@cstross A week or two ago I saw a really good thread about this on Bluesky, and the main point was more or less the same, but! it made me think about 80s media. Because while the 80s were brown and dirty, the 80s music, films etc. did lean into the pastel neon vibe. E.g. in Blade Runner everything is blue and black, except for the market, which has pastels, neons and fluorescent umbrellas. It was code for "recreation of the kind your mum wouldn't approve".