In the ecosystem of popular media, novelty is the bait, but nostalgia is the hook.
Look at the top of any streaming chart on a given Monday morning. You will likely see a pattern: a reboot of a 90s sitcom, a superhero sequel, a true-crime docuseries using the same ominous font as the last three you binged, or a fantasy adaptation of a book series you read a decade ago. Vixen.16.08.17.Kylie.Page.Behind.Her.Back.XXX.1...
Because in the war for the attention span, the winner isn't the loudest spectacle. It is the story that makes you feel less alone on a Tuesday night. In the ecosystem of popular media, novelty is
However, the smartest content creators are currently playing a different game. They are weaponizing this nostalgia to sneak in complexity. Barbie was a treatise on existentialism wrapped in pink plastic. The Last of Us used zombie tropes to discuss the fragility of love and parenthood. Succession used filthy rich people screaming at each other to explain the rot of American capitalism. Because in the war for the attention span,
The future of entertainment isn't a choice between "high art" and "low art." It is the mashing of the two. It is the comfort food that hides your daily vitamins.