Sorry long rant but I have to get this off my chest.
Lately, I’ve been noticing so much drama going on between the ‘90’s kids and 00’s kids. The debate going on now is ‘90’s kids are claiming their decade to be the best and bashing the 00’s kids. The other thing is, the 00’s kids are claiming themselves to be ‘90’s kids simply because they were born in the late 90’s. Now, I was born in the late 80′s, ’88 to be exact but I certainly don’t claim myself to be an 80’s kid just because I was born in the 80’s. Why, you may ask? Well to put it simply, I was only conscious of the decade for about year and half. I just don’t remember anything from the 80’s because I was too young. However, I fondly remember nearly everything from 1991-onward.
I hate to break it to yah but if you’re a kid born in the mid 90’s, you’re 00’s kid. If you can truly “claim” yourself to be a 90’s kid, tell me how many of these you remember from the 90’s…
In the 90’s:
- The majority of the population didn’t have internet much less a home computer until about 1996.
- Google had just launched in 1998.
- Pokemon games and the TV show first came to the States in 1998.
- ‘90’s kids had video game systems such as the original Nintendo Entertainment System, SNES, Sega Genesis, Sega CD, Game Gear, N64, Original Gameboy, Game Boy Color, Dreamcast, and Playstation 1 which are all now extinct.
- 90′s Kids went to DZ: Discovery Zone before Chuck E Cheese bought them over.
- ‘90’s kids played computer games from Humongous Entertainment (known for Putt-Putt, Fatty Bear, Freddie Fish, Spy Fox, Pajama Sam, etc), Backyard Baseball/Sports, Catz & Dogz 1-4, Sims, Zoo Tycoon, Roller Coaster Tycoon
- Anime and manga started to take off in ’98.
- You remember owning gigapets such as Tamagotchi, Pocket Pikachu, Pocket Pikachu Color, Nano Kitty.
- Sonic the Hedgehog made his debut in 1991 and was an immediate hit. Sonic also had his own Comics in the early 90’s (which are still publishing now) and plush toys (made by Caltoy), etc.
- Many classic Disney movies aired in the 90’s such as The Lion King, Aladdin, Beauty and the Beast, Toy Story, Pocahontas, Angels in the Outfield, The Santa Clause, etc. I remember seeing all these in theaters the day they came out.
- Every animated movie and cartoon was hand drawn and used traditional cell animation (with the exception of Toy Story) in the 90’s. Now-a-days, it’s a rare treat to see animation done traditionally.
- Your childhood heroes/idols were Mary-Kate & Ashley Olsen, Michael Jordan, Cal Ripken Jr., Tim Allen, Lindsay Lohan, Michael Jackson, first gen Power Rangers, Bill Cosby, Fresh Prince, Sonic the Hedgehog, Mario, etc (If these aren’t your heroes, feel free to tell me which ones were).
- You listened to Boy bands and Girl bands for example Spice Girls, N*Sync, Backstreet Boys, Dream Street, BBMak, ’98 Degrees, Hanson, TLC, etc.
- East Coast, US 90′s kids remember the Blizzard of ’96.
- You remember watching TV blocks such as Toon Disney, The Disney Afternoon, SNICK, Toonami, etc.
- You remember 9/11 and became politically aware of what was going on.
- You played with toys such as Kitty/Puppy Surprise, Lite Brite, Sockem Boppers, Skip It, Tyco Kitty Kitty Kittens, Crazy Bones, Disney action figures (Aladdin, Lion King, etc), Littlest Pet Shop, Battle Ship, Hoppin Poppin Spaceballs, Arcadia Duck Hunt, Hot Potatoes, etc.
- Your presidents were George HW Bush, Bill Clinton, and George W Bush.
- You remember most of the old Board Game commercials and remember buying, Don’t Wake Daddy, Battle Ship, Guess Who, Trouble, Mouse Trap, etc.
- You remember eating these candies/foods: Runts, Disney Wonder Ball, Trix Pops, Fruit Stripes (gum), Amazin’ Fruit, Dunkaroos, ring pops, Fruit String Thing, etc.
- People watched all their movies in theaters, VHS, or on TV. they also went to Block Buster to rent their favorite movie. They also had to sit through the previews in our movies and there was no skip to menu option.
- Cell phones were large as today’s house phones (maybe even bigger). Only parents and rich kids were able to afford a cell phones.
I could list many more memories but I’m obviously not gonna list every single thing. These are the major things that I remember from the ‘90’s.
In the 00’s:
- The Internet: AIM, Skype, myspace, facebook, Google, Google+, etc.
- Youtube just launched in 2006. Nearly 10 years after the launch of Google.
- Apple devices such as iPod’s, iPod Touch, iPad, AirMac
-iPhone was the first phone ever to allow you to video call and surf the web in the palm of your hands. Smart Phones then became a big hit after the iPhone was released.
- Your presidents were George W. Bush and Barack Obama (the first black president).
- A lot of your TV shows in the early 00’s were what was left over from the 90’s and some new shows. You remember; The Angry Beavers, The Fairly Odd Parents, Spongebob, The Wild Thornberry’s, Lilo & Stitch the Series, Rugrats, Danny Phantom, Avatar: The Last Airbender, Phineas and Ferb, Adventure Time, Amazing World of Gumball, Kenan & Kel, The Amanda Show, Hannah Montannah, Drake & Josh, iCarly, etc.
- You remember 9/11.
- You listen(ed) to these music artists: Justin Bieber and Selena Gomez (for the younger kids), J-Lo, Kelly Clarkson, Owl City, All Time Low, Lady Gaga, etc.
- Your childhood heroes/idols are Robert Patterson, Hannah Montana, Mario, Sonic the Hedgehog, Phineas and Ferb, etc. (If these aren’t your heroes, feel free to tell me which ones were)
- You can now record your favorite TV shows through DVR, skip the commercials and pause whenever you please.
- You remember when HD TV was a new thing in the mid 00’s.
- You remember when Blu-Ray DVD’s won over HD DVD’s.
- Your video game systems are The Gamecube, Nintendo Wii, Wii U, PS2 and PS3, Xbox, Xbox Kinect, Gameboy Advanced, GBA SP, Nintendo DS, Nintendo DSi, Nintendo 3DS.
See how big the difference is? The 90’s was still in its baby stages of video gaming and the computer tech revolution. Not to mention our presidents were completely different. When I was 10, I remember when everyone was amazed when Google was first launched and nearly every kid was obsessed with Sonic, Pokemon, and/or Dragon Ball Z.
Today, really young kids have their own cell phone. I still find it strange to see a kid walking around with these high-tech and expensive phones, iPads, laptops, etc. When I was a kid, we were never allowed to have a cell phone. Much less expensive items. I don’t remember getting one until I was in about 8th grade which was around 2003.
Whenever we have today’s generation of kids come over to our house, we always have out our old video game systems. (we still have a Game Gear, SNES, Genesis, and N64). When they see them, the typical exclamations I get are usually, “Woah!” or “Wow! What the heck is this?!” Like it’s some kind of new technology. However, when they see the graphics, they’re sorely disappointed and lose interest quickly. Which really bugs the hell out of me (graphics aren’t everything in a game kiddos!). I did have a couple kids over who actually enjoyed the old graphics and the difficult game play though.
What I don’t get is when kids born in 1996-1999 are “claiming” themselves to be 90’s kids simply because they were born in that decade. Now, here’s my question to you kids who are doing this same thing now. Can you honestly say that you remember the majority of the things I remembered from the 90’s as seen above? Did you scream at the top of your lungs when you got Sonic 2, a Kitty/Puppy Surprise, or a Nintendo 64 for Christmas?
To end this rant, I just want to say this to everybody. Be proud of the decade and generation you are born in (I know I’m proud to be a ‘90’s kid). It’s fine to wish you were born in a different decade but don’t try to pretend you grew up in said decade just because you were born in it. Also, claiming that your decade was better than somebody else’s is invalid. Every decade had/has its ups and downs.
If you’re a kid today, remember that you can’t go back into the past. So enjoy and capture every moment of your childhood while you still can. And a message to the ‘90’s kids, Unfortunately, we aren’t kids anymore but we sure had one hell of a childhood!
Last edited: 11/4/2011.
