America's Funniest President: Mo Udall Presidency & Beyond
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What's rap like ITTL? Any OTL figures such as Eminem, Biggie etc
Well, the East Coast/West Coast feud ends peacefully, Tupac and Biggie Smalls are spares from murder.
Sociopolitical matters would still be a mainfront of rap, though some ecological themes would make its way there to fill in the gap as social reforms and welfare help fix up problems. Existenial elements also begin seeping in near the end of the decade as it tries to evolve and figure out where to go.
Yup. Less lyrical focus on bling culture and the like and more on the rebellious nature, but trying to figure out what lies beyond that though external forces will affect that.
Culture Reflection: 1997 - 1999
Culture Reflection: 1997 - 1999
With the upcoming end of the 1990s, there was a growing sense of cheer, optimism and excitement with the new millenium over on the horizon. The new regulations put in by President Specter to help deal with the munafics and other extremists and domestic terrorists helped out. It also served to help unite communities together to stand against such anti-American values, especially in the modern world of the upcoming 21st century. Beyond that, things were calming down over in the world. The Iranian-Turkish War would end with Turkey's defeat, resulting in the expansion of Kurdistan and Armenia along with Iran's reinforcement as a regional power. And with that, they began to focus on economic development between them and the other members of their sphere of influence. Additionally, Yugoslavia would have another war, this time an insurgency in their region of Kosovo and one that would result in yet another defeat. Overall though, tensions in the world were calming down with the focus now being on domestic affairs, working together regarding the environment and the economy. Back at home in the US, it was a periond of tensions calming down and relaxing, all while looking forward to the upcoming new decade. The late 1990s would be quite enjoyable bit of years and it would seem like the start of endless good times.
General Trends
The Specter Administration promoted two major things of impact over in the zeitgeist: maintaining the superb quality of the American system laid down by their predecessors and protecting the American people, promoting security, safety and sound of mind. For the latter, it was a matter of cracking down on munafics ande extremists of those who did the Oklahoma City bombing and various individuals of those flavors. Beyond the basics of increasing security, it was a matter of going into the weeds and being thorough, Internal affairs as a general rule would get a boost along with stricter hiring procedures in police and the military along with other means. However, one method that was also being noted was the internet. The idea of clandestine groups meeting or getting together on the internet was something considered albeit not considered much of a threat given the age demographics of the individuals along with the current internet infrasturcture. Nonetheless, it was something that was being considered over with President Specter, albeit having to be balanced with protecting individual liberties. Although speaking of the internet, its growth in prominence and usage has been leading to an economic boom in matters associated with it. However, some economists began wondering if such a thing would be just a bubble as a result of a fad. Despite that, even the government was considering it more prominent, to where President Specter began preparing a plan for the creation of a national internet service provider. It was something a bit unusual, even amongst his own party, but did gain cross-party support and many saw it as a way to deal with the concerns of oligopolies forming from companies growing. This was still a wild west of sorts and while the regulations regarding size and scope of companies were updated along with a more assertive government to handle it, the ongoing case with Microsoft was an example of what happened when a company ends up growing too large and prominent, to where actions done for exclusive software usage landed them in hot water. Additionally, given the growing importance of telecommunications, there were national security concerns over a whole network ending up just in private companies.
The previous trends continued on. Newer nuclear plants were coming on line to displace more and more of coal, with more than half of the coal plants shut down since the beginning of this process. Older ones were being updated and different models were being considered and researched for optimized safety and energy. Plans were also being put to try and update the older plants so that newer developments could be added, in what would be named the Generaton III+ reactor designs. Meanwhile, more money and reserch was being put into various models, especially molten salt reactors. Outside of the nuclear energy race, more focus was also put into more local renewable energy such as geothermal and wind regarding prominence. After all, with the rising adoption and usage of computers and the internet, more power would be needed to supply these machines. And of course, the race was on for energy efficiency and production. Solar and wind were the big hopes to reinforce nuclear in the growing need for energy, as part of the new paradigm of long-term planning. From the growing end of "disposable" plastic in various items to larger structural changes in what food or the like sold, it was a change that was noticeable if barely because of how gradual. Agrihoods began really picking up in popularity over by this point as many saw it as a way also to promote a sense of community while also spending time with their families and teaching the kids the importance of growing their own food. More and more cities were growing green; from planting more and more trees in the area to Others affected would be those in the fashion industry. "Fast fashion" became stillborn as the questioning over the various facets of clothing production, such as material (from cotton's expense, trying to utilize hemp and the concerns of synethics) and the nature of it was raising alot of questions that people were trying to answer and deal with. Hemp production was on the rise in a multitude of fields and a massive boom for its various usages was being considered. Hemp clothing was starting to come out in poplarity though blends of it and cotton ae more popular given hemp's rather rough feeling being one of it downsides (comparable to linen) though some hope that future tricks such as genetic engineering could help out to make a type of hemp that is more comfortable to wear. It provided alot of opportunities for people to try and figure out in the day to day life.
Further trends were a bit more drastic. Some noted that this would be the last major decade of the automobile. Experts were pointing to the sluggish (if improved) American car markets, the Europeans dealing with it and the Japanese's successes, but moreover, also the growing trend. Petrol fuel was not gonna become cheaper and the search for a good alternate for car fuel remained difficult. Electric cars were limited because of battery tech, itself having the problems of the materials required and the physics, the same thing causing problems over for hydrogen fuel cell. However, the Japanese did have hope for the latter and the discussions kept on coming. But it did seem like there were young people less interested in cars, if mainly out of practicality. Though some enthusiasts saw this as a positive as it meant cars would no longer be a necessity and could be more properly enjoyed on less crowded roads. As for smaller vehicles however, it was more varied. They were not as costly and provided their own unique benefits, especially regarding those who lived in the city and may not wanted a car, but something cheaper. While scooters and related motorbikes were still relatively popular and had their own successes because of the fuel and the like, it was still something secondary all things considered. Though Harley-Davidson's Super Topper was enough to have them start clawing out of their funk and planning ahead. Overall, the trends were showing a preference for motorbikes and their cousins for the younger generation, at least those in the cities. In more rural areas, cars remained vital even as rural communities were seeing greater levels of investment and development in the area.
Unsurprisingly, tech companies continued to grow as they were the new big thing and with the release of more user-friendly operating systems in the last few years, they were becoming more accessible to alot of people. They also continued to focus more on their own regions; while yes they did have a base over in the classic places like Menlo Park, the incentives offered by other states to help develop the area were exceptionally enticing. NeXT Software Inc continued to develop the NEXTSTEP OS software, with version 4.4 coming out over in early 1998. Many were wondering what the future held though NeXT has been planning to further expand on NeXTSTEP OS and possibly make a successor to it. Beyond that, their focus on WebObjects was paying off, especially as they were expanding on it. At the same times, the concerns of a bubble were still evident. However, they along with other companies such as Akashica were in plans on how to tackle it. It was a wild west period and even if there was a bubble that may burst in the future, that did not stop people, especially since it was becoming evident the computing world was here to stay. However, how it will change is to be seen: after all, Microsoft is finding itself in hot water from its court case over with the US government and Apple's merger with Be Inc has been able to help it keep afloat though they were still abit far behind to say the least. Regardless, with the abundance of computers and information, the Americans were continuing to be the main hub for such a growth and likely will continue to be it for a while though other companies have taken to try and find ways to keep growing, even outside the US-European sphere.
Film
Film was continuing the release with the various modern classics at the time, even while balancing the paradigm shift going on in the background. From the growing comfort of actors and prominent figures coming out of the closet to the growing establishment of "regional" Hollywoods across the United States, there was certainly quite alot to be seen and done. "Queerspolitation" continued to be a presence in film though still remaining in somewhat lesser known films. However, by this pont, some were now able to be real cult classics and appreciated outside of the focus over to the SATMIN+ audience for representation. More were noting that the films were becoming better with the writing and the growing willingness to take changes. There was also how the newer ones were now defying the conventonal SATMIN+ stereotypes and tropes, throwing whatever at the wall and what sticks. While the various past issues did remain, mainly that of the perceived notion of copying various past works and just changing the characters around to create samesex pairings or the like, there was more creativity being applied to them and the writing quality improving. As such, the hope was that more and more films would become A-list material and show a sense of earnest and innovation behind it. Another prominent issue was the growing sophistication of CGI or computer-generated imagery. More and more films were wanting to try and push the limits with what CGI can do, allowing for a new world of possibilities that can be done. While some were using it to alongside practical effects or even enhancing them, others were creating whole illusory worlds, which some were wondering if most films could be created entirely with CGI and what the rammifications of such endeavors could lead to.
The late 1990s would be remembered for havings various stand out classics. From the romantic masterpiece over in Titanic to the war-time masterwork over in Saving Private Ryan and Shakespeare in Love, alot of modern classics would be released that would impress the critics and the audiences alike for their efforts. More fantastical films and the like would be released at the time such as Men In Black, The Mummy, the Fifth Element, The Sixth Sense, and many others would go and show quite a wonderful time in the industry. Franchsies like James Bond continued to having their films though also struggling for a sense of direction over in this new time. However, one film would arguably be even more influential regarding the zeitgeist and showing the usage of CGI and that would be the Matrix. An instant hit over on the young people, the combination of intense action sequences, physics-bending capabilities and the premise of existential questions regarding the nature of the material world and what lays beyond caught the hearts of various teens and young adults. Overall, it would be quite a exciting time there. Animated films were also seeing themselves improve and become sharper, but also gaining more widespread prominence among the older movie-going folk. Cats Don't Dance was an entertaining film that served also as an analog for minorities over in the entertainment industry. The Iron Giant was a masterpiece in action films, serious considerations on self-identity and showing off the chops of Brad Bird and what could really be done over with animation along with a bit of a critique of the time period of the film. Disney itself would not be resting on their laurels either. While the planned Hercules film would be shelved (due to the concerns of a Greek consultant who briefly lost his temper before apologizing profusely on it), Disney managed to come together with an unexpected twist over in Puss in Boots would grow to become a fascinating cult classic that also was a reflection regarding morality, trying to be good and authentic, but also the importance for self-improvement, the balance of showing off image and expectations. It was a surprise give how quickly the film was made to take the place, but it worked. Mulan was a glorious adaptation of the Chinese legend, if set in a later time period than the original film with the Chinese in awe at how well the research was and the portrayal of such a heroine. Tarzan was also well-recieved while Pixar's cooperation with Disney kept yielding results, such as A Bug's Life and Toy Story 2. Steve Jobs found himself well wth Pixar's team with Disney and the unofficial troika there of Micheal Eisner, Frank Wells and Jim Henson. What the future holds is hard to say, though some trends were noted: the release of The Prince of Egypt by Dreamworks showed that the cooperation of Jeffrey Katzenberg and Don Bluth was going to be fascinating to see, that action and animation with more mature themes could be profitable and that Disney would keep on going with pushing the mold.
Television
Much like with film, television continued on with its own growth and shaped by the various external forces. Queerspolitation still had its presence over in TV more and now seeped a bit more over into mainstream with the gradual increase of more prominent queer characters. And at the same time, television that could hold the same level of prominence over as some of the best films. With hits like The West Wing and the Sopranos, there wasa growing level of quality coming over into television, as fresh talent and larger budgets were helping to push what could really be done on them. The news would also start seeing some changes, namely with the release of MetroNews and its growing popularity at this time period. While initially struggling for a sense of identity, it would gain through a series of meetings that would lead to a certain man gaining a level of prominence and influence over in MetroNews, providing him with some steady funding and with a new way to influence the people: Hunter S Thompson. This was apparently the result of Thompson's friend Johnny Depp communicating with a colleague from 20th Century Fox met from the production of Edward Scissorhands who now was working in MetroNews. One thing led to another and Thompson found himself now with a stage of sorts to communicate, with the growing signs of MetroNews becoming shaped more by the intense views of neo-gonzo journalism.
New channels like the DIY Network and new shows were coming on, adding to the strange diversity of the TV landscape. The late 1990s would see the series finale for Seinfeld air over and become quite a memorable event. Jon Stewart takes over on The Daily Show while Gene Siskel hosts his final episode of Siskel & Ebert, having gone and passed away over from complications from brain surgery later in the year. Other shows included those like Smart Guy, Dawson's Creek, The FBI Files and various more different shows sproviding all sorts of opportunities for enjoyment. Adult animation would also be showing up what it can do with rather risque comedies like Family Guy by the trio of Macfarlane, Stone and Parker or Daria, a more serious sort of dramedy spun-off from Beavis and Butthead or the Texas-focused show over with King of the Hill. For children, Power Rangers would continue on as a franchise, with each new show providing a new team each time to switch up the case. It would be part of the "Zordon trilogy", which would end over with Power Rangers Astro with Zordon sacrificing himself to save everyone and stop the current evil, with many seeing that a tone shift would be coming. Animation meanwhile would see all sorts of Cartoons and forming a special bloc over on Cartoon Network for it. In addition to the show like Powerpuff Girls, Cow & Chicken, Ed, Edd, n Eddy, Johnny Bravo and Courage the Cowardly Dog, Cartoon Network would press ahead with action-packed shows, including Wonder Woman: The Animated Series. Most notably would be introducing a bloc for dubbed anime known as "Toonami". And it was through Toonami that many American kids and teens would get their first real look into anime, with shows like Dragonball and later its sequel in Dragonball Z, YuYu Hakusho, Sailor Moon, Rurouni Kenshin, Slayers and Mobile Suit Gundam Wing would become some of the first shows to appear over on the Toonami bloc with plans for future shows to be airing over on it over the next several years if not more. The heart-pumping action along with the serious tone and more mature themes snared millions of viewers over in awe of watching these new shows and such ideas spread across the Americas regarding anime blocs. Of course, other networks were doing quite well with their own animation such as Disney, as they had Toon Disney and various shows, with Gargoyles being one of their breakout hits and the beginning of its own franchise. After the three seasons (season two being split up), the show would go on for a few spin-offs, keeping Greg Weisman quite busy. Those being Gargoyles: The Dark Ages, a prequel series focusing on the events during the medieval period and Gargoyles: Redemption Squad (originally called Gargoyles: Bad Guys) while Nick was producing new cartoons like Angry Beavers, Wild Thornberries and Spongebob Squarepants most of all.
Music
The music scene was beginning to shift as grunge and the like was fading in the background in lieu of things like pop and the like. The success of New Kids on the Block was leading to the rise of the boy band craze over, with rising popularity of groups like NSYNC and the Backstreet Boys. The sort of upbeat and catchy songs seem to catch alot of attention even though there was a form of artificiality over in the performances and the groups. Despite this though, they remained a prominent presence in the zeitgeist because of the positive attitude portrayal filling a sort of void over. Of course, various other genres such as electrica and the like continued over to thrive during this time. Underground music scenes like nu-riot grrl and the like continued on and the end of the Coast Hiphop Wars was ushering a new era of mixes and originailty. Looking to go and speak the truth while maintaining a form of anti-establishment sort of angle. After all, with the growing quality of how everyone was taking care of one another, it was hard to be as upset. Though this would lead to the growth of different paths for hiphop, some focusing more on African-American culture or others looking to the future or even some expanding into other genres to combine along with seeking new themes, such as existenialism. Music groups across the world were sharing their popularity over with one another.
One of the examples would be the phenmenon of the "Red Wave", referring over the craze of bands over from Russia as the hard rock band Gorky Park and Boris Grebenshchikov with his album Radio Silence. Having caught on after years of being in the underground, they were given a fresh shot in the arm thanks to an unexpected development... Napster. Launching over in 1999, the website wouldbe a pioneer over in peer-to-peer (P2P) file sharing, with an emphasis over on sharing audio files. However, because of the ability to freely share audio files, the software's growing popularity would put it in jeopardy as some of the music industry would begin taking a look at it. At the same time, Napster would also seem to provide an unexpected development; namely its potential as a tool for promotional purposes. All the while, other artists like Micheal Jackson and the like would be coming out to provide more music in their own way,
Comic Books
The comic book industry would reach a new level of growth caused by the development of a few factors. Most and foremost would be Akashica. With Jeff Bezos decided to expand his online bookstore into comics and seeing the potential laid with it, it provided a fascinating opportunity for various imprints and series to be promoted there. DC and Marvel did have some interest in it though they started out smaller, namely with some of their smaller titles or associated groups. Most notably, Milestone would be the first major name over there on Akashica, helping to promote the stories with sneak previes and stuff on the front page, resulting in a large boost in popularity, audience growth and leading to more sales. Smaller publishers and indie titles also flocked over to Akashica for it such as Dark Horse and Image Comics, seeing it as a way to help maintain themselves in audience perspective and growth. Comic book franchises were slowly being seen as potential commodities and the like for growth. One major example would be Jim Lee's Wildstorm universe, established over as "Aegis Entertainment". Lee would ultimately end up having Aegis Entertainment acquired by Dark Horse Comics (as the other major companies were not too interested since they already had alot to deal with and rumors circulated that they may shelve the whole thing or be accused of unethical practices), with the Wildstorm Universe looking to go and become the main source of original stuff for them, all while Dark Horse would also get adaptations for their work and even some potential projects planned with Wildstorm properties.
The other big name of comics would be none other than Disney itself. While Disney did enter the comic market, it did so in a rather unique way, having eased their way into doing so. First off, Disney would start with digests not unlike Archie Comics does and trying to reintroduce the Disney comic book universe (such as the Mickey Mouse comics and the Ducks comics) in this matter though the rush of new talent hinted that it might end up rebooted at some point. They would also have digests over on some of the Harvey Comics properties they now owned. But the big ticket thing would be releasing a magazine aimed for the youth known as Disneyzone Magazine. Mainly in that it was a comic book anthology magazine that contained comic segments over for new artists and new properties, including the Archie superheroes Disney acquired along a couple others from Harvey. According to reports, this was inspired by Shonen Jump, a Japanese manga anthology magazine that got the company's attention during a trip to there. Henson was given a copy as a gift and at hearing the strategy, it got hs and later Eisner's interest. It would provide a smorgasbord of content for readers with the hopes of selling collected versions of the issues later and thus would serve as a good way of guaging popularity or what could work. Additionally, they could circumvent traditional stores thanks to the magazine format and rely on the Disney name in order to get the popularity. The strategy seemed to be paying off as new writers were given mostly free reign, with various contracts to be flexible. Two heroes in particular were getting of interest. One would be the Harvey Comics Silver Age superhero Bee-Man as he would imagined as a Spider-Man or Blue Beetle-esque hero that relied on sticky "honey" and "beeswax" shooters, the two with their different properties with along with bee-themed flying armor. It was a charming and fun idea with a colorful art style. The other growing hero would be Bob Phantom, a somewhat obscure Archie hero with the powers of strength, invulnerability, and the ability to teleport. However, here he would be modernized as Bobby Walter Whitney, grandson of the original Bob Phantom and instead having ghost-themed superpowers such as flight, intangibility, possession and mild telekinesis, the result of something his grandfather got from his final outing. This comic idea came about from one of the guest artists doing some sidework, Butch Hartman. Overall, Disneyzone Magazine would catch more than a few people's eyes as it would start booming in sales and would provide an alternate model of comics.
Video Games
The fifth generation of consoles continued on with the console wars. The Nintendo Ultra 64 was in fierce competition over with the Sony Playstation with the various medley of games that were being released at the time. Final Fantasy VII on both consoles, Ultra 64 having The Legend of Hyrule: Ocarina of Time, Super Smash Champs and Chrono Cross while the Playstation had its own large growing library such as Resident Evil 2, Street Fighter 3 Alpha and more over. It was a rather fierce competition though the Playstation would do a bit better because it could market also to an older audience. While Sega was certainly struggling, it was not out of the console wars just yet. After all, with Sonic Xtreme, Panzer Dragoon and various other games, it still had an appeal. That said, they knew they would need to go and prepare for their next console to be able to be ready and take on Sony, who was now viewed as the bigger threat to them than Nintendo. In fact, many saw that within the next few years, the newest generation of consoles would be unveiled for the public. In the meanwhile, Nintendo was still dominating the handheld market with the GamePal, especially with the release of Pokemon Orange Version and Pokemon Violet Version, which upped the ante and put plenty of polish on what the old ones did.
Beyond that, other major classics came out such as Grim Fandango, Half-Life, System Shock 2, Sid Meier's Alpha Centauri, and Everquest. More and more people were identifying themselves as gamers and it was becoming a community that connected people of various backgrounds together, especially since it was a hobby that was unisex in its approach and marketing, even with most of the protagonists being male though some games and future designers were hoping to try and change. However, the announcement of Microsoft entering in with their subsidary in a revived Atari was also getting alot of attention and wondered what they had their plans with in releasing.
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Interesting. What a coincidence how I just learned about this trend fron watching an episode of Patriot Act with Hasan Minhaj. I wonder what fashion trend will replace it and what fashion will be like by the present day ITTL.
Unsure so far. Sustainability is the name of the game and advterising doesn't have as firm a grip on the zeitgeist or mentality so even the idea of fasion buying and so on is gonna be impacted by this. Glad you like the update
Will keep some of them in mind though Anderson has retired in mind
Loving this. Speaking of comics, one concept, adapting certain storylines for an audio drama format, which would help fans of comics who are blind, and, while they can read about the characters, aren't able to read the comics themselves.
Hmmm... this may be possible yeah though I imagine that would become more prominent over time as comics and graphic novels are getting their second wind and likely something that would be more in the background.
Any other questions or thoughts culture-wise of the late 1990s?
Disneyzone Magazine reminds me of Disney Adventures from back in the day, which I would often find at the supermarket checkout.
The new Bob Phantom instantly makes me think of OTL Danny Phantom (though I never saw the show). Bee-Man has some potential, maybe his armor can fire sedative "stingers" as well?
Yeah, I imagine Disneyzone might replace or supplant Disney Adventues, or just be a renamed and updated version. But yeah, one would basically go and find these in various grocery stores and the like.
And yeah, Bob Phantom is very muc Danny Phantom several years sooner
. Oooh, I like that idea. I am thinking like honey-shooter has people get stick to something, but the "beexwax" gets people trapped a bit more like cement. The sedative stingers is pretty good too! I do think this format will be quite interesting for Disney and could get the licensed heroes and the Harvey heroes some popularity along with potentally change the comic game. What do you think on Wildstorm going to Dark Horse?
I know this was a while back, but I'm just going to say that I'm surprised how little time spent discussing when Mo Udall passed.
Maybe it's the fact that I just got off Kentucky Fried Politics, where an entire chapter was dedicated to the Colonel's passing, but it just felt someone odd to me.
Maybe it's the fact that I just got off Kentucky Fried Politics, where an entire chapter was dedicated to the Colonel's passing, but it just felt someone odd to me.
Makes more sense than it going to DC as it did OTL. At least Dark Horse has its own universe to play with (and I assume Mike Mignola will keep Hellboy/BRPD separate) so it doesn't have to depend on licensed properties. That could have interesting consequences for the Authority, particularly the Mark Millar run where DC editorial, a change in artists, and then-current events (9/11) crippled it.
Most likely though we may see some crossover action between Hellboy and the Wildstorm universe. But Dark Horse certainly has some more opportunities for television deals now, which will be interesting to see. Might see it over on MetroCentury's channels given how most others are kinda taken.
Hell, I'm still unsure whether an Authority run is even possible given how we don't have the Thatcher/Reagan greed-is-good cynical cultural framework that led to the rise of such projects. Works like Watchman and Dark Knight Returns were grandfathered in because early enough and tranistion periods, but the edgier stuff is kinda unsure. We still have Sineater (TTL's name for Spawn) at least, but the others are up in the air.
Admittingly, I'm not all familiar with Udall's stuff and I wouldn't know how to be able to do it. I might be able to try and do a post for it in the future, but I'm unsure. I do tend to be rather tactiturn or "textbooky" when it comes to my writing style.