I just bought a new house in a new community, and a year ago when I was touring the model homes the perky saleslady would point out walls in rooms where their decorator had put in a
"Wow Statement! wallpaper" (her words) and she assured me that I would find artistic and personal fulfillment by doing the same in whichever model I ended up buying. I made a mental note to add
"Wow Statement!" to my vocabulary immediately.
Wow Statement! wallpaper almost always involves the powder room. Sometimes a den. It's a mysterious power you don't want to overuse however. And like you said, the options we have now look much better than 40 years ago.