You liked my Top 10 Favourite Anime OSTs, so I hope you'll enjoy my Top 10 Favourite Anime OPs and following that EDs.

I'll be weighing up the sakuga, animation quality, editing and even foreshadowing in the OPs, as I'll be swayed going by song alone. As I'll be looking at foreshadowing, there may be some spoilers, so skip if you don't want any. Mother’s Basement does all the analysis on a whole bunch of these OPs, way better than I ever could, so check him out!

I made all the gifs in this post!

“Tank”

And now on with the chosen ones!

“Zero Centimetres - Yuiko Ohara”

If I don’t talk about this OP no one will! It’s not the most spectacular OP ever, but it doesn’t need to be. For an OP so soft, it’s hard hitting with the foreshadowing, such as the joke box Nishitaka makes and the rubber Takagi lends him. I think this OP is so sweet, and I remember I used to get butterflies during that dance scene and that scene at the end where Takagi writes on Nishitaka’s back. I don’t know the singer AT ALL, but her voice is so lilting and sweet! She really captured the essence of a childhood crush in 90 seconds. I can’t wait for S3!

“Zankyou Zanka - Aimer”

Demon Slayer is a simple shounen, and the OP fits that; there’s no grandiose foreshadowing to events that happen seasons from now, but god take a look at this stunning OP.

LOOK! AT! THE! FUCKING!! ANIMATION!!! THE MUSIC!!!! THE FORESHADOWING!!!!! This OP is CRAMMED with sakuga! My poor heart BROKE when I saw Rengoku’s hilt guard at the start. Poor Uzui’s backstory is hinted at, but they get you so hyped up for the upcoming action and BOY DID THEY DELIVER THIS SEASON! I want to kiss Aimer on the mouth for giving us such a good OP, I didn’t think LiSA could be matched.

“DADDY ! DADDY ! DO ! - Masayuki Suzuki feat. Airi Suzuki”

AHHHHHHHHHHH I DIDN’T THINK THIS WOULD BE A FAVE BUT HERE IT IS! The music! The animation! The subtle details! Mwah mwah mwah! Brilliant! They fall in love with each other more every season!

Their battle for love in the first season was fierce, unapologetic in its brutality, deadly! Here, it’s blossoming into something gentler, but not losing its intensity in the slightest. Also we get to see the side characters up to their antics at well, which is never a problem.

“Naked Hero - Vaundy”

I already did my analysis on this ahah! Wow, I didn’t think you could pack so much emotion and foreshadowing into an OP but boy was I wrong! You can feel the love pouring out of Hiling’s gaze, and the love that went into making this superb OP. I love Vaundy, and I was so ecstatic to see them doing the OP for one of my now favourite anime ever.

This OP will definitely have the same nostalgic effect in ten years, where you burst out singing as soon you hear it. There’s a few like that on this list too. Oh yeah, and this may be the only OP on here to make me cry upon its first viewing. I would love to give it a higher ranking — I would’ve based on Vaundy alone — it could easily sit in the Top 5 any day, but we’ll see how the season ends first :D.

“Feuerroter Pfeil und Bogen”

YEAAAAAAAAH!!! FIRST ANIME BABY!!! And I used to skip the OP WPEOSKDMSOEN. Still, this OP is utterly ICONIC!!! We all scream “JAEGER” at the top of our lungs, there’s no denying it.

The ~cinnamontopography~ 😩. The organised ranks of soldiers in almost blinding monochrome against the chaotic titans in splotchy neon colours. The way Annie, Mikasa and Eren move is so goddamn satisfying and beautiful to look at. That’s some REAAAAAL nice sakuga, straight from Studio Wit themselves. This OP was really the best first OP for a series like AOT, they knocked it outta the park!

“My Ordinary Life - Kataomoi”

If that zooming shot isn’t the coolest thing you’ve ever seen in your life shut up with your butt up. The OP is so funny and the song is such a FUCKING BOP!!! They instantly set you up for all the gags that might take place over the course of the show and let you know you’re in for the craziest “slice of life” you’ve ever seen. Get ready to dance your ass off when this comes on, I’m making sure your feet leave the floor!

“A Cruel Angel’s Thesis”

ICONIC!!! GODDAMN ICONIC!!!! I love everything about how this OP looks and sounds. All that religious imagery and symbolism. Whatever could it be foreshadowing :0. Seeing flashes of the monstrous Eva 001 sends a thrill up your spine, and those frames of text let you know this ain’t your average mecha. I love those long sweeping shots, this anime really killed it with its editing. I’m glad the song is so iconic— it should be with such a sexy name. If you’re not singing along when you hear the lyrics, I’m gonna cause the third impact on your ass.

“Wild Side - Ali”

The minute I saw stop motion I was hooked, there was no doubt this was going down as one of my favourite openings. I love the chase at the start, the foreshadowing of the fountain, the confusion between lust and hunger in Legoshi's mind, THAT BEAUTIFUL DANCE SCENE? I got butterflies for like the first 30 times I watched it over and over. The song is an absolute bop as well, I hope ALI keep making music for a long time to come.

“99.9 - Mob Choir”

I nearly orgasmed every time I heard that damn bass riff at the start. Down bad for that bass. This OP is so creative visually, like it’s jaw dropping in the execution of all these different styles and mediums. That 3D spinning Lego animation at the start is fucking AWESOME! My favourite shot would be where all the layers that make up Mob separate and then hit him all at once, that shit gave me goosebumps. S2 went to new heights and the second OP definitely outdoes the first.

“Again - Yui”

Anime fans are weeping knowing that something belonging to FMAB is in first place. It’s a good OP!!! It slapped me in the face with it’s foreshadowing and I failed to notice, smiling demurely like a fool!

It is a perfect OP, you hear this shit and you’re already singing. It’s such a beautiful OP as well, with plenty of sakuga, emotional beats and hype moments. Of course, every time you hear Yui start singing you just know things are gonna be good. Starting with the transmutation circle that started all this shit, and ending with Ed throwing his arm in the face (eye?) of GOD??! Wow, I implore you to check out Mother’s Basement for more in-depth analysis of this masterpiece of an OP.

(Please don’t ask me why this GIF is like this, I have no idea)

If you had to ask me what my favourite anime OST’s would be then here they are! Top 10 obviously because who doesn’t love lists?

I have amazing taste in anime OST’s btw, so I will be eagerly awaiting comments from those who haven’t already been blessed by these anime, telling me how good these tracks are.

And now on with the list!

YEAHHHH, GOOD OST!!! I think the music is really cool and funky in this show! Probably the most unique OST I’ve ever heard. I love how the music can be so light and whimsical one moment, then “oh shit, we are fighting the metaphorical manifestation of your trauma and could very well die”. It’s like the kind of music you would have for an alarm or a ringtone. I think “Wonder Egg” and “花開く時” might very well be my favourite tracks, but I have a special place for “いぎ戦わん、乙女たちよ” as well. It’s upbeat and creepy! There isn’t a bad song in the OST, the only downside with the tracks would be how short they are!!

“WEP fans shocked that someone is finally talking about the anime.”

Honestly what a good anime, we all know how iconic the OP and ED are but what about the OST? I have a bias for orchestral themes and OHSHC delivers that in spades. They have so many funny tracks that perfectly evoke the crack energy of the lads and Haruhi, as well as some nostalgic ballads that sweep you right off your feet. “Polka Capriccioso” is their anthem, the minute I heard this again I started laughing. Then you have emotional tracks like “Nocturne for Orchestra” and “Pavan for Piano and Orchestra”. There’s not a single bad track, (which goes for most of the OST’s on here) and honestly I’ll be incorporating some of these tracks into my playlist.

“OHSHC fans rolling up to every social function to be as LGBTQIA+ as possible.”

I love this jazzy anime!!! Like yasss!!! So melodramatic and angsty!!! This show just has a really good soundtrack, it was really hard not to list everything lol. “Beastars - Classical”, “Beastars - Another Side” and “Hope of this World” have my heart forevermore, while “Impending Darkness” and “Louis’ Feelings” are fucking BOPS! We don’t talk about “Bite Me!”…

“There’s no shoujo filter, you’re just a furry.”

I DUNNO HOW I MISSED THIS SOUNDTRACK OR JUST FAILED TO APPRECIATE IT, BUT MAYBE I WAS TOO ENTHRALLED WITH ALL THE SCIENCE HAPPENING TO PAY ATTENTION? WHAT THE FUCK I HAVE GOOSEBUMPS?? HOLY SHIT THIS SOUNDTRACK IS SO EPIC???? JUST GO LISTEN TO THE WHOLE THING I GUESS, NOT A SINGLE BAD TRACK. I WOULD RANK IT HIGHER BUT I JUST STARTED LISTENING TO IT WISNSOALSPDK. THIS COULD EASILY BE IN MY TOP 3.

“Me ascending to a higher plane while listening to the Dr. Stone OST.”

I can already hear the FMAB hardcore fans screaming about “FMAB IS PEAK FICTION!!! BEST ANIME EVER!!! THAT INCLUDES ITS SOUNDTRACK!!! IT SHOULD BE IN FIRST PLACE [gamer slur] [death threat]”. Shut up. I love FMAB, and my god when I hear “The Fullmetal Alchemist” and “Trisha’s Lullaby” am I frozen to the spot. I knew FMAB would go down as one of my favourite animes when it made me cry on the second episode. I watched this anime in 2020 and I still get nostalgia hearing the music. My two other faves are “Concerto ~ Brotherhood” and “Overture ~ Brotherhood”. Fitting since these two are my favourite brothers in fiction.

“Anime fans happy to see that FMAB didn’t take 1st place for something anime related.”

OOOOOOOOH BOY!!! I first thought TBHK was just gonna be some pastel middle school reverse harem anime, but I was wrong, wrong, wrong! I love this anime and it’s music so much, I was listening to my fave tracks for a solid month straight. Also during 2021 I would just listen to a piano version of Tiny Lights during my online maths classes and sob my heart out. Maths is very stressful. This anime has RANGE!!! It has a lot of good comedic tracks, spooooky tracks and ROMANTIC ones. “Tomo Tomo” and “Firindotto” are such endearing tracks to hear, while “Fantasuteriasu” is downright ICONIC, but my absolutely favourite would obviously have to be “Sutarakushon”.

“TBHK fans when they get a Nene x Hanako moment right after being emotionally destroyed.”

I didn’t want to put My Hero Academia on the list. I’m not even up to date with the anime/manga — I’m still on S3. I have a love hate relationship with this show but goddamn does this OST make me so emotional. It makes me feel like I can do anything, and I can’t ignore that raw emotion. My Hero Academia was one of my first anime, I have to show it some love. My favourite tracks from S1 would be: “You Can Be A Hero”, “HERO A” and “My Hero Academia”. For S2: “You Say Run” (obviously), “Eiyuuteki Butou Sentoukyoku” and “Bakusatsuou”. Finally for S3 (which I never finished 💀) my absolute fave has to be “Bakugo’s Rescue Soundtrack”. THOSE DRUMS!!!! I SCREAM EVERY TIME!!!

“MHA fans when “You Say Run” starts playing.”

Oh yeah!! I started watching HXH because I found out the Among Us betrayed music was from the show, no that’s not a joke. I have also listened to Hyori Ittai an unhealthy amount of times. Probably my all time favourite song to ever exist, but we’re talking about OSTs! Truly the tracks for this anime are beyond iconic, you hear that music and you know it’s time for nostalgia. The thing with HXH is that it has so many OSTs and no, it’s not cheating to talk about all of them. My favourite tracks from the first would be: “The Silver-Haired Boy” and “The Silver-Haired Lullaby”. For the second OST my faves would be: “Zoldyck Family Theme”, “Go on Gon!”, and “Departure for Strings”. From the Phantom Rouge OST: “The Red-Eyed Monster” and “Emperor’s Time”. Finally the last OST, and holy shit is that an OST to contend with: “Kingdom of Predators”, “Hyori Ittai Lamento for Piano” and “Elegy of the Dynast”.

“HXH fans after hearing that HXH is never going to have an ending for the 1246396481623748292638 time.”

There are no words for how much I love this soundtrack. It was originally going to be first, but I remembered one other anime with an OST that I’ve listened to religiously. If I liked a background song in an anime I’d try and find it, but TPN was the anime that got me to actually go find and listen to the OST. Even for the No. 1 anime OST. This OST is so haunting and ethereal, adding to the bittersweet tragedy of the show. Those motherfuckers bottled raw emotion in their music. My favourites would be “The Promised Neverland Track 1”, “Isabella’s Lullaby”, “Emma’s Sorrow” and “Emma’s Determination”.

(Edit: I forgot about how good Ray’s Retaliation is and how fun Dancing Krone is.)

“Ah fuck, ran out of ways to slaughter anime fans— ah well, Cloverworks already covered that with TPN S2.”

I’ve listened to and enjoyed almost every single track in this OST. Each one is meticulously crafted in a way that adds to the world of Violet Evergarden. Everything about this anime is beautiful and the music, a thing of perfection in itself elevates the anime to where it is. There is not a single bad or boring track. Watch the anime and listen to the OST.

“‘Bwuwuhhwhhuwbbwbb’ - average Violet Evergarden fan trying to convince you to watch the show”