Hop on board the time travel express and take a trip back in time to the earlier part of the 2000’s when pop culture blossomed and filled the world with feel good moments.
Back when everyone still wondered if Dawson got the girl, when boy bands ruled the billboard charts, Disney still had good programming and Bring it on introduced us to the competitive world of cheerleading.
The early 2000 years created great television and movie phenomenons that will be iconic for years to come.
Some of the greatest movies of the generation included favorites like Sci-Fi thriller “Final Destination” where death takes a modern twist or Teen Drama “10 Things I Hate About You” where the good girl falls in love with the controversial bad boy.
The teen angst represented in these films influenced a mood for future generations and unrealistic expectations about what the high school experience would be like in the new millennium.
At this time, Disney also released a lot of personal favorites like Even Stevens, where Shia LaBeouf played the annoying little brother, Louis Stevens or Lizzie McGuire, which was portrayed by Hilary Duff. Disney also produced cartoons like “Kim Possible,” “The Proud Family,” and “Recess” which are to my opinion some of the most memorable cartoons of the period.
Looking back and comparing programming from what I call “back in my day” to what’s on TV today makes me grateful to have been able to be part of an original generation where better family morals and humbleness were still portrayed rather than today’s vain and narcissistic characters that create an unrealistic expectancy in young viewer minds.
Guys can look back and say that they fell for “Dawson’s Creek” good girl Joey Potter or for “Buffy the Vampire Slayer” actress Sarah Michelle Gellar. Girls can daydream about the bad boy character portrayed by Shane West in “A Walk to Remember” or for the boy next door Justin Timberlake from ‘N Sync.
Most of us that are at a college age can look back and say that those moments filled our generation with aspirations and hope to someday experience life moments like our TV idols. I personally watched a lot of MTV when I was younger and wanted to be like Carson Daly from “TRL.”
After the Y2K scare was over; the world entered into one of the last iconic periods known to pop culture history.
Teens of the early 2000’s can look back and remember a generation full of boy bands, cheerleading rivalries, and being introduced to the world of underground car racing in “Fast and Furious.”
It’s eye swelling when looking back at these moments and saying farewell to another great generation.
It feels as if times have changed and when we turn on the TV set we come across vapid TV personalities like Kim Kardashian and arrogant jackasses like Justin Bieber.
The early years of the millennium will be remembered for years to come by the generation it influenced. We will one day look back and recall the years we spent glued to box size television sets; back when flip phones were still the cool new thing and cameras still required film.
With a warm heart I say thank you to the great moments I lived through during the early 2000’s and say that you will be missed but not forgotten and I hope future generations learn of your greatness.
