The Angels Got Their Wings Back: Victoria’s Secret’s Return to Fantasy

By Lily Dougherty, Staff Writer Edited by Ava Pettigrew

Lights. Camera. Angels. Victoria’s Secret is reviving its classic runway show with glittery wings, bouncy blowouts, and the spectacle that defined early 2000s glamour. Without a slick back in sight, the angels are back—Adriana Lima leading the charge, her confident strut reminding the world why she became the face of that era. This revival is draped in rhinestones and nostalgia, a return to the femininity that once ruled the culture.

But this isn’t the brand’s first attempt to rise from its ashes. In 2024, Victoria’s Secret staged a “comeback” to spotlight diversity and empowerment. It missed the mark, to say the least. As W Magazine's coverage of the 2024 show pointed out, the production shifted away from fantasy and focused on storytelling, which left longtime fans disappointed. The brand’s promise of reinvention fell flat; the sparkle faded while the wings were forgotten.

This year’s 2025 revival, documented in Vogue’s roundup of all the stars at the show and covered by The Washington Post, leaned heavily on nostalgia. The lights were brighter, the hair was bigger, and the angels were back—but so were the questions about what “modern femininity” means for a brand like Victoria’s Secret.

While the company proudly highlighted its “inclusive” casting, most of the models with realistic or midsize body types were walking for VS Pink, the brand’s younger, more casual line. Meanwhile, the main Victoria’s Secret runway continued to feature the same ultra-toned, conventionally thin figures that defined its early 2000s prime. The divide felt intentional—and, as many viewers pointed out, whether intentional or not, it was problematic. 

Across the country, girls tuned in, some drawn to the nostalgia of the supermodel fantasy, others curious to see if the brand’s promise of diversity could coexist with its signature spectacle. Watching with friends sparked conversations everywhere filled with both excitement and skepticism.

For Paty Fernández, a Syracuse junior, the production was a clear improvement. “Compared to last year, the setup was way better,” she said. Still, she missed the magic that once defined the show. “When I think of Victoria’s Secret, I think of angel wings and blowouts. Now it’s more tame. The wings looked extremely cheap… Barbara Palvin’s silver dress wings were flopping, plasticky.”

She was less forgiving about the casting. “Random influencers? No. Use real models,” she said. “It’s not just about being pretty and having a following—keep the exclusivity. Keep the art and include diversity.” For Fernández, the brand’s attempt to modernize the show stripped away its original charm. “The blowouts were amazing,” she admitted, “but it should’ve been bigger. That's the memory—that’s what it used to be.”

Sophia Fleischer, another Syracuse junior, agreed that the show looked beautiful but struggled with substance. “I liked it a lot, but I don’t think they’re there yet with diversity,” she said, referencing the 2015 New York Times ad from lingerie brand Adore Me that called out Victoria’s Secret’s lack of inclusivity. “It’s a fine line between having hot women and also including women of all shapes, sizes, and colors.”

She appreciated smaller signs of progress, like how viewers could shop the runway in real-time and find things in all sizes. “Fashion-wise, it was great,” she said, “They’re making progress, but they’re not there yet. Pink helped with inclusivity, but it’s still a fine line to walk.”

Online, reactions mirrored that same tension. TikTok edits compared the 2025 runway to the brand’s 2016 heyday, while others questioned whether this new version of “feminism” was genuine or just well-lit PR. Some praised the return of glamour—comment sections filled with nostalgia for the “angel era” and admiration for the return to glitz and fantasy. Others called the revival tone-deaf, pointing out that a few midsize and plus-size models don’t erase years of exclusion. The parallel of comments like “The angels are back and I suddenly need a blowout,” in contrast to criticisms like “Diversity isn’t an accessory,” captures exactly what makes this moment so divisive: a brand caught between the sparkle of its past and the standards of a new generation.

For many, the revival feels like a reflection of culture, torn between celebrating the glitter-dusted icons of the past and demanding a reality that feels less airbrushed. Victoria’s Secret may have gotten its wings back, but whether they’ll soar in a new era of womanhood is still up for debate.

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