Sui the Maid
...or something equally edgy.
- Joined
- Aug 31, 2023
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What makes a good TV intro? Which ones are the best? I'm not looking for you to just embed a link to a really good intro; I'm asking for an explanation as to why you like it, and why it works to set the scene for the show you're about to watch.
Picture the scene: You're about twelve years old or so, watching TV into the late hours of the night. On it, a constant stream of moving pictures and sounds. The barrage of colors and noise is unending, trailing into yet another loud yet dull commercial break. Blabbering, jabbering, showcasing, show-offing, nonstop and leading you into a sleepy, trance-like state. Until, in one split frame, the screen is black and silent. In just a short second, you notice that something's wrong. You perk up, wondering to yourself, Did the station just cut everything off?
But before you can even finish the thought:
It's the quick snap, the "Pay attention!" that makes Cowboy BeBop's intro sequence so memorable. Regardless of whether or not you find it overrated, one thing's for sure: It captures your attention. The sequence afterwards is highly stylized, taking place in dichromatic scenes of black and one other color, eventually overlapping these colors at some points. This approach gives the show itself a bit of mystique; if you've never seen Cowboy BeBop before, the intro will definitely leave you with some questions that you're willing to put on hold due to the visuals in the moment being so attractive. And, of course, the visuals have everything to do with what the show is about. The running, the fighting, the ships, the technology... these are all bits and pieces of the world that Cowboy BeBop takes place in, and at the same time are common elements of the series.
Paranoia Agent also works with this surprise approach, but in a way that focuses more on mystique than alert bombast.
This wasn't unintentional, either; the show's creator himself stated that he made the intro this way because it would be airing late at night, when most people have gone to sleep or were falling asleep. To get the viewer's attention, he used loud music with surreal imagery to make the viewer jolt up and say, "Okay, what the Hell is going on?" Every character in the intro is a character from the show, and regardless of what their attitudes or characteristics are in the plot, they're all doing the same thing: Laughing at the viewer. Some people suggest that it's a pretentious way of saying "haha, you're too stupid to get what the show means," but I don't see it that way at all. Rather, they're laughing at the absurdity of the show's events and, for those of you who have seen the ending, our collective unwillingness to learn and move on from the escapism this show warns us of. It's not that we don't get it; quite the opposite, it's that we do get it, but have no choice but to laugh and play along.
But let's face it, anime is dumb shit for nerds. What we need is real shit for men.
Not only does this intro work to represent Draper himself as a character, but it also encapsulates the broader themes of Mad Men's setting. It takes place in the 1960s, where the titular "Mad Men," as prolific advertisers have a lot of influence over American thought. Yet, as the decade goes by, they lose that influence to the general public as they grow increasingly disillusioned with the structures around them-- something conveyed even in the first episode as they try to find a way to advertise cigarettes when everyone knows how deadly they are. In essence, the whole structure that the Mad Men have built up is crumbling around them against their will, and they can do nothing about it.
Of course, there are the motifs in the buildings that Draper falls past which hint at his own internal struggles; the affairs he has with other women, the family he carries as though they were a burden, the booze he drinks to keep himself sedated, and of course, the facade of advertising that he sees through all too easily. Top this off with music that seems as though the song itself is falling, and the viewer has a good idea of exactly what kind of stage is being set. One of disillusionment, of loss of hope, and of constant failed attempts to ignore the lurking feeling that none of this is right.
So... Anything you'd like to share with the class?
Picture the scene: You're about twelve years old or so, watching TV into the late hours of the night. On it, a constant stream of moving pictures and sounds. The barrage of colors and noise is unending, trailing into yet another loud yet dull commercial break. Blabbering, jabbering, showcasing, show-offing, nonstop and leading you into a sleepy, trance-like state. Until, in one split frame, the screen is black and silent. In just a short second, you notice that something's wrong. You perk up, wondering to yourself, Did the station just cut everything off?
But before you can even finish the thought:
It's the quick snap, the "Pay attention!" that makes Cowboy BeBop's intro sequence so memorable. Regardless of whether or not you find it overrated, one thing's for sure: It captures your attention. The sequence afterwards is highly stylized, taking place in dichromatic scenes of black and one other color, eventually overlapping these colors at some points. This approach gives the show itself a bit of mystique; if you've never seen Cowboy BeBop before, the intro will definitely leave you with some questions that you're willing to put on hold due to the visuals in the moment being so attractive. And, of course, the visuals have everything to do with what the show is about. The running, the fighting, the ships, the technology... these are all bits and pieces of the world that Cowboy BeBop takes place in, and at the same time are common elements of the series.
Paranoia Agent also works with this surprise approach, but in a way that focuses more on mystique than alert bombast.
This wasn't unintentional, either; the show's creator himself stated that he made the intro this way because it would be airing late at night, when most people have gone to sleep or were falling asleep. To get the viewer's attention, he used loud music with surreal imagery to make the viewer jolt up and say, "Okay, what the Hell is going on?" Every character in the intro is a character from the show, and regardless of what their attitudes or characteristics are in the plot, they're all doing the same thing: Laughing at the viewer. Some people suggest that it's a pretentious way of saying "haha, you're too stupid to get what the show means," but I don't see it that way at all. Rather, they're laughing at the absurdity of the show's events and, for those of you who have seen the ending, our collective unwillingness to learn and move on from the escapism this show warns us of. It's not that we don't get it; quite the opposite, it's that we do get it, but have no choice but to laugh and play along.
But let's face it, anime is dumb shit for nerds. What we need is real shit for men.
Not only does this intro work to represent Draper himself as a character, but it also encapsulates the broader themes of Mad Men's setting. It takes place in the 1960s, where the titular "Mad Men," as prolific advertisers have a lot of influence over American thought. Yet, as the decade goes by, they lose that influence to the general public as they grow increasingly disillusioned with the structures around them-- something conveyed even in the first episode as they try to find a way to advertise cigarettes when everyone knows how deadly they are. In essence, the whole structure that the Mad Men have built up is crumbling around them against their will, and they can do nothing about it.
Of course, there are the motifs in the buildings that Draper falls past which hint at his own internal struggles; the affairs he has with other women, the family he carries as though they were a burden, the booze he drinks to keep himself sedated, and of course, the facade of advertising that he sees through all too easily. Top this off with music that seems as though the song itself is falling, and the viewer has a good idea of exactly what kind of stage is being set. One of disillusionment, of loss of hope, and of constant failed attempts to ignore the lurking feeling that none of this is right.
So... Anything you'd like to share with the class?
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