Christmas Bonus – Merry Melodies Contest

Posted on Oct 14 2011

You guys like anime and music right? If the answer is yes, which it should be if you’re even looking at this site, then have I got a contest for you!

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I’ve had these two separate ideas floating around for a while now, and I feel like this is the perfect time to get both of them rolling. In addition to wanting to throw things at people’s faces in time for Christmas, hold your puns please, I’ve been wanting to make my own panel for conventions. While I’m not asking anyone to contribute to the actual process of creating it, I would like to give you the chance to help set it up.

So here’s my basis. I love most anime themes. For those of you who call them OPs and EDs, I mean those. Not just one or the other, but a little of both. It’s my plan to create a panel based on why people like certain ones, and even how they branch off into other things from them.

Let me give an example. Back when Code Geass first aired on [adult swim] I had only briefly considered watching it. At the time, I was playing a game known as osu!, which is like a community fueled PC version of Elite Beat Agents. While playing osu!, I happened across Geass’s first OP, Colors by Flow. I was instantly hooked by just the OP alone that I committed myself to watching the whole series. As I did, I was able to hear more great music, like Jinn and Ali Project, and then search for more anime series that used those artists as themes.

But some of you may be thinking: “Christmas, you said contest. How does this relate to me winning a prize?” I’m glad you asked, which you will have by now that you read me thinking for you. I want each of you to submit to me a story similar to that one, about an OP or ED that you just really enjoyed, and how it made an impact on how you watch anime in general. I will not hesitate to admit that I have watched whole series just because of one particular song (Colors of the Heart) and, just like Code Geass, I ended up loving even more music and anime by osmosis. If you don’t have a story like that, just tell me what your favorite OP or ED is and why.

Prizes? I’ve got plenty. The five people who submit the best stories to me will receive a random volume of anime from personal collection. These will either be a Volume 1 of a specific series, or an OVA set that is neatly packaged like one. All five were obtained by me at Anime Boston’s Swap Meet this past April, and hold no real value to me now that I’ve watched them. HOWEVER! Since these will be mailed by me personally, I ask that if you wish to win one that you either be from the US, or you forward me the shipping cost. Don’t let that discourage you from submitting though. All submissions, even the ones that don’t win a prize will be presented in the panel that I’m creating and will have your name listed at the end. It’s not so much as me wanting to do less work as it is me wanting to spread your experiences to other people.

So, just to review, send me your favorite OP or ED with the story behind why you like it so much. Submissions must be sent to Christmas(at)918thefan(dot)com, but I would appreciate copies of them in the comments below as well. For those of you wanting to win one of the five random DVDs, you must either be in the US, or forward the shipping cost to me. You can Email me the details on how to do that if you desire. Once I have selected the winners at the end of November, I will collect the addresses, and shipping costs where applicable. Remember, there are no wrong answers for a contest like this, so just submit what your heart tells you!

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Comments
  • nerdwerld October 24, 2011 at 12:22 PM

    So can I still enter, and possible win? If not, I will just make a story for you.

  • christmas4477 October 24, 2011 at 3:41 PM

    Well, staff is excluded from all contests, but I would still like a nice story to kick things off

  • Kibs October 24, 2011 at 6:34 PM

    I wish to win some of Xmas’ anime. It probably will have his fingerprints on them, which I can use to clone and strategically place in crime scenes to frame him for my evil misdeeds. A thousand miles away.

  • TheManorexic October 24, 2011 at 7:29 PM

    My story is similar to yours. A while back I was really in to Stepmania, and I downloaded a bunch of anime song packs for it. My friend and I ran through all the songs and the one that stuck out the most was “Sentimental Generation” because of the song itself and the opening video, and that’s what got us to check out School Rumble, which is now one of our top animes.

    • christmas4477 October 25, 2011 at 9:16 AM

      I’ve heard that Stepmania is really good for things like that. After watching the OP for myself, I’ll say that’s not terrible but not really my style. It also makes me dizzy.

      • TheManorexic October 25, 2011 at 7:02 PM

        Yup, they really like circles. Actually I saw this vid called something like “Every Anime Opening” and it shows patterns, and circles are big in Japan I guess.

        • christmas4477 October 25, 2011 at 10:12 PM

          Oh yes, I’ve seen that video. You don’t really notice until you have how commonplace certain types of animation sequences are

  • Aulann November 1, 2011 at 3:36 PM

    Remember the American version of the Dragonball Z opening LOL I remember coming home after school and watching it with my older brother and how it would get you pump up for the episode

  • luigimeister November 2, 2011 at 8:34 PM

    It all started on night in the IRC. A new season of anime had started showing, and I was wondering what exactly to watch. My Ordinary Life didn’t exactly seem like an anime I wanted to watch, being a typical slice of life and all. That changed when I heard/saw the OP when someone posted it in the IRC. The sheer ridiculousness of the OP caused me to wonder: WHAT IN THE WORLD IS THIS! To my satisfaction the anime fufilled everything the OP had promised, from Principal’s wrestling deers to the Robot girl having a giant freaking winder in the back. That and the song was catchy.

  • JinnRemona November 2, 2011 at 8:43 PM

    This is my tale. It was nearly 24 hours before Christmas, and as usual in my family, I was sitting at home with all my family. I’m not much of the social type, especially back in the day, so while everyone was chatting up a storm around the entire room and enjoying the massive amount of food available, I was sitting near the TV, browsing the channels. At the time, I didn’t even know what “Anime” was, though I had watched stuff like Sailor Moon and Digimon when I was growing up, and as I channel surfed, I happened across YTV. It was their new Anime Time slot, and I stumbled onto the first ending to Inuyasha, “My Will by Dream”. The song itself pulled me in, and had me fascinated with what the show was. I had never really hurt a song before that I didn’t understand the lyrics too. I spent the next week looking for the show on the internet, hoping for a glance what it was, until the next Friday when I sat and watched every anime show YTV had on at the time, and finally I arrived on Inuyasha. I couldn’t tear myself away, and thanks to that song, I was pulled into the world of Anime. It’s still one of my favorite songs, just because of this memory. Reminding me of how I got so hooked on something so amazing.

  • NeonX November 19, 2011 at 10:30 PM

    Even though I’m staff, I’ll still help get this going.

    Well, let’s see. I remember watching Noein on Adult Swim a few years back. And I guess it’s sort of how the music flows with the images in the opening.

    Especially if you know what the song is saying.
    Like it starts off with the “The silver sky is an endless sky” and you can see the snowy sky.
    And when it goes on to “I gazed at it with you” it shows Haruka’s face.
    And with “I quietly think” it shows Haruka’s face like she’s thinking.
    And with “I look up at your face from the side” it shows Karasu standing on the top of a weather vane.
    At the end with “Even within a strong wind, I’m moving forward” you can see the wind blowing and Karasu standing.

    I think even with some of the English OPs, they’re pretty good with this. Like with the season 1 intro to 5Ds.

    http://www.hulu.com/watch/220538/yu-gi-oh-5ds-season-1-intro
    With “Going fast makes me feel alive in a heartbeat” Yusei rides his D-Wheeler and accelerates.
    With “Just let Destiny choose” Yusei jumps off the bridge.
    With “I can feel the wind the way it’s blowing” Junk Warrior and Red Demon Dragon face off.
    With “I can see you going” Yusei and Jack cross paths on the track.

  • bigfisk November 24, 2011 at 3:16 PM

    my story takes place in my high school. you see my high school had an anime club where in our brake the members go to the club room and watch a randome anime episode. the club leader decided to put episode 22 of needless (which was new in Japan at the time). i suddenly got a text from a friend telling me that i needed to skip the anime club because there was a football meetin going on in the same time (ya i was a football joke and a anime nerd in the same time). just when i started to leave the op started, so i dicided to stick around to listen to the op. teop just pumped me up. were when the ops going “so cold it becomes hot” and it shows Satan (in the series Satan has the power of fire and ice) as the op went on it shows the main character fighting the main villan, which pumped me up even more. however i didn’t end up seeing the episode that day but a year later i saw needless on the anime network and it became my favorite anime.

  • Kate November 30, 2011 at 4:25 PM

    Alright, so I actually watched the anime before I really enjoyed the OP and ED more. Well, around 2002, 2003, I got a DVD for Outlaw Star. As I was watching it, my dad came in and began watching it with me. He enjoyed it, and was the first and one of the very few animes I watched that he liked (other was Cowboy Bebop). Quite funny with his reaction to the OP and ED, though (Japanese and all). He enjoyed the Cowboy Bebop one the most. I wonder why. To this day, whenever I hear the OP and EDs from Outlaw Star, I always think of that rare anime moment I shared with him that I can’t do anymore.

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