#no!!!!!!!!!!

i mean, yes, striped shirts were everywhere in the 80s/90s—i don’t disagree with that—but costume design and period accuracy aren’t mutually exclusive things. a show can use period-accurate clothing while still assigning motifs selectively and meaningfully.

what interests me isn’t “niall wears stripes, therefore symbolism,” but the repetition and placement of them, especially in contrast with moments where they disappear entirely (graduation, the wedding). motifs become interesting not just through recurrence but through absence. if the stripes were there simply to establish period, i don’t think they would show up as much as they do on niall, and nor would their disappearance in specific scenes feel nearly as pointed.