I Swore Off Bras Until Off Campus Invaded My FYP

Off Campus has taken over my entire algorithm (exactly as God intended). Prime Video’s seismic book-to-TV adaptation has only been streaming for three weeks, but it already has me, my group chats, and my TikTok feed in an absolute chokehold. And what’s *not* to love? The central romance is refreshingly non-toxic, consent is treated as a bare minimum, and it’s full of extremely yummy jocks. But being high-key jealous of college dates at my Big Millennial Age isn’t even the most bizarre part. What’s truly surprising is how much I envy their wardrobes — particularly their lingerie drawers.

Underwired, padded, demi-cup — I dislike them all equally. Now that I’m in my 30s, I’ve already clocked in too many years of suffering from uncomfortable bras digging into my skin. Instead, I prefer good ol’ pasties, the occasional Calvin Klein cotton bralette, or freeing the nip. (Hey, if Kendall Jenner does it...)

But Off Campus’ bras were the show’s real MVPs, and they have me questioning all my life choices. Hannah’s lacy rotation included noir pieces she wore both in and out of the bedroom, like peering out under a red corset at Malone’s. Allie’s sets were even more showstopping. Her pleated winged bra on her New York rendezvous with Dean? So fab. And her red set worn with a matching robe? *Chef’s kiss*.

I’m not the only one who noticed. My socials are popping with desperate demands for shopping links. As one Reddit user pleaded, “Oh. My gawd. I need Hannah’s bras ... How did the costume designer find these masterpieces?”

This wardrobe magic wasn’t an accident — it was a deliberate storytelling tool. Off Campus costume designer Charlene Akuamoah tells Bustle, “Once I read the script and I knew there was going to be a lot of shirtless moments, I wanted to make sure that what we were seeing was also a style choice that really spoke to those characters.” That meant pops of color for Hannah as a nod to the books, and fun silhouettes, lace, and sheer panels for the more sexually liberated Allie.

Even when they weren’t shirtless, the underwear remained crucial: “Undergarments are the foundation of every look,” Akuamoah says. “Once you master what that looks like for you, you really master dressing for your body type.”

It’s criminal that these college kids have more bra game than me. When I was their age (oh God, did I really just say that?), I also had my fair share of risqué underwear, making regular excursions to Victoria’s Secret racks I had no business perusing. I wasn’t dropping $100+ on a single bra like Allie, but I saved up my allowance for TDF lingerie. Wearing those pieces made me feel like a hot, slutty 20-something — and boy, do I miss her.

Seeing the way the Off Campus characters put so much stock in their underwear (and their partners’ reactions to them in subsequent steamy hookup montages) is making me nostalgic for my younger, bolder self. Maybe what I need isn’t a Garrett Graham. Maybe it’s just an intimates overhaul and some real-deal lace bras.