Alien and Stranger Things dial up the nostalgia

Throwbacks are in the air this week, and two major media franchises, Alien (20th Century Studios) and Stranger Things (Netflix) are embracing the old-fashioned fan collectible.

This week, we covered McDonald’s uncompromising nostalgic embrace of its kid’s party golden era, and hot off its heels came two more decidedly old-school offerings.

First up is the Stranger Things and Clarks collaboration, produced by Netflix and the shoe retailer’s in-house creative team. The Clarks x Stranger Things kids collection was launched with an instore activation at Westfield London, which was decked out with props and stylings referencing the nostalgic show.

The result is an extremely on point BackToSchool campaign, with products lovingly crafted to fit the franchise’s aesthetic. 

As if that wasn’t enough, Alien ROMULUS also launched a backwards facing campaign, with a custom made VHS tape, featuring special promo footage from the film (images by Gizmodo's Entertainment writer Germain Lussier).

Footage from the tape seems to have found its way online already, and the results are a tantalising nod to the franchises’ beginnings. Complete with grainy cuts, faux ‘warning’ messages and eerie ROMULUS teasers.

Our take

We’ve long celebrated the merging of experiential and retail, and Clarks x Stranger Things is a great example, building a lovingly curated world around its products referencing the show’s school corridor lockers and ‘upside down’ iconography.

Alien ROMULUS, meanwhile, is veering away from the more standalone franchise offerings of recent years by nodding more directly to the original era defining film, Alien, down to the VHS format it was produced for. Like Stanger Things’ activation, the attention to detail here is what makes it special, with the grainy warning screens – familiar to those old enough to remember them – adding a nostalgic bit of authenticity.