I think about and love anime Opening Themes a lot (with the songs playing the biggest part) and many of my favorite OPs are attached to Shonen anime. Because of how long some of those series can become, I find the way they are originally sold in their first OPs interesting because they have to sell the show and premise on a general level while later openings tend to focus on specific arcs.
With first openings in Shonen anime, there are some that I simply never end up caring about much compared to later ones, like Naruto - ROCKS. There are those which I like at first and then in time grow to love like Black Clover - Haruka Mirai (this one helped in large part by how it sort of became the main character's theme song in the show itself).
Then there are the really special ones that I just love instantly. And one that naturally comes to mind is One Piece - We Are.
After all, this opening does a very good job of selling the series' sense of adventure and camaraderie. The song is hype and jolly and just has a really nice feel to it, while the visuals got me super excited to follow Luffy and co.'s travels through the East Blue and later the Grand Line. The showcase of the crew already had me set on a favorite character (Sanji). And even the introduction by Gold Roger quickly made me quite interested in the premise and main mystery of the series.
When thinking of first OPs in Shonen anime and anime in general, We Are comes to mind and puts a smile on my face immediately. With how well it sells its series and how it help catapult One Piece into the phenomenon it has become, how could I not give it the #1 spot of my favorite Shonen OP1?
By giving it to Bleach OP1 - Asterisk instead.
The music! The style of the visuals! The fashion! The editing!
Man this OP is just excellent on every level. This is the first anime OP that actually sold me on a show before I had decided to watch it. While I'm not crazy about what it is selling, I'm absolutely in love with the way it is selling it. This OP felt cool as hell when I got into Bleach years ago and it still feels that way now. There's just no Shonen Anime OP with cooler vibes than this one for me. The beginning of it alone always gets me unbelievably excited when I watch it.
Asterisk from Bleach is easily my favorite first OP in a Shonen anime.
But We Are from One Piece does still get a very respectable second favorite overall and would come in first place for pre-2000s series...is what I'd say if Pegasus Fantasy didn't exist!
(If you have Netflix, just go start Episode 1 of Saint Seiya and look at this in HD. It is majestic.)
Saint Seiya's Pegasus Fantasy is an amazing and very exciting OP as well. This is the first Japanese OP I ended up knowing all the lyrics for because of how exciting it is. As a kid this did such a good job of making me wanting to be one of the Saints, well before I knew what the lyrics even said, cause of how heroically they're presented. This one is also just an incredibly good sell for its series.
(By the way, Saint Seiya also has stellar Ending Themes)
For real though this time We Are is my third favorite...OR IS IT INFERNO FROM FIR nah just kidding.
What are your favorite first Openings to Shonen Anime? There are many others that I love so I hope to see a variety of answers. (If someone has already posted yours, feel free to post another one you love)
With first openings in Shonen anime, there are some that I simply never end up caring about much compared to later ones, like Naruto - ROCKS. There are those which I like at first and then in time grow to love like Black Clover - Haruka Mirai (this one helped in large part by how it sort of became the main character's theme song in the show itself).
Then there are the really special ones that I just love instantly. And one that naturally comes to mind is One Piece - We Are.
After all, this opening does a very good job of selling the series' sense of adventure and camaraderie. The song is hype and jolly and just has a really nice feel to it, while the visuals got me super excited to follow Luffy and co.'s travels through the East Blue and later the Grand Line. The showcase of the crew already had me set on a favorite character (Sanji). And even the introduction by Gold Roger quickly made me quite interested in the premise and main mystery of the series.
When thinking of first OPs in Shonen anime and anime in general, We Are comes to mind and puts a smile on my face immediately. With how well it sells its series and how it help catapult One Piece into the phenomenon it has become, how could I not give it the #1 spot of my favorite Shonen OP1?
By giving it to Bleach OP1 - Asterisk instead.
The music! The style of the visuals! The fashion! The editing!
Man this OP is just excellent on every level. This is the first anime OP that actually sold me on a show before I had decided to watch it. While I'm not crazy about what it is selling, I'm absolutely in love with the way it is selling it. This OP felt cool as hell when I got into Bleach years ago and it still feels that way now. There's just no Shonen Anime OP with cooler vibes than this one for me. The beginning of it alone always gets me unbelievably excited when I watch it.
Asterisk from Bleach is easily my favorite first OP in a Shonen anime.
But We Are from One Piece does still get a very respectable second favorite overall and would come in first place for pre-2000s series...is what I'd say if Pegasus Fantasy didn't exist!
(If you have Netflix, just go start Episode 1 of Saint Seiya and look at this in HD. It is majestic.)
Saint Seiya's Pegasus Fantasy is an amazing and very exciting OP as well. This is the first Japanese OP I ended up knowing all the lyrics for because of how exciting it is. As a kid this did such a good job of making me wanting to be one of the Saints, well before I knew what the lyrics even said, cause of how heroically they're presented. This one is also just an incredibly good sell for its series.
(By the way, Saint Seiya also has stellar Ending Themes)
For real though this time We Are is my third favorite...
What are your favorite first Openings to Shonen Anime? There are many others that I love so I hope to see a variety of answers. (If someone has already posted yours, feel free to post another one you love)
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