What’s in an intro?

They say that the opening line of a book is the most important in setting the context. When I think of this, one opening line always pops into mind. “It was the best of times, it was the worst of times”, from the Tale of Two Cities is etched into my mind. This holds true for the opening scene of a movie too. Think the wedge shape of the Imperial Star Destroyer slowly traversing the screen, chasing the miniscule Blockade Runner in Star Wars A New Hope. Yet it was only till recent that it struck me that while the opening credits of tv series help set tone and context of what follows, this has undergone quite an evolution over the years. The way we consume these shows have also left their mark. Modern day streaming platforms with their skip intro option have completely rewritten the plot for the intro mechanic.

While growing up I watched a lot of American television serials that were broadcasted on Aramco. These were shows that had been created between the 70’s to the 80s. The format of these tv shows usually meant that each episode was a standalone story. In the good old times of cable tv (before the streaming wars kids), people were often dropped into whatever episode they happened to chance upon while channel surfing (do folks do that these days?). This meant that there needed to be some way in which to tease the premise of the show. If the story did happen to be a two part continuation, you would be treated to a quick recap edit of what had aired previously to get people up to speed. But what really stands out about this era’s story telling is how they used their words to set the episode up. Some of the most memorable ways to achieve this was crafting a tv jingle that became a earworm. Something that you couldn’t get out of your head.

A quick trip down memory lane and I plucked three examples. The intro song of the Brady Bunch which sets the backstory of how two people with three children each get together to form a family. Jump ahead ten years and you have the intro for the tv series Charles in Charge starring Scott Baio as a nanny. Listen carefully to the intro theme song and it sets enough context about what the story is about and the role of the main character. The theme song for the original Fall Guy series that starred Lee Majors helps whet your appetite just enough, while clearly. The most recent application of this approach that I can think of is the theme song for the sitcom Friends.

The Brady Bunch Intro

Charles in Charge Intro

True a jingle wasn’t the only way to go. Sometimes a few short sentences sold the story. Whether it was that of Jessie Marks, an ex motorcycle cop injured in the line of duty who takes up the mantle of Street Hawk, or Michael Knight as the Knight Rider – the shadowy flight into the dangerous world of a man who does not exist. Or you could do away words entirely and rely on catchy theme song with a montage of key moments from the serial. This holds true for the likes of Magnum P.I., Airwolf, MacGyver. Or just the few notes that kick of any episode of Frasier.

The above approaches do still hold true today. Though we do now have more artsy themed intros as well. Made possible with advances in computer generated imagery with a haunting melody. Intros that look artistically aesthetic that try to give you just a hint of the overarching theme. Think the likes of the intro for Silo or West World or Daredevil. They all follow a similar theme. These are nice to watch once with a similar haunting melody. But doesn’t really provide much reason for you not to hit the notorious skip intro button (which is some services auto toggles) after you’ve watched it once.

Which makes me wonder, will we ever see a renaissance of the witty kind of tv intro? The genre that it could most probably make a comeback in would be the sitcom.