Streaming is the norm now. Many media works even exist solely on streaming platforms. And as more of them get removed without any physical media, I start to think about how late Gen Z/Gen Alpha will remember the shows and movies they love. In fact, I wonder if history will repeat itself, and whether the kids of today will feel similar to how I felt as a 90s kid on the internet. 

When I first began going online, downloadable video was not especially common, and stable streaming in the vein of YouTube or Netflix was simply not a thing. In this environment, it was a dream to find fellow fans of the things I loved, and I have fond memories of those days. It also meant that when it came to older cartoons and other works that failed to make a big splash, fandom was experienced indirectly—through fragments, memories, and derivative works like fanfic. Over time, as sharing video became more feasible (better quality, larger storage space, faster internet, etc.), we started getting to actually see these things we might only vaguely recall having watched as children. Sometimes, there might actually be an official release. 

But now we have an industry de-prioritizing physical media. We also have a generation that apparently doesn’t know how to search for things, and search engines that are increasingly useless. And even the literal Internet Archive is constantly under fire. It feels like everything is being fragmented again, as the children and teens’ favorite shows become inaccessible to them. Perhaps they will have to work off memories within fan groups to share and express their passion. 

Granted, the internet itself is very different from 25 years ago. People are perpetually connected, and kids grow up in a world where easy access is the norm for much of the world. Instead of screenshots of questionable quality, clips are the norm. They might be able to retain the visual memories much better as a result. Even the struggle over dealing with apocryphal information might occur in a new context, given how easy it is to proliferate falsehoods.

Nostalgia is always powerful, but it might be especially strong for a generation whose visual record is being restricted to the point of complete obfuscation.