Compiling my top OPs and EDs of the year always is the most annoying part of writing up my yearly summaries, because this means that I have to listen to hordes of utterly horrid J-Pop songs in order to separate the cream of the crop. Still, having cringed for god knows how many times at some utterly terrible songs that eventually instantly made me turn for the off-button like some sort of reflex, I do want to highlight the series that do put in effort to create a memorable opening or ending. Whether it’s based on a simple well executed idea, or an ambitious project with a really interesting creative vision. I don’t care for OPs that just introduce the cast or hint un-subtly at random spoilers, or EDs that just contain a mellow ballad with a still image, I want to see something different or more. These too are great opportunities to showcase great animation.
So ere you have it, my top 23 of favorite OPs and EDs of the past year. Why such a random number as 23? Well… I miscounted. actually thought that I was making a top 20, but only found out too late that I had three entries too many for that.
#23: Denpa Onna to Seishun Otoko – ED
Of course, there are a bunch of entries of Shaft on this list. Denpa-Onna to Seishun Otoko was very annoying and misleading, but I can’t deny: this ED looks just gorgeous. The fanservice may be annoying, but the themes of ufos fit in perfectly with the first episodes of the series. The song itself is also very well built up, and for that it’s good enough to close off this list.
#22: Ginama’ OP 1
This OP is on the list because of its energy. I’m a big fan of energetic OPs, and this one is really catering to that. The song kicks ass, while the visuals pretty much nailed both the serious and silly parts of this show.
#21: Yondemasuyo, Azazel-San – OP
The direction of this OP is pretty generic, if it wasn’t for the content material of combining cute animals with hideous and gory character designs, but the OP is just so damn catchy. It makes a few nice subtle jokes too.
#20: Denpa-Onna to Seishun Otoko – OP
This OP. THAT VOICE! Seriously, this is by far the most squeaky OP of the entire season. But I can’t deny: it’s original and quite creative, and the animation in particular is really good and brings the characters to live with vivid and fluid animations. If only the actual series was a bit like this.
#19: Dororon – Enma-Kun – ED
I’ve been doing these lists for a couple of years now, and the OPs always end up outnumbering the EDs. For me, a good ED adds something to the series, whether it’s atmosphere, tension, or meaning. This was always a great and very tongue in cheek way to close off a show that’s this crazy. Especially the final scene that just hints at one giant drug trip fits it so well, but I also love that whenever something bizarre happened to one of the characters, those changes would also show up in this ED.
#18: Dragon Crisis – ED
I really have to say: this OP is pretty much the best thing of the entire Dragon Crisis series. Even more than with Denpa-Onna to Seishun Otoko, which still had its memorable moments. Both the song and video are well produced, it’s well sung, and it’s trying something different with its use of instruments. It really worked for me.
#17: Maria Holic – ED
I never bothered to watch Maria Holic Alive for more than an episode, so I didn’t encounter this ED until when I compiled this list. So with that in mind: what the hell was that? This thing is just crazy and I have to admit that it has some neat visual ideas. The vocalists are all terrible, though.
#16: Persona 4 The Animation – ED
This also is one of those EDs that just flows really naturally from out of the end of each episode. It’s simple, but I get what the visuals are trying to symbolize in the show’s context. The sound of both the OP (which didn’t make this list, by the way) and ED are both also very cool, which makes it quite enjoyable to watch every single time.
#15: Usagi Drop – OP
Before I started to compile this list, I really did not expect that this OP would make it in. The song’s style is just completely in the opposite direction of my tastes. And yet, as I started to look at it more closely, I realized what a good OP this is. Its visuals are very inspired, and give a great interpretation of a single father on top. The music meanwhile… sounds far less annoying than what I thought it was.
#14: Gyakkyou Burai Kaiji – Hakkairoku-hen – ED
This one… I just had to include it. THIS is the reason that we just don’t see any females in Akagi or Kaiji. It’s clear that the creators intended this ED to be one giant troll, completely different from anything the series is about and ever will be about. But it was hilariously disturbing.
#13: Nurarihyon no Mago – Sennen Makyou – OP
Now this is one that haunts me whenever I watch it. I should note that this also is a genre that I normally dislike a lot: J-Rock too often is too cheesy for me. Here though, the singer manages to compose himself just enough to not let this cheese take over the show, and let the amazing art here do its job. Nurarihyon no Mago went though a significant budget upgrade for its second season, and that really shows here more than ever.
#12: Ano Hi Mita Hana no Namae wo Boku-Tachi wa Mada Shiranai – ED
Secret Base “Kimi ga Kureta Mono” (Ano Hana ED) ~ Karaoke Lyrics from Garoo Studio on Vimeo.
Now this just is a huge chunk of emotion. The series was a roller coaster of emotions, and this ED was just absolutely wonderful in carrying over the melancholy at the climax of each episode. It’s powerfully sung and fits this show perfectly.
#11: X-Men OP
This is instrumental, but apart from that it just has everything: a kick-ass song, incredible visuals, gorgeous art. A lot of the Marvel series OPs and EDs are like this, and perfect to get the adrenaline going. I decided to represent them with the X-Men OP though, because it does hold a candle above the others with its visuals, plus I also feel that its track works the best of the bunch.
#10: Deadman Wonderland – OP
You can actually see that some of the same people who worked on this OP worked on the OP for Ergo Proxy. It may not look AS good, but the visual style still is incredibly slick and the animation really brings out the emotions. Deadman wonderland being about this crazy prison, it fully captures the mood, both in the images and the music itself.
#9: Gosick – ED2
The point where this ED appeared was also the point where Gosick finally got better. It really shows a wonderful portrayal of Victorique, doing much more than showing a bunch of images: it shows what an impact Kujou made on her life. And on top of that: that voice! This is really beautifully sung.
#8: Hyouge Mono – OP
This one is a gem, if only for the story behind it. For those of you who don’t know: originally Hyouge Mono had this laid-back OP song, sung by this laid back groove band. This went well and all, until one of its members got arrested, the band got disbanded, and Bee-Train suddenly lost all of the licensing rights. They had to come up with a solution fast, so they quickly recorded a random jazz piece in order to replace the song with. This jazz piece was fairly normal but pretty decent, and it lasted for a couple of weeks. After that, I can only imagine that they went “screw it, this is boring! we’re in this position now, so why shouldn’t we use this opportunity to experiment!?”. The result was a completely crazy soundtrack over the exact same footage. It was just surreal, to see the once so dignified Op be turned into this.. thing. I wish I could also show the graphics, but I unfortunately couldn’t such a version anywhere.
#7: Blood-C – OP
This is really everything I’m looking for in an OP: great, inspired visuals, excellent animation, and a terrific song that manages to make use of the fact that it’s only 90 seconds long. For once the singer tries to combine his Japanese with french, which is quite refreshing after having to sit through so many bloody OPs that throw random Engrish words in their lyrics.
#6: Un-Go – ED
There really is one ED that immediately stood above all of the other EDs this year. When I first watched it, I was convinced that this would end up as my favorite ED of the year. There’s just so much imagination put in the visuals. Every shot here kicks ass and is a great composition on its own. The song itself is mellow, yet inspired. Plus, it the way it alternates between male and female vocals: that’s also something you don’t often hear in EDs.
#5: Fractale – OP
I’m sorry. I just… I just love the idea behind this. The show is called Fractale, it’s about a computer system called the “Fractale”. So what do you show for an OP? A fractal, of course! It’s so brilliantly simple. Screw the idea that you need to line up all of the characters one by one for an OP, Ops are meant to be creative. On top of that, the song itself is just one of those J-Pop songs that my bias against the genre will gladly make an exception to. Great voice, great composition. All around a great OP that I could watch for many times after each other.
#4: No.6 – OP
I know that with this, Noitamina has dominated one fourth of this Top 20, but this is the last one, I swear. Even though the timeslot headed into a significantly different direction this year, it had a selection of wonderful OPs. The best one came from Number 6, though. It all fits: a great song, great animation, and a great message. It’s one of those rare EDs that actually manage to tell a story of their own about the two lead characters. It’s a perfect introduction for this series.
#3: Sacred Seven – OP
Yuki Kajiura delivers again with an amazing song here. On top of that, the visuals here were directed by Sayo Yamamoto, the director of Michiko to Hatchin, who I’m a big fan of. And indeed, the visuals here perfectly fit both the song and the series. In fact, she actually succeeded to nail the main characters of this series, and made them look exciting. And I still remain convinced that the main character has one of the best vehicles out there. So yes, what does Sunrise do?Halfway through the series they swap out this OP for a much more generic one, turn the song into the Ed and swap a generic still frame on it. Why Sunrise, why!??!
#2: Kamisama Dolls – OP
Yuki Kajiura is great, but this year her former partner at See-Saw did one-up her with an amazing song that trumps even Sacred Seven’s OP.. Her voice is just amazing and works incredibly well right next to the latin-esque tunes that you hardly ever get to hear in anime. The visual direction meanwhile has a very neat idea that’s really well worked out with just perfect transitions.
#1: Level E – OP
Now this is just one of those OPs where everything fits. First of all the song here is much closer to my usual taste in music than nearly all other OPs and EDs out there, and the singer especially manages to sing it with a lot of power. This is a series about science fiction, aliens and other space oddities and that gets perfectly portrayed in this OP. It’s action-packed, suspenseful, all of the images are freaky and imaginative. This definitely stands out as my favorite OP of 2011.
I am actually surprised that none of the OPs/EDs from Mawaru Penguindrum made it to this list… Did you maybe forget them?
Imo, the 1st OP and the 3rd(?) ED were quite nice.
What? No Penguindrum ED? I absolutely love taht one, it captures the feeling of the show perfectly. Also I love the Mirai Nikki OP, although that one’s probably too “typical” for psgels’ list. 😛
Nice collection of tunes. I’m really glad that Kamisama Dolls placed so high. I wasn’t impressed with the show itself, but the OP was very interesting, as you said, both for the unusual Latin feel to the music, and the very inspired visuals idea and direction.
Also interesting that LAMA managed to pull 1/5th of your top 10. Fanatasy is such a great song!
Lol no surprise, almost anything that comes out of them is gold.
I thought Mirai Nikki’s OP would of at least made the top 10 but it’s not even on the list, oh well.
I guess music will always be a personal thing.
I don’t know all the songs, but I’m surprised that no.6 OPrated higher the un-go EP. I can’t stand No 6’s song, the voice register is too high, whereas Un-go is fantastic.
And like previous comments have said, pretty shocked that MPD didn’t feature at all! where as I randomly clicked a few of the ones you’ve put up and were not impressed.
So yeah, I think it must be a personal music taste thing.
You do know that No. 6 OP and Un-go ED are by the same person, right?
Just checking.
p.s. I liked Spell better than Fantasy as well. But psgels might have liked it more on visuals since Fantasy is pretty static.
Yes I do know! The voice stayed on the right side in fantasy, plus it’s a duet, and so half the time it was the guy singing. I liked his part more.
Awesome list a lot of songs I enjoyed a lot of this list, especially overlooked ones like Blood-C, Deadman Wonderland, and Hyouge Mono.
Fractale probably gets my top vote as well. You should check out Azuma Hitomi’s single for Harinezumi. It has the OP/ED and, my favorite, the B-Side Onaji Yume. A great single.
The new Gintama OP/ED combo is kickass as well.
I’m surprised though that the first Gosick ED did nothing for you. I liked Lisa Komine’s work on Resuscitated Hope a bit better but then I wouldn’t get to see all the wonderful period clothes Victorique wears in the end. Toss up for me.
I also quite dug Dantalian no Shoka’s OP/ED even though for the most part they made absolutely no sense in the context and tone of the show.
Finally I quite enjoy the OPs of some of the currently airing shows like Guilty Crown, Ben-To, and Shana s3.
Also I had this song Pair by Meaw the ED of Honto ni Atta Reibai Sensei stuck in my head FOREVER.
I know it’s bad, but one of my favorites OPs came from episode 5 of Sacred Seven when gg trolled it and replaced OP with ‘Ridin’ Dirty’ It was unbelievable how well the lyrics in the song fit with the animation. The original techno OP just didn’t do it for me.
I agree that some of the new stuff is really great and I would have liked to see some represented here, but again music is a personal preferences and my tastes are not the authors tastes.
That being said, I’ll throw my preferences in here as well: I enjoyed the OP to Deadman Wonderland, Gosick (but not the 2nd ED at all), and Mirai Nikki. I liked the ED of Ano Hi Mita (a lot) and the ED/OP of Penguindrum. For some reason I like the OP of Guilty Crown even though I feel like I shouldn’t.
Lol, i’m asking the same question as ChobitsChi…
No Opening nor an Ending of Mawaru Penguin Drum? You should have put one of the Openings for the participation of Yakushimaru in those alone! 😉 Also, in my opinion, the visuals were very nice and reflected the style of the series; so I really don’t know why you didn’t vote one of those in. It also baffles me that you didn’t add the Opening to Mirai Nikki. It’s really nicely animated and the song is cool too…
So please, explain 🙂
Yeah-ha, Level E! That was my first thought on “has to be in the top” when I saw the header! Definitely my favorite of the year as well.
It’s nice to see that shows are experimenting more as well. Too much has been basing off of like the Shounen stereotype of J-pop w/action (or heck, just J-pop when it doesn’t fit) from years of old. I want to see more of the likes of Level E and Shiki in my openings – really drawing me in instead of “HEY LOOKIT!”.
You probably didn’t put any Mawaru Penguindrum songs on there because all of them were taken down. At least, I hope that’s the case.
I am, however, surprised that you didn’t put GOSICK’s first ending. In my opinion, it’s better than the second ending and is incredibly beautiful in both visual and audio aspects.
I’m also a little surprised that you didn’t think fate/zero’s glorious ending was better than openings/endings with horrible singing. Seriously, they did a great job taking inspiration from real-life art of each of the servants and coupling them with a strong and melancholic song.
I can’t believe there are none of the school food punishment songs. For whatever reason you seem to just listen to them once and call them “bland” when they’re probably one of the most artistic and innovative J-pop bands out there. Pay close attention to their instrumentals and lyrics and compare them with mainly everything else on this list. C’s “RPG” got an “excellent” rating and an in-depth explanation about why it’s so good from the Anime Instrumentality Blog and I think you should probably go read it to see if it changes your mind about them. That ending was also very creative with its pixel motif.
As for No. 6’s opening…I liked the ending a lot better. The female singer’s voice just grated on me in that song.
Speaking of C, why isn’t their opening on there? Sure the song is slightly generic J-rock, but I thought the paper money motif was very creative.
Dantalian no Shoka’s opening was also incredibly beautiful. The song is a serious contender to Elfen Lied’s Lilium, and the visuals are gorgeously animated and choreographed to the song. No idea why that isn’t on there either.
Other songs that I think are missing are Mirai Nikki’s opening, Guilty Crown’s opening (the show is crap but the opening’s great), UN-GO’s opening, GOSICK’s opening, Madoka’s ending, Steins;Gate’s opening/ending, and Kamisama no Memochou’s opening.
I know I probably have no right to complain on a list of someone’s opinion, but I just thought that there were a lot of better openings and endings that deserved to be highlighted more.
I have to agree with Level E opening! The animation and the song were perfect for the anime! I’m sad to see no Mawaru Penguindrum but oh well, music is a very personal thing. I’m glad that at least one song from No.6 made it and I knew Un Go’s ending would be featured in this top 🙂
#1 opening of the year (and perhaps EVER) for me has to be the second opening of Nichijou. That was soooooooo amazing and fun. And crazy. And EPIC.
And I’m in love with the second Gosick ending. It is such a beautiful song–the first time I heard it, I was nearly breathless.
Other special mentions:
Mirai Nikki’s opening – Such haunting visuals, and crazy music! It’s so unique-sounding.
Kamisama Doll’s ending – Everyone likes the OP, but the ED is what really impressed me. (I need to finish that show…)
Love that Kamisama Dolls OP. So stylish.
I guess this is all a matter of taste. I actually disklike half of the op/ed on your list
Lol. GG’s version of the Sacred 7 opening was 100x better compared to the original xD
My fav 10 would be.
Mawaru Penguindrum 1st ED
Un-Go ED
Ano Hana OP
Fractale OP
Horou Musuko ED
Kuragehime ED
Usagi Drop OP
Tiger & Bunny OP1
Tiger & Bunny Op2
Nichijou Op1
Nichijoi Op2
Liked No.6 OP song, but after a week or two, it got too annoying for me. Maybe the crappy finish to the anime affected that.
Im pretty sure kuragehime is 2010, but yes great op
Ano Hi Mita Hana no Namae wo Boku-Tachi wa Mada Shiranai – ED was unforgettable.
Favorite OPs
Hanasaku Iroha (both)
Steins;Gate
One Piece
Tamayura: Hitotose
Nichijou (both)
Favorite EDs
Madoka
Steins;Gate
Tamayura: Hitotose
I wish you could compile a top thirty or sorts. Other ten notable omissions:
Coaltar of the Deepers – Dear Future (Mawaru Penguin Drum)
Galileo Galilei – Aoi Shiori (Ano Hana)
How Merry Marry – Boku ni Dekiru Koto (Natsume Yuujinchou San)
JAMIL – The Rock City Boy (Fairy Tail)
Amuro Namie – Fight Together (One Piece)
Itou Kanako – Hacking to the Gate (Steins;Gate)
School Food Punishment – RPG (C)
Marina Fujiwara – Daydream Generation (Yumekuri Merry)
The Pillows – Comic Sonic (Sket Dance)
2PM – Take Off (Ao no Exorcist)
Well, that’s a fine list you’ve got there.
Here are a few ones I love that you didn’t include:
[C] ED – Wow. I understand that you didn’t like this ED, but it was awesome for me. The animation was a feast for the eyes; the song was bright, exciting, and brilliantly instrumented. This ED is one of the factors which helped me like this anime as much as I did, since it closed every episode on a high note. I couldn’t help grinning like a moron at the end of every episode because of this ED.
Nichijou OP1 – The animation is so freaking crazy, and the song is lovable and grows on you. It’s a pity that the majority of the anime couldn’t live up to its OP. The second OP for this anime is also good, but it has an inferior song so it doesn’t cut the cheese.
Mirai Nikki OP – I’m not even watching this show yet, but this is a grand OP with a deliciously dark flavor to it.
You dropped Inazuma GO long before things started moving…anyway, try check out OP 2. It has the energy Inazuma is known for (first OP is weakest out of all). And a lot of rainbows.
You should also check out Beelzebub ED 3. I doubt you’ll care for the song but the visuals are gorgeous.
Hell yeah Level E.
I would rate Denpa Onna or AnoHana OP #1. My #1 ED would be Usagi Drop ED for the still image of smiling Rin which changed every episode; the song and this image had quite a strong impact on me.
Also I also mention HanaIro OP for the animation quality and Ben-To OP for the action.
Oh, and I found myself strangely addicted both to the first OP and ED of Suite Precure because they are so catchy and optimistic. I dropped that show, however, after I realized that I watched it only for the OP/ ED!
#23: Denpa Onna to Seishun Otoko – ED
I’m surprised this one made your list. I agree that it has stunning visuals, but I hate the song. I always ended up skipping it.
#22: Ginama’ OP 1
So much energy, so many things happening on screen! The opening doesn’t feel like 90 seconds at all.
#21: Yondemasuyo, Azazel-San – OP
This anime was just too weird for me, so I decided to skip this one. I’m sure I didn’t catch the jokes in this opening.
#20: Denpa-Onna to Seishun Otoko – OP
When I first watched this opening I was like: my ears! Turn it off!! But somewhere along the way I actually started to like the song, eventually singing along with a voice just as terrible as the original ^^’
#19: Dororon – Enma-Kun – ED
Only saw a few episodes, but I like this ending 🙂
#18: Dragon Crisis – ED
Haven’t seen Dragon Crisis, but I agree that this ed looks nice.
#17: Maria Holic – ED
Due to time restraints I didn’t watch this sequel, but this is some crazy stuff.
#16: Persona 4 The Animation – ED
Nice song with very simple visuals, nothing special though.
#15: Usagi Drop – OP
Somehow the song was more fitting as ending song of the (live action) movie, but the visuals are really cute.
#14: Gyakkyou Burai Kaiji – Hakkairoku-hen – ED
Everytime I see this thing I can only laugh. I love this!
#13: Nurarihyon no Mago – Sennen Makyou – OP
Dropped this right before the change of opening, but this is definitely better than the first opening! Maybe I should pick this up again. I have already watched this far, I can sit through another 13 episodes! I think…
#12: Ano Hi Mita Hana no Namae wo Boku-Tachi wa Mada Shiranai – ED
I remember this ending being so awesome that my old computer couldn’t handle it! Had to settle for lower quality to watch it 🙁
#11: X-Men OP
That is one epic song! Skipped the anime though.
#10: Deadman Wonderland – OP
I love this opening! Good song, everything red, characters looking badass, what more to ask for?
#9: Gosick – ED2
Never thought I was going to say this, but I miss Gosick. I love Lisa Komine’s voice. But to be honest, I thought I’d be seeing the opening on your list. So many details and hints that only made sense after watching the anime, I thought it was wonderfully done.
#8: Hyouge Mono – OP
Still must get around to watching this. I love history, I love samurai, I love tea, I can understand Japanese… what the hell am I doing skipping this thing!?
#7: Blood-C – OP
Beautiful but simple, I like it!
#6: Un-Go – ED
I love this ending! Without doubt my favorite ending this year!
#5: Fractale – OP
I’m still convinced they are trying to brainwash me.
#4: No.6 – OP
Another lama song I really like, I must buy their album!
#3: Sacred Seven – OP
They see me rollin’, they hatin’… guess that’s what you get if you watched that version before the original.
#2: Kamisama Dolls – OP
Great song and great visuals. Loved the village vs the city collage.
#1: Level E – OP
I agree with this one being number 1! Too bad the ending didn’t make your list as well.
About AnoHana ED: It’s a remake from the all time hit from girls band ZONE. To be correct, we can say that the entire anime is a tribute to this song for the 10th anniversary of the band separation. In fact, this version includes “ten years after” in his title. There’s a special tribute album with various artists covers of ZONE hits, released for a one time reunification of the band this summer.
So AnoHana fits this song perfectly, not the opposite 🙂
I have this album and I love SCANDAL’s version!
I am bit surprised that Cras Numquam Scire [Dantalian no Shoka] was not included in the list.
Very nice! Quite a few series I still need to check out like Penguindrum and Usagi Drop but here is mine from what I saw this year…
10. No. 6 OP
9. Steins;Gate OP
8. Hana-Saku Iroha ED1
7. Tiger & Bunny OP1
6. Persona OP
5. AnoHana OP
4. Nichijou OP1
3. LevelE OP
2. Un-Go ED
1. AnoHana ED
>X-Men OP
>No Madoka Ending/Any Mawaru OP
Woot?
Personally, the biggest impact in OP/ED for me come from Madoka.
I mean, the opening’s atmosphere was probably a bit too whimsical, but it had purpose withing the meaning of the show, whether it be purposely trolling watchers into thinking Madoka was some slice-of-magical-life show or… revealing its own lyrics to be quite meaningful later on.
And then the ending had importance, too–hence why they intentionally left it out until the third episode.
Then again, I look more into things with meaning. Guilty Crown has a beautiful opening song, but average (yet still kinda pretty) visuals. AnoHana’s ending was also really great and had some meaning, but it lacked much of a personal impact due to its slow nature…
But hey. To each his/her own. =3
I honestly wouldn’t have remembered Level E had you not put it on this list. The entire series was funny, but I didn’t walk out of it with anything significantly new…
I’m surprised Penguindrum and T&B didn’t make the list…
I’m very surprised nobody has mentioned [C]! The OP is really amazing with great visuals and an amazing song! The ending is also really good too.
Oops guess I didn’t read all the comments cause now I see C mentioned.
In terms of perfectly portraying what a show is about, I think both of Nichijou’s OP wins out – the frenetic action mixed with moments of soothing calmness, just to be propelled into chaos once more.
What did you think of it? Many people here are mentioning it, so what are your thoughts on some of the others that didn’t make your list?
Sorry, but I absolutely HATED No. 6’s OP and Gosick’s second ED. I thought their singing voices made my ears bleed!