Greeting all your anime fans out there in the HeroMachine community! It has been a while since I last posted an anime talk and I intend to change that starting today, However there is a bit of a change in format. Instead of being a weekly feature Anime talk is more likely to be a monthly feature instead at best! There will be time I will post more then one a month and there may be time it will be more like 5 or 6 weeks instead of every 4 it all depend on when inspiration strikes! This weeks topic is inspired by a suggest that JR emailed me last week.
What we are going to discuss here are Anime Intros. Those opening scenes that are designed to grab our attention and draw us in and make us want to watch that particular anime! What I am going to do is after the jump share some of my favorite Anime intros, and share what I like about them and then you can either comment on the ones I have shared or share some of your own ( or both of course) .
SO Lets begin!!
Ranma 1/2 Season 1 Opening!
Ranma was one of the first anime series I got hooked on and so there is a bit of nostalgia involved in this choice, however I find the music very catchy and the animation in the intro while lacking in my opinion in and true story telling elements does makes you take notice and curious about a few things, for example what is the deal with the kung ?
*****
Zettai Karen Children - "Over the Future" Opening
I actually discovered Zettai Karen Children because of it's opening title music. Babymetal did a cover of the song at one of their concerts ( Though Su-Metal the lead singer of Babymetal was a member of Karen's Girls, which originally sang this song.) And curious over the Anime it was from I looked it up and found a treasure! I will have to say the Babymetal version of the song is better then the version here but I still like the song along and the opening anime sure does it's job of drawing you into the show making you want to see more!
(The Babymetal version is here if you are interested: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lozHHpXdkFg)
*****
Bubblegum Crisis OVA 1
First let me apologize for the poor quality of this video, it was the best I could find that actually showed the beginning of the Original Bubblegum Crisis OVA. What I like about this one, is it just jumps into the actually anime with the intro song being sung by one of the characters in concert while chaos rules the streets! Plus the song is just badass in my opinion.
*****
and Lastly
Bubblegum Crisis Tokyo 2040
Now I am not a big fan of the music of this anime's intro which is titled Y'Know, but what I do love about it is the animation itself. This intro has beautiful animation that does a great job of making your interested in the main characters and tells enough of a story that you feel you understand what these woman are all about and that is kicking butt!
*****
Well I could go on and on about various other anime openings but I will leave it at these four and let you guys and gals weight in on the subject. What Anime opening titles impress you the most? Why do you like\love them ? What do you think of the ones I shared above ? The floor is yours so tell us what you think!
Having not watched Ranma 1/2 in ages, watching that intro again is weird, nothing about it really makes that much sense if you don’t know much about the show and it doesn’t really showcase what the series is about much (though as I said I haven’t watched it in ages, so my memory is probably off a bit).
The others I haven’t seen or heard before (though I have heard of Bubblegum Crisis). Zetta Karen Children does exactly what I like in an intro sequence, it has strong music and action packed sequences that draw you in and make you interested in the story. (And there’s fan service, but that’s beside the point). Personally don’t like the Bubblegum Crisis 1st intro, it’s too static for me, nothing really grabs my attention about it (although, the video probably wasn’t the best example of it as you said). The second one does a better job of grabbing the attention, but you’re right, the music is terrible.
My personal faves…. we’ll go by anime shall we.
Fairy Tail Opening 1- Funkist: Snow Fairy
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gs4IqfmELTY
The first tile sequence to Fairy Tail had to be on my list. The music is magical, especially at the beginning when it’s really soft and it draws you in even with the minimal visuals. Then the music picks up and the visuals kick in properly and you get a fantastic representation of what the first episodes of Fairy Tail are about. It introduces the main characters, shows them having fun and adventuring, gives us a preview of some magic and then near the end we get a tiny glimpse of character backstory, all within one and a half minutes.
Fairy Tail Opening 8- JAMIL: Rock City Boy
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LX3v651Ip8E
This one is all about the action. Being quite a way into the Fairy tail series, this opening doesn’t need to set the scene for anything, it just can go all out with a fast paced intro music and action based visuals. You’re introduced to the arc’s conflict and new characters and you get a feel for how things are going to go down. Ok the music does sort of let the side down near the end, once the rapping starts, the audio and visuals start to un-mesh, but overall I think it works.
Fairy Tail Opening 16- Back-On: Strike Back
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KmUJXDvO8D4
This one is just straight power. I am nowhere near this far into the series, I stumbled on this intro by accident, and I already know that s***’s gonna get real in the arc this intro is for. The visuals are all action filled and there is no let up until the end. This is complemented by the music, which is heavy, hard hitting and fast paced.
Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood Opening 1- Yui: Again
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2uq34TeWEdQ
Possibly my favourite anime intro, it starts of so serenely, with the music providing a gorgeous hook to draw you in before the visuals dig it deeper. As the audio grows in intensity, the visuals switch between moments of peace and introducing the characters before the whole thing drops and the real catch begins. The music becomes much faster and the action hits the screen, introducing our villains and seeing the main characters basically disintegrated. It certainly gets you interested in what is going to happen in the series.
Soul Eater Opening 1- T.M Revolution: Resonance
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vZBHLiM7Soc
The thing that makes this intro so great is that it showcases the series without taking its self to seriously. And when the series in question is a cartoonish anime centred around kids who turn into weapons and kill monsters and the main character wields a scythe twice her size, that’s a good thing. The music is fast paced as are the visuals, but there are only a few moments of real action, the rest is just the main cast goofing around, which is cool.
Soul Eater Opening 3- Nightcore: Counter Identity
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GHJvNaXzVAQ
Main characters messing around at a theme park, acting like normal teenagers, then a massive monster turns up and said main characters go into badass mode and kill said monster to the tune of some catchy japanese pop-punk. I’m sold.
Digimon Frontier- Christopher Horvath: World For Us All
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1Ra8qHts074
Yes, it might be the Digimon series that the “real” Digimon fans love to hate (I much prefer hating the following season Data Squad), but this intro kicks all different kinds of ass. The visuals are your standard setting the scenes stuff introducing the characters, showing the digivolution and all that stuff. But that’s not why this is good. I love the music, it’s just so powerful. When I first heard this song, I literally sang nothing else for a good clean month. Plus it has a decent message that more people should pay attention to.
Pokemon Series 1- Jason Paige: Pokemon Theme
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DqXlSwBIHFc
full version w’out proper visuals- https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JuYeHPFR3f0
First things first, who cares about the visuals here. No-one who watches this intro is paying any attention the what’s going on on the screen, they’re singing along word for word, from memory. Well if they’re my age anyway. I highly doubt there’s an anime opening that’s had such a big impact on a generation. No wonder they brought it back for the new series (even though it’s been rerecorded and isn’t a strong).
So that’s my run down and yes, I did just suggest this topic to Kaldath so I could talk at length about these openings. Sorry.
@jr maybe the season 2 ranma 1/2 opening would be more to your like (http://youtu.be/MIBflrm4mKA ). I had picked the season 1 intro because that song always pops into my head when I think about Ranma.
Oh, my. Now that’s a very interesting topic for conversation, indeed. And thanks for the ideas on what to watch next! Now about the ones that impressed me. In no particular order, sorry.
Attack on Titan opening 1 – Guren no Yumiya
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XMXgHfHxKVM
That’s one hell of an opening. It is full of action and very…moving, or something. I think, this opening alone has more fans than the actual anime. I never wanted to hurt any living thing, but when I hear this song, I want to take swords and fly on some weird steampunk grappling belt and chop the living hell out of some giant things.
Sailor Moon Opening 1 – Moonlight Densetsu
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ten4sIwapQ4
Now that’s just nostalgic. That video with that song. Exactly this combination. The new one, from the newest series called “Sailor Moon Crystal” didn’t have that much of an effect. The magic of nostalgy! And of totally hoping that in some episode the Tuxedo Mask will don the creepy mask from the opening and fly with stars and galaxies in his cape.
One Piece opening 2 – Believe (Folder 5)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s6y5wbHWLIQ
This opening is just so full of optimism! It shows the team of protagonists at the very beginning of their long journey, when they are all quite carefree and joyful. They haven’t known some major grief yet, they haven’t faced the very serious threats from the later episodes, they haven’t saved a single country, they just travel, beat the crap out of some minor league pirates and have fun. Those were the times.
One Piece opening 15 – We Go
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2xFT9Id0P0c
Now that’s something different. Again, this opening is full of optimism and happiness – but it’s completely different. Now the team is much more experienced. Everyone had some major issues to overcome. The team was beaten and defeated, two years have passed and now the Straw Hats are back, stronger, than before and ready to face major league baddies. The contrast with the previous video is like “There’s nothing bad in the world!@ for the opening 2 and “There are lots of bad things in the world, but now I am strong enough to defeat them”.
Digimon opening 1 – Butterfly
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6sGsBgm1EMg
That’s nostalgy speaking again. A great opening. Much better than the english version “Digimon-digital monsters-digital blah-blah-champions”. Cool song, and the opening itself is full of action and adventuring – and doesn’t go to deep into super-mega-hyper-digievolutions.
I have many more anime openings to write about, those five are just the first to come to my mind.
@Malfar- Guren No Yumiya is a great intro. I love the symphonic sound it has, whilst still being a very powerful rock song. Jiyuu No Tsubasa (the second opening) is just as good I.M.O. Also, love that you included Butterfly. I grew up with the english dub of Digimon Adventure, so the english intro song is very nostalgic to me, but I’ll agree Butterfly is better. I associate the Digimon Theme (as I believe the english opening is called) more with the visuals, so it is a bit weird watching it with Butterfly playing, but overall, apart from Frontier, the Japanese themes are better. I mean have you heard the new series theme, comparing the Japanese one to the English one, the Japanese one is miles better (even though this is the first series the dubbers haven’t horribly butchered). And you can include all three of the “Xros Wars” themes there, they’re all better than the dub theme.
Cowboy Bebop-Tank
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Aw3fN3OPk3A
Cowboy Bebop is one of my favorites for many reasons. It’s stylish jazz and fun. The line art style showcases the main cast while also introducing its setting with the ships. I also love that little bit at the end. I always watch it through. 3 2 1 Let’s Jam.
Baccano!-Guns & Roses
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Msg8ypnLqaw
Baccano! is one of my favorite shows ever and my favorite anime. The opening’s jazzy beat introduces the 20’s setting and sets the pace for this zany and fun show. It also introduces the characters with their personalities. It is the show in a nutshell. While I enjoy the show’s main theme more, this opening sets the tone for the show.
Gankutsuou-We Were Lovers
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Im6-iZGmgsA
The theme and the visuals are beautiful, just as the show is. The art is just amazing. The song is also sorrowful, befitting the story of the Count of Monte Cristo.
Trigun-Badlands Rumble
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SSX58TglZRs
This theme rocks. It pumps you up and makes you want to watch it, which you should do as soon as possible. It is amazing and this intro should inspire you to do so.
Mushishi-The Sore Feet Song
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4si-j4XmzzU
This theme is amazing. It is calming and beautiful just like this anime. It is peaceful and serene, accompanied by nature. It also comes from one of the best animes I’ve ever seen.
Honestly I’m not a huge anime fan, but if there is one think I love about the media it has to be the introducting sequences and the pretty much invariably awesome music.
So here’s my (very short list) of favourite anime intros:
Baccano – Guns and Roses
Not only is the jazzy upbeat music pretty damn amazing (though perhaps a bit non-indicative of the tone of the anime), but this intro also showcases most of the important characters of the pretty huge cast they managed to cram into the thriteen few episodes, while giving them all some establishing moments. Sure, every character is only shown on screen for a few seconds, but those seconds are used so well that you truly get a feel for the them despite how brief their appearances are.
An excellent anime with an equally excellent intro.
Paprika – Meditational Field
Like I said, I’m not a huge anime fan. But to be honest, and today I’m ashamed to admit it, I really used to hate anime. I didn’t care for the artstyle, the themes, the dialogue, the comedy, the blatant fanservice, or the needlessly convoluted stories of the anime that my friends insisted on showing me. I guess I was a bit of an asshole about it, too. In fact, looking back, I’m pretty sure I was.
Then I was at a birthday party. My friend Aya had just turned sixteen, and she had been given this movie by a mutual friend of ours. Paprika, by Satoshi Kon.
She insisted that we should all watch it right away, and of course being the little shit that I was I protested. But I soon relented. This was her birthday party, after all, and I should respect her wish to watch this cheap Japanese trash that they dared to call animation.
We sat down. We watched. And from the intro and onwards I was transfixed.
When the movie was over everyone in the room turned to me, the anime hater.
“What did you think?” asked Aya. I tried (and failed) to inconspicuously wipe some tears from my cheek.
“It was good… In fact, it was absolutely, stunningly beautiful.” (Paraphrasing, and taking out the curse words.)
Today Paprika is my favourite film. Well, at least it’s up there with some of the other greats, but it’s definitely in the top five. It didn’t just make me finally realize that all anime isn’t automatically crap, but it also challenged my views of animation, filmmaking, music, character development, and my own subconsciousness and psyche. To me it was completely groundbreaking in so many ways. I watch it perhaps every two months and I still always find new things both in its story and in it’s subtext that make it a brand new experience every single time.
… Well, I suppose I wrote a lot more about the film than I intended to.
Tl;dr: Paprika turned an anime hater into an anime tolerator, and now it’s his favourite film. Go watch it right now.
Hey, I guess we feel the same about Baccano, Vampyrist 😀