Top 15 Best Tv Atmospheric Opening Title Sequences.

Who doesn’t love to travel? Whether it’s to exotic places or through time? Some of the greatest tv opening sequences in the past and present do an amazing job of taking you through the location and era where the show is set as if you were actually driving through, flying over or watching a documentary of an era. These are ten opening titles from tv shows that painted the perfect picture of their settings with amazing shots and perfectly chosen music that has that certain place’s roots all over it and could be seen as a commercial endorsing them. Ready to travel with me?

15. Star Trek The Next Generation.

The second installment of the Star Trek franchise really took us where no one has gone before. Whenever I see it I really do feel like I somehow ended up in space and could touch the planets with my hands. The amazing visuals of space was jaw dropping for the time and the effects could actually compete with anything made today. The voice over by Patrick Stewart only enhances the gravitas of the whole thing.

14. WKRP In Cincinnati.

“Baby, if you ever wondered”… Wondered if there was ever a better representation for both the town of Cincinnati and the world of radio that has always been an essential part of all of our lives. The song itself is iconic and a favorite of many classic tv fans but we can’t forget the amazing look at Cincinnati with shots showing the simple beauty of it.

13. Luke Cage.

Harlem has never looked so beautiful as it does in Luke Cage’s opening credits. It has that Rocky\Philadelphia feel to it and that beat screams Harlem. It also earns cool points for being one of the few actual opening title sequences\theme songs in this decade since that part of Tv is a lost art nowadays.

12. Living Single.

Brooklyn life is in full force in the opening to Living Single. The dancer in silhouette in the background just gives it that extra something that gives this opening so much flavor and the urban feel of 1990’s Brooklyn. This really took us to a 90’s kinda world with a great group of six upscale friends.

11. Happy Days.

The Happy Days opening a perfect view of the average life of 1950s American teenagers from the Midwest. The clothing, letterman jackets, Arnold’s, The Fonz’s bike and leather jacket and the jukebox are huge pieces of 1950’s Americana. It’s impossible not to smile and feel nostalgic even if you weren’t born in that period. Garry Marshall and co definitely took us back in time with this intro.

10. Night Court.

Nothing quite says the night life of Manhattan like the opening credits of Night Court. The eccentric types of characters from different backgrounds shown are the same types that appear in Judge Harry T. Stone’s courtroom every night. The great scenery of urban night life goes so beautifully with that amazing, sax heavy theme tune.

9. The Odd Couple.

Besides the soothing and catchy theme tune and the iconic narration by William Woodson, The Odd Couple’s opening sequence with split screens of Oscar and Felix in their daily routines of course being opposite just adds to the great energy of the whole thing. Great scenery of New York, including at the end with Oscar and Felix doing the pole dance along with a crowd at Central Park.

8. Becker.

Just a typical day for Dr. Becker walking around The Bronx passing by the every day folks who inhabit it. The opening really gives you The Bronx and all its working class and multi cultural glory set to a great jazzy tune and very unique graphics.

7. Good Times.

The inner city life of 1970s Chicago was introduced to television viewers for the first time with this opening, ending perfectly with a great painting of the Evans family. For anybody whose never been to the Chicago ghetto it was a safe tour guide and for anyone who grew up there it was like you were back home.

6. The Equalizer.

You may have seen the movies with Denzel and heard of the CBS reboot with Queen Latifah, but it all started with Edward Woodward as the cool, deadly and sophisticated in that oh so English gentleman way Robert McCall busting butts in the mean, dirty streets of New York and this amazing opening sequence with a monster theme tune composed and written by The Police’s Stuart Copeland. This opening so perfectly captures the seedy underbelly of that very gritty and wild wild west era of the 1980s New York and the Grey Knight Robert McCall coming out of the shadows to set things straight. That image of McCall in front of his Jag with that mean look is truly one of the most iconic images in television history.

5. Dallas.

What Dallas did for the city of Dallas was like what the Rocky movies did for Philadelphia, what Spike Lee movies did for Brooklyn or what Hawaii Five-O and Magnum PI did for Hawaii. The opening titles showed off Dallas in all its glory from Cowboys Stadium to some gorgeous shots of some fields and the city itself. That epic music to go with all the amazing scenery just screams “DALLAS!”

4. The Wonder Years.

I don’t know if there’s ever been a more perfectly nostalgic opening credits sequence than The Wonder Years’ which feels like opening a time capsule of the late sixties and early seventies. We are watching this family, the Arnold family in this home video format and recognize our own families no matter which decade you were born and raised in. The iconic theme music “With A Little Help From My Friends” couldn’t have been a better fit either.

Maybe even better is the opening credits from the final two seasons that serves as a wonderful montage of the early 70’s.

3. The Sopranos.

Much like Dallas, nobody repped New Jersey like The Sopranos did in its opening title sequence. There’s something so unbelievably cool about driving along with Tony Soprano through Jersey on his way home with that classic theme “Woke Up This Morning” playing. It’s a simplistically brilliant opening skillfully blending both of Tony’s worlds: The drive home represents this every day family man coming back from a long day, and the lyrics to the song is “You woke up this morning, got yourself a gun. Your momma always said you’d be the chosen one.” Is basically Tony telling his life story as a mob boss. Seeing Tony drive through New Jersey, his hometown says all we need to know about who he is and what the show is about.

2. Miami Vice.

Miami Vice was so 80’s it hurts, and the opening credits sequence screams 80’s as well as specifically 80’s Miami, Florida especially with the visuals of Miami Beach, the ocean, palm trees, and Flamingos. The fast pace shots and colors are also stunning and gives us a real music video vibe. Miami Vice made Miami the hottest place to be and this opening is the perfect tour guide anyone would ever need.

1. Hawaii Five-O.

Right around the time Hawaii Five O came to be, it was just made the 50th state and wasn’t as popular yet. That all changed when Hawaii Five O came out the gate and that intro alone sold Hawaii to the public. The music of course became so iconic it was played at beach parties for years but the real star is the opening sequence itself with a fantastic tour guide of Hawaii with exciting shots of some of the hot spots and a great music video quality that didn’t exist in 1968. The best part, however is at Jack Lord’s credit when he pulled that classic, smooth as silk turn and faces the camera. If you never wanted to go to Hawaii before you will after seeing this sequence.

I hope you enjoyed this little tour through these amazing locations and time periods as much as I did. The best atmospheric opening titles are the ones that really capture the setting and make it feel like we’re right there. That’s all folks!