…and an equally great ending.
Criteria for this list include that it has to be an anime that I have seen. If I haven’t seen an episode, but I have seen the ending, it doesn’t count. Also, only anime that I thoroughly enjoy will make it onto this list. Some anime I have seen have amazing openings but the content of the show is…lacking. Also no series can be listed twice on this, Basically the same rules as last time.
Honorable Mention: Hellsing TV Anime (“Shine”- Mr. Big)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S70krAJ09fk
I would probably be lambasted by the entire anime community if I put this any higher on my list. Sorry, I like the TV Anime. It was my first exposure to Hellsing, and I am very grateful for it. Although it doesn’t follow the story of the manga, it still provides a good story and has a GREAT ending. I’ve heard people saying that this song is too positive for the anime, but it fits perfectly with the tv anime, (Also Hellsing Ultimate is not 100% serious, so shaddup). This song is very nostalgic for me, hence its placement on my list.
5: Yu Yu Hakusho (“The Homework Never Ends” ENG ver. by Sarah White)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=98rwIFDT8Uc
Although Chapter Black is my favorite arc, the ending for the first few episodes of Yu Yu Hakusho is SO nostalgic for me from when I used to watch it on Toonami after school, (and get made fun of by my friend for not liking Kurama and instead having a preference for Kuwabara). You might wonder why I didn’t put the Japanese version on here. Well, that’s because I grew up with the English one. It’s simple, but I like the style of it.
4: Speed Grapher (“Break the Cocoon”- Yoriko)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j5opk86ROSM
Once again this little series ends up on my list. I can’t help it. The art style of the ending is amazing but simplistic, contrasting bright colors with washed out ones. It also, like the opening, highlights all of the characters and acts almost like a scrapbook of memories, which can have some emotional effect in the later episodes especially. It also acts as a bit of a breather if you are binge-watching, which is nice. I highly recommend this series to anyone who is into supernatural ideas, the power of the mind over body, and possessing a strong stomach.
3: Panty and Stocking with Garterbelt (“Fallen Angel”-Aimee B.)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TbhAaDdQFY0
Cutely animated but anything cute in subject matter, this ending perfectly caps off an episode of one of the best anime I have seen in years.For a long time I was looking for a new series in a sea of sameness and I stumbled upon this nonsense. The ending is very cute, showing Panty and Stocking about to die in various ways while one of the best songs of the anime plays in the background. I love this anime, and the ending is perfect and fitting for it. It’s quirky, strangely cute, and a bit dark, just like the show. Repent, motherfucker!
2: FLCL (“Ride on Shooting Star” -The Pillows)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XdgqDL2l0hQ
This ending would have been number 1 if it weren’t for number 1. The song is SO good and the visuals are amazing. For a series as weird as FLCL, it fits well. Part live action visuals and part animated, It follows the story of Haruko’s Vespa, which is fitting because it is that very Vespa that sets off the events of the bizarre series.
And my favorite Anime Ending is…
1: Jojo’s Bizarre Adventure: Phantom Blood and Battle Tendency (“Roundabout”-YES)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cKr46XveL6w (Part 1)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Cjn5Scm2uzY (Part 2)
What makes this ending unique is how it can vary between episodes, featuring different characters and even different parts of the song. Particularly notable is that this is a rather old song, created in 1971, and yet it fits perfectly with the anime, particularly in the case of Battle Tendency. This ending is fairly simple, but effective, even showing glimpses of the history of the mask in the segments of Part 1 and concluding perfectly with Part 2’s ending. It’s like the two endings were MADE to fit together and it is absolutely brilliant, tying the first parts of JJBA together. Amazing. Simply amazing.
ChaoticNeonTiki's Hut of Horrors 