Heyos Everyones!!
A Merry Christmas Eve to you all! We all hope you’re having a wonderful holiday, and we’d like to continue our appreciation of anime openings from this past year! So, let’s not waste any time, and get to our second week of favorite anime openings for 2016!!
Ace: Ho boy, this is a big one for me. As some may know, Kawada Mami is one of my favorite artists, and I still wish I had the ability to see her in concert. It truly disappoints me that she retired, but I wish her the best all the same. Anyway, I would like my second pick to be her last anime opening(as far as I’m aware), Ao no Kanata no Four Rhythm. I will go generally pick up shows with music artists I enjoy, and knowing that this was probably her last work before retirement, I had to watch this show. Now, I can’t say the show was a masterpiece; Ao no Kanata was far from it. But the show actually progressed and I found myself quite engrossed in the story, even with how generic it turned out. Unfortunately, I find myself reading off all the cons of the opening, even after discarding the generic plot. The characters in their introduction shot tell the audience nothing about the character, and the only movement comes from the actual sport of the show, rather that subtly showcasing each characters personality. The opening also fails in explaining the antagonists of the show, grouping them all together into ‘players,’ and shuffling them off one by one. So really, why do I love this opening? Really, it comes down to the music, and I personal taste for this show. As generic as the show presented itself, I still found myself having a good time and this show just demonstrates that some of my favorite music artists can convince me to watch a show I would have otherwise passed on.
Mark: Assassination Classroom‘s last opening is probably one of the most best/emotional openings that I’ve ever seen. There were so many things that I loved about it. First off, the lyrics fit so well for what’s going on with the current arc. I love when the cast is actually singing the opening. I also love the fact that they are singing about how they’ve learned so many things in the past year, and how they will never forget any of the memories/feelings they shared with not only each other but with Koro-sensei. Next come the visuals of the opening. Man, this really brings it all together. First we get greeted with a bunch of different scenes representing only a fraction of the events that happen throughout their school year, which then pans out to an empty class room. Then comes my favorite part! The scene gets split in 3 ways; the darker tone being the past, the normal coloring being the present, and the Technicolor being the future. We then see the chalk board with the dates just zooming through the year in the same fashion as how the anime opens with the title of each episode. We are then greeted with a picture of Koro-sensei with the cast slowly fading in with to fill up the picture with their happy faces. It then ends with Nagisa walking away from the classroom, he looks behind him to see Koro-sensei waving him goodbye in front of their classroom, it pans back to Nagisa smiling at him then goes back to the classroom, only this time, Koro-sensei isn’t there anymore. And then this is where I start ugly crying. Throughout this entire opening you end up feeling their bittersweet happiness of finally graduating and it reminds you of everything that happened through the entire anime. If you haven’t already watched Assassination Classroom. Please do it.
Mickey: Being Love Live trash means I had to include the opening to the sequel series, Love Live Sunshine. Not that it doesn’t deserve it on its own merit, mind you. Aquors hits us with the signature school idol sound and choreo during the performance sections, but it’s in the “cute girls doing cute things” moments that they really shine (pun maybe intended). We see the girls paired according to years, naturally, with things taking a darker turn when we get to the third years. As a big part of the drama this season, it’s very fitting that they receive a cloudy backdrop and a solemn wind. Chika, however, blows by them as well, and leads us back to the stage. From here we get the full group shots, symbolizing the heart of Love Live: together, we can make our dreams come true! Perhaps you’re not a fan of school idols. Maybe you just didn’t want to give Sunshine a chance (*cough*Ace*cough*). However, I knew I was in for another special ride from the first episode, and “Aozora Jumping Heart” is an opening worthy of the original’s worthy successors.