In 1988, the party was in turmoil as the left and right wings tried to tear each other to pieces.
In 2018, in a tightly scripted affair, Labour did its level best to appear unified and dignified.
There were few signs of dissent, little gloating, and modest celebration of the party’s surprise 2017 electoral success.
Everyone seemed to have received the memo that this conference was about looking business-like, rolling up your sleeves and getting down to work.
There wasn’t even very much "Tory-bashing", barring some snippy asides from party president Nigel Haworth and references to "nine years of neglect".
Perhaps in response to Opposition barbs about their relative proportions of the party vote in 2017, Labour did its level best to appear governmental this weekend.
Fiscal restraint and responsible stewardship were praised, prudence was an asset, firmness on the tiller was vital — virtues the oft-referred-to Presbyterian founders of Dunedin would no doubt have approved of.
However, in its determination to be dependable, Labour may have missed an opportunity to be daring.
At Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern’s post-speech media conference the first question was why, of all the things she could have made a funding announcement on, she chose special needs education.
There is no doubting Ms Ardern’s dedication to improving the lot of children.
Equally, there is no doubt affected parents, teachers and children will be delighted to have been singled out for additional funding.
For them, it may well be the "game changer" Ms Ardern promises it will be.
But the premise of the question — that there was a chance here for a "bigger bang" announcement that was missed — may well nag at the back of Labour minds.
Having just overtaken National in the polls and with a leader with popularity ratings that enable her to entice hundreds of people to queue to hear her speak, there was a chance here for Ms Ardern to seize the initiative.
Her oratory was stirring enough, but unlikely to reframe the political agenda.
Labour is already well advanced in planning for the next election, and in its determination not to jeopardise its chances in 2020, it may have missed the chance to take a trick in 2018.
