Edit, August 2024: I asked an AI image generator to design a “Miami Vice liminal vaporwave” and this is what it gave me – not bad overall.

I’ve been fortunate in recent years to witness younger people, both in person and on a multitude of YouTube reaction channels, discover the pop culture that basically characterizes the first full decade of my life. And without exception, I have watched almost gleefully as our youth from all backgrounds marvel over the differences between then and now.

The experience is an uplifting one because the reactions confirm that their senses have yet to be fully dulled by the soulless garbage that’s force fed to them daily. In essence the youth are offered a look into the past, a bygone era when entertainment was more important than proselytizing, and they embrace it enthusiastically.

This four-minute video is a perfect summation of what kids are discovering for the first time, and what some of us have been equally fortunate to rediscover. This is quite simply among the most important videos on the internet.