Hot take: 9/11 had no effect on pop culture.
Jul 31, 2023 6:52:37 GMT 10
Post by mediaguy93 on Jul 31, 2023 6:52:37 GMT 10
I keep hearing "9/11 ended the 90s" or "9/11 was the start of the 00s". And while that may more or less be true from a political perspective, from a pop cultural perspective this couldn't be further from the truth. And I'm going to break down why in a few paragraphs.
Firstly the Y2K era already peaked around late 1999/early 2000. It subsided around late 2000/early 2001, and the waning period had already begun around mid 2001 and lasted into 2003.
Secondly, Pokemania had peaked around late 1999/early 2000, particularly around the theatrical release of the first movie and later the VHS release. By the summer of 2000, Pokemania's popularity had subsided. Pokemon the movie 2000 was a box office success, but it didn't make as much as the first movie. And while Gold & Silver were huge successes when they were released, they didn't sell quite as much as Red & Blue did back in 1998. Also Gold & Silver were the last Pokemon games that sold well, for several years onward. Crystal, which was released in mid 2001, didn't sell very well. As for the anime, Johto marked the decline. In fact when the third movie came out in April 2001, it made significantly less than the first two movies. In fact it seems quite a few people forget Pokemon 3 the movie was released in theaters.
Also, there was the release of the PS2. It came out at the end of 2000, and by mid 2001 it had a significant library. Sure, its most notable games would come later, but the PS2 essentially led to the decline of the Dreamcast, to the point where Sega would end up leaving the console market. In fact, Sega left the console market in March 2001, a far cry from certain people's theory of the "9/11 shift".
Now for music. Teen pop was also at its peak around late 1999/early 2000. It was still very popular throughout the rest of 2000, and maybe the first couple of months of 2001, but there's no denying the popularity of the genre had subsided. Backstreet Boys album Black & Blue wasn't as teen poppy as Millennium, and also not as successful. N Sync's album Celebrity was released in mid 2001 and was a significant shift from their previous work. Although I'd even argue that even No Strings Attached was a bit of a shift from their work in the 90s, as it implemented more R&B elements, while their previous work was more pure teen pop. 98 Degrees had changed their sound quite a bit with Revelation. Also they didn't really have any big hits after "Give Me Just One Night (Una Noche)". People point to Britney Spears changing her sound on her third album, which just so happened to be released post-9/11. However the album was recorded from early-mid 2001.
Also movies like the first Fast & Furious, Spy Kids, Tomb Raider, Shrek etc. came out before 9/11. All these movies feel strictly "early 00s". Speaking of movies, there is another big shift that occurred before 9/11. More specifically in the world of animation. We all know the Disney Renaissance took place in the 90s, and although it was more successful from 1989-1994, there were still some successful movies that came out in the mid-late 1990s such as Mulan and Tarzan. Fast-forward to 2000, and the post-Renaissance was already in full effect. First there was Fantasia 2000, which underperformed at the box office. Then there was Dinosaur, Disney's first CGI animated film (remember they did not own Pixar at this point), which was not very well received. And then there was Emperor's New Groove. While it has gained a cult following, at the time of it's release, it was a box office disappointment despite positive reviews. Then 2001 arrives, and this marks a paradigm shift. Disney released Atlantis The Lost Empire, which was a commercial and critical failure at the time, though it's gained a cult following since then. But it's clear that even by 2000-2001 that the Disney Renaissance was over. Also 2001 marked the domination of Dreamworks and Pixar as the leaders of the animation industry (at least in the 2000s) with the release of Shrek and Monsters, Inc. (well in Pixar's case it was Toy Story 2 that solidified their place in the industry) respectively.
I could keep going but, this post is already getting way too long, but I'd be willing to discuss this further with you all.
Firstly the Y2K era already peaked around late 1999/early 2000. It subsided around late 2000/early 2001, and the waning period had already begun around mid 2001 and lasted into 2003.
Secondly, Pokemania had peaked around late 1999/early 2000, particularly around the theatrical release of the first movie and later the VHS release. By the summer of 2000, Pokemania's popularity had subsided. Pokemon the movie 2000 was a box office success, but it didn't make as much as the first movie. And while Gold & Silver were huge successes when they were released, they didn't sell quite as much as Red & Blue did back in 1998. Also Gold & Silver were the last Pokemon games that sold well, for several years onward. Crystal, which was released in mid 2001, didn't sell very well. As for the anime, Johto marked the decline. In fact when the third movie came out in April 2001, it made significantly less than the first two movies. In fact it seems quite a few people forget Pokemon 3 the movie was released in theaters.
Also, there was the release of the PS2. It came out at the end of 2000, and by mid 2001 it had a significant library. Sure, its most notable games would come later, but the PS2 essentially led to the decline of the Dreamcast, to the point where Sega would end up leaving the console market. In fact, Sega left the console market in March 2001, a far cry from certain people's theory of the "9/11 shift".
Now for music. Teen pop was also at its peak around late 1999/early 2000. It was still very popular throughout the rest of 2000, and maybe the first couple of months of 2001, but there's no denying the popularity of the genre had subsided. Backstreet Boys album Black & Blue wasn't as teen poppy as Millennium, and also not as successful. N Sync's album Celebrity was released in mid 2001 and was a significant shift from their previous work. Although I'd even argue that even No Strings Attached was a bit of a shift from their work in the 90s, as it implemented more R&B elements, while their previous work was more pure teen pop. 98 Degrees had changed their sound quite a bit with Revelation. Also they didn't really have any big hits after "Give Me Just One Night (Una Noche)". People point to Britney Spears changing her sound on her third album, which just so happened to be released post-9/11. However the album was recorded from early-mid 2001.
Also movies like the first Fast & Furious, Spy Kids, Tomb Raider, Shrek etc. came out before 9/11. All these movies feel strictly "early 00s". Speaking of movies, there is another big shift that occurred before 9/11. More specifically in the world of animation. We all know the Disney Renaissance took place in the 90s, and although it was more successful from 1989-1994, there were still some successful movies that came out in the mid-late 1990s such as Mulan and Tarzan. Fast-forward to 2000, and the post-Renaissance was already in full effect. First there was Fantasia 2000, which underperformed at the box office. Then there was Dinosaur, Disney's first CGI animated film (remember they did not own Pixar at this point), which was not very well received. And then there was Emperor's New Groove. While it has gained a cult following, at the time of it's release, it was a box office disappointment despite positive reviews. Then 2001 arrives, and this marks a paradigm shift. Disney released Atlantis The Lost Empire, which was a commercial and critical failure at the time, though it's gained a cult following since then. But it's clear that even by 2000-2001 that the Disney Renaissance was over. Also 2001 marked the domination of Dreamworks and Pixar as the leaders of the animation industry (at least in the 2000s) with the release of Shrek and Monsters, Inc. (well in Pixar's case it was Toy Story 2 that solidified their place in the industry) respectively.
I could keep going but, this post is already getting way too long, but I'd be willing to discuss this further with you all.
John Titor and bestmvp29 like this
