10. Hyadain's Amazing Friendship! - Nichijou: My Ordinary Life
Picking between Nichijou's two OPs was a lot harder than I expected, because both are fantastic and both have the power to get us ready to laugh and have fun. When it came down to it, I decided to pick the one that I felt better exemplified the surrealist and often random humor we get from the series, and the tonal shift in the middle of the song before we get to the increasingly faster beat just tipped it over the edge.
9. Size of the Moon - Naruto: Shippuden
A rare case of me really loving an OP from a series I have no vested interest in. I'll be real, this is mostly the fact that I really just love the song, but the visuals and colors here really do look nice, even if I have little to no idea who most of these characters are. I stumbled on this one several years ago, long before I even started watching a hefty amount of anime, and I guess the fact that the song is as good as it is is what held it in my mind for so long.
8. Redo - Re:ZERO - Starting Life in Another World
This one slaps far more than it has any right to, and that chorus (0:52) at the end just fills me with energy every time I hear it. But the real reason I think it works so well as an OP is how it fits into this series narrative. Subaru's Return by Death ability is shown brilliantly by showing a reversal of the end of the visuals of the OP, and eventually we see the inverse, as his actions lead him to another death by the end of the song. Perfectly cut gif, where are you?
7. Dark Sun - Persona 5: The Animation
Don't get me wrong, I don't endorse this piece of garbage. I watched it so you don't have to. Except for the Valentine's episode, that's pretty good. But as a huge fan of Persona 5, especially of it's music, this song's gotta be here. I mean, it's composed by the original game's composer, and it's sung by Lyn, of course it's going to be good. How are the visuals? Well... they work about as well as they can. It's kind of a nice touch showing all the confidants from the game here, even if none of them have any relevance to the plot in this butchered mess. This is one of the few good parts of it.
6. Blue Sky Rhapsody - Miss Kobayashi's Dragon Maid
Come on now, you physically can't tell me you aren't smiling after this one. Between the adorabeetus dancing of the Tohru and her fellow dragonkind, the catchy earworm, and the snuggly hug between our beloved dragon protagonist and her object of affection, and all the fun animations inbetween, it's just too happy and I'm living for every moment of it. Also Elma best girl and Fafnir best dragon don't @ me.
5. Bye Bye Yesterday - Assassination Classroom
I'll be real here, this one means a hell of a lot more if you've actually watched the anime, but I'll try and explain the gist of why I love it without spoilers. The conflicting visuals on each of the students showcases the growth they've gone through under Koro-sensei. They went from being a group of angry, conflicted, sometimes pathetic delinquents not only to confidant, diligent students, but accomplished in the trade he's ultimately training them for. Not to mention what it means after the final episode... I still tear up. If you've watched it you know what I'm referring to.
4. Shiny Ray - Little Witch Academia
This OP does everything it needs to be - it's beautifully animated and incredibly wholoesome, the singing is lovely, and it tells you everything you need to know about Little Witch Academia - namely, it's a story about a cute-as-a-button young witch in training and her life with her friends, and it does it all without a single spell cast. It's utterly enchanting. I can't help but crack a smile every time I see Akko reach up and grab a star from Chariot's flight.
3. Ambiguous - Kill la Kill
Don't get any funny ideas. It's not because of the blatant fanservice. It's purely the quality of the song, the animation, and the action on screen. A few notable highlights have to be the animation when Ryuko and Satsuki clash, showing the show's logo and painting it red with blood, the showcasing of every outfit each major character has worn (considering how much relevance clothes have to this story), the paths that Ryuko and Satsuki taking converging on one point - Ragyo and Nui - and the final bit where the two scissor blades cut the thread on that final incredible riff (if you've seen it, you know why).
2. Ready to - BNA: Brand New Animal
Boy, bet you didn't see this one coming at all, right? It's not like I'm a furry, or a TRIGGER fanboy, or anything. But seriously, it's not just those things that make it so great. First, it has that poppy, catchy, action feel I love in a great OP, the song is beyond stellar, and it's freaking TRIGGER's animation, the company that imho has the most consistently good animation. Not to mention the vibrant, neon colors that accompany the beautiful animation. Mmm, it's just too good! Netflix wants me to autoskip the OP - **** that!
1. Odd Future - My Hero Academia
I really can't help myself on this one. My Hero's one of if not my favorite anime, and this OP just does it all. Catchy af? Check. Incredible action? Check. Showcasing all the important characters in dynamic shots? Check! An inverse of Deku looking to All Might, this time with Shigaraki and All-for-One? Check! All Might giving the vibe check anime eyes to All-for-One? CHECK! Not to mention the irresistable HYPE when Deku punches the fourth wall to reveal the show's title right as that chorus hits. Just mmmmm! PERFECTION!
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