10 - 1
10. Tokyo Ghoul OP - "Unravel"
Over the course of this past year I've grown much fonder of Tokyo Ghoul than I expected to be. One example of this is just how many wallpapers I've made based off this song. And why shouldn't I make those wallpapers? It's a beautiful song with amazing visuals. I probably have way more lyrics memorized than I should, and I find myself singing it to myself all the time. It's just something that hit all the right notes, and that's what landed it in the top ten. C:
9. Umineko no Naku Koro ni OP - "One-Winged Bird"
This anime was trash, and the manga is soooo much better (my second favorite, in fact). But, despite that, the anime did deliver on something the manga never could - its OP. The song fits the story so well, bringing in Italian to the menacing lyrics and the intense and desperate, yet somewhat hopeful tone of the song. Not only that, but the animation changes with each of the turns of the show. It's rare that you get an opening that changes so much, but when this show did it, it pushed it from something that was merely pretty good to something that was pure amazing.
8. Zankyou no Terror OP - "Trigger"
This opening is completely dreamlike. It's beautiful, gentle, and purely enchanting. It's the kind of opening that pulls you right back into the show, makes you wish you were watching it, and makes you remember all of why you loved it so much. In fact, I love this show I named one of my fish "Twelve". But back to the opening - the music and animation are so on point, so perfect, it's almost as if it were all... just a dream.
7. Kekkai Sensen OP - "Hello, World"
But what helped me through that hard time of moving to my college town even more than this show's ending was it's opening. I just remember watching it and thinking "...That's exactly how I feel right now." It's an opening that I can relate so well to, and remember how it helped me out of that time and helped me face the world. However, I shouldn't chalk it all up just to how I related to it, as the music and animation are all absolutely incredible and stand perfectly well on their own. It's the combination of all that, however, that boosts it up to its place on the list.
6. Deadman Wonderland OP - "One Reason"
In my first top openings list I ever made, my past self basically said the animation of this opening wasn't up to par.
...My past self gave me cancer. Thanks to the new eyes Geoff Thew has given me and to a rewatch of the series, I have come to realize just how amazing the animation of this opening really is. There's so much that goes by in flashes, stuff you really have to pay attention to pick up, to the point where you keep needing to pause the video, almsot frame by frame, to understand what you're seeing - including walls of text that you can read (one of my favorite things in openings/endings). It is absolutely amazing. Not only that, though, but it delivers on a hardcore, grungy, angry song that perfectly fits the series. Overall, it's a completely amazing opening.
5. Ergo Proxy OP - "Kiri"
Remember me mentioning that having text that you can pause to video to read is one of my favorite things in an opening/ending? Well, this has that in spades. Not only in English, but in Russian, in Arabic, in who-knows-what-else. Being able to pause the video and read the text on Romdo makes it that much more interesting, and I love it. Not only that, but the opening reaches such a grand scale on its climax. Despite only having one line repeated as the chorus, it helps feel like the emotions of that person are so expansive, so awe-inspiring... it's such a majestic opening, that it's impossible to forget, impossible to ignore and, arguably and objectively, the best opening out there.
4. Nobunaga Concerto ED - "Fukagyaku Replace"
You have no clue how much happiness surges through me when I'm listening to anime music on shuffle and this song comes on. In my opinion, Nobunaga Concerto is sorely underrated, and this is just one example of that. This ending inspired me to watch this series, and I seriously do not regret it. Even though it's been almost a year since I've seen it, I still find it absolutely incredible and unforgettable. In fact, this song maybe the favorite I have on my anime genre list, and it definitely deserves the love.
3. Death Parade ED - "Last Theater"
This ending, especially in the context of the anime, is one of the most powerful, most emotional experiences I've ever had. And I'm not kidding. It's... it's literally indescribable. So sorry if this bit is short, there's just no words, other than to tell you that if you haven't seen this series yet, and haven't felt these feels, you should go watch it. Now. Like, right now.
2. Ajin ED - "How Close You Are"
This ending was the entire reason that I wanted to do another top list in the first place - because I knew exactly where it would land. So, what would make it so great that it would land above an indescribable experience? Because it literally has everything I love - the main characters seiyuu singing it, words that you can pause to read, absolutely powerful visuals. It even has one of the most emotional songs I've heard, detailing the emotions from Kei's point of view, probably towards Kai as he he describes his realization of how much he values their friendship, despite them being separated and far away from each other for most of the series. However, the biggest reason is that it does something that I've never, ever seen another opening or ending do. You see, it shows events that happens in the anime, but without any context. As you watch the series, you understand the context, and thus slowly begin to understand the ending. So, at first it's just a beautiful piece, but by the end of the series, it has so much meaning and emotion behind it that it sticks with you. Overall, while it's bold to put such an underrated ending as number one ending, I do not regret it. It means way too much to me to put it anywhere but here.
1. Kuroshitsuji: Book of Circus OP - "Enamel"
When my favorite anime Youtuber, Arkada, put Steins;Gate at the top of his top anime openings list, he attributed it to the "F*ck it, it's Steins;Gate" factor. So, maybe the fact that this opening lands at number one again is attributed to the "F*ck it, it's Black Butler" factor for me. I mean, obviously I would be very biased towards my favorite anime, as this opening carries an aesthetic that I have fallen so very deeply in love with. Not only does the opening carry this aesthetic, but the music video does, too, as I have watched that music video countless times as well. So, even though the reason may ultimately be chalked up to bias, I seriously do not regret putting this at the top of my list again.
So, thanks guys for sticking through this list with me, even though I ended up falling slightly behind. ^^' It was a massive project in the undertaking, but I still had a ton of fun with it, and I enjoyed immensely.
