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In many cases, an anime's opening is the quickest way for a series to assert itself in a viewer's mind. Opening songs can set the tone of the show to follow, alongside showcasing some of the animation and characters to grab a viewer's attention from the outset, before needing to lay the groundwork for a setting or introduction.
While the 'traditional' three-episode rule is often cited as a good way to judge an anime fairly, an opening is more often than not a shortened way to grab an audience and make them start that three-episode journey. However, there are plenty of anime that either fail to follow through on the hype created by their opening, or have simply not remained a classic despite their opening songs remaining on favorite playlists since their debut.
Eureka Seven's Opening 1 "Days" is a Rip-Roaring Triumph
While Eureka Seven is a well-known anime in some circles, especially among mecha fans, the series hasn't had the staying power of some of its direct competitors, especially after the awful Eureka Seven AO sequel. However, while Eureka Seven may not be a household name for the average anime fan, FLOW almost certainly is. The group famously released "GO!!!" in 2004, which was featured as the 4th opening for Naruto, which went down as one of the most recognizable and popular openings in the series. FLOW took off from there, quickly becoming one of the most easily recognizable anisong groups to be featured in openings and endings alike.
The Eureka Seven opening, "Days", uses its funky sound with a horn section to really showcase the freedom and feeling of surfing through the skies that the series is known for. The melody is relentlessly catchy, despite being a more laid-back and groovy track, but the fantastic vocals from FLOW carry the song through to the end. In addition, the full version of the song also features an incredible rap verse that is similarly infectious.
The Monthly Girls' Nozaki-kun Opening Remains a Hidden Gem
Comedy-focused anime are famously hit-and-miss. While there are stand-outs that get recommended regularly, like Nichijou and Gintama, there are significantly more that are just as hysterical but end up lost to the seasonal structure of new premiers. Monthly Girls' Nozaki-kun falls into the latter category, seemingly forgotten after its run as a very successful comedy during its own season. The opening of the series, "Kimi Ja Nakya Dame Mitai", is an immensely catchy song thanks to the acoustic guitar riff it opens with as well as Masayoshi Oishi's stellar vocals.
Oishi would later go on to form the group OxT with Tom-H@ck which produced openings for several other popular anime series like Overlord and The Eminence in Shadow. However, Oishi has also done several solo anime openings since Nozaki-kun, many of which were similarly attached to anime that were quickly forgotten despite immensely fantastic OPs, like "Otomodachi Film" for Tada Never Falls in Love and "Gift" for The Angel Next Door Spoils Me Rotten.
s-CRY-ed's "Reckless Fire" Dials the Energy Up to 11
s-CRY-ed was produced in 2001 as an anime original series by Sunrise, the studio behind Gundam. The art is even so similar to the Gundam SEED era, that characters from one could easily be mistaken for the other. However, while SEED has remained a pivotal series in anime culture, s-CRY-ed was nearly entirely left behind despite its strong writing, crazy plot development and interesting characters. Despite the series not maintaining its popularity, s-CRY-ed's OP, "Reckless Fire", has remained on anime song playlists due to its driving beat and the unusual style not typically seen in J-Pop.
"Reckless Fire" opens with an upbeat, driving sound alongside a vaguely Flamenco-like guitar sound. That same flair carries through the entire song, with percussion and other instruments that leave it sounding very unlike most other anime openings, especially compared to those released around the same time, which heavily featured electronic sounds and synths. The Flamenco-like sounds perfectly captured the fiery, exciting nature of the series, not to mention main character Kazuma's personality, which could accurately be described by the song's title.
Busou Renkin's Opening Has Become a Cult Anthem
Despite Rurouni Kenshin being a very well-known shōnen series, Nobuhiro Watsuki's other major manga series never managed to reach anywhere near the heights of Kenshin. Busou Renkin was a fairly standard but well-executed shōnen battle series that simply never managed to make its mark among wider anime audiences, despite being a fully contained story with a complete ending wrapped up in 10 volumes of manga and its single 26-episode anime season.
However, Busou Renkin's opening song, "Makka na Chikai", became something of a cult hit among anime fans around that time. It was regularly featured in the "Kumikyoku Nico Nico Douga" series of medley videos, and became something of an unofficial anthem for many anime fans. The heavy rock sound and driving, shouting lyrics keep this song's energy and shōnen-protagonist energy going strong. The singer and songwriter behind it, Yoshiki Fukuyama, later took that same energy with him when he joined JAM Project, the group responsible for songs like One Punch Man's opening, "THE HERO!".
Shadows House's "Shall We Dance?" Conjures Up an Eerie Atmosphere
Shadows House is a fantastically written dark, supernatural mystery series focused on telling the story of the eponymous Shadow House and the cast of characters that live within. The manga series has run in Weekly Young Jump since 2018, and has had two seasons of anime produced by CloverWorks, but never managed to catch on — especially in the West.
The opening used for the second season is a unique fusion of big band, J-Pop and a waltz, and it is completely unforgettable. From the opening notes played on a solo trumpet into the slightly creepy waltz melody that gets taken up by the piano and strings before the full big band comes in for the chorus, the song is catchy all the way through. On top of that, ReoNa's vocals add to the slightly off, creepy vibe that matches the unique mystery series.
The Kawai Complex Guide to Manors and Hostel Behavior Opening Outdoes the Actual Series
The Kawai Complex Guide to Manors and Hostel Behavior is a perfectly serviceable slice-of-life rom-com. While entertaining, the anime is lost among its stronger, more memorable competitors, leaving the Kawai Complex anime more or less forgotten. Despite that, the opening featured a song by fhána, a group that would later go on to perform several notable anime opening songs like "Aozora Rhapsody" and "Ai no Supreme!" for Kobayashi's Dragon Maid.
The Kawai Complex opening itself, "Itsuka no, Ikutsuka no Kimi to no Sekai", is a beautiful, relaxed song with a soft instrumentation that feels just perfect for a slice-of-life anime. However, when the song opens up for the chorus, the opening sequence erupts into a magical scene with floating books and words while the female lead, Ritsu Kawai, goes through several costume changes related to the books she is always reading. The song and animation together leave a much stronger impression than the actual anime as a series.
Sakura Quest's "Morning Glory" Nails the Series' Fun, Optimistic Message
Sakura Quest is a 2017 anime that was intended to be part of the "working series" along with other P.A. Works' anime like Shirobako and Hanasaku Iroha. Unfortunately, Sakura Quest was completely eclipsed by the series that came before it, never managing to reach the same level of fame that Shirobako ran away with. While Hanasaku Iroha could just as easily be listed here as well, Sakura Quest is absolutely the less popular of the two.
The opening for the series, "Morning Glory", was performed by the band (K)NoW_NAME, who have gone on to do more anime music, including several insert songs for Spy x Family. The band's penchant for blending acoustic string instruments with more modern rock sounds worked perfectly for Sakura Quest, giving the opening an upbeat, peppy and infectious track that sells the image of the slightly ditzy working-girl main character Yoshino Koharu.
Pretty Boy Detective Club's Opening Oozes With Style
Pretty Boy Detective Club had all the makings of a huge hit anime; it was animated by Studio Shaft, written by Nisio Isin, directed by several well-known directors, including Akiyuki Shinbo, and was generally just a gorgeous piece of art. For some reason, the series didn't manage to resonate with anime fans and was quickly buried under the seasonal rotation and forgotten.
Despite that, the anime's opening is a massive feast for the eyes. It's colorful, with striking animation, including an entire sequence during the chorus featuring the titular pretty boy detectives doing dances that wouldn't be out of place on social media. All of this was set to an absolute banger of a song performed by Sumika, a band that had previously made waves with the Wotakoi: Love is Hard for Otaku opening, and its well-known hand dance. The same group also went on to perform the second opening for Delicious in Dungeon.
King's Raid: Successor of the Will's Great Openings Couldn't Save the Show
The King's Raid anime was an adaptation of a mobile game of the same name. Unfortunately, as was standard for most mobile game adaptations until more recently, it was a mediocre adaptation at best and quickly forgotten. However, the anime had several great songs, courtesy of fripSide, KOTOKO and Riho Iida, all names that older anime fans might recognize.
The second opening of the anime was handled by South Korean girl group Dreamcatcher and was the standout on the soundtrack. Despite being a K-Pop group, Dreamcatcher is known for their more anime-like sound, which is fully on display in the Japanese opening track for King's Raid, "Eclipse." The utter lack of popularity of the King's Raid anime may very well be the reason Dreamcatcher never returned for more anime openings, which is unfortunate given their stellar discography.
Fastest Finger First's "On My MiND" Has Been Lost to Time
Mrs. GREEN APPLE rocketed into popularity when their song "Inferno" became the opening for the first season of Fire Force. However, they also performed an absolute banger of a song for an anime two years earlier titled "On My MiND" for Fastest Finger First, or Nana Maru San Batsu. The anime series flew entirely under the radar, with a story focused on a quiz bowl team. Despite the manga running for 20 total volumes, the anime completely failed to make a splash at all, despite functionally acting as a solid sports anime.
Interest in the anime aside, the opening song "On My MiND" deserves to be heard. The song is a fantastic track, in contention for one of Mrs. GREEN APPLE's best, featuring a frantic guitar and synth line that keeps the entire song moving fast. The instrumentation and excitement of the song would match any sports anime for its intensity, while holding a fun melody and immensely catchy tune.
