How To Start an Anime - The Art Of the First Episode 

Update on the Crunchyroll URL - I've been told that it still works despite the "expired" message, but it has been scaled back to a 14 day trial for now. You will still be supporting the channel by signing up using www.crunchyroll.com/basement, though!

Kirito and Klein? oh you mean *__*

Klein, a character too good for sword art online.

the colossal titan moment was so brilliant, that roughly 8 episodes later, when it happened again, i first mistook it for symbolism, immediately followed by almost violent disbelief.

The horror of the first episode of Sao didn’t prepare me for the horror of the second arc

The promised neverland One of the single best first episodes that manages to carry the momentum for the whole season

why did i wake up naked with a revolver by the white house?... Best sentence i have heard all day

Bro, you seriously need to add some sort of text for every clip of anime you use in the bottom left torvwhateverhat says what anime is currently on the screen.

That SAO first episode reminds me of how much WASTED POTENTIAL that show had. If someone did that concept right, I'd watch the shit out of it. But nope, we've gotten to the point where "another world" anime has gotten so oversaturated where it'd be blasphemy to try this concept again but better

And then there is Baccano, which just kinda does its own thing.

AoT Episode 1 was just *GOD LIKE* for me. I didn't know crap about it when I started nor ever heard of it, But that episode ending and also through out the whole episode I was so interested throughout the scenario and how things are happening.

Don't forget Death Note... one of the best first episodes ever

"Why did I wake up naked with a revolver next to the white house?"

Is it weird that I teared up at the Yu Yu Hakusho part without even having seen the show? I feel like people are gonna say it's more weird that I've never seen the show actually.

Code Geass had an amazing first episode. Got me hooked instantly

Fortunately after watching SAO's first episode, I said, "Wow! That was really good! I can't wait to see where it goes from here!" and then never got around to watching episode 2.

I think Death Parade had a great first episode, it had a self contained story, but it leaves us wanting more

Now that you've talked about the first episodes what about the last? What was the most satisfactory or deserving end to a story for you?

I'd argue Saitama's "Oh shit" moment was waking up from his dream. We saw him one-shot vaccine man, and the giant dude, which makes it seem like he's too powerful and he's bored and a bit depressed by it. But then, the invasion comes. And with the first watch through, you've got no idea it's actually a dream. All at once it seems like a bunch of really strong villains are flooding in and this guy whose been depressed about no fulfillment is suddenly going to find it in this horrible future. The invasion of the Subterraneans actually seems like the -oh shit- moment. And you don't get just HOW truly sad and depressed he was, until you see how elated he is at basically the end of the world. It's not his fault, so we don't feel disgusted or anything at Saitama being excited. Quite the opposite. The world really needs a hero, and he really wants to be one, and he's strong enough to get the job done, and we're happy he exists. We see him in a state of absolute elation and fulfillment and happiness and kicking ass 8 ways to Sunday. It's not just everything HE wants in his life. It's everything WE want, for him and ourselves, in his show. And then he wakes up. That's the -oh shit- moment. That's when the show says: "No, the world isn't going to come under attack by thousands of strong villains that will push Saitama to his limits." Villains are just too weak compared to Saitama, and there's no getting around that. And suddenly you feel exactly the same way Saitama does. He's depressed because he really wants an intense fight, and he knows he'll never get that. And now you're depressed because you saw this character you really like super happy and kicking ass and everything you want to see from a show - and now the shows made clear that YOU'LL never get that. And that all happens in the span of time it takes to shut off an alarm.

I watched Sao abridged so often that i was surprised when he didnt say "Kirito and Balls"

The "Oh shit!" moment is by far the most effective for me. I get bored very fast, so I'm constantly looking for anime that can effectively grab my attention in the first episode.

I think My Hero Academia has a really strong first episode. Even if you don't like shonen those first 2-3 episodes are so captivating that you just want to know what's going to happen to Deku.

I'd say Assassination Classroom has probably the best opening episode. You start out with a large amount of confusion through a firing squad at a calm teacher, then proceed to sort this out, finishing up with why you should like all of the characters.

AOTs first episode is how an Anime’s first episode should be done

Soul Eater, Shingeki no Kyojin, Hunter x Hunter, and promised neverland have been the anime/manga that were able to hold all of my attention the whole series and manga. (I have a really short attention span)

I was hyped with SAO's first episode. I had no idea what I was watching and took the bait. But, then the rest happened.

Don't know why people are in denial about the first episode of SAO being good. If it wasn't then you literally wouldn't know that the rest of the series was shit bc you wouldn't have watched it. There's a reason I couldn't bring myself to even get past even the first episode of Asterisk War, lol.

"no, you don't have brain damage." great, i thought I'm hallucinating for a second there.

The best 1st episode I've ever seen is by far from To Your Eternity, there's no other first episode that has genuinely made me feel something like that.

When you don't know 90% of these animes.....

why did I wake up naked with a revolver next to the white house?...........i love you Eden of the east

I actuaally have 2 rules: -3 episodes rule and 8 episodes rule -The 8 is from my experience with Gurren Lagann

Well, The promised neverland is basically a big "oh shit" moment

I just realized: KADO episode 0 is normally animated, but when KADO arrives the entire art direction shifts to 3D. *The show literally gains a new dimension, in a show about higher dimensions! Mind Blown*

Death Note ep1 was the best for me and th ep2 just gave me "oh shit i gotta watch and finish this in like a day". That confontation between kira vs L set off one of the best cat-and-mouse game in human history.

Personally, I adore the first episode of Deadman Wonderland. I gives you a trio of interesting characters that you expect to be fleshed out in later episodes, and then throws them away while beautifully introducing the tone of the show. Good shit.

What About Anime's like Hunter x Hunter , like its one of the best animes I have ever seen, but its first episodes were really meh, until where you start getting some character development with leorio and kurapika and meet Hisoka and so on.

*mentions Yu Yu Hakusho. * *SCREAMS INTERNALLY WITH LOVE*

So Mother's Basement praised SAO, let me tell you guys that we should grab all our stuff, our pets and leave to a tall mountain because... THE END IS NIGH, THE END IS NIGH, Run the fuck away the THE END IS NIGH!

Attack on Titan, The Promised Neverland, and School Live had one of my absolute favorite anime first episodes

I like the 3 episode rule. It kept me watching My hero academia as the first episode bored me because it was cliche. Heck I'd say watch the whole first season especially if it's a long running shonen.

I actually cried the first time I watched Yu Yu Hakusho EP1. I mean dammit, I'd known the guy for all of 5 seconds he died, and I cried for him xd.

Klein should have been the main character of SAO. The show could have centered around him trying to lead his guild, building up his skills as both a player and a leader while trying to balance the disparate personalities of his companions. That would have been cool. Oh wait, they did that. It's called Log Horizon, and it's fucking awesome!

You know, I've always thought that a great first episode is vital to TV and anime in particular. And the 1 thing I noticed early on is that a good first episode should give you an expectation of what is to come. A weak first episode assumes that you will stick around and care, but a good first episode gives you a taste of the entire series in one episode. Will this be a show with lots of hooks? Give us a hook in the first episode. Will this be a show where the main character triumphs as an underdog? Give us a small taste of our main character triumphing over something, even if it's small. A good first episode gives us a taste of what we will experience throughout the series by creating a condenced story arc that gives us a smaller version of that.

I think Samurai Champloo has the best first episode in any anime I've seen. It really had a poetic way of setting the tone

I totally get the genre shift apeal. Whenever there is a really boring scene in a show I an silently thinking: "now is a good time for an alien invasion"

Yu yu hakusho is ridiculously fucking good and horribly underrated. For the love of god review it

Dear god, even just rewatching this little bit of Yu Yu Hakusho's first episode breaks me down once again... I still don't understand how it was actually aqble to make me not just cry, but fucking weep in the first episode! I don't even cry that easily, but holy damn this one got me.

I realize this video was from 5 years ago, so many-a-anime have came out since... but the best episode BY FAR for me has probably been To Your Eternity. It didn't just leave me with one emotion but I felt so many different things after just a 21 minute episode. THAT'S how you start a series. Just tragic and beautiful.

"School-Live!", *Oh Shit* the anime.

Fine fine fine, I get it... I will check out Kado, lol.

It's stunning how an anime can make you tear up just by seeing clips from the first episode. Plastic Memories is still up there with Clannad and Kanon.

11:30 Teachers: This question is worth 50% of your grade

Phantom blood does a good job establishing the long time rivalry between the Joestar family and Dio, even though part 1 is the weakest of the 4 I feel it had the best first episode of the Jojo anime

Yu yu hakusho first anime to make me cry in the first episode. Thank you for your wonderful video.

your videos are really entertaining and in a lot cases educating. your mannerisms and your vocabulary sadly reminds me a lot of an old friend, who didn't exactly treat me nicely at times. so watching your videos are kinda helping me remove those bad memories from this kind of content and the kinda person you are, so thanks

9:55 now that’s a smooth transition

There's something about CG anime that just kind of makes my skin crawl, like an uncanny valley effect in animation. Kado seems like an interesting show from the description you've given, though.

I really liked the first episode of Jojo for phantom blood, because it shows us the rivalry and the relationship between Jonathan and Dio, and got me interested on whats going to happen in the future.

It's insane how good this RU-vid channel is. Singlehandedly got me back into anime.

The Promised Neverland has a fantastic first episode

Bro the sad Yu Yu song forces me to tear up every time.

Osomatsu-san, they did a really great job to kept our attention with this "sequel" of an old anime and with all theses references and parody, they're fucking genius.

This video was really helpful. I'm an aspiring writer, animator, and a lot of other things and I've been mulling over a few ideas in my head for a while now. However, I've been struggling to construct a basis for how my "first episode" would work. This video has given me second opinion on the subject, and I greatly appreciate it.

I really did NOT expect the "Oh Shit" moment! Adding it to my "Gotta Watch" list IMMEDIATELY!

I actually have to fully agree with you when it comes to SAO. The first episode honestly was pretty damn good. I saw the thumbnail and immediately knew you were going to bring it up.

i bet you aced all your essays back in high school and college.

thanks for shouting out gakko gurashii. i bingewatched it just now and, even with the big twist in the premis spolied, i was still shocked by some of the events and it truly was an emotional ride that i'd reccomend to anyone else

I love the first episode of Akatsuki no Yona, the “oh sh**” moment at the end had me hooked. You don’t see it coming at all, and it definitely changes the mood of the whole show from your classic princess shoujo to a more intense and meaningful show that isn’t quite shounen but far more than an average shoujo. I wish more people knew about it!

I just woke up, perfect timing

Jeff, you didn't spoil the first episide, crunchyroll did.

You actually hit the nail on the head with my favorite episode 1 of an anime, because it’s Yu Yu Hakusho. It’s so dang good, and the fact that Yusuke has a small, but complete, character arc right away sets him up as one of my favorite protags if all time.

6:00... mate that almost got me just from you describing it... you're hooking me on these shows rn lmao

So, what Anime do you think has the strongest first episode?

How To Start An Episode - Long Answer: Mother's Basement Video Short Answer: The OP

God, The moment the music from the wake and Kuwabara punching the picture is al it takes for me to start watering up in the eyes.

Tokyo Ghoul with Unravel at the end of first episode definitely is one of the best pilot episodes

To be fair, Wes Anderson totally does that insane exposition dump and nametag thing at beginning of The Royal Tenenbaums. And makes it work.

This is a great video! I'll definitely keep this in mind while writing the show I'm developing!

I like the way you put the anime music in the background!

The moment you said yusuke you had my attention, best anime ever just for the sheer level of snark I've never seen a better blend of battle shounen and comedy

My rule of thumb is the Avatar: The Last Airbender rule. If your main character doesn't have a goal or modus operandi by the end of the second episode, it's not a well-paced show.

I really hope he does more episodes like this deconstructing story telling in series. Would love to see follow up episodes on doing successful middles and ends too!

i legit teared up in joy when you chose yyh as the example for an amazing first episode. its my favorite show of all time and whenever i get people to watch it, they are ALWAYS immediately interested just by watching that first episode! I'm so glad you agree :)

Well i am proud of myself when I watched every anime was shown here

In my opinion the best first episode I`ve seen would be the first ep of FMA 03. The reveal of Ed`s are at the end was so stunning.

The first episode of Yu Yu Hakusho has to be one of the best. Even if seen as a stand-alone work, it has a thoughtful, comprehensive plot that is accessible to just about anybody.

ive been watching youre vids for a while now and you almost always make.good points keep up the good work great video

I remember berserk from 1997 really got me interested in it`s first episode. So much mystery and questions that got you wanting more.

Seriously, we must shine more light on YYH , it ties with FMAB as best anime ever for me , people deserve this show and we must spread it far and wide . Yu Yu Forever 🤘

Great content and great shirt keep up the great work

Literally when I clicked on this I thought “YYH has a phenomenal first episode and got me into anime in general”, so to see it mentioned so quickly in this video does my heart good.

Unfortunately Kado has pretty much become the greatest tranwreck of the season.

Aot had a really *good* first episode

Thank you for this magnificent episode

thanks boss i was searching through darkness to blast my manga from the start but the first episode wasn't good enough and after seeing this i got all my answers i have been searching for the last few months thank u sooo sooo much man ! u earned ur self a new subscriber !!!

I always feel like I'm the only one who's favorite episodes are usually the first ones. I just feel that's when the show focuses the most on it's core concept and characters without a lot of complicated plot to get in the way. I therefore also like filler episodes because they have that as well.

Too bad Kado had to go in the deus ex machina direction

Love the eden of the east shoutout, my favorite first half to an anime

Oh man that first part you said I can relate to so much.. I’m in the midst of making a rpg game mostly because I wanna play a story thru it, but I have so many characters and ideas for parts of it that I want to just throw in right now ! It’s very difficult to show restraint and wait to introduce new characters and ideas as the game drags on.