Ranger REG
Explorer
The only Japanese theme song I like is Kikaida.
Granted, the show is cheesier in my now-adult eyes, but I grew up with it.
Best TV Theme Songs - Top 40
- Thread starter D.Shaffer
- Start date
Granted, the show is cheesier in my now-adult eyes, but I grew up with it.
Plane Sailing
Astral Admin - Mwahahaha!
Y'know, I'd almost add anything by the much underrated Barry Gray on my top 40 list
StreamOfTheSky
Adventurer
As long as you give the address link it's own line (hit enter before and after it), the site seems to do it for you. One of the videos I posted I had it on the same line as [/sblock] and it just showed the link. When I went back and gave it its own line, it showed up as a video embedded.
TwinBahamut
First Post
If I were to create a list, I would probably fill it with nothing but anime songs. Maybe I don't watch enough live action TV, but I can't even recall any such opening...
I have to admit, what few things I did see on that top 40 list didn't strike me as all that great. What few notable anime songs I can think of off the top of my head blow them out of the water.
Let me see here...
[ame="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eWiOx41OCNw"]Fafner: Dead Aggressor[/ame]Fafner has a beautiful opening. I never actually watched more than the first episode of the series, but I love the opening.
[ame="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HRTrgBP7I4s"]Noir[/ame] Noir has a nice opening as well.
[ame="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=97j86qH91Nk"]Overman King Gainer[/ame] Overman King Gainer has a opening that is awesome in its own twisted way. It is both horribly catchy and "WTF?" inducing at the same time.
[ame="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eJiKEy4rsvA"]Record of Lodoss War[/ame]As mentioned by someone above, the opening for the TV version of Record of Lodoss War is superb.
[ame="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=43O7Dyd3QtU"].hack//SIGN[/ame]I am not sure it is really the best opening song I have ever encountered, but I had .hack//SIGN's theme song, Obsession, stuck in my head for years. It was practically pathological in how much I found myself humming the song.
Now, if we were to include a list of videogame openings and theme songs that were done in the style of TV openings, I would have a completely new list...
I have to admit, what few things I did see on that top 40 list didn't strike me as all that great. What few notable anime songs I can think of off the top of my head blow them out of the water.
Let me see here...
[ame="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eWiOx41OCNw"]Fafner: Dead Aggressor[/ame]Fafner has a beautiful opening. I never actually watched more than the first episode of the series, but I love the opening.
[ame="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HRTrgBP7I4s"]Noir[/ame] Noir has a nice opening as well.
[ame="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=97j86qH91Nk"]Overman King Gainer[/ame] Overman King Gainer has a opening that is awesome in its own twisted way.
It is both horribly catchy and "WTF?" inducing at the same time.[ame="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eJiKEy4rsvA"]Record of Lodoss War[/ame]As mentioned by someone above, the opening for the TV version of Record of Lodoss War is superb.
[ame="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=43O7Dyd3QtU"].hack//SIGN[/ame]I am not sure it is really the best opening song I have ever encountered, but I had .hack//SIGN's theme song, Obsession, stuck in my head for years. It was practically pathological in how much I found myself humming the song.
Now, if we were to include a list of videogame openings and theme songs that were done in the style of TV openings, I would have a completely new list...
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Kaodi
Legend
Ah, thanks, Thanee. Since you have been so kind though, I will avoid the redundancy of posting it again.
Just a day or two ago I actually got around to making up a YouTube playlist of the full versions of a lot of anime opening and ending themes. I just added a few full versions of the ones that TwinBahamut put up.
I am not really sure I want to try and figure out what my absolute favourites are, but here are the shorter versions of some of the ones I like.
[ame=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=msvbKCFUXL0]GitS: Stand Alone Complex Opening[/ame]
[ame=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bO0EKXiRdyI]Full Metal Alchemist Opening[/ame]
[ame=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SzpH1fpWU7Y]Eureka Seven Opening[/ame]
As you can see, my tastes perhaps run towards the more mainstream, pop stuff.
Just a day or two ago I actually got around to making up a YouTube playlist of the full versions of a lot of anime opening and ending themes. I just added a few full versions of the ones that TwinBahamut put up.
I am not really sure I want to try and figure out what my absolute favourites are, but here are the shorter versions of some of the ones I like.
[ame=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=msvbKCFUXL0]GitS: Stand Alone Complex Opening[/ame]
[ame=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bO0EKXiRdyI]Full Metal Alchemist Opening[/ame]
[ame=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SzpH1fpWU7Y]Eureka Seven Opening[/ame]
As you can see, my tastes perhaps run towards the more mainstream, pop stuff.
StreamOfTheSky
Adventurer
For some reason I never thought of Inner Universe (Stand Alone Complex opening theme) as "pop," though I suppose it is.
Definitely. I just figured the ENWorld posters would be two basic groups: those into anime who likely know of most of the good opening themes anyway, and those who abhor/ignore anime and would thus never bother to play any links I bothered to post.
Oh, definitely. But the OVA opening and ending rocked, too. Just in a super-cheesy romantic kind of way. Best of all, they sounded just as good in ENGLISH as in the original Japanese! Amazing! Observe:
[ame=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UUl0w2LTVj4]YouTube - Record of Lodoss War OVA English Opening - Adesso e Fortuna[/ame]
Absolutely. Video games offer some great musical scores. Heck, I'll post several openings from a single series (my favorite) as example:
[sblock] Suikoden II, apparently was done with the Warsaw Philharmonic:
[ame=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ljmw3309AEI]YouTube - Suikoden 2 Opening[/ame]
Suikogaiden I and II, using already existing songs from the series:
[ame=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BxsCFa73JMw&NR=1]YouTube - Suikogaiden Opening[/ame]
[ame=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kcifUIULqdU]YouTube - Suikogaiden 2: opening[/ame]
Suikoden III, one of the best openings in both sound and visual I've seen in any medium:
[ame=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x8mQ3UdMl3A]YouTube - Suikoden III Opening[/ame]
Suikoden IV, possibly the best song of any of the openings:
[ame=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TDVmCyLw_UI]YouTube - Suikoden IV Opening[/ame]
One thing very noticeable is how varied the themes are between games. Of course, Suikogaiden I&II are extensions of Suikoden 2's story, so some similarities there.[/sblock]
Ah, what the heck? I'll post some of my favorite anime openings anyway. Other than the ones already up.
TwinBahamut
First Post
Argh! Curse you StreamOfTheSky! You beat me to posting the Suikoden and Suikogaiden stuff! The Suikogaiden and Suikoden III openings were exactly what I had in mind when I made the comment that you replied to! I love those openings. Of course, I don't like the Suikoden 4 one as much as you seem to.
Of course, there is one other set of games that matches the Suikoden stuff...
[sblock=More Videogame openings]
The remake of the start of it all:[ame="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y8Fedfg8B50"]Wild Arms Alter Code F Opening[/ame]
Wild Arms 2 is cool in that it has a different opening for its two discs, each reflecting the different tone of that part of the game, much like how some anime change the opening to from season to season.[ame="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EsOIclP2H3g"]Wild Arms 2 (Disc 1 Opening)[/ame]
[ame="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dNeFpTks9uE&feature=related"]Wild Arms 2 (Disc 2 Opening)[/ame]
Wild Arms 3 has my favorite opening, and it comes in five different minor variants based on what chapter of the game you are in.
[ame="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ezkMLIdE-Kg"]Wild Arms 3 Opening (Variant 1)[/ame]
And then Wild Arms 4... It has two openings as well, but they use the same song and a lot of similar animation, so I omitted the second. The fact that it features the Tarrasque, a recurring boss monster in the series, is a cool touch.[ame="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rQGVEyQlPXo"]Wild Arms 4 Opening 1[/ame]
Wild Arms 5 also has an opening, but unlike the others (where you see the opening every time you load a save file), you only see it at the start and it is rendered with the game's graphics rather than anime stuff. Wild Arms XF also has a pretty good one. Of course, this post is long enough, so I will omit them for now.[/sblock]
Of course, there is one other set of games that matches the Suikoden stuff...
[sblock=More Videogame openings]
The remake of the start of it all:[ame="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y8Fedfg8B50"]Wild Arms Alter Code F Opening[/ame]
Wild Arms 2 is cool in that it has a different opening for its two discs, each reflecting the different tone of that part of the game, much like how some anime change the opening to from season to season.[ame="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EsOIclP2H3g"]Wild Arms 2 (Disc 1 Opening)[/ame]
[ame="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dNeFpTks9uE&feature=related"]Wild Arms 2 (Disc 2 Opening)[/ame]
Wild Arms 3 has my favorite opening, and it comes in five different minor variants based on what chapter of the game you are in.
[ame="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ezkMLIdE-Kg"]Wild Arms 3 Opening (Variant 1)[/ame]
And then Wild Arms 4... It has two openings as well, but they use the same song and a lot of similar animation, so I omitted the second. The fact that it features the Tarrasque, a recurring boss monster in the series, is a cool touch.[ame="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rQGVEyQlPXo"]Wild Arms 4 Opening 1[/ame]
Wild Arms 5 also has an opening, but unlike the others (where you see the opening every time you load a save file), you only see it at the start and it is rendered with the game's graphics rather than anime stuff. Wild Arms XF also has a pretty good one. Of course, this post is long enough, so I will omit them for now.[/sblock]
StreamOfTheSky
Adventurer
Wow, I've been trying to name drop Suikoden as much as possible throughout ENWorld for years hoping to raise awareness of it. I had begun to think I was the only one here who even knew of it!
Part of the reason I like it is because one of my friends, a Puerto Rican transfer student who was even more shy and socially awkward than me, felt the need to stand up and spontaneously start dancing when he heard it. Good memories.
Yeah, Wild Arms is that one series I've always meant to play, but never got around to it. I'm just really inert when it comes to trying things out sometimes.
I'll have to post the anime ones later, got errands to run as it turns out. Also, I've realized a lot of the anime series I had been thinking of (Cowboy Bebop, Yoroiden Samurai Troopers, Gundam Seed, Bakuretsu Hunters, Golden Boy, Kenshin, etc...) have much better ending themes than opening (IMHO). But that doesn't count for this topic, sadly.
StreamOfTheSky
Adventurer
Ok, here's some good anime tv show openings not listed already. ...And some OVA ones as well.
[sblock]Martian Successor Nedesico has a catchy one, "You Get to Burning."
[ame=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YrU76ecOsE4]YouTube - Martian Successor Nadesico opening you get to burning[/ame]
I never really cared for Slayers that much, but the music (lots of Megumi Hayashibara and Masami Okui) is great.
[ame=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1QdtEXexKns]YouTube - The Slayers Opening Theme[/ame]
Ronin Warriors / Yoroiden Samurai Troopers is my favorite anime, and its second opening is one of my favorite songs:
[ame]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ah71i2xwXtw[/ame]
Gundam Wing had two great intro songs (openings as a whole were mediocre):
[ame=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=55euNKtEpBo&feature=related]YouTube - Gundam Wing Opening Theme[/ame]
[ame=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oUjcNqJURmg&feature=related]YouTube - Gundam Wing Opening 2[/ame]
Lupin the 3rd is a pretty classic anime.
[ame]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qyxc18fyp58&feature=related[/ame]
Cowboy Bebop has a great opening. The ending's just...even better (The Real Folk Blues).
[ame]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T6zDfxZ4NcE[/ame]
The opening theme to Jubei-chan is an instrumental song that alternates between beautiful melody and dance rhythm. Couldn't find the in-show theme, only the full version.
[ame]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gPq5svs19ck[/ame]
The following two are "adult themed," just to warn you. Nothing particularly bad and no actual nudity, but eh...
I like Re: Cutie Honey the best of the series, it has a cool retro style as tribute to the original '73 series and retains the sense of innocent yet dirty humor.
[ame=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5uJWDdNEirg]YouTube - Re : Cutie Honey Opening[/ame]
Burn Up Excess is surpassed probably only by Golden Boy for perverted humor. And Golden Boy's opening is only mediocre. Burn Up W is also great and has an almost as good opening.
[ame=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wsg3sNevM4s]YouTube - BurN uP ExceSS opening[/ame]
[/sblock]
[sblock]Martian Successor Nedesico has a catchy one, "You Get to Burning."
[ame=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YrU76ecOsE4]YouTube - Martian Successor Nadesico opening you get to burning[/ame]
I never really cared for Slayers that much, but the music (lots of Megumi Hayashibara and Masami Okui) is great.
[ame=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1QdtEXexKns]YouTube - The Slayers Opening Theme[/ame]
Ronin Warriors / Yoroiden Samurai Troopers is my favorite anime, and its second opening is one of my favorite songs:
[ame]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ah71i2xwXtw[/ame]
Gundam Wing had two great intro songs (openings as a whole were mediocre):
[ame=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=55euNKtEpBo&feature=related]YouTube - Gundam Wing Opening Theme[/ame]
[ame=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oUjcNqJURmg&feature=related]YouTube - Gundam Wing Opening 2[/ame]
Lupin the 3rd is a pretty classic anime.
[ame]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qyxc18fyp58&feature=related[/ame]
Cowboy Bebop has a great opening. The ending's just...even better (The Real Folk Blues).
[ame]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T6zDfxZ4NcE[/ame]
The opening theme to Jubei-chan is an instrumental song that alternates between beautiful melody and dance rhythm. Couldn't find the in-show theme, only the full version.
[ame]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gPq5svs19ck[/ame]
The following two are "adult themed," just to warn you. Nothing particularly bad and no actual nudity, but eh...
I like Re: Cutie Honey the best of the series, it has a cool retro style as tribute to the original '73 series and retains the sense of innocent yet dirty humor.
[ame=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5uJWDdNEirg]YouTube - Re : Cutie Honey Opening[/ame]
Burn Up Excess is surpassed probably only by Golden Boy for perverted humor. And Golden Boy's opening is only mediocre. Burn Up W is also great and has an almost as good opening.
[ame=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wsg3sNevM4s]YouTube - BurN uP ExceSS opening[/ame]
[/sblock]
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