The Millennial Canon Bracket: The Final
It’s AIM versus “Mr. Brightside.” Which generational artifact reigns supreme?
After a week of deciding whether you feel more emotionally attached to T9 texting or the Lumineers, Skinny jeans or MySpace, it all comes down to this. We have explored the depths of our memories, spoken to our younger selves, and determined that the millennial experience ultimately boils down to two things.
In the final, it’s AOL Instant Messenger versus “Mr. Brightside” by the Killers. (Sample away message: “swimming thru sick lullabies ………. leave one.”)
Both of these 1-seeds have been absolute studs throughout the Millennial Canon Bracket. Taking down Livestrong bracelets, Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater 2, emo, quoting Anchorman, and The Office, AIM has secured an average of 68.1 percent of the vote in each of its matchups. That’s a murderers’ row of millennial nostalgia! Not to be outdone, “Mr. Brightside” pulled in 70.1 percent of the vote while dispatching “going back and forth between liking and hating Anne Hathaway,” MGMT, Superbad, LimeWire, and the Obama “Hope” poster. Considering the competition these two entries have defeated with relative ease, it’s safe to say that they reign supreme.
They’re certainly interesting representatives of millennialism, though. On the one hand, AOL Instant Messenger stands as the form of communication for this generation. It was born, it flourished, and it died in such a quick span of time that its use was truly specific and unique to millennials. The away messages, the sound of your crush signing on, the subprofiles—these were all things that were core to the experience.
On the other hand, “Mr. Brightside” was certainly a banger at the time; I remember seeing the video for the first time on VH1 Jump Start and being like, “This song rules. Also, Eric Roberts is weird.” My high school girlfriend bought Hot Fuss for me for my birthday. But “Mr. Brightside” didn’t stand out as the song of the generation at the time. At the time, people were legitimately arguing for the Bravery being better than the Killers. Instead, “Mr. Brightside” achieved this status by simply outlasting all other sonic contenders. It goes hard at weddings. It goes hard in a stadium (particularly the one in Western New York). It is built to be sung at the top of one’s lungs, and since it was released in 2003, people have been doing just that.
But now you have to choose. Do you want the moment in time, or do you want the moment that’s become timeless?
You can vote on the final here or on Instagram until 6 p.m. ET. Check the site tomorrow morning to find out which thing gets to call itself the quintessential artifact of the Millennial Canon.
The Millennial Canon Final
(1) AOL Instant Messenger vs. (1) “Mr. Brightside” by the Killers
AOL Instant Messenger
When I die and arrive at the pearly gates, I know what sound I’ll hear: that squeaky opening door that announced one of your “buddies” logging on to AIM. There was no greater feeling of hope, anticipation, or opportunity to wow your crush—xXsoccer_guy_sk8rXx—with the new abbreviation you’d learned after seeing them at school but before logging on to AIM on the family desktop to start chatting. “Wuz up,” I’d write, and wait with bated breath for a sign that they also wanted to chat with me. Of course, if things go south for me in the afterlife—I also know what sound I’ll hear. —Jodi Walker
“Mr. Brightside” by the Killers
Gaudy and powdered and lush, a force of nature. A fake, kitschy sort of nature, built inside a casino, where the trees are huge and dramatic and beautiful, made of plastic and covered in sequins of various neons. A Hitchcock studio lot sort of nature, a forest floor made of gold metallic fringe, picnicking on the back of an afterfiring Eldorado. —Tyler Parker
