Do TV flashbacks always look like they're set in the 70s?

Cafe Society
1

I’ve been noticing lately on a number of TV shows, when flashbacks happen, it always looks like they’re set in the 70s-- a lot of browns, oranges, short shorts, shaggy hair on boys, Farrah Fawcett styles on girls. Basically, even though 20 years ago was mid-90s, if TV people want to show us a scene from 20 years ago, they break out the 70s wardrobe and sets.

I noticed it most recently on Dexter, but I first noticed it on some show that I’m now drawing a blank on.

Anyone else notice this, or am I crazy? It’s like the directors out there are stylistically emulating the flashbacks from shows they watched during their own coming-of-age TV viewing. Or maybe 90s styles are too similar to current ones, so they need to set the scene in a more clear fashion that this is a flashback from many years ago; look at how old the styles are.

2

I think this is it more than anything. If you were to do a 2004 flashback what would you concentrate on to point out that it was 10 years ago? The lack of smartphones?

If you did a 1994 one, you could do both fashion and electronics in that few people had cell phones, and the fashions were very “90s” back then.

I think it’s a sort of visual shorthand for “Back when Dad was a young man.” even though it’s not really accurate except for people in their 50s and 60s.