OK, so hear me out. I know that the entire existence of Nerd Rage Toys, both past and present, is based primarily on nostalgia. I post videos and pictures on various social media sites of toys and collectibles, just to reminisce about the nostalgia they bring. I write blog posts about nostalgic experiences I have had. I have an entire nerd cave that just saturates me with nostalgia every time I walk in. I’m totally not the problem though, I am just a product of the problem. It’s those darn money hungry corporations that are to blame, milking everything for every penny its worth, right?
Seriously though, let’s take a quick look at not just the state of toy collecting, but pretty much every medium in existence right now. The United States Postal Services is advertising Barbie and Mr. Rodgers stamps. The big movies for 2026 are Jackass 5, Toy Story 5, Devil Wears Prada 2, Masters of the Universe, Mortal Kombat 2, Street Fighter, Jumanji 4, and another Avengers featuring the original cast of multiple franchises. We just got a remake of Halo: Combat Evolved, and Nintendo teased a remake of Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time. Arguably two of the best video games ever made. Skeleton Warriors, Visionaries, Street Sharks, and Sectaurs are getting rebooted toy lines. On the music end, we are getting new albums from Weezer, Madonna, and…Nickleback. Heck, even VHS is making its way back on store shelves.
Now, don’t get me wrong, I love nostalgia. You could say that I’m probably even addicted to it. However, I will say that it’s starting to feel a bit contrived these days. I think a lot of the issue lies with the absolute oversaturation of product to consume. It’s like I talked about in my blog post regarding the concerning state of Star Wars. Disney is pumping out so much Star Wars product that it’s losing what made it special. And that seems to be where we are at with just about everything these days. I guess you could say that there is truly something for everyone, but is that just too much?
So, let’s take a look at what makes nostalgia so special to us. Why is it something that we seek out so much? The answer is simple, nostalgia is the sentimental value we have attached to something that we loved which is no longer there. It’s a bygone time in our lives that we have mentally memorialized. We acquire keepsakes and trinkets from those times, and those memories, so that we never forget. However, it would seem as if that sentiment has been heavily commercialized these days, and is being sold back to us at a premium. As I do with most things in life, I’d like to refer to a movie quote from the amazing Jeff Goldblum:
“You stood on the shoulders of geniuses to accomplish something as fast as you could, and before you even knew what you had, you patented it, and packaged it, and slapped it on a plastic lunchbox, and now you’re selling it… you wanna sell it…”
That quote is of course coming from the original Jurassic Park, released in 1993. A movie that has spawned six sequels, ironically all of which are marketed to sell us on the nostalgia of the original, and I took the bait. I have seen every one of those movies in the theater, and own most of them on DVD. Then I went and bought the Jurassic Park Classic Games Collection, because nostalgia! Yikes, I guess I am a bigger part of the problem than I thought.
I guess I should probably reflect on this a little bit. Am I being hypocritical? Have corporations stolen our nostalgia and convinced us to re-buy it from them, or have I just reached unc status and am completely washed? Is all of the mainstream nostalgia really too much, or is it a fan driven market that is giving people what they want? I guess that would probably be a bit complicated to answer, and more personal than anything else. If I were to take a cynical approach, the answer would be yes. The oversaturation of nostalgia is definitely taking away what makes it fun. If I took an idealistic approach, the answer would be no. Companies are finally giving fans what they want, and there is something for everyone out there.
I think the best course of action is to create your own magic around the things you are nostalgic for. If you feel that the quality of an IP is being diminished by the oversaturation of new product, then just focus on the things you love. If you can’t get enough of all the things being released, then you have certainly hit the jackpot these days. Enjoy all the things you can buy and surround yourself with. At the end of the day, nostalgia is unique to every person. Even if we are nostalgic for the same things, we are probably nostalgic for them in different ways. Enjoy those memories you have, and do what you need to do to make yourself happy.
