Frank’s Top Five Best Intro Sequences (Live Action)
by Frank Martin
With the intro for HBO Max’s Peacemaker making waves across the internet, it’s probably a good time to revisit some other great opening credits and discuss why they are so great.
Note: I’ll be doing a separate feature for animated intros later.
Sucession
Sucession is a relatively new entry to this list, but it’s worthwhile mentioning for the insight it gives us into its characters and their relationships. The bottom line: the Roy family is not made up of normal people. They are egotistical, narcissistic, cold, and calculating. Not to mention weird and quirky. But this isn’t some genetic trait they all share. The reason they are like this is because they weren’t raised as a normal family. And this opening credit sequence allows us a glimpse into why that is. Logan Roy (Brian Cox) was cold and distant throughout their childhoods. These kids got everything they wanted except a father to nurture them. The opening intro is a great explanation as to why the current drama is unfolding the way it is.
Dexter
Dexter‘s award-winning opening sequence is a huge fan-favorite. The premise is simple. It has Dexter (Michael C. Hall) getting ready for the day by conducting mundane tasks, but he does this with a level of creepy, murderous intent. Things like flossing, shaving, and cutting an orange. The sequence truly embodies the show’s tone — a fusion of the horror-thriller with a slice of life drama. It gives us insight into Dexter’s brain. He’s a killer constantly fueled by murder, yet he has to live the same sort of everyday life that we have to go through.
Black Sails
This is kind of a personal entry into the list. The intro by itself isn’t all that special — it basically showcases a bunch of pirate statuettes aboard a ship. But one essential part of any intro is the music that goes along with it. And this is where Black Sails excels. It’s not that the song is particularly good, it just perfectly encapsulates the mood of the show. With the visuals and the music together, experiencing it really gets you in the frame of mind to watch an hour of gritty, violent pirates doing what they do best.
The Sopranos
It’s not a controversial statement to say that The Sopranos revolutionized television. Its storytelling really pushed the boundaries of what serialized episodes can do in a long-form drama. And its intro became just as iconic. Tony Soprano’s (James Gandolfini) long, methodical drive out of New York City to his home in New Jersey really brings the viewer along for the ride, offering a sense of the show’s setting. This is Tony’s world. It’s his domain. And the sequence reinforces that fact. It also wouldn’t be controversial to say the show revolutionized the opening credits sequence, as well.
The Wire
Like The Sopranos, The Wire is up there as another influential show in the history of television. And its opening credit sequence might be just as iconic. The Wire structures its seasons very methodically. Each is dedicated to a different aspect of Baltimore and its effect on the city’s drug trade. And as each season shifts into a new setting, plot, and characters, its opening credit sequence shifts along with it. Besides altering the footage, the music changes, too. Although always the same song — Tom Waits‘s “Way Down in the Hole” — it is sung in a different style for each season, setting the tone for that particularly location. It’s really well done and was not orchestrated by accident, elevating the show to one of the greats.
