Sometimes I find myself laying awake at night wondering: ‘Oh… what ever happened to Brum?’
He was a car but he was also a person, and he was always going on adventures and getting himself in trouble. When I think about it now, every episode was virtually identical which you'd THINK would become repetitive, but it didn't, because Brum was an artificially intelligent self driven car and to a four-year-old that concept is endlessly fascinating.
Brum is just one of the things you will absolutely remember if you grew up in the 90s. Here are 10 of my favourites:
1. Babar.
You know what's been a little absent in our lives for the last, oh... I don't know... two decades?
Babar.
Babar was an elephant who could speak, and in case you were wondering, I absolutely still remember how to play the Babar theme song on the keyboard.
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He was French and classy AF. His feet were super flat, given he was an elephant, and his dad wore spectacles because I guess the only thing between an elephant and being able to read was a pair of good glasses.
A whole generation grew up wishing their parents were French elephants and no wonder we turned out like... this.
2. Blockbuster/Video Ezy.
If I had to describe the smell of joy, it would obviously be Video Ezy.
It always smelt like anticipation and an exciting Friday night ahead. Their popcorn was next level, and every time I'd see that the movie I wanted was available because there was another case sitting behind the case that was just for display, I'd wee a little bit.
Blockbuster and Video Ezy must have been what hunting and gathering was like for our ancestors.
There were always sick deals, and the only time it stopped being fun was when mum would discover we had $48 owing in late fees and yell at us all in public.
3. AOL.
I still hear the dial up sound in my nightmares.
AOL involved a lot of yelling at family members to get off the goddamn phone because you had to go on goddamn MSN.
It broke people.
4. Furbies.
These were extremely creepy and I still don't really understand how/why they were a thing.
Mine spoke and did a weird robot walk but I don't remember it ever being... fun.
They lasted about six months in 1998 and now we don't speak about them anymore.
5. That weird MASH game...
Why did we play this when it made never made any sense?
You'd write the letters M. A. S. H. at the top of a page, and then work out your potential partner, what car you'd drive, your job, and the colour of your wedding dress. But you could also ADAPT the categories to make them about things that really mattered, like how many kids you'd have and whether or not you were going to live in a mansion.
Spoiler: No one grew up to live a mansion.
6. The Amanda Show.
Growing up, I believed Amanda Bynes was the most talented woman on the planet. Mostly because she was.
I remember laughing until I cried watching The Amanda Show on Nickelodeon and wondering if she still had to go to school given she was on the TV so much.
7. Tazos.
Tazos came in chip packets and were always a little bit salty still.
Everyone used to trade them but I never understood... why.
They definitely entertained us for one whole afternoon back in 1999, which definitely doesn't feel worth it for how much plastic would have ended up in landfill.
Ugh.
8. That song by Vitamin C.
How was 'Vitamin C' ever the name of a person? Who allowed that to happen?
Our graduation song in Year Six was obviously 'Graduation (Friends Forever)' by Vitamin C and at the time it was the sickest song ever written. It was particularly cool because she semi-spoke the whole song rather than sang it which was really trendy during the late 90s.
Oh, also. We definitely did not stay friends forever. Despite what the song said.
9. Healthy Harold.
Everything I know about health came directly from Healthy Harold. He taught me about the importance of brushing my teeth, and something about how carrots improve your eyesight.
He came in his van and was a weird puppet.
Can you imagine being a health professional and needing to pretend to be a giraffe with long eyelashes in order to get children to listen to you? That's... tough.
10. Supré.
Everything I owned was from Supré - my naughty gal t-shirt, my belly warmer, my tartan skirt, my shoe-string strap singlet but also my boob tube.
My mum hated Supré, and only in my old age have I begun to understand why.
What a time to be alive...
What do you remember from the '90s?
Top Comments
In 1997 I worked at a city Toys R Us and Yowies were ridiculously popular.
Let's not forget tamagotchis. hypercolour t-shirts (earlier 1990s), Doc Martens and roller boots. Wearing t-shirts under dark dresses with spaghetti straps (see Julie Delpy in Before Sunrise), velvet dresses, feather boas.
REM, Jazzy Jeff & the Fresh Prince, Boyz II Men, Take That, The Spin Doctors, Jeremy Jordan, Montell Jordan, Crystal Waters, Oasis. Beverly Hills 90210, Melrose Place. Crushes on Edward Furlong, Jesse Spencer, Julian Escott.
Being excited to see Clueless, Romeo + Juliet, Titanic... movie tickets were $7 for everyone.
Piling curls atop your head to look sophisticated at school formal. Dancing at parties in the style of Pulp Fiction.
Mobile phones were pretty rare until the later 1990s, and they were massive. The first person I knew with one ('94) wore it on a belt, and was not a tradie.