When most people think about iconic moments from the '90s, they may remember the Bush and Clinton years, the emergence of girl power and grunge music, or perhaps the funky fashions of the era. However, what sticks out the most to me about such a legendary decade, were all the '90s ads that won you over with wacky, outrageous, and brightly-colored commercials. I remember swearing up and down that I needed Moon Shoes if I had any hope of ever becoming an astronaut. Spoiler alert: NASA hasn't called me—yet. There was just something magically inticing about ads from the 1990s that captured the hearts of kids everywhere.
In fact, even as adults, the catchphrases made popular by random '90s commercials still survive in today's pop culture lexicon in some way or another. Though some sayings might be used as a joke or to show how dated something is (think: Budweiser's "Wassup?" ad from the late '90s), they've still stood the test of time.
Regardless of why or how an ad from the 1990s has remained memorable, it's a testament to the creative and eclectic minds of the decade and the young kids who were inspired by them. Do you think we'd have the commercial with grouchy stars who just need a Snicker's if we didn't have these '90s ads that totally won you over back in the day?
1
Super Soaker
No summer was complete without getting water sprayed up your nose with the Super Soaker. You also knew you just had to have the latest one, too, which had a power gauge on it.
2
Easy Bake Oven
Who didn't love making miniature desserts and watching them cook via lightbulb? Sure, sometimes they came out hard as a rock, but they just looked so damn pretty.
3
Nerf Turbo Football
Oh, you're playing with a regular football? How sad. Only the coolest kids had the Nerf Turbo Footballs that all your friends swore went faster and longer than any other kind.
4
Stretch Armstrong
I still don't really know what's so appealing about a stretchy guy. But in the early '90s, I felt like it was definitely a good toy to have in case of bank robbing emergencies.
5
Gak
All kids love to gross out adults, right? And weird colors and sounds just make things better. So Gak was the goop of choice for many kids.
6
Floam
The less annoying cousin of Gak, Floam was pretty much just as fun. I still remember playing with it solely to hear the crackling sounds.
7
Moon Shoes
As I stated before, I needed these shoes to fulfiill my dream of becoming an astronaut. How would NASA take me seriously if I didn't at least have the proper shoes?
8
Baby Alive
Why were there so many baby dolls that had "real life" features? The world may never know. Plenty of kids still found a baby doll that could eat and pee to be fascinating.
9
Socker Boppers
They were supposed to be these inflated gloves so they wouldn't hurt as much as real boxing would, but I remember getting my fair share of bloody noses from these. That didn't stop my friends and me from playing with them, though.
10
Sky Dancers
What genius at marketing thought giving small, sharp projectiles to young children was a good idea? Still, Sky Dancers were all the rage despite their propensity for poking you.
11
Creepy Crawlers
Aimed primarily at boys but still enjoyed by girls, Creepy Crawlers were the ultimate gross-out toy to be had in the '90s.
12
Sunny Delight
Sunny Delight taught the world that "purple stuff" didn't even compare to the awesomeness of Sunny Delight. It also had vitamins or something, I guess?
13
Pop-Tarts Crunch Cereal
Girl, you weren't dreaming. These delicious Pop-Tarts in cereal form were very real, for a limited time. Long live '90s cereals.
14
Capri Sun
Who wouldn't want to turn into a silver puddle and have mad basketball skills? Capri Sun promised only the raddest outcome to their consumers.
15
Snapple
Oh, the Snapple Lady. She doled out advice and made people obssessed with Snapple for years. Truly a legend.
16
Bubble Tape
What good is bubble gum if it doesn't come out of a tape dispenser? Luckily the '90s fixed this fundamental problem with the appropriately named Bubble Tape.
17
Pepsi Cola
Though soda wasn't big in my house as a kid, these catchy commercials sure made Pepsi look enticing. All I wanted was a choir to appear when I drank it, too.
18
Wonderball
Many still wonder what's in a Wonderball.
19
Discman
Though they didn't really deliver on the whole "skip protection" thing, Sony's Discman meant you could finally listen to the latest in musical technology on the go.
20
Lisa Frank
Rainbows, unicorns, stickers, and glitter. Need I say more? There's a reason Lisa Frank is still popular and even released adult coloring books for the '90s kids at heart.
21
Nintendo GameBoy
This blew my mind as a kid. A video game that's also portable? Get outta town.
22
Blockbuster
Every kid, and I mean every kid, rented a VHS tape from Blockbuster at least once in the '90s and it was glorious.
23
'Nickelodeon Magazine'
God dangit. Why did they always have to insist that only grown-ups could call? I want my Nickelodeon Magazine now.
24
24, Skip-It
It's like jump rope, skipping, and an odometer all rolled into one toy which may or may not trip you and cause you to fall flat on your face in front of all the neighborhood kids during a Skip-It contest.
25
GAP
Khakis rock and I know it must be true because the GAP said so. Plus, look at how edgy these roller bladers are. Don't forget the Crystal Method jams playing in the background, too.
26
Topsy Tail
In the golden age of infomercials, nothing was quite as amazing as the Topsy Tail. Why stick with a boring ponytail when you can twist it throught itself, am I right?
27
Just My Style Nail Decorator
Anything that claimed to be "just for you" or unique in any way was guaranteed to be at the top of many kids' birthday and holiday wish lists. They just look so fancy, dude.
