Caught in between the end of the Cold War and the turn of the millennium, the 1990s moved fast and seemingly aimlessly. Music went from grunge to boy bands in the blink of an eye, while fashion moved from blazers with shoulder pads (a remnant of the '80s) to vibrant colors. The internet was still an unknown territory full of mysteries and untapped potential, and television… well, television was doing great! Many of the shows that are now considered classics had their heyday in the '90s: while Seinfeld and Friends reinvented the sitcom format, lovers of weird stories had a ball with The X-Files and Twin Peaks, and teenagers had their pick between Beverly Hills 90210, Buffy the Vampire Slayer, and the many MTV originals ranging from Daria to The Real World. It was truly a time to remember. And remember we do, especially now that the nostalgia cycle has caught up with the days right before the millennium bug took over the news and cell phones took over our lives.
Here’s a list of the nine best non-'90s shows that take place in the last decade of the 20th century.
Yellowjackets
With a soundtrack that is basically a Very Best of the 90s playlist, Showtime’s Yellowjackets follows the horrifying events that take place after a high school girls’ soccer team suffers a plane crash that leaves them stranded in the woods for over a year. The show is divided into two timelines: in 1996, the New Jersey Yellowjackets must face the hardships of life in the wilderness as well as their own inner demons to make it out of the woods alive; 25 years later, in 2021, survivors Shauna (Melanie Lynskey), Taissa (Tawny Cypress), Natalie (Juliette Lewis), and Misty (Christina Ricci) struggle to find out who could be behind the attempts to expose their extremely well-kept secrets. What these secrets are is still anyone’s guess, but they seem to involve cannibalism and maybe some cultish activity. It’s Lord of the Flies meets Pretty Little Liars meets Desperate Housewives, and it works like a charm.
Renewed for a second season, Yellowjackets is available to stream on Prime Video.
Cruel Summer
Speaking of teenagers with terrible secrets… At first glance, Cruel Summer looks like just another addition to the ever-growing list of high school mystery dramas like Gossip Girl, Pretty Little Liars, and Elite. However, the Freeform original show stands out among its peers not only because of its setting, but due to how it builds suspense. Each episode of Cruel Summer takes place at approximately the same date in three consecutive years: 1993, 1994, and 1995. In '93, nerdy Jeanette Turner (Chiara Aurelia) dreams of joining the popular girls' clique, led by Kate Wallis (Olivia Holt). In '94, Kate reappears after nearly a year in captivity only to discover that Jeanette has basically taken over her life. To add insult to injury, Jeanette had the opportunity to rescue Kate from her kidnapper, but chose not to — or so Kate says. In '95, the two girls face off in a legal battle that involves the entire town of Skylin. For the non-initiated, this triple timeline structure may sound confusing, but it manages to convey a sense of unease and gravitas that is often missing from other shows of the genre.
Also renewed for a second season, Cruel Summer is available to stream on Hulu.
American Crime Story
Choosing a season of American Crime Story to feature on this list is no easy task. All installments of the FX anthology series depict fictionalized versions of real life crimes that have grabbed not just a country, but the entire world’s attention for years on end. And — so far, at least — they all took place in the '90s. So, even if all three seasons of the show present themselves as self-contained miniseries, the best thing to do is to honor each and every one of them with a single entry. Released in 2016, The People v. O.J. Simpson tells the story of the 1994-1995 trial of the titular football star accused of the murder of his ex-wife, Nicole Brown Simpson, and her friend, Ron Goldman. It features stellar performances by Cuba Gooding Jr., David Schwimmer, and Nathan Lane, among others. Released in 2018, The Assassination of Gianni Versace focuses on 1997 murder of the legendary fashion designer (Édgar Ramírez) by Andrew Cunanan (Darren Criss). Lastly, the 2021 season, titled Impeachment, portrays the events that followed the 1998 sex scandal involving president Bill Clinton (Clive Owen) and White House intern Monica Lewinsky (Beanie Feldstein).
All seasons of American Crime Story are available to stream on Hulu.
Derry Girls
Arguably the funniest sitcom of the 2010s — it has to be at least in the top 5— Derry Girls takes place in an unlikely setting for a comedy: Northern Ireland in the mid-'90s, in the final stages of the long-lasting conflict between Irish nationalist paramilitary groups and British Armed Forces known as “The Troubles.” In the middle of this irregular war, teenagers Erin (Saoirse-Monica Jackson), Orla (Louisa Harland), Clare (Nicola Coughlan), Michelle (Jamie-Lee O’Donnell), and James (Dylan Llewellyn) try to have a normal adolescence, running away from home to see Take That concerts, getting detention, and occasionally finding an IRA member hiding in the boot of their car. Besides the main quintet, the show also features hilarious performances by Siobhán McSweeney as the short-tempered Sister Michael and Leah O’Rourke as resident high-school party pooper Jenny Joyce.
Originally produced for Channel 4, Derry Girls is available to stream on Netflix. The upcoming Season 3 is set to be the series’ last.
My Mad Fat Diary
Yet another entry from across the Atlantic, My Mad Fat Diary originally aired on E4 from 2013 to 2015. Based on the teenage diaries of English author Rae Earl, compiled in the book My Mad, Fat Teenage Diary, the show follows young Rae (Sharon Rooney) as she reenters her day-to-day life in 1996 after spending four months in a psychiatric hospital. Suffering from depression, obsessive compulsive disorder, and problems with her body image, Rae has recently attempted suicide, a fact she tries to keep hidden from her friends and her crush, Finn (Nico Mirallegro). Mixing tragedy with a dark sense of humor, My Mad Fat Diary paints a complex, realistic portrayal of life as a teenage girl like few other shows can manage.
All three seasons of My Mad Fat Diary are available to stream on Hulu.
Little Fires Everywhere
Based on the novel of the same name by Celeste Ng, Little Fires Everywhere tells the story of two mothers from different socioeconomic backgrounds whose lives and families become intertwined: WASP-y journalist Elena (Reese Witherspoon) and Black struggling artist Mia (Kerry Washington). Set in the late 1990s in the Cleveland suburb of Shaker Heights, the miniseries tells, over the course of eight episodes, an earnest story about the different meanings of motherhood across race and social status and the damages that come from viewing children as private property instead of their own individuals.
Little Fires Everywhere is available to stream on Hulu.
Pose
For those still on the first season of the FX show about the New York drag ball culture, it might seem strange to see Pose on a list of best shows that take place in the '90s. However, while Season 1 has the late '80s drag scene as its main setting, Seasons 2 and 3 time travel to the early and mid-'90s to show Blanca (Michaela Jaé Rodriguez) and the children of the House of Evangelista living through other important moments for LGBTQ history and the AIDS epidemic. An important series for the awareness it brings to an underground cultural movement that inspired media personalities from Madonna to Ru Paul, Pose is also a compelling drama with interesting, complex characters and well-crafted stories. Sadly, the third season, released in 2021, was its last.
Pose is currently available to stream on Hulu.
Everything Sucks!
Criminally underrated, Everything Sucks! is a comedy-drama series about a group of teenagers finding themselves in the town of Boring, Oregon. Set in 1996, the story follows the members of the local high school A/V and drama clubs, particularly freshman Luke O’Neil (Jahi Di’Allo Winston) and sophomore Kate Messner (Peyton Kennedy). A member of the nerd crowd, Luke falls in love with Kate, who, in turn, is coming to terms with her sexuality and harboring a secret crush on aspiring actress Emaline Addario (Sydney Sweeney). A sweet and heartwarming slice-of-life series, Everything Sucks! was sadly taken as nothing more than a Stranger Things cash-in due to timing and to its focus on nostalgia and a teenage-driven plot. It was canceled after just one single charming season.
Everything Sucks! is available to stream on Netflix.
Fresh Off the Boat
Based on the memories of famous chef Eddie Huang, Fresh Off the Boat follows a Chinese-American family through the mid to late '90s as they leave D.C. behind and adapt to a new life in an all-white Florida neighborhood where Mr. Huang (Randall Park) has opened a Western-themed steakhouse. The protagonist is Eddie himself, played by Hudson Yang, a hip hop obsessed boy on the verge of adolescence. Though Yang is perfect for the role, the true stars of Fresh Off the Boat are Constance Wu as Eddie’s no-nonsense mother, Jessica, and Lucille Soong as the boy’s sarcastic grandmother, Jenny. Forrest Wheeler and Ian Chen are also amazing as Eddie’s far more adaptable younger brothers.
All six seasons of Fresh Off the Boat are available to stream on Hulu.