Remember this?
For a lot of Millennials, the last decade has been spent between the nostalgia of being a kid in the 90s and the reality that time does, indeed, go by quickly a Thing, and that it’s been more than two decades since the end of them.
Gone are the days of yo-yos that light up, Pogs, and Baywatch Barbies. Gone is Paperboy and Streets of Rage, and the plain fact that, as of December, AIM is now defunct is just depressing.
The 90s were TOTALLY awesome and we’re soooo not over them yet, so how about we live our best life and wear some hella rad 90s shirts that’ll make us feel like kids again?
1. Our Generation is Partially Responsible for the Spread of this Phrase!
Source: 80s TeesSomething tells me that the generation before were the ones old enough to coin phrases while they played video games while we just did it when grounded. (I say we, I mean me). Donkey Kong had a bunch of his own video games and was a playable character in a host of others—most notably, Diddy Kong Racing on the N64 which was the BOMB—and TIL, the first game with DK and Mario in it, was released in 1981. Meaning they're just below the cutoff for Millenials and that clearly, they were the ones to coin the aforementioned phrase.
Related geeky stuff: Super Mario backpacks, Mario Kart gifts!Get the on like Donkey Kong shirt on 80stees.com
2. The Truth is that Nostalgic 90s Shirts are Totally Awesome
Source: 80s TeesAs are aliens, which exist if the classic 90s movie The Faculty is anything to go by. The X-Files was pretty much one of the first TV series that kept viewers going back week-after-week that wasn't a soap opera. Chris Carter was inspired by David Lynch's Twin Peaks (who wasn't??) And together, I want to believe they could take over the world. Or... did then, before the most recent Scully decision made on the show. Because no. And just no.
Related totally awesome stuff: Twin Peaks merchandise, Predator action figuresGet this X-Files tee on 80stees.com
3. Daria and Tarantino is the Most 90s Inception Equation Ever
Source: AmazonThe 90s were when MTV stood for Music Television and not... Vaguely Realityesque Television, which I'm sure would be a Mad TV sketch in the making if it was still around. Daria was the antiheroine and the face of the 90s for a lot of teenage girls. If you weren't a Daria, you were a Jane Lane and friends with one. If you didn't identify with her at all, you were totally a Quinn. Pulp Fiction was also huge in the 90s, so like, why not mix the two in a totally buggin' 90s shirt?
More geeky mashups: these Limbo shirts and Yoda shirts!Get this Jane Lane Pulp Fiction shirt on amazon.com
4. If the Apocalypse Comes, You Can Reach Her on iMessage
Source: 80s TeesLast year, we brought you a list of the saddest Buffy the Vampire Slayer moments. Since then, I've found two Buffy mugs I got during the actual run of the show and have binge-watched the Angel spin-off. Still, the saddest thing—even more so than how many times I had to wash those mugs before I could use them—was Joyce. Buffy followed the X-Files and Twin Peaks in being totally awesome and unique, so it was a given there'd be a spot for the Slayer on our list of 90s shirts.
Related Buffy stuff: 18 must-haves for every Willow Rosenberg fan!Get this Buffy shirt on 80stees.com
5. This 90s Shirt Harks Back to the Days When Tim Burton Was Super Cool
Source: TV Store OnlineRemember when Tim Burton used to direct the Batman movies?
It's true. God, the 90s were so awesome. Edward Scissorhands was one of the movies I watched over and over as a kid. I'd always turn it off before the end when the roided-up geek from The Breakfast Club sets Edward up as being a burglar because I hated seeing him suffer and Vincent Price will never die. This 90s shirt will break your heart and simultaneously make you look like you're in a normcore flick. Related spooky stuff: Nightmare Before Christmas ornaments, Supernatural merchandise, Supernatural pop vinylGet this Edward Scissorhands shirt on tvstoreonline.com
6. Rita Repulsa is Just Bummed She Doesn’t Have One of These
Source: 80s TeesOy... Tell us how you really feel, Rita.
Power Rangers were PRIME 90s. They had a number one single around Christmastime, there were retro Power Rangers toys coming out the wazoo, and the show was pretty much a staple for 90's kids when they woke up too early during summer vacation. (Once upon a time, we used to sleep, huh?) Everybody had a ranger they wanted to be or got to be when playing Power Rangers with their friends. I'd be interested to see who was what color. More Power Rangers stuff: Power Rangers POPs!Get this Power Rangers tee on 80stees.com
7. Have Party Time and Be Excellent… and Listen to Alice Cooper
Source: TV Store OnlineThis 90s shirt is for the band geeks and metalheads. If you'd rather listen to acoustic pop music over Alice, that's fine too. Jimi Hendrix played well on an acoustic guitar. If he'd have lived longer, he could have had a folk album. We'll never know. Wayne's World is quintessential 90s, to the degree that although it turned 25 last year (WHAT?), it still holds up as the original meta-comedy. One in which no guitar, ending or product placement is left unturned.
Get this Wayne's World shirt on tvstoreonline.com
8. Also Listen to the Great Cornholio, He’s Smarter than You Think!
Source: 80s TeesI didn't personally get turned onto Beavis and Butthead 'til my 20's, but I remember the days when it was huge and massively quoted across the board. In a world of heavy, Fincher-directed procedurals and dramas with Hollywood superstars turning to television, it's hard to see a cartoon like this one rise up the ranks these days. We might have Bob's Burgers and Rick and Morty—both amazing shows—but sometimes, you just need fart humor and snickers. Long live 90s shirts!
More cartoon stuff: Rick and Morty clothing and Bob's Burgers merchandise!Get this Beavis and Butthead shirt on 80steescom
9. Take Another Little Pizza Michelangelo’s Heart
Source: TV Store OnlineIn our Rick and Morty shirts article, I mentioned having a Lion King comforter. This just in—clearly the kind of information none of us can go our whole lives without knowing—I had a Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles one too. This also just in, for a brief period, TMNT was called Teenage Mutant Hero Turtles in Europe and, thankfully, that also means I didn't have my own personal Berenstein bears moment. The turtles have hit the big screen in recent years too, but to me, the cartoon from the late 80s and early 90s was the true turtles. Cowabunga, dudes!
Get this retro TMNT shirt on tvstoreonline.com
10. How Do You Ask the Time in Asgard?
Source: Superhero StuffAdmittedly, this 90s shirt is the definition of Meta in just about every dictionary but when it comes to blending 90s pop culture with superheroes, whoever designed this shirt was onto something. Thor hits every nostalgic nerve here, especially those belonging to MC Hammer himself. The 90s were when Hammer pants were in style and after a brief resurgence and rebranding a few years ago, they went away again. It appears they're just not as fun if you're not doing the Hammer Time dance.
Related superhero stuff: Thor merchandise and superhero socks!Get the Hammer Time shirt on superherostuff.com
11. What Philosophy Do Dinosaurs Believe? Extinctentialism (Ha)
Source: 80s TeesFunko recently revealed a collection of Jurassic Park POPs including a shirtless Dr. Malcolm and an Ellie Sattler that is literally only available as a POP ride. That said, in the 90s, we still believed dinosaurs' skin was made up primarily of scales. T-Rex was green and Brontosaurus was cited, in movies, as still being real. They were a simpler time. A time of neon colors and Robin Williams and, as it should be, only one Jumanji movie. Ignore me. I'm just being a philosoraptor. Related dinosaur gifts: Jurassic Park toys!
Get the Philosoraptor shirt on 80stees.com
12. Xenia and Hercules Were Basically the Live Action These Guys
Source: 80s TeesYou may know He-Man from the epic viral YouTube video where he flamboyantly sings a techno version of 4 Non Blondes' What's Going On? but I remember when he was on TV at the same time as the Dungeons and Dragons cartoon series, on a different channel. I remember how cool Skeletor was and how Thundercats would follow. This 90s shirt is for those of us who remember and never want to forget our childhood. 'Cause why would you out of choice??
Get the He-Man and She-Ra tee on 80stees.com
