As much as GoT has shit the bed in the later seasons, the intro sequence including the title theme was always (and still is) amazing!
It never failed to hype me up!
House is a great one, but only the Teardrop version. It hit the perfect mood for the serious tone of the medical subjects. It also makes me weirdly nostalgic for watching that in the mid-00’s with my family late at night
Itay not be the opening song or sequence, but the opening scene in the umbrella academy were always amazing when they did a song/dance number. Their soundtrack spanning the whole series were full of bangers... But the best has to be season three episode one, the dance off with the sparrow academy.
The intro for Scavengers Reign is the absolutely perfect complement to the show. Ethereal, melancholic, and tense, just like the atmosphere of the story. Also it's super short. Watched it every episode
I’m a huge fan of shows that just have a title splash screen and play the intro credits unobtrusively over the first 1/3 of the show.
I always skip intros, if I can, mostly because I binge stuff and those intros can be minutes long, serving absolutely no purpose. I especially hate when they are 10+ minutes into the episode, and I have to wake my keyboard up to skip them.
There's nothing quite like hearing a song from the opening of a telly show and thinking "that's bloody great", only to discover that the opening credits use the best bits of the track and the rest of it is rubbish!
I've discovered some pretty great tunes though
Charles Bradley's cover of Ozzy's "Changes" is amazing, from the opening of "Big Mouth"
The first thing that always pops into my head upon seeing this question is Hawaii 5-0... I never even watched that show, but it's got a kick-ass theme song. 😅
Veronica Mars (just the perfect match for the show's vibe and a damn catchy song)
Fringe (loved how they used it later in the series to match the universe/time period the episode was set in)
True Blood (a classic, wish the show matched its atmosphere beyond season 1)
Jessica Jones (so underrated)
Severance (extremely creative and memorable)
Stranger things (hate the show, but the intro is undeniably brilliant in its simplicity)
Honorable mentions:
Yellowjackets (fun!)
Dexter (love the concept, hate the song)
The 100 (after a basic title card in season 1 they actually added an intro for the rest of the show, with the content changing to match the theme and setting of each season)
I can't really think if any "worst" ones although in general I don't like when shows only do static or just very low-effort title cards. Some examples that come to mind are Breaking Bad and The Boys.
I’ve always thought that a bad intro song tanks a show (back when you couldn’t skip them). Conversely, a good one makes people stick around and give the show a chance, so it’s more likely to succeed.
Re: the OP question:
Magnum PI (OG)
SNL intro music
30ROCK
Friends (ugh, I know, it was catchy…)
Venture Bros.
Archer
Futurama
…and more!
My favorite intros are Bebop, Bojack, and Malcolm in the Middle, probably in that order
Shout-out to Kimmy schmidt
If I'm nostalgic, Cheers and the wonder years. Maybe fresh price.
The winner is original Addams Family
Cheers is a never skip for sure
Best: Game Of Thrones. Mad Men. Season 1 Westworld.
As much as GoT has shit the bed in the later seasons, the intro sequence including the title theme was always (and still is) amazing! It never failed to hype me up!
Cowboy Bebop.
https://youtu.be/EL-D9LrFJd4
Peter Gunn [the original and still kicking]
https://youtu.be/oysMt8iL9UE
For me, it's gotta be Peacemaker, decent song, totally out of place dancing, love it.
Wig Wam!
Hey, it's hard to be a rock n roller.
The Expanse is one I never skipped once on watch or rewatch (I was even annoyed that it wasn't regular until season 2).
I fucking love the lore that develops as the seasons continue. I love the expanse intro.
Faith of the Heart has grown on me a lot these last few years. I probably just miss the show.
House is a great one, but only the Teardrop version. It hit the perfect mood for the serious tone of the medical subjects. It also makes me weirdly nostalgic for watching that in the mid-00’s with my family late at night
ST ENT = Thank you to whomever invented the skip credits button.
I recently rewatched it, and when I got to season 3 and they made it even worse by adding some more beats to it I was traumatized.
Neon Genesis Evangelion
Was always a fan of the Airwolf theme song
I can hear it in my head.
Brooklyn 99
Not the best per se but I really liked Severance
Firefly
Tru Blood
X-Files song is a banger. Sequence goes to Westworld.
I think Munsters is a close 2nd for song.
Season 1 of The Wire.
It built an atmosphere of shady incompetence in the police and gang members alike.
It was interesting how it was redone for each season.
It was the same song but different angles like each season took a different look at what makes crime move through all the parts of society.
Best X-Men animated series, worst Night court
The Gravity Falls and Inside Job themes go hard
Community, original Magnum PI, Buck Roger’s, original Battlestar Galactica. All had great songs that just didn’t get old.
New Battlestar had a great space theme, full of hope and struggle. It really suited the series.
I tried to remember it when I was typing that out but I couldn’t. Meanwhile, I have the old one as a ringtone! Loved both shows, though.
The season two intro for House of the Dragon is a whole other level of awesome (S1's intro was all sorts of "meh").
It's basically a recap of events in the form of a tapestry being woven in real time.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HIblsDVSq_k
The game of thrones one was pretty great too
Itay not be the opening song or sequence, but the opening scene in the umbrella academy were always amazing when they did a song/dance number. Their soundtrack spanning the whole series were full of bangers... But the best has to be season three episode one, the dance off with the sparrow academy.
Slow Horses intro is called Strange Game
Written and performed by Mick Jagger
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=tegw25qqbAs
The intro for Scavengers Reign is the absolutely perfect complement to the show. Ethereal, melancholic, and tense, just like the atmosphere of the story. Also it's super short. Watched it every episode
I’m a huge fan of shows that just have a title splash screen and play the intro credits unobtrusively over the first 1/3 of the show.
I always skip intros, if I can, mostly because I binge stuff and those intros can be minutes long, serving absolutely no purpose. I especially hate when they are 10+ minutes into the episode, and I have to wake my keyboard up to skip them.
Breaking Bad was good in this regard.
Babylon 5 has the best intros to a show. It changed each season.
There's nothing quite like hearing a song from the opening of a telly show and thinking "that's bloody great", only to discover that the opening credits use the best bits of the track and the rest of it is rubbish!
I've discovered some pretty great tunes though
Charles Bradley's cover of Ozzy's "Changes" is amazing, from the opening of "Big Mouth"
Definitely Stargate SG-1 for music. Game of Thrones for the sequence (music too though).
Worst? Star Trek Enterprise comes to mind
Best? I always loved the rebooted battlestar galactica intro
Psyche is my favorite
The best intro was for Rocko’s Modern Life before they fucked it up with the B52s version.
The first thing that always pops into my head upon seeing this question is Hawaii 5-0... I never even watched that show, but it's got a kick-ass theme song. 😅
Best: Money Heist and more recently Arcane League of Legends
Dexter
Jeeves and Wooster is top notch
30 Rock, hands down. That jazzy into is just ti die for!
Clone High and Sealab 2021 are both so good. 20 years later and they're still stuck in my head.
I like the intros in True Detective (S1), and X-Files. Animated: X-Men TAS, Gravity Falls, BoJack Horseman.
From the top of my head, I didn't enjoy much the Six Feet Under and the Spinning Out intros because they were too long.
Favorites:
Honorable mentions:
I can't really think if any "worst" ones although in general I don't like when shows only do static or just very low-effort title cards. Some examples that come to mind are Breaking Bad and The Boys.
I’ve always thought that a bad intro song tanks a show (back when you couldn’t skip them). Conversely, a good one makes people stick around and give the show a chance, so it’s more likely to succeed.
Re: the OP question: Magnum PI (OG) SNL intro music 30ROCK Friends (ugh, I know, it was catchy…) Venture Bros. Archer Futurama …and more!
Dark has an amazing intro. So damn good.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8c399HPb01s
Just the best for me
The Wire
The Unit
Futurama
Johny Quest
MacGyver? https://youtu.be/UKTNWI0eYJ4
I’ll mention one that I don’t see. The song for What We Do In the Shadows is very catchy.
Are You Afraid of the Dark?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6b2G8ySKNgA&ab_channel=BrandonK
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YMC1u4JeedU&ab_channel=Backto2000s
Favourite intros:
Law and order.
That midi sound is so dated that it should be retired by old age by human age standards lol
https://youtu.be/xHyq5UCVh4w
Not sure why, but I really liked the Raised by Wolves intro.
Voyager has the best opening theme music in all of Star Trek, hands down.
Personal favorite opening song/sequence? Space Ghost Coast to Coast also Knight Rider
Best: Gilligan's Island, The Nanny, Green Acres, Get Smart, Underdog.
Excluding anime, because that feels like cheating to have music made by professionals in the music industry involved:
Best Intro Song Hands Down: Class of 3000 tied with Code Lyoko ( either French or English because they're both amazing )
Worst Intro Song: Regular Show ( it's just a sound effect AFAIK and barely constitutes an intro song in my opinion )
As for sequence, that's a tougher question for me.
Best Intro Sequence: A tie between BTAS, Batman Beyond/of the Future in Europe, I guess, and Code Lyoko seasons 2-4
Worst Intro Sequence: Regular Show ( it feels like a powerpoint presentation with an ongoing sound effect in the background to me )
So many to choose from (for best, I mean)... I'll just say Jessica Jones and Boston Legal because I haven't seen them here.
EDIT: Correction. I did see Jessica Jones, but I'm leaving it here because it's just so gd amazing. Really it's a masterpiece.
The answer to both is ... the Logan's Run TV show theme song.