Wolf actually makes a list: My favorite TV openings...

[Björn]

Ahhhh, Tintin! C'est magnifique.

[Wolf of the Winter]

Ahhhh, Tintin! C'est magnifique.

That opening is splendid.

[Monsieur Red]

Tin Tin is the ginchiest.

[Wolf of the Winter]

6. Avatar: The Last Airbender.


The show: Complex characters, complex mythology, great action scenes, beautiful animation, some of the best music ever conceived for a TV show, pure awesomeness.
The intro: The theme is pretty epic, specially towards the ending when the title card appears, and Mae Whitman's narration is explanatory but doesn't give the whole plot away as it may look. The transition between the title card, the episode title and the very first scene of the series is pretty awesome.

[Wolf of the Winter]

Tin Tin is the ginchiest.

I agree.

[Wolf of the Winter]

5. Daria.


The show: If you haven't seen this show, start right, fucking now! The title character is pretty much awesome in every cynical way, the comedy is always there and better yet, Daria is deconstructed wonderfully as a very insecure girl as the show goes on.
The intro: Lalala-lala lalala-lala. The show is pretty much amazing and has a very irreverent tone that is so... Daria. Goes perfect with the sequence.

[kiddo in space]

Daria! I'm so going to buy the complete series on DVD.

[Wolf of the Winter]

Daria! I'm so going to buy the complete series on DVD.

What do you think of the most recent entries so far?

[kiddo in space]

What do you think of the most recent entries so far?

Damn great. Oh the memories. I prefer the original Scooby Doo opening, but 13 Ghosts was awesome, to this day I still wonder if they ever captured all of the ghosts...

Animaniacs FTW, TMNT was my obsession as a child, Avatar is fucking great, haven't seen Angel but loved that intro...so yeah, everything is awesome.

[Wolf of the Winter]

Damn great. Oh the memories. I prefer the original Scooby Doo opening, but 13 Ghosts was awesome, to this day I still wonder if they ever captured all of the ghosts...

No. :/ As I mentioned, they cancelled the show.

Animaniacs FTW, TMNT was my obsession as a child, Avatar is fucking great, haven't seen Angel but loved that intro...so yeah, everything is awesome.

Good, good.

[dreiser]

The X-Files and Buffy are far too low on the list.

[Trevor]

Last summer, I downloaded and watched all 65 episodes + 2 movies of Daria in about a week. One of the greatest series' I've ever watched.

I plan to buy the upcoming series DVD and potentially do a thread on it,recap/thoughts of every episode.

[Wolf of the Winter]

Last summer, I downloaded and watched all 65 episodes + 2 movies of Daria in about a week. One of the greatest series' I've ever watched.

I plan to buy the upcoming series DVD and potentially do a thread on it,recap/thoughts of every episode.

Yes, please!

[Mod Hip]

My powerbook is getting up there in years and all the embedded videos are hell for load times so I won't be backreading... but in the realm of cartoons it's cool to see TMNT and Darkwing. I can only hope that Aeon Flux was on here somewhere. I'd also say Brisco County Jr, Greatest American Hero and Burst Angel but that's just me being hopeful and leaning on some of the few shows I genuinely love (that, incidentally, have totally tubular intros).

[Wolf of the Winter]

Ok, I should've finished this a while ago. Now that I'm officially with more time, the top 4:

4. Firefly.


The show: Joss Whedon's sci-fi cult classic... which I haven't seen. After the great word of mouth and the awesomeness of the opening and my enjoyment of the genre and Whedon's Angel... I want to fix that soon.
The opening: Even though I haven't seen a single episode of Firefly, once, when it was still being aired, I managed to see the credits and I instantly thought they were great. I mean, the song is flat out amazing is gorgous, man, I love the violin and the banjo there. It fits perfect for the blend of Western and Sci-Fi Whedon wants (or at least I think he wants). Nathan Fillion reminds me of Han Solo and Adam Baldwyn looks hilarious.

[Monsieur Red]

*nods*

[Joss Whedon]

34. Power Rangers (First opening).


The show: You already know it.
The opening: The song is badass, simply, pure awesome badassery so badass that offsets Rita's annoying whiny voice and Alpha. Kimberly was hot. RIP Trini.

I haven't seen this in years. Damn, they ripped off everything.

[Joss Whedon]

Ok, I should've finished this a while ago. Now that I'm officially with more time, the top 4:

4. Firefly.


The show: Joss Whedon's sci-fi cult classic... which I haven't seen. After the great word of mouth and the awesomeness of the opening and my enjoyment of the genre and Whedon's Angel... I want to fix that soon.
The opening: Even though I haven't seen a single episode of Firefly, once, when it was still being aired, I managed to see the credits and I instantly thought they were great. I mean, the song is flat out amazing is gorgous, man, I love the violin and the banjo there. It fits perfect for the blend of Western and Sci-Fi Whedon wants (or at least I think he wants). Nathan Fillion reminds me of Han Solo and Adam Baldwyn looks hilarious.

I think this song is horrible. I understand the point, it just doesn't arouse feelings similar to the ones of Angel and Buffy.

[Wolf of the Winter]

I think this song is horrible. I understand the point, it just doesn't arouse feelings similar to the ones of Angel and Buffy.

:/

Oh, and master list on the OP.

[Joss Whedon]

:/

Oh, and master list on the OP.

It's a really good list. I get the feeling that the Fresh Prince will be making an appearance soon. I sort of enjoy the first few seasons of the Dawson's Creek theme song. I wanted to make sure this wasn't just nostalgia so I watched a few of the other WB shows to remember what their songs and credits were. Dawson's Creek works well in the first season because it manages to be natural, it's even modest for what is basically a soap opera.

[Wolf of the Winter]

Twice? I must see this!

You're about to, man.

3. Swat Kats: The Radical Squadron (S2).


The show: On it's second season, Swat Kats went through a few changes. For starters it was taken by the animation studio MOOK and it payed in spaces: Now the animation was crisper and grittier with a style that kinda reminds me of Frank Miller's (probably influenced by Batman: TAS), style that was just so perfect, making this show even more badass. Seriously, more badass. Also we had a few more female characters: Felina Feral, who was Commander Feral's roguish enforcer daughter and Turmoil: a female villain that was supposed to be used more. Both gave a nice contrast to Callie who was always closer to the damsel in distress role. And third: it tried to start using some more mature stories, specially episodes dealing with the consequences the act of our heroes could have on innocent people (Razor's Edge) and interesting alternative realities where we're shown how close they could be to play for the bad guys or what would happen if they're killed. All of those where hints of what kind of show this could've turned out, but unfortunately the studios also decided to dick around with the show in a very negative way first trying to force them to change the format to 10 minute shorts instead of standard episodes of 20 minutes, and then canceling it three episodes before the second season finished on Ted Turner orders because it was, according to him, too violent leaving him free to keep airing pussy, boring horseshit like Captain Planet. Fuck that guy.
The intro: Here is one of the first instances when you can see MOOK's hand: ?The animation is crisper, more fluid, grittier and with darker tones, making it very aesthetically pleasing and the sound design... holy shit man, so incredible (have you ever heard a more awesome engine?). Megakat City is turned into a futuristic Blade Runner-esque dystopya with a very palatable feel of oppression and the final seconds of the intro, first with Dark Kat releasing his creeplings followed by arguably the most memorable scene of the opening: a darkened Doctor Viper turning back and attacking the camera in the most awesome way ever. Such a great intro.
Note: Fuck Ted Turner for canceling my favorite childhood show.
Note #2: Kiddo in Space, Dr. Viper is my pick for most awesome cat-like villain ever.

[Wolf of the Winter]

It's a really good list. I get the feeling that the Fresh Prince will be making an appearance soon. I sort of enjoy the first few seasons of the Dawson's Creek theme song. I wanted to make sure this wasn't just nostalgia so I watched a few of the other WB shows to remember what their songs and credits were. Dawson's Creek works well in the first season because it manages to be natural, it's even modest for what is basically a soap opera.

I actually completely forgot about the Fresh Prince. It deserves a mention.

#. The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air


The show: Well, the opening basically tells you the basics. Will Smith moves with his rich uncles, amking him the classic fish out of water and then shenaningans ensue. Carlton is hilarious.
The intro: The song is pretty damn catchy and I would love to be on a cap with FRESH on it's license plates. Good stuff.

[Wolf of the Winter]

2. Batman: The Animated Series.


The show: It made a difference. Simply, if there's an animated show that can come close to The Simpsons regarding influence on it's medium, this is probably it. It understood the Batman character and everyone around him in ways nobody previously had and took it to full advantage not only giving us the best version of the cape crusader on movies or TV, but also expanding and changing it's universe in ways never previously thought giving us entirely new characters like Harley Quinn or giving old ones an entirely new spin that was embraced by everyone. Also, with that understanding, we had also a big set of guts from the creators in giving the audience full trust showing entire, fully fleshed out arcs, complex characters, mature themes, a darker and bleaker tone and not being afraid of ending in despair when needed. A masterpiece of a show.
The intro: Breathtaking. With this mini-movie we have a perfect glimpse of what the cape crusader represents: We see him as the night, as fear, as vengeance, as Batman.

[Monsieur Red]

That intro left me totally exhilarated when I was a kid.

Also Shirley Walker's (RIP) Batman theme > Elfman's.

[Derninan]

This thread is so great, Wolf. Makes me so nostalgic for some of the shows I loved as a kid. Duck Tales is still popular amongst my friends and I, almost as a roll call. Someone will just randomly shout "Duck Tales!" and whoever is around will follow with "u-woo-oo!" Stupid but awesome.

I love the art-deco look of Batman: TAS. One of the few shows from my childhood that I still enjoy on some level.

[Monsieur Red]

The Duck Tales theme song is greatness.

[Wolf of the Winter]

1. Dexter


The show: Michael C. Hall stars as Dexter Morgan, the most awesome and twisted serial superhero on TV. We see him trying him to define himself as a person, as a human, as an entity of good and evil and about his past all while brutally murdering bad guys. I wonder how nobody had never came with such a fantastic premise. And Michael C. Hall is always incredible.
The intro: Hypnotic, disturbing, brilliant. Not enough words to say how awesome it is. We see a simple morning routine something normal and yet at the same time, it doesn't look normal, it looks disturbing, horrific and wickedly funny and we see it always like that, why? Because we're not seeing someone normal. We're seeing a murderer, a potential monster and we can't look away.


Well that would be the end. I hope you had enjoyed reading my list as much as I enjoyed doing it. Keep leaving comments.

[Epistemophobia]

That intro always gets me moving.

[Wolf of the Winter]

This thread is so great, Wolf.

Thank you.

Makes me so nostalgic for some of the shows I loved as a kid. Duck Tales is still popular amongst my friends and I, almost as a roll call. Someone will just randomly shout "Duck Tales!" and whoever is around will follow with "u-woo-oo!" Stupid but awesome.

It happens to me as well. Such a great song.

I love the art-deco look of Batman: TAS. One of the few shows from my childhood that I still enjoy on some level.

It's a perfect stylistic fit and is beautiful.

That intro left me totally exhilarated when I was a kid.

Ditto. it's truly unforgettable.

Also Shirley Walker's (RIP) Batman theme > Elfman's.

Agreed.

[Wolf of the Winter]

That intro always gets me moving.

Indeed. Such an awesomesauce-filled breakfast sequence.

[Derninan]

I've only seen the first season of Dexter, and I really wasn't a fan. Replace it with Six Feet Under!

[Wolf of the Winter]

I've only seen the first season of Dexter, and I really wasn't a fan. Replace it with Six Feet Under!

I've not seen SFU the show and the credits, I just saw them for the first time, V's are good but nowhere as great as the time you're saying.

[Derninan]

I've not seen SFU the show and the credits, I just saw them for the first time, V's are good but nowhere as great as the time you're saying.

wha?

[Wolf of the Winter]

wha?

I meant Six Feet Under's are not as good as Dexter's. I don't know what was I thinking. Probably needed some sleep or somethng.

[Alice]

[The Great One]

Dexter's credits are probably my favorite currently, but the Mad Men credits are up there for me too.

[Wolf of the Winter]

Those are pretty nice.

You know guys, I thought if there would be a no controversy pick, it would be Dexter as number one, but I think I was wrong.
Seriously.

Any more thoughts about the rest of the entries?

[kiddo in space]

Dexter greatest opening. I concur.

[Wolf of the Winter]

Dexter greatest opening. I concur.

It makes me feel hungry.