "The Macarena" was from '96 and that was probably cheesier than anything Ricky Martin or the boy bands did. ;D

I think 1997 and '98 had new school technology and pop culture, but an old school feeling. They made it possible for the '90s to transition into the '00s.

In other words, imagine if we had gone right from 1996 to 1999 (meaning that 1997 had 99's pop culture). I don't know if the mega, worldwide success of the boy bands, Pokemon, Ricky Martin, Jerry Springer being a household name, etc etc. would've been quite as possible or successful in "1997". Sure, it probably still would've been, but it would've been too jarring on its own.

Of course nobody could've known it at the time, but when I look on it now, I do see 1997 and '98 as a state of, "Alright guys! Let's get used to this cool new stuff, because it's gonna be really big in a couple years! But, we'll still hang on to some of the things we liked as far back as 1992 before we say goodbye for good!"


Right on the nail.  They were the embroyonic states of the early '00s (i.e. Backstreet Boys, South Park) combined with authentically '90s things (the last Beavis and Butt-head, Angry Beavers, 3rd Rock from the Sun), and things in between (King of the Hill, Spice Girls).

I know what you mean about nostalgia changing your attitudes about past stuff, either for the 80s or 90s.  I'll give an example regarding the 90s, I used to HATE Beverly Hills 90210 with a passion back in the early and mid 90s.  I hated it!  I thought it was such a shallow, snobby stupid teen soap opera series.  Today I am age 30 and I catch the reruns of 90210 every once in a while and I actually get into the series a lot more then I did back then.  Why?  Nostalgia.  I'm older and I like watching this show that reminds me of a time when people around my age had our annoying teenage show hijacking the airwaves the same way The O.C. does today.  I miss the first half of the 90s many times, the characters on the show were exactly my age (class of 1993) and now I watch it and don't think of it as the mega idiot series that I used to.

On the 80s,...well I grew up back then with my childhood and very early teenage years.  So it's a special decade to me.  As I'm older I've realized the first half of the 1990's are nostalgic times for me as well.


I never watched 90210 much, but I know what you mean.

I don't know if it was the same for you (or anyone else, for that matter), but when I was about 11-14, I was kinda defensive about openly liking anything for a younger audience. For example -- do you remember the movie Blank Check? It was a Home Alone-style comedy about this 11 year old kid who fills in a check for a million bucks after his bike gets run over, and pretty soon he's spending the money like there's no tomorrow.

When I was 12 or 13 in 1994 I thought Well, it looks funny, but it's some kids' movie, so I probably wouldn't be interested. Even though the main character was only a year or two younger than me, I was still defensive about it 'cause I guess I felt enjoying it would make me more "kidlike" or something. I felt the same way about Power Rangers (which you couldn't get away from in 1993 and '94).

But, a few years later, I was always picking stuff like that up at Thrift stores. When I was 16 or 18, etc. I started getting really into it. Partly for the age thing not really mattering anymore, but also a big part was nostalgia - it's like, even if it actually wasn't interesting to me anymore, just the idea of it being (then) 5 years old made it appeal to me more than when it was actually going on.

And of course, now at the age of 24, it's like Who cares. I can dig anything from when I was a kid now that I may have shunned at the time. That's probably one more reason I love the '80s/90s as I do. ;)

Ah, I see.  But you've said before that all of the '90s, except for 1999 is old school in its own right, right, but you like 1990-1994 best in a retro way?  Sorry, this is personal to me because the '90s are my formative years, particulary 1994-1998.  Of course the early '90s is old school now, because it's 11-16 years ago which is a long, long time for anyone under like 35.

I think I won't look fondly upon the 2010s much, because those will be my 20s, however my time is probably the late 1990s to the early 2010s.


I like 1990 to 1996, I think those years are very nostalgic times for me.  I think 1997 and 1998 still felt like 90s to me.  There was a noticeable change in 1999.  The 80s are still where all the magic is though, but the 90s had it's good points.

I never watched 90210 much, but I know what you mean.

I don't know if it was the same for you (or anyone else, for that matter), but when I was about 11-14, I was kinda defensive about openly liking anything for a younger audience. For example -- do you remember the movie Blank Check? It was a Home Alone-style comedy about this 11 year old kid who fills in a check for a million bucks after his bike gets run over, and pretty soon he's spending the money like there's no tomorrow.

When I was 12 or 13 in 1994 I thought Well, it looks funny, but it's some kids' movie, so I probably wouldn't be interested. Even though the main character was only a year or two younger than me, I was still defensive about it 'cause I guess I felt enjoying it would make me more "kidlike" or something. I felt the same way about Power Rangers (which you couldn't get away from in 1993 and '94).

But, a few years later, I was always picking stuff like that up at Thrift stores. When I was 16 or 18, etc. I started getting really into it. Partly for the age thing not really mattering anymore, but also a big part was nostalgia - it's like, even if it actually wasn't interesting to me anymore, just the idea of it being (then) 5 years old made it appeal to me more than when it was actually going on.

And of course, now at the age of 24, it's like Who cares. I can dig anything from when I was a kid now that I may have shunned at the time. That's probably one more reason I love the '80s/90s as I do. ;)


My gosh, I love Blank Check!  I remember around 1997, maybe 1996 we rented it, and I was so sad when we had to bring it back. But yeah, some things you normally wouldn't give a darn about seem great because of nostalgia.

^Oh definitely. I've always thought movies like that were alot of "fun" - even if I wouldn't have admitted being a fan of a movie with an 11 year old when I was 13. Another good one in that vein was Camp Nowhere.

P.S. It's odd in talking about this, but I also loved Baby's Day Out and was always cool with that. Maybe because the "stars" were the baby, or adults, so it wasn't anyone immediately younger than me.

Is it just me, or did 1994 have alot of cool "kid adventure" movies like this? :)

I like 1990 to 1996, I think those years are very nostalgic times for me.  I think 1997 and 1998 still felt like 90s to me.  There was a noticeable change in 1999.


I'd agree there.  Here's how I see it:

1990-mid 1991: The period of the '90s that's like a diluted late '80s, with some very primitive '90s things mixed in.  This period would seem synonoymous with the '80s to people that were really young then.

Late 1991-Early 1997: The "old school" '90s. Not the '80s in any way, but not late enough in the '90s that the '80s seem like a different era.  Very nostalgic times for someone between the ages of 14 and 30.

Mid 1997-Nov 1998: Definitely the '90s, but with a bit of embroynic early '00s/Gen Y culture.  Kind of a mix of early/mid '90s and 1999-early '00s in feel.

Dec 1998 - the first months of 2000: '90s definitely, but different.  A fully different era from the '80s and not old school at all.

Mid 2000 - 9/11 attacks: Like the late '90s, but with embryonic '00s elements (i.e. Survivor) and less of the feel of prosperity.

Somehow I see us still having this same conversation when you are 70 and I'm 85.

Somehow I see us still having this same conversation when you are 70 and I'm 85.


;D ;D +1

Somehow I see us still having this same conversation when you are 70 and I'm 85.


;D You're hilarious.  Why do you keep feeding it?  Come on admit it, you enjoy it a little bit  ;)

more in a tongue and cheek way....

You can only have the same conversation so many times before it takes it's own comedic turn.  At least for me.  In the beginning I found it an interesting topic, now I'm just amazed by the whole thing, the topic that refuses to die.

more in a tongue and cheek way....

You can only have the same conversation so many times before it takes it's own comedic turn.  At least for me.  In the beginning I found it an interesting topic, now I'm just amazed by the whole thing, the topic that refuses to die.


Ah, I see.  It's kind of a pleasant annoyance, then?  That is, you're annoyed, but amused at the same time and find it funny that people care so much?

Ah, I see.  It's kind of a pleasant annoyance, then?  That is, you're annoyed, but amused at the same time and find it funny that people care so much?


I just find it annoying.  this si supposed to be about the 80s and why they are so fascinating

I just find it annoying.  this si supposed to be about the 80s and why they are so fascinating


I apologize.  To get back to topic: why are the '80s so fascinating to you (or anyone here)?

I'd agree there.  Here's how I see it:

1990-mid 1991: The period of the '90s that's like a diluted late '80s, with some very primitive '90s things mixed in.  This period would seem synonoymous with the '80s to people that were really young then.

Late 1991-Early 1997: The "old school" '90s. Not the '80s in any way, but not late enough in the '90s that the '80s seem like a different era.  Very nostalgic times for someone between the ages of 14 and 30.

Mid 1997-Nov 1998: Definitely the '90s, but with a bit of embroynic early '00s/Gen Y culture.  Kind of a mix of early/mid '90s and 1999-early '00s in feel.

Dec 1998 - the first months of 2000: '90s definitely, but different.  A fully different era from the '80s and not old school at all.

Mid 2000 - 9/11 attacks: Like the late '90s, but with embryonic '00s elements (i.e. Survivor) and less of the feel of prosperity.


I think the old school '90s ended when Britney Spears' "Baby One More Time" came out. I like this chart alot. I also think the '90s died another death in 1998 with The Simpsons sucking and Seinfeld pulling the plug.

I agree that late 1989-mid 1991 would seem pretty "'80s" to someone under 10 or so. The things that were less '80s and more '90s, like The Simpsons, Seinfeld, and the music like Nirvana, Jane's Addiction, Sonic Youth, Tracy Chapman, The Pixies are not things a younger person would've been all that aware of. Except I'd put a subtle line somewhere in 1994-1995 when the classic early '90s ended with Nirvana being gone and stuff like Nine Inch Nails and the Smashing Pumpkins that's "later old school '90s" came out. Also, the old school wasn't quite not cool anymore, especially for the alt crowd, until like 2002. Like Sonic Youth, The Smashing Pumpkins, Tori Amos were still the "cool" stuff, even if alot of it was 5+ years old, because nothing had replaced it. It was almost dead in theory starting in 1998-1999ish and definitely by 1999-2000, but it was still acceptable to listen to the Stone Temple Pilots and such.

I'm trying to think what was embryonic '00s stuff from 2000-2001...Eminem, definitely, The White Stripes and the Strokes, and reality TV count, certainly.

But anyway, why I'm fascinated with the '80s. There was alot going on then, certainly. There were various different interesting underground scenes. There was the early '80s, like Joy Division, synth pop, Blondie, The Talking Heads, and the Cure, and the late '80s (Jane's Addiction, Sonic Youth, Nirvana, The Pixies, Suzanne Vega, Tracy Chapman) alt rock scenes, both of which I like. There are random artists I love who were at their peak then, like Madonna, Kate Bush, and Prince. And I think what was on the radio, at least for the first 2/3 of it, was fun, hummable music. And it was flamboyant and frisky and fascinating.

I think the old school '90s ended when Britney Spears' "Baby One More Time" came out. I like this chart alot. I also think the '90s died another death in 1998 with The Simpsons sucking and Seinfeld pulling the plug.

I agree that late 1989-mid 1991 would seem pretty "'80s" to someone under 10 or so. The things that were less '80s and more '90s, like The Simpsons, Seinfeld, and the music like Nirvana, Jane's Addiction, Sonic Youth, Tracy Chapman, The Pixies are not things a younger person would've been all that aware of. Except I'd put a subtle line somewhere in 1994-1995 when the classic early '90s ended with Nirvana being gone and stuff like Nine Inch Nails and the Smashing Pumpkins that's "later old school '90s" came out. Also, the old school wasn't quite not cool anymore, especially for the alt crowd, until like 2002. Like Sonic Youth, The Smashing Pumpkins, Tori Amos were still the "cool" stuff, even if alot of it was 5+ years old, because nothing had replaced it. It was almost dead in theory starting in 1998-1999ish and definitely by 1999-2000, but it was still acceptable to listen to the Stone Temple Pilots and such.

I'm trying to think what was embryonic '00s stuff from 2000-2001...Eminem, definitely, The White Stripes and the Strokes, and reality TV count, certainly.


Although, didn't Seinfeld not really become popular until 1992ish?  Also, the Simpsons from a 1990 perspective is rather late '80s, since it focused more on Bart then and was similar to Married ... with Children.  The Grunge stuff was more late 1991 onwards.

But yeah, 1998 is the last year that really feels "old school" at all, for instance Goosebumps were popular around then.

Although, didn't Seinfeld not really become popular until 1992ish?  Also, the Simpsons from a 1990 perspective is rather late '80s, since it focused more on Bart then and was similar to Married ... with Children.  The Grunge stuff was more late 1991 onwards.

But yeah, 1998 is the last year that really feels "old school" at all, for instance Goosebumps were popular around then.


Goosebumps, lol. I still got some of those lying around.

Goosebumps, lol. I still got some of those lying around.


There were like a zillion of those.  ;D

Although, didn't Seinfeld not really become popular until 1992ish?  Also, the Simpsons from a 1990 perspective is rather late '80s, since it focused more on Bart then and was similar to Married ... with Children.  The Grunge stuff was more late 1991 onwards.

But yeah, 1998 is the last year that really feels "old school" at all, for instance Goosebumps were popular around then.


OFF as we know it really started sometime in 1991.

There were like a zillion of those.  ;D


Animorphs was another series of books from back then too. I have some of those as well.

Animorphs was another series of books from back then too. I have some of those as well.


I think I remember those.  Weren't Hot Wheels also a '90s trend?

I think I remember those.  Weren't Hot Wheels also a '90s trend?


Oh yea back in the early-mid '90s I had tons of toy cars.

Oh yea back in the early-mid '90s I had tons of toy cars.


Computer games were also big.  Remember Arctic Adventure (1991), Highway Hunter, or Hyper Helix?  Day of the Tentacle was also classic.  It was so funny when the presidents fell out of the window!  ;D

I had a sh*tload of Hot Wheels and Goosebumps books.

I have Goosebumps books #1-56. I used to "collect" them lol.

I think I remember those.  Weren't Hot Wheels also a '90s trend?


I think Hot Wheels really peaked in the 70's and had a mild resurgence in the 80's, peaking a second time in the 90's. As far as the 80's fascination, many people with consumer power grew up then and are now yearning for their youth. There were many new products brought onto the market in the 80's. Much of today's products are just improved versions or spin-offs of these.

One thing I liked in the 80's were Micro machines. They fascinated me. I even got some sets for my 8th birthday, which was actually May of 1990, but still, it was technically an 80's toy.

the music and fashon