(During this long holiday weekend, we're filling up on content-free but hopefully fun discussion posts. Don't yell at us, we're just trying to enjoy the weekend off with fireworks and BLTA sandwiches!)
TV credits are at a low point. Most series now skip theme songs and credits sequences in favor of a hypersimple title card, often just black and white, with nothing more than the show title and an authorial credit for the pilot writer/creator. We get it, but also...YAWN.
Still, in those places where economics or allegiance to tradition keeps them alive (premium cable, NBC), credits hold a special place in our TV-loving hearts, so we want to discuss the best and worst of the genre and find out from you what "theme songs" make you do a happy dance every time they come onscreen. We'll show you ours if you show us yours...
Best Minimalist Credits
In an era when networks prefer to sell another 30 seconds of ad time instead of rolling a credits sequence, creators must be particularly creative and powerful in the time allotted. Here are some of our favorite blink-and-you'll-miss-'em title cards.
24: When Jack Bauer intones, "The following takes place between..." we all get excited.
Lost: We heart the Lost title, but if you want something a little more complex, check out Lost Video Island for a ton of fabulous Lost credits mashups. (The Cold Case one is surprisingly excellent!)
Supernatural: At first glance this is just a simple, albeit creepy Supernatural title, but the show has changed up the accompanying visual each season. Season two was flames, season three was smoke, season four was a flock of evil crows. Good stuff.
Weeds: Ever since Agrestic burned to the ground, each Weeds title has been a tiny moving diorama that depicts a key theme or scene from the following episode, and it's always a thrill to see what they do and hunt for the cannabis-leaf Easter egg hidden therein.
Best Broadcast Credits
NBC gets ragged on a lot in the TV media for miscellaneous fumbles and failings, but they are doing one thing damn well: TV credits sequences. ABC seems to have given up on having credits, all of CBS' dramas seem to have the same credits (driving beat over a montage of faces), and nothing on the CW or Fox strikes us as characteristic or memorable as the credits produced by the Peacock. Among our faves:
Chuck: The Chuck credits are fun as heck, not least because the visuals are the perfect Chuck-style combo of geekery and adventure.
Medium: OK, Medium is on CBS now, but we'll give NBC the points just the same since that's where this sequence launched. Eerie and mystical, just like Allison DuBois' gift, this song and these visuals never get old.
Southland: The combination of sepia-tone police archive photos and that snake charmer song are the perfect setup for Southland's vérité approach to the modern police drama.
The Office: The credits for The Office may be one of the best antianxiety medications known to man.
(Note: We loved the Michael Scott Paper Company reset so much we embedded it at the top of this post for your viewing pleasure.)
Best Cable Credits
Cable, especially premium cable, is the place to go if you're dying for an endlessly watchable credits sequence. Because they are less dependent on ad revenue, they can amuse themselves with quaint things like "art." Our best of the best are:
Dexter: The blood orange is a master stroke, but every element of Dexter's morning routine conveys the purpose and style of the series.
Mad Men: Is it a visual collage? Is it a dream? Does it have something to do with 9/11's Falling Man? Is that a retarded question? No matter the meaning, Mad Men's credits are magical.
True Blood: Sometimes we wish True Blood the show looked as good as True Blood the credits.
What other credits did you love, including from shows of yesterseason? Which of our comments above did you hate? (And for that matter, which credits make you cranky? We'll mention Fringe—the music is wonderful but what is with the flea's-eye view of hair follicles?—and anything with a floating pill bottle, i.e., Nurse Jackie and Royal Pains.) Share your take on credits in the comments below!