One of the things I’m most excited for when Bleach returns is the thought of all the new openings we may get. Word of warning, those who are sensitive to the views of others and that which disagree with theirs……..it’s my opinion, it’s not the end of the world if we don’t agree.
15. Anima Rossa – Porno Graffiti (OP11)
I don’t hate it, I just find it boring. There’s no rise or fall, it kind of just goes through and then just…….ends. I feel bad as Porno’s song The Day is my favourite MHA opening. So win some lose some I guess?
14. Blue – Vivid (OP14)
It’s not a bad song, just compared to the others…….there’s nothing particularly special or memorable to it. Something feels ever so slightly……off with it.
13. Harukaze – Scandal (OP15)
There’s a vague sadness to this, probably cos when I was watching it I was thinking this was the end. Thankfully I was wrong. It’s a nice enough song but feels a tad lacking in oomph compared to the others. Then again perhaps fitting, a quieter more mellowed out song for a quieter lower stakes arc between two reality warping and mountain nuking gigantic behemoths of villains and arcs.
12. Tonight, Tonight, Tonight – Beat Crusaders (OP4)
It’s a nice song but when between two of the series best it doesn’t live up to the heights of said other OPs. It’s…….OK. And that’s fine. But that’s kinda it
11. Velonica – Aqua Timez (OP9)
I feel kinda bad putting this so low, it’s not a bad song by any means. It’s just stacked up against the rest, it somewhat draws the short straw. But a good song nonetheless, right amount of mellow without going too far in that regard.
10. D-tecnoLife – UVERworld (OP2)
I feel some would rank this a lot higher due to mostly nostalgia. Whereas I only started this series 2 years ago so I don’t have any real nostalgia for it (though in a way nostalgia will come into play later on). It feels slightly trolling the battles that seem to take place in this OP that never happen, I mean who wouldn’t want to see Uryu vs Toshiro or Chad vs Soi Fon?
9. Alones – Aqua Timez (OP6)
AKA the one Kon sings. Whatever happened to the other mod souls? Not sure Kubo even remembers them, they seemed to vanish from existence once the gang entered Hueco Mundo. Side-note I wish Urahara had designed a battle gigai for Kon to use, there could be some hilarious battles from that. Hell maybe he could beat Pernida he has no nerves to manipulate…..ok but the idea of the literal right hand of god being beaten by Kon is too hilarious to not want. But at least we’ll get Mayuri and Nemu battle it out with Pernida…….I hope……
8. Rolling Star – YUI (OP5)
Another one I wish I could put higher but it gets harder as it gets closer to the end you know?………wait that came out wrong…….
I like this for the sheer mid-00s of this song. That’s not a bad thing, it just feels of it’s time in a good way. It gives me early Avril Lavigne vibes which helps a lot given I’m a big fan of Avril.
7. chAngE – Miwa (OP12)
After the boredom of OP11, this helped kicked things back into gear. Definitely felt more what an OP should be, aka hype as all hell. Given how it starts with Orihime saying the opening word I kind of like to imagine this as Orihime’s song. It helped get the story feel back to where it was meant to be after the unnecessary side-quest of Tales of the Zanpakuto. Although the Sword Beasts Arc was fun to be fair.
6. Chu-Bura – Kelun (OP8)
Remember when I said nostalgia would come into play? Here it is. It feels like such a 2009 song somehow in a way I can’t really explain it manages to make me feel nostalgic for 2009. And I guess make me wish I’d properly gotten into all this a good decade before.
5. Asterisk – Orange Range (OP1)
OK take what I just said and amp it up by like 10. When my mate first put this on my first reaction to this OP was this is the most 2004 thing I have ever seen (in a good way I swear). When I showed this to another mate and he had the same reaction. As much as I love what the series was later on I do somewhat miss the smaller scale of this arc, and wonder where Kubo originally wanted to go with it all. When the anime returns and finally concludes itself too I really hope they play this over the final minutes. Not just the OP version, the full song. Hell maybe even have the characters actually wearing some of the clothes they’re in in this video seeing as that never happened in universe.
4. Shoujo S – Scandal (OP10)
I love the strut of this song. Like, that strut walk all the big pop star women do? This feels like someone looked at that, took it and converted it into a song. The sassiness of it is matched by the characters in the OP itself, which just makes it all the more enjoyable.
3. After Dark – Asian Kung-Fu Generation (OP7)
Is there a more consistent band when it comes to OPs than Asian Kung-Fu Generation? Just go through most big anime there’ll be a song by them and it’s almost guaranteed to be an absolute banger. It helps that the entering and start of the Hueco Mundo arc was one of the most hyped parts of Bleach and the song matches that hype level perfectly.
2. Ranbu no Melody – SID (OP13)
The song feels perfectly melancholic for this part of the Arrancar Saga. Especially the Gin and Rangiku parts, the bittersweet truth and ending of that whole section of the story. Plus for most of the OPs runtime it is in that darkest before the dawn part of the Saga where basically everyone keeps trying to take down Aizen and all failing, that all hope is lost vibe. Plus in a way it feels like Ichigo somewhat matures here and somehow the tone of the song is consistent with it very well.
1. Ichirin No Hana – High and Mighty Colour (OP3)
Even if I’d never heard of this anime I think I’d love this song regardless. It’s right up my alley music taste wise, it’s got a heaviness to it with some catchy parts to it also and a nice mix between the vocalists. It helps that it plays alongside the most hyped part of the series, the Soul Society Arc. Like others, when you look at the previous two OPs, Asterisk and D-tecnoLife, there is a suitable gradual increase in heaviness of the OPs as the story itself gets heavier. Just a shame they never put this song on British Spotify/iTunes…….