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"FacebookPinterest\n\n \"The '50s were boring, the '60s rocked, and the '70s\u2014oh, my god, they obviously suck. Come on. Maybe the '80s will be radical.\"\u2014Cynthia Dunn, Dazed and Confused\n\n Cynthia Dunn's Every Other Decade Theory, as we now know, wasn't all right. The '90s, it turns out were a more important moment, or at least, one with more staying power. We need only survey the cultural conveyor belt during the week ending July 30th. Nickelodeon's TeenNick resurrected several programs for its The 90s Are All That block of post-midnight programming, airing golden era shows like \"Clarissa Explains It All,\" \"All That,\" \"Doug,\" and \"Are You Afraid of the Dark?\" with the express purpose of luring 20- and 30-somethings to watch. The programming decision\u2014not exactly a gamble, but an inspired stroke of nostalgia baiting\u2014was a smash success. This wasn't the only wistful return to the past on cable TV last week. MTV, which celebrates its 30th anniversary today, shook the cobwebs from its venerable alternative rock video show, \"120 Minutes,\" and its ageless host, Matt Pinfield. The show, back to air videos and interviews with relevant artists like Das Racist, Lupe Fiasco, and Sleigh Bells, couldn't avoid its own self-congratulatory looks back, too. Vintage videos were aired, with a cheery remember dem days grin from Pinfield, including Radiohead's \"Just\" and, as far as I can tell, the first time the network aired the uncensored version of Pearl Jam's \"Jeremy\" video. There was something calming about seeing Pinfield yukking it up with Dave Grohl. Or reliving Melissa Joan Hart telling us how it really is, y'all. And frankly, we'll be even happier when \"Beavis and Butt-Head\" returns.\n\n There's more floating in the culture: This is happening amidst the convenient 20th anniversary of Nirvana's Nevermind, the epochal album of the decade that people are beginning to experience again, and in turn, understand two decades after it became an object of generational pontification. A more important album hasn't been made since, it seems. Over here, you'll find '90s godheads of outsider cool, Beck and Stephen Malkmus, collaborating on an album. And this weekend's box office winners? Well, it's a tie: Harrison Ford and Smurfs, two cultural icons who haven't been thought about much since then.\n\n What about fashion, where is it headed? Oh, you know, backward, but with updates. Consider the re-rise of the double-breasted suit. On nearly every runway in Europe this summer, we saw variations on the look, only less boxy than its pinstriped forbearers. Gone is the Wall St. affect, in is the hipster power suit. In streetwear, the hottest trend is snapbacks, revivified by Kanye West affiliate Don C. with his snakeskin concoctions that recall NBA Draft Day circa 1994. And don't forget about the modern take on the bracelet. Or better yet, another improbable style resurrection? Cargo pants. We won't hold our breath for the JNCO reconsideration.\n\n These aren't just manufactured moves made for capitalistic gains, either. Last week, as all this was raging, at a concert space in Brooklyn I attended a tribute to Sassy, the iconic teen magazine. Former staffers convened onstage to reminisce. Recurring features from the magazine, like Dear Boy, were recreated for the audience. Musical tributes were performed. And the show ended with a chat session between \"This American Life\" host Ira Glass (ahem, '90s) and the 15-year-old fashion blogging wunderkind Tavi Gevinson, who is launching a new web site later this year called Rookie, which happens to be inspired by Sassy and all of its '90s-ness. (Is that Nicki Minaj in Doc Martens? Oh, OK.) At one point, the night's co-host, Elna Baker, strutted onstage in a pillowcase dress\u2014that is, a dress made from a pillowcase\u2014the same one Sassy taught readers to create in its pages. And like that dress, the evening seemed to be a sustained cry into the night for a return to simpler, more handmade times.\n\n Which is sort of what all of this is about\u2014a yearning for the simplicity of youth. As Generation Y (an ill-fitting title) confront the first pangs of mortality, they've begun to take stock. The hangovers from those all-night binges are no longer as surmountable as they once were. The bones begin to creak after hours chained to a desk at work. The IKEA furniture is cracking and warped. So, all of these things\u2014\"All That,\" Nirvana, cargos\u2014are comfort food, like coming home to Mom's lasagna. They just feel good. Certainly the 2000s are a more difficult decade to romanticize, what with the tragic events on 9/11, the subsequent wars, the baffling presidency, Clay Aiken, and the worst financial crisis in 90 years, among other monstrosities. There may be a confluence of nostalgia for something from that time (um, Nickelback?) but it's not happening anytime soon. Instead, we are likely entering a prolonged period of '90s monomania. And with that, allow us to return to our Nintendo 64 emulator. We've got a rad game of GoldenEye to get back to."^^<http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema#string>
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