Trend watch: Porsche, hippies and the return of Tomb Raider
As our lord and saviour once said, we never go out of style
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Guess who’s back, back again? It’s me. You wish it were One Direction, huh? They’re still on a hiatus, sadly, but you’ll never catch me on a hiatus. I wouldn’t betray you like that. I’m lying. I literally was on a hiatus because this semester ended, but I’m back, more spiteful than ever, ready to become an academic weapon, but this isn’t about that. THIS is about some of our favourite cultural icons that seem to be back in the spotlight again. Let’s talk about it.
Porsche 911 and the pop culture zeitgeist
So, I’m not a car girl by any means, but I AM a designer, and as a designer, I’m telling you that the recent influx of Porsche 911s in graphic design has almost gotten me into cars. If I were to ever get into cars, it’d be because they look good. But what is it about the Porsche 911 that makes people drool? I didn’t have the answer, so I asked my favourite car guys and car girls for the answers (I also googled it because they didn’t respond for a while), so here are my findings for why the Porsche 911 is THAT girl.
So this car, firstly, is beautifully designed. I don’t know about the technological side of the design, but it’s STUNNING to look at. It looks so timeless and classic, and I think I want one. It’s so recognisable that even people who aren’t into cars (me) would be able to tell you that it’s a 911.
When I went down the Porsche rabbit hole, I found that one of the reasons it’s such an object of all our desires is that it’s pretty multifaceted—and not just in racing. Obviously, it’s pretty versatile when it comes to racing, but it’s a car for everyone. All Porsche 911 owners are a little eccentric, and the car is pretty much tossing the gender roles attached to cars out of the window.
The car’s served as a muse to artists like Daniel Arsham since he was a child. One of those projects includes modifying his 1986 Porsche Turbo into a futuristic racing car while Erwin Wurm, an Austrian sculptor and painter, released his first NFT of a disfigured Porsche. And since fashion and cars go hand in hand (looking at you, Ferrari and Mercedes), Porsche also dipped their toes into the world of fashion with Daniel Arsham once again. The two collaborated with Stone Island and focused on updating a Porsche 911 with rally car specs and upholstery done by Stone Island.
Porsche is so culturally significant because if you think about it, one of the first cars that any kid learns about and wants is Porsche. Ferrari and Lamborghini, too, yes, but Porsche is always on that list, and that tells you more than enough.
Tomb raider’s back in pop culture
Our favourite femme fatale’s back, baby! EVERYONE SAY YAY. 🔪 I’m not surprised she is because she was bound to make a comeback with all the dystopian and survival media being aired right now. Also, because she’s been such a pioneer for female characters in gaming, it would’ve been a shame if the newer fans didn’t get to play her original storylines and games, which are SO iconic. Imagine killing a dinosaur and turning to gold after touching Midas’ statue and fighting mummies.
So what’s the scoop? The original Tomb Raiders have been remastered and re-released, along with an announcement of a NEW game and an animated show. The new game combines the timelines from all three trilogies; I’m not sure how they’ll do it, but I’m excited to see. The animated series is definitely going to propel Tomb Raider back into the mainstream psyche, especially with Indiana Jones’ comeback last year.
Not that she ever went out of style, but I think the franchise’s popularity dipped after the Tomb Raider (2013) trilogy. This is a genius move in getting the popularity back because you have classic Lara Croft again, the Lara Croft that people fell in love with — cocky, dominating and with an incredible accent. Maybe my opinions are coloured, but I think anyone NOT a fan of Lara will attest to her being an incredibly badass character who we need more of.
TikTok hates hippies
Another month, another thing TikTok hates and this month, we have hippies. So why does TikTok suddenly hate hippies, of all people? It’s because YG Marley’s debut song is trending simultaneously with Bob Marley’s biopic, which means we have ‘hippies’ dancing to YG’s song and dragging Bob Marley into the conversation. Let that man rest, please.
The comments on these videos typically range from “Name one Bob Marley song” to “This is so auto-tuned this isn’t even reggae.” And I understand the frustrations of the people commenting, but let’s not forget that hipsters have always been rich kids rebelling against their parents. Like, please get a grip. It’s people DANCING, and that’s making you mad? 😭
In 2024, there’s literally no right way to be something. If they’re dancing to YG while wearing sandals, beads and a tie-dye t-shirt, let them. 😭 Like, okay, fair, I understand imposters and posers, but these people are JUST dancing. TikTok’s talking smack about them because TikTok hates everything and everyone. It’s literally an echo chamber of hate.
People love to be pretentious on TikTok and act like they’re better than everyone, but let’s not forget I’M better than everyone, thank you very much (sorry, the sun’s shining, and I feel invincible). We don’t need to hate hippies, guys; they’re chill as hell. The real enemy is the 2014 hipster man who thinks the 1975 is still an indie band.
The way people on TikTok are approaching reggae at the moment is with a very myopic view when reggae is SO MUCH more than just Bob Marley’s music. When I was researching about this, I went down another rabbit hole of reggae and the Rastafari movement, and honestly, TikTok needs to open a book once in a while.
Like, I get it. Reggae is crucial to a lot of people. As an Indian woman, when I hear a white person talk about going to India to open their cHaKrAs, I hit them with the biggest side-eye because it just sounds SO FAKE. It does feel like ruining something sacred to people, but at some point, I have to touch grass and open my cHaKrAs because Sally from Utah, wanting to partake in a different culture, should actually be encouraged. However, it should be done incredibly carefully to respect the culture and not end up on TikTok’s hater side and, eventually, this newsletter.
Any questions/suggestions as to what we should cover next? Reach out to us and we’re always here to chat!
— Written by Shaurya, Trends Reporter at The Z Link
Connect with Shaurya on Instagram where she shares great content and lives her best influencer life as a fashion student in London. And she writes all of these great issues too. What can’t she do??? 🧐 Thank you for reading!
You always have the best takes!