If you want to drill down on one of the things that made Star Trek: The Next Generation so adorably unselfconscious, you need to read Fashion It So. It's a Tumblr entirely devoted to examining every example of ST:TNG fashion, from those shiny pajamas Picard wore, to every piece of bizarre face jewelry worn by an alien ambassador. Your hosts in this sartorial adventure explain their continuing mission:
Charlie (@chozzles) and Anna (@ajlobster) are revisiting Star Trek: The Next Generation. In a big way. And we've noticed that the clothes on that show are AMAZING. And not just 1987 amazing, or 24th century amazing, but BOTH, SIMULTANEOUSLY. We celebrate those fashions here.
I think "celebrate" really can't capture the dazzling commentary and brilliant minutiae captured here. I mean, we all knew on some level that ST:TNG fashion was generally an atrocious clash between yoga wear and early-1990s Scully suits from X-Files. With the occasional, inexplicable Mad Max moment thrown in. But to see each episode's fashions under the microscope, as it were, really brings home how terrifying tomorrow's togs will be.
In commentary on "The Price," the episode where those incredible aerobics outfits (featured above) appear, they write:
I present these images without comment. All I have to say here is: their shoes match their tights exactly, and it's creeping me out. I DO NOT WANT TO ADDRESS ANYTHING ELSE IN THIS PICTURE.
And it just gets better, because of course all of TNG is a fashion show really. About this stunning outfit, which is even weirding Wesley out, they write:
I just noticed that one of his arms is wrapped in a burlap sack and he appears to have an arm-fanny pack. It's the outfit that keeps on giving.
You must go visit this Tumblr now. But — fair warning — you won't be able to stop reading and laughing for a long, long time.
(Thanks for the tip, Jordan Hoffman!)