Can the Fallen Angels Rise Again?

The return of the Victoria’s Secret Fashion Show highlights a tension between nostalgic ideals of unattainable beauty and today's push for inclusivity, suggesting society's ongoing struggle with embracing diverse beauty standards.

Katy Perry & Akon perform at the 2010 Victoria's Secret Fashion Show. Photo by Cyril A via Flickr

The return of the Victoria’s Secret Fashion Show after a six-year hiatus feels, on the surface, like the revival of a once untouchable cultural moment. But in today’s world, where body positivity, inclusivity and broader social consciousness have radically reshaped the fashion landscape, one wonders what place a brand once synonymous with unattainable standards and “male-gaze” fantasies could hold. More pointedly, why now? And is this about fun and nostalgia, or something more unsettling?

Victoria’s Secret, at its peak in the 2010s, represented more than lingerie. It embodied the fantasy of the Victoria’s Secret Angel — “perfectly” sculpted bodies, the thinnest of waistlines and airbrushed glamour. The show was an annual celebration of femininity in its most exclusive, narrow form, with only the most conventionally “beautiful” and thin women allowed to ascend its glittering runway. 

Behind the scenes, however, darker conversations about eating disorders, toxic beauty standards and the unattainable ideal for women circulated. Models spoke openly about grueling workout regimens, crash diets and the mental toll of maintaining the “Angel” image. 

Fast forward to 2024, and we live in a world that has supposedly shifted. 

Brands like Rihanna’s Savage X Fenty and Kim Kardashian’s Skims have taken center stage, celebrating inclusivity, body diversity and “real” women. The narrative has shifted — or has it? This comeback feels like a test. As social media and nostalgia-driven culture re-embrace the aesthetics of the 2000s and early 2010s — particularly through movements like “indie sleaze” — is there a hunger for the old Victoria’s Secret fantasy? And what does it say if there is?

There is no doubt that nostalgia has fueled much of the Victoria’s Secret Fashion Show’s return, but it also taps into something deeper — an unease with the politicized culture that has swept the fashion and entertainment industries in recent years. For a moment, it feels as though the return of this show is about rebelling against the very movements that have made Victoria’s Secret obsolete. 

In a world that has worked hard to dismantle rigid beauty standards, has Victoria’s Secret simply missed the point by bringing back its angels? Or does this resurgence speak to a collective desire to stop taking everything so seriously? Perhaps people are bored of the hyper-politicized landscape and just want to have fun, even if that “fun” comes with a hefty dose of problematic beauty ideals.

The Internet has spoken, and the reactions are mixed. On the one hand, people express joy over seeing the return of familiar faces like Adriana Lima, Candice Swanepoel and even Tyra Banks. For those who grew up idolizing these women, their reappearance scratches a nostalgic itch. 

Many others are less impressed. Social media is awash with critical commentary about the continued celebration of thinness, with some questioning why the so-called “inclusivity” feels like nothing more than a half-hearted afterthought. 

Plus-size models like Ashley Graham and Paloma Elsesser were indeed featured, but their presence was markedly different — they wore more modest, covered-up pieces, in stark contrast to the skimpier outfits sported by their thinner counterparts. 

It’s hard not to wonder if the show, while trying to embrace a more inclusive future, is also clinging desperately to its past. After all, the original angels — those icons of thinness — dominated the runway once again, looking much the same as they did six years ago. For a brand that claims to have reformed, how likely is it that they have truly separated themselves from the toxic, unrealistic beauty standards they once upheld?

The most uncomfortable reality of Victoria’s Secret resurgence is that it speaks directly to a consumer base that, in many ways, hasn’t moved on from those ideals. As much as modern society celebrates inclusivity and body positivity, the fascination with thinness — especially in fashion — is far from dead. 

Pro-ana (pro-anorexia) content still circulates online, and the desire for a return to the ultra-thin body standard of the 2000s is alive and well. On TikTok, users have been quick to voice their frustration with the show’s nod toward inclusivity, begging for the “old” Victoria’s Secret to come back — one that featured only size zero models. 

The question, then, is this: Is Victoria’s Secret truly moving forward, or are they simply repackaging the same old fantasy with a few superficial updates? If the reaction to the show is any indication, the brand has yet to prove that it has made a meaningful shift. The lingerie might be more accessible, and the casting more diverse, but the core message — the fantasy — is still, for the most part, about selling an impossible ideal to women.

In the end, it seems that the return of the Victoria’s Secret Fashion Show is less about inclusivity and more about testing the waters of how far we have — or haven’t — come. 

We may be living in a time that values body diversity and empowerment, but the allure of the past — of an aspirational, unattainable ideal — still holds true. Whether that ideal still has a place in today’s world remains to be seen. For now, Victoria’s Secret is walking a fine line between nostalgia and progress, and it’s clear that not everyone is ready to let go of the fantasy just yet.