Tumblr in the 2010's was about reviving all things '90s, from Kurt Cobain's grunge style to the optics of the early internet (see: the entire aesthetic of seapunk). But beyond fashion styles and aesthetic movements, another fad of the '90s got its second time in the sun on certain niche corners of Tumblr—that fad being aliens.
For the uninitiated (or those too young to remember), aliens had a pretty big moment in the '90s, especially towards the end of the decade. TV shows like The X-Files and movies like Men in Black documented the cultural obsession with the extraterrestrial, as did groovy '90s fads like alien-themed lava lamps.
Which brings us to the sub-aesthetic I have personally coined as RAD ALIEN CORE. This aesthetic takes quite a few pages from '90s style, and often features tattoo chokers, holographic clothes, and alien motifs sprinkled throughout one's outfit. If you wanted to be cool on the indie side of Tumblr back in the early 2010's, all you had to do was post a selfie with your hair in space buns while wearing a t-shirt that showed an alien riding a skateboard with a slice of pizza or something. It was rad, out of this world, intergalactic, and nostalgic all at the same time, which is what makes Tumblr aesthetics so special—nowhere else could you find such thorough and inventive revivals of trends long past.
