This Mesmerizing 5-Minute Mashup of '80s Ads Is Like a Time Machine

Capturing the culture and climate of the decade

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It's hard to listen to A Flock of Seagulls' "I Ran (So Far Away)" without feeling some hint of superiority. The song is arguably good, a perfect entry in the time period's myriad synth-pop hits. But because of the band's lead singer and his particularly styled coif, the band became an easy punch line, emblematic of the over-the-top 1980s culture.

That may have been the thinking behind using the five-minute song as the soundtrack for the beautifully done mashup below of commercials from that time. 

Instead of being an easy joke, the song helps elevate the mashup from that of an Internet treasure trove to, as one commenter notes, a time machine showcasing the power of commercials.

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